Jeremiah Trotter Jr. – Page 6 – Syndication Server

Trotter after Miami win: ‘This defense has definitely taken a step forward in the right direction’

Sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. has established himself as a firm leader in Clemson’s defensive unit after his second consecutive game of leading the team in tackles. Trotter, who has been playing the Mike position this season, has …

Sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. has established himself as a firm leader in Clemson’s defensive unit after his second consecutive game of leading the team in tackles.

Trotter, who has been playing the Mike position this season, has emphasized to the media that he is making a more conscious effort to be a vocal leader on the defense, which is something Clemson seemed to be missing in the loss to Notre Dame just a few weeks ago. The New Jersey native shared with the media after Saturday’s 40-10 win over Miami what shifted for the defense after the loss to the Irish.

“Definitely the mentality, the work ethic and overall our technique has become a lot better as far as everybody making sure they are doing their job,” he said.

The 6-foot, 230-pounder added that the defense is progressing on an upward trend in the right direction at the most critical point of the season.

“I feel like this defense has definitely taken a step forward in the right direction,” he said.

With a reinvigorated mindset and some cleanup on technique, the Clemson defense had one of the most dominant performances of the season in the win over Miami on Saturday. The efficiency of Clemson’s run defense was on full display, holding Miami to just 8 total yards of offense in the first half.

Trotter, who came up with nine total tackles, continually applied pressure to the Miami offense, not allowing them to garner any momentum for the majority of the game. Trotter indicated that Clemson had been preparing for the run game of Miami all week, and evidently that preparation yielded good results for the Tigers on the field.

“That was definitely an emphasis point of our game plan, just stopping that quarterback run,” he said. “We knew No. 11 (Jacurri Brown) liked to run the ball, they liked to run the ball with No. 11 a lot with those QB counters, those QB draws. All during the week, coach was emphasizing that we got to stop that and basically turn our attention to stop that run.”

The Clemson defense held Miami’s offense to the third fewest yards in the program’s history, and Trotter believes that’s a direct reflection of the physicality the defense brought to the game.

“I feel like that just shows the type of game the defense played,” he said. “Stopping them and being able to get negative yards and tackles for loss, just being dominant the entire game.”

This week, with Trenton Simpson back in the linebacker corps alongside Barrett Carter and Trotter after being sidelined with an injury last week, Trotter shared that it felt good to be back in their normal groove and see the defense collectively play with such dominance.

“It was great having Barrett (Carter) out there, having Trenton (Simpson) out there after his injury,” he said. “And you know he was making plays, balling out, Barrett was balling out. I just feel like altogether the defense collectively, we all played very well.”

Orhorhoro on linebackers’ performance: ‘It means I’m doing something right’

Clemson defender Ruke Orhorhoro is doing all he can to help his team produce defensive success, even if it’s at the expense of his own stats. In the Tigers’ latest ACC win over Louisville, Wes Goodwin’s defense saw much-needed success after what was …

Clemson defender Ruke Orhorhoro is doing all he can to help his team produce defensive success, even if it’s at the expense of his own stats.

In the Tigers’ latest ACC win over Louisville, Wes Goodwin’s defense saw much-needed success after what was a disappointingly lackluster performance the week prior at Notre Dame.

With a pair of big performances for both Jeremiah Trotter Jr. and Barrett Carter out of the linebacker corps, Orhorhoro was more than happy to play a small part up front in their second-level success despite only picking up two tackles and a half tackle for loss of his own in the 31-16 win.

“It means I’m doing something right,” Orhorhoro said. “If I take up two, that means somebody’s coming free. I’ll take up two all day if my teammates get to eat behind me and just do what’s best for the team. It gives me a little satisfaction. When the play is there, I make it, but other than that, my linebackers do a great job with just flowing behind us, playing off of us and making us right.”

From the get-go, the defensive tackle knew it was going to be a big game for not just the linebacker pair, but the entire defense.

“Barrett hit a guy, I don’t know what play it was, but he just hit him, and it was loud, so I was like, ‘All right, this is going to be one of those games,’ and it was just hard hits across the board,” the veteran said. “JP [Jalyn Phillips] was hitting people left and right, Trotter hit the quarterback really hard, and I knew they were going to put together a good game. Barrett went crazy; after I saw him hurdle that guy, I didn’t even know what to say.”

Now with another ACC challenge in Miami on the horizon, Orhorhoro wants to keep the same mindset that led to their defensive success over the Cardinals — a mindset centered around playing free and having fun.

“It was fun just shifting the mindset,” Orhorhoro said. “We wanted to go out there and dominate and just play to the best of our abilities. We set a goal as a defense just to start playing free and not worrying about anything, but just let everything fall where it falls and that’s what we did. We went out there and played free, everybody played free, and it turned out pretty good, so hope we’re going to keep doing that these next couple of games.”

