When you primarily play in a nickel scheme, with just two linebackers, you are putting a lot of responsibility weight on the middle of that defense. There is not a lot of margin for error. The two need to work in unified motion, thought, and production. Reading the offense correctly is mandated. That is the life of the Wake Forest linebacking unit.
Replacing Leadership and Productivity
Last year the linebacker room knew they had Ryan Smenda to rely on. The fifth-year senior was not just the leader of the positional group, but one of the leaders of the entire defense. He finished the season with 117 tackles, including 25 for a loss. His weeks are now spent in a Los Angeles Rams uniform. While losing that kind of individual stewardship is never easy, the 2023 linebacker room has every chance to be just as good as last year’s.
His linebacker tag team partner Chase Jones returns for 2023, having started every game last season. All Jones did in 2022 was finish second on the team in tackles with 74. He also had at least one tackle for a loss in seven games during the season. That makes him the inherent leader of the linebacker group now, right? Jones told us it is more about the work as a unit than it is about who is doing the leading.
“It’s important whenever a big leader like Ryan leaves, it’s important not to try to become Ryan. You have to be yourself and be real in your own role. That’s what Ryan did and that is what I am trying to do now. It’s about getting along and working together well.”
Jones talked to us this week along with Dylan Hazen, who is going through Fall camp as the other starter.
Hazen Steps In
Hazen had a productive 2022 as a backup. He saw action in all 13 games and finished the season with 31 total tackles. Now he will be expected to play a much more significant role in the starting lineup. He says he is ready for the elevated status. “I expect us to be able to bring the defense together and make sure everyone is on the same page,” he said. “We need to make sure we communicate with everyone and make sure we are staying focused and staying locked in.”
He said replacing the productivity of someone like Smenda is not going to be done by one player. “One person can’t fill that gap. The linebackers as a unit need to come together and fill that gap with multiple people.”
Head coach Dave Clawson reported this week that reserve linebacker Eldrick Robinson II will be out for the season. The third-year player suffered an Achilles injury at the beginning of the week in what was described as a non-contact drill. He played in four games in 2022 before missing the rest of the season with an injury.
The Bodies Are There
The depth at the position would seem to take a significant hit, but Clawson said he is pleased with the performance of others during camp, in addition to his two starters. “I think Jacob Roberts, (the transfer from North Carolina A&T), is a really good football player,” Clawson said earlier this week. “I think Quincy Bryant is very much improved. Aiden Hall, as a freshman, has picked things up quickly. It’s a good thing he was here in the Spring. I think he is a guy who is going to play for us.”
Hazen and Jones agreed on the performance of Hall. The 6-2, 217-pound freshman from Pleasant Grove, AL was an early enrollee and that extra time has made a difference according to the two veteran linebackers. “To come in as an 18-year-old and learn the defense as fast as he has and make the type of plays he’s making, he’s so much farther ahead than I was at that point in my freshman year,” Jones told us.
The dynamics between Hazen and Jones clarify when you interview them together. Hazen is very open and easygoing in his comments on any question asked. Jones is much softer spoken and measured. Yet when they were together for part of our interview, there is clearly a little deference from Hazen towards the more seasoned veteran leader, even waiting for Jones to answer some of the questions first.
Different Styles With One Goal
Jones is clearly the head of the linebacker unit, based on seniority and past performance. And with five guys filling two positions his guidance is key to positional success this season. So we asked Hazen, one-on-one, what kind of leader Jones is. “Chas is more on the quieter side,” Hazen said. He even lowered his voice when answering as if to emphasize the stylistic difference with what they had from Smenda. “But when he speaks up it means a lot and everyone listens.”
When we had the two of them together, we asked Jones, not what he thought his leadership style was, but what others would say about him. “Leadership by example, if I had to guess,” Jones said. That was quickly followed by his own question. “Is that what Dylan said?” Gratified by our confirmation, he said he was just trying to stay true to his personality. “When I think there is something wrong, I need to say something. But I don’t want to just be constant noise in the background to the point where people are going to tune me out.”
Any success the middle of the defensive unit has is going to rely heavily on Hazen and Jones. The two of them seem to be in sync with each other. Now, as Jones said, it is about making sure the rest of the group joins in the effort.
Photo courtesy: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports
