Jaohne Duggan seeing reps with the ones on the DL for Rutgers
Rutgers nose guard Jaohne Duggan feels his time is now.
And he might be onto something.
The 6-foot-1, 295-pound redshirt sophomore received the bulk of the first team reps in the spring and started with the ones in the Scarlet-White game, but that came with an asterisk as last year’s starter, Julius Turner, sat out due to an injury.
But in training camp, and with Turner back and playing, Duggan has started to see more action with the first team of late.
“Camp’s going well, man. I’m just trying to adjust to certain things. I’m running with the ones and twos right now trying to get everything down mentally. I’m attacking the day,” Duggan told TKR.
Attacking the day seems fitting as defensive line coach Corey Brown has seen just that from Duggan -- effort and aggressiveness.
“I would really say it started with his effort,” Duggan said. “He’s a guy who took (that) to heart. He’s been showing up in regards to running to the ball. That’s big. From there, he’s playing more physical and disciplined with his hands and disciplined for what we ask from our nose guards. He’s been more accountable and we’re going to keep leaning on him and keep pushing him too. He played sparingly last year and he continues to grow.”
Duggan was asked about his effort and he talked about what he’s showing the coaches out on the practice field.
“Basically, I’ve been just trying to improve my game and hustling,” Duggan said. “I’m running to the ball and trying to produce and make plays. I constantly try to give great effort and attack the ball.”
As Brown mentioned, Duggan did get some playing time last season as he appeared in nine games in a reserve role. He made four tackles along the way and the Bethlehem, Pa. native said that experience has paid off for him as he got a taste of college football.
“Last year, I played a little bit. The experience I got -- I took a lot from it,” Duggan said. “I got to see and feel the pace of the game. It helped me to understand what happens and what to expect.”
Whether he starts or not remains to be seen, but one thing is for sure, the Liberty High School product and former First Team Pennsylvania Football Writers Class 6A All-State Defense selection is ready and confident to show off his abilities in 2019.
“Yeah, I definitely feel like I can contribute. I’ve gotten a lot better and improved on my weaknesses and in all areas. I definitely feel like I can contribute this year.
I feel like this year is my breakout year to really contribute on the team. I’ve been here for a few years, I have some experience now, so I feel like it’s time for me to contribute when it’s game time.”
If you scroll through Duggan’s Twitter account, in recent weeks, he’s put up some motivational-like tweets. They circle back to him feeling like he’s ready to step up to the plate and hit a home run.
He’s also talked about the brotherhood, especially on defense, and that this year will be a lot different than the Scarlet Knights’ 1-11 season in 2018.
“As a whole, we have to play together,” Duggan said. “As a brotherhood, we’ve come together a lot. It’s better this year. We have to play with great effort, attack the ball each down, and be aggressive and fast.”
Follow Chris Nalwasky on Twitter @ChrisWasky.