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Trotter on why the defense is prepared for Miami’s dual-threat QB

With an impressive win over Louisville last Saturday, Clemson’s attention is now to the next test against Miami. The Tigers’ defense had one of its best performances of the season last week and will look to continue that level of performance against …

Jeremiah Trotter Jr., who is quickly becoming a critical piece of Clemson’s linebacker corps, spoke to the media on Monday. The sophomore was quick to note that good preparation will be a key to success this Saturday. Despite Miami’s 5-5 record this season, Trotter shared that the defense’s mindset will be no different from any other matchup the Tigers have had so far this season.

“They have got athletes on the offense and that’s going to be a good challenge on the defense,” he said, “but I know the coaches’ game plan is going to be great and our preparation on the defensive side, and my preparation will be great to prepare me for Saturday.”

“I try to approach every opponent with the same mindset that if we don’t do what we’re going to do then we’re going to lose,” he added. “You have to approach every single game like we’re going into the National Championship game. If you don’t change that mindset, you’ll see you won’t play as well. So, we’re going to approach every game like that, and the coaches try to preach it to us as well about approaching every game like that.”

Miami starting quarterback Tyler Van Dyke was sidelined last week due to a shoulder injury, which meant the Hurricanes had to start a talented true freshman in Jacurri Brown.

In the win over Georgia Tech on Saturday, the dual-threat ability of Brown was on full display, which is something the Clemson defense will have to prepare to combat this weekend. Trotter noted that he believes the defense actually has an advantage, in that it has faced so many dual-threat quarterbacks at this point of the season, so he feels the Tigers will have a better grasp on what to expect and how to prepare for what Brown can bring.

“I feel like facing dual-threat quarterbacks all year helps us when we face another one, because you know how to game plan, how to prepare, but you still have to come with the right mindset,” he said. “He will cut you up, but facing quarterbacks like that all year has helped us out to keep facing them throughout the year.”

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Trotter on how position change has made him a more vocal leader

Clemson linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. has become a more vocal leader this season playing at Mike linebacker. Saturday, the sophomore played one of his best games as a Tiger when he led the team with 12 total tackles, seven solo tackles and 0.5 …

The linebacker spoke to the media on Monday and detailed the adjustment moving into the Mike position.

“It’s been a little bit of an adjustment as far as making the calls, and you have to talk a little bit more at the Mike position and really quarterback the defense, but overall like last year I still tried to work on that at the Will position, just talking and helping out the Mike linebacker when I had the opportunity,” he said. “I feel like that transitioned well going into this year and helped me being able to do that, it being a smooth transition.”

Trotter regards himself as a guy who usually plays within himself, and even going back to high school, he didn’t necessarily consider himself as someone who was a vocal leader, but he realizes that being a vocal leader is necessary for him at this point. The New Jersey native emphasized that college football is all about being able to adapt to the new opportunities and changes that arise and that’s exactly what he’s trying to do.

“I feel like it definitely is a change, because in high school I was a more lead-by-example type of guy,” he said. “I didn’t do too much talking, but coming into college football, I know you have to change up your style sometimes, you have to learn how to do something new. Being a leader at this level, you have to be able to talk to your teammates. You have to be vocal. Moving me into that Mike position definitely has helped with that transition and allowed me to be a more vocal leader.”

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Trotter on the defense: ‘You can see a change in mindset coming into this game’

After an uncharacteristic performance by the Clemson defense in the loss to Notre Dame just one week ago, a lot had to be reevaluated in terms of the physicality and motivation of defensive coordinator Wesley Goodwin’s unit. Throughout the season …

Throughout the season the defense has been hit by the injury bug and week after week, it seems that a different player is sidelined yet again. Prior to the game, it was announced junior linebacker Trenton Simpson would be out with an undisclosed injury.

Coming into the game, the question remained as to how the other linebackers and the defense as a whole would perform despite the absence of some key starters.

However, players like sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. stepped up in a big way. Trotter spoke to the media after the 31-16 win over Louisville and explained that the performance against the Cardinals was a direct reflection of the energy the team brought to practice all week.

“I definitely saw it throughout the week,” he said. “The leaders and older guys of the defense and the offense were stepping up in practice. We had great energy and definitely you can see a change of mindset coming into this game.”

The difference in the defense’s performance over Louisville versus Notre Dame, was not only the team’s energy in the week leading up to the game, but also the simple execution of the plan put in place. Trotter emphasized that the defense was on the dot when it came to executing the game plan this week.

“Really just a great game plan by the coaches, nothing specifically, but we just executed the game plan very well this week,” he said. “I feel like it showed.”

