Marshall is best known for producing offensive players such as, Randy Moss and Chad Pennington. Vinny Curry wants to change this. The 2011 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year is rising on many NFL teams' draft boards because of a good showing at the Senior Bowl.
I recently interviewed Marshall’s defensive line coach, Fred Tate, regarding Vinny Curry’s collegiate career.
Denis Krusos: What do you think is Vinny’s greatest strength when rushing the quarterback?
Coach Tate: Vinny has great bend. He can dip and keep his pad level low. This provides him with leverage and that is his best attribute. He can maintain that low center of gravity.
Denis Krusos: What did you primarily work with him on as his position coach?
Coach Tate: The usual technique work, but more importantly teaching him to go 100% on every play. We should have spelled him more, but he was our best player and we needed him for 80 snaps. That is a lot of football. He matured over the years and gave us great effort.
Denis Krusos: Vinny produced a lot of forced fumbles in 2011, how did this come about?
Coach Tate: Some came from blind side hits on the quarterback, but they also were the result of hustle plays. He won the Rice game with extra effort. The running back wasn’t expecting a defensive end to chase him down the field and knock the ball loose from behind.
Denis Krusos: Were there any particular offensive tackles who gave him trouble?
Coach Tate: Not really. Vinny faced a lot of double-teams and chip blocks. Opponents knew they had to slow him down.
Denis Krusos: What type of person is Vinny?
Coach Tate: Vinny is the finest kid I ever coached. He does not get in trouble and is humble. He has been through a lot with family problems and he turned out to be a fine young man. Vinny had every reason to be a thug and a street kid with his background. He never fell into that trap. He made a lot of logical decisions and the right ones for him. He was a NCAA Division I non-qualifier out of high school. He did things the hard way and earned everything at Marshall. He will earn his degree and that is a great achievement from where he started.
Denis Krusos: How important is football to him?
Coach Tate: His mom passed away during the season. He has a real chip on his shoulder and the drive to succeed. Playing pro football is very important to Vinny.
Denis Krusos: How are his leadership skills?
Coach Tate: Vinny is quiet and leads by example. The effort he puts forth on the field is how he leads.
Denis Krusos: How were his practice and weight room habits?
Coach Tate: Vinny played so much during games and was almost reckless in his pursuit of the ball that we went easier on him during practice on Tuesdays. He needed the recovery time. His practice habits were good. Vinny did not miss weight-training workouts. He was competitive with the other players. If someone did 20 reps then Vinny would try to do 21.
Denis Krusos: What is your opinion of his ability to defend the run?
Coach Tate: He was a solid run defender because he is strong for his size. He does play pretty low and that helps.
Denis Krusos: How do you think Vinny would transition to being an outside linebacker in a 3-4 defense?
Coach Tate: The raw talent is there, but I think it would take some time. He does not have experience dropping into coverage. Everything is different. A 3-4 outside linebacker has to defend the run from a greater distance. There are more run-pass reads at outside linebacker. It is different fitting the run from a 2-point versus a 3-point stance. This is something his coaches would have to have a plan for and begin training him from day 1.
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