8/6/2024 football Edit

Q&A with Rutgers Football Defensive Tackle Kyonte Hamilton

Gyan Gautam and Richie O'Leary

Rutgers.Rivals.com

Rutgers Football defensive tackle Kyonte Hamilton is all set for his final season on the banks as he enters his fourth training camp.

He spoke with the media following practice to talk about his time at Rutgers, being one of the older guys, how the defensive line is adjusting and much more.

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Q: How’s training camp going?

Kyonte Hamilton: It’s going pretty well, loving it, enjoying it day by day. [I’m] just trying to hone in on all my techniques and stuff. [I’m] trying to play really well this season, so trying to focus on it practice by practice, day by day.

Q: You have a new defensive line coach in Colin Ferrell, what’s that been like for you?

KH: He’s been great, he brings a lot of technical stuff to the table. He’s very good with just being able to work techniques, being able to get the d-linemen out, working moves, making plays, stuff like that. [He’s] very pushing, very motivated type of guy, he’s the engine of the d-line, so we definitely crowd around him and we’re behind him every step.

Q: What’s different about you this year as a player?

KH: Experience. I’ve been through it a couple of times. I’m just ready and really excited this year. I think the d-line is as tight as it’s been, I think we can be even tighter going through this training camp, but I think trying to be a leader of that room and being the older guy now, definitely having that experience is different for me, being able to go out there knowing that I’ve done this before, I know what I’m doing, I know the techniques, I know how I’m playing.

Q: Are you comfortable with your size and speed?

KH: Definitely, I feel like I can definitely move for the weight I’m at now, for the size I’m at now. I feel like I can still have my shifty movements, I’m still very agile, but I can play stuff better, double teams, I can be that Big Ten nose [tackle] in the middle, trying to hold it down, so I think I can do that really well now.

Q: Does it feel weird for you to be a veteran guy in that group?

KH: It definitely feels weird, it flies by. They say when it you get here, it’s going to go, so take the best of your opportunity. I ended up playing a little bit more freshman year, but it feels like I was just there, feels like I was just that new kid coming in the summer, trying to compete with the older guys. It definitely flies [by], but just trying to make the most of every day, make the most of this training camp, hanging out with the guys as much as I can, just trying to enjoy it because I know once this is over, I won’t get it back.

Q: Coach [Greg] Schiano has mentioned a few times this offseason about wanting to create more pressure with the defensive line, with four guys upfront. Do you guys as a unit feel like you are making steps towards that and being able to do that this season?

KH: Yeah, I think definitely with some of the scheme stuff and some of the ways Coach [Colin} Ferrell inputs, making sure we’re trying to get pressure. Some of the techniques we do now will definitely help us get there with four guys. I think we’ll definitely be better at that this year and have some pressure on the quarterback without having to send extra pressure. I feel like the depth of this defense is better too than last year. We have a lot of returning guys, a lot of experienced guys who will come back and continue to make a name for themselves and really be a star under the bright lights. We have some young guys who are definitely going to play well this year, some guys who will really step up and show up on the line.

Q: You’ve been here a long time, Kyonte, and this program has developed a lot since you’ve been here. Is it weird for you guys to hear the expectations that are on this team this offseason? People are talking about the College Football Playoff and all the things you guys can do on the outside. How do you feel hearing that as a player?

KH: Since I got here, from day one, the whole thing I was behind was building something here. I was [in] one of his [Schiano’s] first real recruiting classes, in that 2021 class, so from the start, it was always building something new and coming to this year, we don’t pay any mind to the media or put that in the wind. We’re just here trying to enjoy it day by day. As coach says, you’ve got to learn to just love to fish, we love to just be out here. So we’re trying to go day by day, trying to be the best we can every day, trying to be our better selves each and every day we step on the field. We’ll be ready when the season comes and we’ll be prepared to see how it goes.

Q: Do you feel like you’ve made progress in building the program? You said you wanted to come here and build something, do you feel like in the time you’ve been here, that the program has taken those steps?

KH: Definitely, I feel like we have a standard. We have a team that’s being player-led that the leadership can guide and be in front of and take it to new heights, new levels, we’ve just got to keep the standard the standard.

Q: You’re one of the guys that didn’t have the COVID year or the redshirt year, do you feel like you got cheated with that extra year?

KH: Sometimes I look back and I wish I had the extra year, but taking those big ten reps is a lot of weight on your body so I’m kind of happy just to get the four [years] and out. I would have loved to have an extra year here. It’s a great place, great team, great camaraderie, but I’m happy with the journey I’ve had. I’ve made the most of it every step of the way, and I’m happy to have had it the way that I’ve had it.

Q: The new college football video game came out for the first time in ten years, have you played it? Do you agree with your rating?

KH: Yeah I've played it. I don’t think anybody agrees with their rating, everybody thinks they should be a 99. I’m just excited to be in it, honestly, it was a dream to me as a kid. It’s always been a dream to make it to the next level in football, so that I’ve done it now, of course it’s really exciting, it’s been very cool.