CHAPEL HILL – North Carolina tight ends coach Freddie Kitchens met with the media after practice Wednesday to discuss his unit, Mack Brown’s staff, how much he likes coaching in college, and more.
Kitchens was hired by Brown last winter and brought a great deal of experience to the staff. He played quarterback at Alabama in the late 1990s, has coached at three SEC schools, and with four NFL teams. He was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns in 2019.
Above is video from Kitchens’ Q&A session, and below are a few notes from what he had to say:
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*Kitchens told his room when he arrived that any players not willing to block at a high level will not play. He inherited a tight ends room that has three possible future NFL players in John Copenhaver, Kamari Morales, and Bryson Nesbit.
Kitchens likes what he saw from his group’s blocking in the Tar Heels’ 31-17 win over South Carolina this past Saturday in Charlotte.
“I think that needs to become the constant, and that’s not celebrated but expected. That’s the direction we’re moving toward in that group, and hopefully that carries into other areas. You know, football’s a tough game played by tough people, and it doesn’t have to be in the run game, it can be in the pass game as well. The way you catch the ball, the way you run after the catch, the way you go about your business every day.”
*With that, an expressed are of emphasis by the different tight ends has been blocking down in tight situations, in particular Nesbit. Is he pleased with the group in that respect, and how much progress has Nesbit made there?
“It’s an every day process of getting better each and every day. We like to talk about being Tuesday football and Wednesday football, and during those days, we’re trying to get better and we’re worried about ourselves…
“Bryson is not unlike the others. He’s expected to do a job each and every play. He’s held accountable to that. And he’s been doing a good job of trying to get that done and understanding his weaknesses and trying to focus on getting better with his weaknesses and adding to his strengths.”
*Each of the three tight ends was targeted three times with three receptions against the Gamecocks, so was Kitchens pleased with that?
“Yes, I am pleased they were efficient with their production, but still in that we could do some thing that are better, and we’re going to get better this week…
“As far as you guys seeing the production is dictated on the opportunity, and we were fortunate enough to get those opportunities. They did their job by taking advantage of those opportunities. I don’t necessarily worry about the opportunities, it’s what we do with the opportunities, and we were very efficient with that.”
*Kitchens said not having Tez Walker and Nate McCollum last weekend affected his unit, noting that have game-breaking players like them only helps everyone else on the field, Walker in particular. He also said he looks forward to seeing that “when we get him back,” referring to Walker.
*Brown has said a couple of times this might be the best coaching staff he has put together. Given Kitchens’ range of experiences, he has a unique ability to get a full gauge on what kind of staff this is. So far, it’s getting high marks.
“Me personally, you judge a staff on how they work together, first. Does the offense help the defense, does the defense help the offense, does the offense and defense help special teams? I think this staff does and excellent job of doing that.”
Kitchens said that has been missing at times on different staffs he’s been a part of.
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