Clemson’s first turnover on Saturday came when Trotter was able to knock the ball loose from Louisville running back Tiyon Evans’ possession. The fumble was then recovered by Clemson safety Jalyn Phillips. Trotter reflected on how it felt to have that kind of performance at this point in the season.

“It definitely feels good to have a game like that,” he said.

The linebacker also expressed the importance of coming together as a unit and assisting Barrett Carter in his transition into playing the box. With Simpson such a dynamic and agile player on the Clemson defense, it was a team effort to instill the confidence in Carter to play into his new role on the field.

“With Trenton out and Barrett coming into a new position he hasn’t played yet, we definitely try to talk him through and help him out,” Trotter said, “and I feel like he really prepared well throughout the week and it showed today.”

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What We Heard: Jeremiah Trotter Jr.

Picking up a well-deserved accolade after Clemson beat Florida State 34-28 this past weekend, sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr. earned his first career ACC weekly award when he was named ACC Linebacker of the Week. A position that was in …

A position that was in question coming into the season after the losses of James Skalski and Baylon Spector seems to be doing just fine, and some think this year’s linebacker group may even be faster and more athletic overall. Trotter totaled a career-high 13 tackles in Saturday’s game and was a huge help in getting Clemson the win at FSU.

When the fourth quarter crept around, the Seminoles quickly closed the large gap the Tigers had built with a couple of fourth-quarter touchdowns. As a main focus this week, Trotter said, “Our defensive leaders have been preaching to make sure we close out games, and keep our foot on that gas pedal all the way throughout the whole game.”

On what went wrong, Trotter added, “We missed assignments fitting gaps wise, and then our tackling as well is something we’ll make sure we focus on this week and get better at.”

Looking ahead to this weekend’s game against 14th-ranked Syracuse, the Tigers have a pretty strong schedule this season, and the ACC as a whole is proving itself as a conference. After past years of being overlooked, Trotter is happy that the ACC is getting some recognition and showing “it’s not just a walk through the park.”

Syracuse comes with a highly physical quarterback, Garrett Shrader. On how to deal with Shrader and his running ability, Trotter said, “You definitely have to make sure you wrap him up… get as much body on him as possible, so he doesn’t run through your arms.”

It’ll be a packed stadium in Death Valley this weekend as the Tigers take on the only other undefeated ACC team for their homecoming game. Kickoff is set for noon and the game will be televised on ABC.

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Clemson defense held players-only meeting this week

After an uncharacteristic performance at Florida State last Saturday, Clemson’s defense held a players-only meeting this week in order to get things straightened out on that side of the ball and make sure the unit is fully locked in ahead of …

According to linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr., Clemson defensive players called the meeting following the FSU game, during which the Tigers allowed two fourth-quarter touchdowns, missed 24 tackles and gave up 206 rushing yards — easily the most a Clemson defense yielding less than 63 on average coming in has given up all season.

“A bunch of the older guys, our seniors, are talking to us about it,” Trotter said Tuesday. “We had a player meeting that we talked about it, basically just within ourselves, trying to get this problem situated and trying to get it all solved before it gets bad later down the season. But we’re going to definitely handle it, and it’s going to be a situation that doesn’t come up again.”

Trotter — who collected ACC Linebacker of the Week and team defensive player of the game honors after racking up a career-high 13 tackles (one for loss) at Florida State — was asked who called the players-only meeting.

“I’d rather not say,” he said.

Kickoff for Saturday’s game between fifth-ranked Clemson and No. 14 Syracuse is set for 12 p.m. and will be televised on ABC.

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What We Heard: Jeremiah Trotter Jr.

This past Monday, sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter, Jr. spoke to the media following his first career interception as a Tiger and the anticipation of Clemson’s big road game versus Wake Forest this coming Saturday. Throughout his time with the …

Throughout his time with the media, Trotter spoke highly about his relationship with his father, Jeremiah Trotter, a former NFL player, and how much he helps him with the technical side of the game.

“We go play by play…” said Trotter with a smile “I usually go over the game film on Sunday, he’ll give me his pointers and technical stuff as far as what I could’ve done better.”

Even though Trotter had his first career interception against Louisiana Tech this past Saturday, his dad always believes there is room for improvement.

“He said it was a good play…he still criticized it though,” Trotter said with a laugh “but you know there is always stuff I can get better at”

Overall, his dad believed Trotter had a good game.

“He had pretty good input. He thought I played really good technically.,” Trotter said. “You know, just a little stuff that I could’ve done…being a little bit tighter on my blitzes coming off the line to get to the quarterback quicker… Overall, he thought I had a pretty good game.”

Heading into this weekend against Wake Forest, Trotter feels good overall about the way the defense has been playing as a unit and is just excited to get back on the field this Saturday against a great team.

