Team players are precious in all team sports. They don’t care about the statistics or whether they make the highlight-reel play. They care about doing what puts their unit and their team in position to succeed.
In the sport of football, defensive players with a team-first mentality don’t care about making the sack or the big hit. They care about shaping plays in ways which will stop the opposing offense. If they occupy two linemen so that the linebacker can come in and finish the tackle, they’re happy. If they plug a gap so that the running back has to bounce outside into the arms of a separate nearby defender, they’re happy.
Whatever it takes to help the team.
Kyon Barrs, who is expected to be the starting nose tackle for USC this year, is comfortable being that team player who puts his teammates in position to make plays.
“I feel like here, they’re kind of asking me to do more movement,” Barrs said. “I can move to the opposite A-gap or move to the outside. Just different movements really, and if I need to plug the holes, I’ll plug the holes.”
Lincoln Riley said this to 247Sports about Barrs:
“Kyon, obviously another guy that we had had experience playing against and obviously studying him in the league, we thought he was one of the more explosive interior defensive linemen in the league,” said Riley. “And had a few years of pretty good tape that showed up.”
One year of good tape at USC is what the Trojans need from this team-first player.
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