“I thought that we have been playing very good, very technically sound.. doing what we are supposed to do as linebackers, so I think that it has been going very well,” said Trotter. “Definitely excited to face another great team, and to be able to challenge our defense this week, and prepare with a purpose to get ready for Wake Forest”

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Swinney has super high praise for two young linebackers

While talking about Clemson’s linebacker corps during an interview on ACC Network’s ACC Football Road Trip show in Tiger Town that aired Wednesday, head coach Dabo Swinney had super high praise for a couple of the Tigers’ young linebackers. One of …

While talking about Clemson’s linebacker corps during an interview on ACC Network’s ACC Football Road Trip show in Tiger Town that aired Wednesday, head coach Dabo Swinney had super high praise for a couple of the Tigers’ young linebackers.

One of those that Swinney raved about is Barrett Carter, a 6-foot-1, 225-pound sophomore and versatile member of the back seven who is classified as a linebacker but capable of playing all over the field.

A former five-star prospect from Suwanee, Ga., Carter is coming off a true freshman season last year in which he recorded 26 tackles (one for loss), a pass breakup and a fumble recovery he returned three yards for a touchdown in 179 snaps over 12 games (one start).

“Barrett Carter, he had a great freshman year,” Swinney said. “But this is my 20th season at Clemson, and I would put him as one of the top all-around football players that we’ve ever signed at Clemson — when I’m talking about a pure football player that could go play safety, could SAM, MIKE, WILL, could go play tailback for us. I mean, he is a beautiful football player – pure, and knows the game, instinctive.”

Swinney also lauded Jeremiah Trotter Jr., an NFL legacy and talented 6-foot, 230-pound sophomore.

The son of Jeremiah Trotter Sr., a four-time Pro Bowler who played 12 NFL seasons for the Eagles, Redskins and Buccaneers from 1998-2009, the younger Trotter enters 2022 following a true freshman 2021 season in which he notched 22 tackles (one for loss) and a sack while playing 59 defensive snaps and key special teams roles in 13 games.

Trotter Jr. was ranked as the No. 7 overall player in the nation by ESPN, including ranks as the nation’s No. 1 linebacker and the top player in Pennsylvania, coming out of St. Joseph’s (Pa.) Preparatory School.

“Jeremiah Trotter, he’s special. … Trotter, he’s as natural a linebacker as we’ve signed,” Swinney said. “Obviously his dad played a long time, pretty good player. But you notice him. He’s productive. Some guys have good performances – that guy’s productive. Every single scrimmage, every day, you notice Jeremiah Trotter.”

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Pair of Clemson defenders pegged as 2022 breakout candidates

Pro Football Focus recently published a list of 31 names to watch as breakout candidates for the 2022 college football season and pegged two Clemson defenders as players that could emerge as stars this fall. One of those is sophomore linebacker …

One of those is sophomore linebacker Jeremiah Trotter Jr., of course the son of Jeremiah Trotter Sr., a four-time Pro Bowler who played 12 NFL seasons for the Eagles, Redskins and Buccaneers from 1998-2009.

Trotter Jr. enters 2022 following a true freshman 2021 season in which he notched 22 tackles (one for loss) and a sack while playing 59 defensive snaps and key special teams roles in 13 games. He came on strong at the end of last season, tallying three tackles including the final stop on the Clemson 3-yard line to preserve a shutout at South Carolina before closing the year with six tackles against Iowa State.

“Trotter has high expectations due to being former NFL All-Pro linebacker Jeremiah Trotter’s son and a top-40 ranked recruit in the 2021 class,” PFF’s Anthony Treash wrote. “The 6-foot-1, 210-pound Tiger could reach those high expectations sooner rather than later while comprising one of the most talented linebacker rooms in the country. Trotter earned a 71.4 PFF grade across his 58 snaps as a true freshman in 2021, as he’s a heady player who plays in control and has the agility to avoid blocks. Trotter has the traits to be a playmaker in the run game, which he displayed on a limited sample in 2021 (earned a positive grade on over a third of his run defense snaps).”

PFF also named Clemson sophomore cornerback Nate Wiggins among the college football breakout candidates to watch.

An athletic corner rated as a four-star recruit by all major services and ranked as the No. 75 overall player in the nation by 247Sports coming out of high school, Wiggins recorded three tackles and three pass breakups over 130 snaps in 11 games as a true freshman in 2021.

“Clemson’s cornerback room is a bit murky heading into the fall,” Treash wrote. “It’s unknown who the top guys will be, and there’s a lack of veteran depth. On the bright side, Wiggins looks like a promising candidate to rise to the occasion. The 6-foot-2, 175-pound corner only played 128 snaps as a freshman in 2021 but impressed in that action with a pass breakup and just one catch allowed from seven targets.”