After a couple of fantastic practices, Ozzy Trapilo and Donovan Ezeiruaku finally met with the media for the first time on Wednesday down in Mobile, Alabama at the Reese's Senior Bowl.
Here's what both guys told one of the NEFJ guys we have down there this week during the brief media window after practice:
Ezeiruaku
On what a team would get if they drafted him
"They would be getting a dog, honestly. A person who is an ultimate competitor. A person that loves to win, but a great person at the same time. Someone who is very passionate, about great teammate and that's what a team will be getting."
On how he feels his skillset translates to the NFL
"I think my position is a premiere position right now in the NFL. It's a passing league, so if you know, someone in my position can do what I do, I think they have a spot in the NFL."
On if he was surprised by the season he had at BC
"Nah. I wasn't surprised. I put a lot of work in my entire career, but as well as the offseason, this past offseason. When prayer and hard work mix only positive things can happen from that."
On if the Green Bay Packers had talked to him and if he talked to Hafley
"Yeah, I talked to the Packers.(Hafley) wasn't there yet, but I'm sure I'll see him soon. But, if not here I'll see him at the combine."
More on Hafley's impact on his career
"Him and his staff, it wasn't just Coach Hafley as well, other assistants (pushed me to BC). Obviously, Boston College is a high academic institution, but they showed me how they were going to develop me into the player I wanted to become to reach my goals. So, that was very important for myself and my family, we trusted that...I played for him for three years. He's one of those coaches where their door is always open. He's not one of those coaches where you've got to set an appointment to go talk to him in his office. It speaks volumes for who he is as a person. He's a great coach. He knows football and he for darn sure knows defense...there was a couple people (in the meeting with Green Bay), I don't think the whole staff was there yet...I wouldn't mind (playing in Green Bay), but anywhere I go will be a perfect fit for me...it would be lovely to play for my college coach again, but it doesn't matter. It's just a blessing to be in this position and I;m blessed to get drafted in the NFL."
On where he's hearing he might go
"I have no idea. I don't really pay too much attention to that. I just kind of go out here and work."
On if he can play with someone like Abdul Carter
"I believe I'm the best pass rusher, defensive end and Edge in this class, in my opinion of course. He's a great player, but I don't want to compare myself to anybody because comparison is the thief of joy. So, I don't even do that."
On going against Ozzy in 1-on-1's
"I definitely didn't want to because I go against him every single day at BC, but it was good. I know what kind of player he is. He understands what kind of player I am, so it's always competition amongst us...I think my one-on-one's (as a whole) were really good today. I don't recall dropping a rep, so it's a solid day for me."
On what it's been like getting to this point
"It's been a journey for sure. A very exciting journey. This is something I've been dreaming about and writing down as one of my goals since I was seven years old. It's very, very, very exciting."
On taking another jump as a pass rusher this season (led the ACC in sacks with 16.5)
"Just remembering to go have some fun playing football. I feel like I kind of got away from that my junior year, but definitely had a lot more fun this past year. But, it was a hard offseason. Did some self-reflecting, obviously put a lot of work into it and then with the help of Coach O'Brien and Coach Lewis I was able to get it done."
On how he approaches pass rushing each rep
"Typically, I like to get a beat on him, a little attack on him first...in this setting, you don't really know...you've got to watch whatever you can to prepare in that sense. But, definitely just using my speed off the edge to set a lot of my moves up. This past week, I've been focused a little bit more on power rushes, just so I can work that into my game. I've been working on that from the end of the season up until this point. Definitely trying to show a little bit more, where I'm not just a speed guy off the edge. I can put some power in there as well."
On seeing guys from the Philly and Jersey area shine as well
"It's special. It's special. People hear Jersey football and they don't think it's a lot going on over there. But, it's a lot of guys coming out of South Jersey especially. Everybody hears about North Jersey, but a lot of guys come out that South Jersey area. It's really cool to see we're all at these spots like the (East-West) Shrine Bowl or the (Reese's) Senior Bowl or going to the combine...we've all trained at the same facility in Ft. Lauderdale, so it's really cool to see and you'll see many more guys from South Jersey coming and getting to this level as well."
On bonding with Mike Green
"Mike's got game. He's a good person too, he's a good dude. We've been talking a lot more since we've been here. This is my first time meeting him, but it's always good to bounce ideas and pass rush thoughts - whatever the case may be - off of each other. We've bonded a little bit and it's just been fun getting to know him."
On if he's met with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Yes...I think so. There's so many different interviews, sometimes I blank a little bit on who I met with, but I believe so"
On how he prepares mentally for game day
"It starts with a lot of film study. I watch a lot of film. We had those resources at Boston College. I had a coach Doug Marrone who was an offensive line coach, but he'd sit down with me during the week and we would study offensive lineman just to prepare myself for the game plan. We'd go over how I would attack an offensive lineman. That's a big part that goes into it. Plus taking care of my body, eating right throughout the week. Staying conditioned. I knew I had to play a lot of snaps this past year, so obviously doing extra work. Whether that's extra running, extra defensive line drills just to stay strong throughout the entire year."
On what it would mean to get drafted by the Patriots
"It would be good. I know the area very well. I've been there for four years already. Sp, I definitely wouldn't mind being a Patriot either."
On what working on power as a rusher entails
"Get in the weight room. But, honestly...there's been greats before me, maybe shorter than me, that did it at a high level. I compare myself stature wise to like, a Von Miller. I know there were guys that wrestled 6-foot, even a little shorter than me who did it...definitely get in the weight room. I've always been somebody who has a strong lower body, so that's a big emphasis."
On the validation of being consensus All-American and First-Team ACC
"I'm definitely not an accolade type of person. But, after the fact, I'll look at it later on in my life and say 'wow, that was a pretty cool accomplishment.' In the moment, sometimes I'm typically goal-driven, goal-oriented focusing on my future. So, I haven't really thought about it too, too much but I can say it was pretty cool."
On if he got drafted to a rebuilding team and contribute to that culture
"It doesn't matter if we were losing by 30 points or winning by 30 points. You're going to get the same hard-working individual out of me. Somebody who is going to give extreme effort and relentless effort. So, that's what I bring to the culture. Somebody who is going to work their tail off day in and day out and I think that's extremely important to rebuilding a winning culture."
On working with 49ers LB coach (former Seahawk) KJ Wright this week
"It's been really cool. He brings a lot of knowledge. He's had such a great career in the NFL, Super Bowl champion. He's a good person as well. It's been really good to learn from him, watching extra film with him, asking him small little questions about defensive play. It's been a really cool experience."
Trapilo
On practicing right and left tackle
"It was good. I've done a lot of work after the season ended to make sure I'm able to play both. Obviously, you have to have that going in to the next level, right? Just be as available as possible. The ability to do both is something I've been working on for a good amount of time now, even throughout the season after practice I would try to just keep the left side fresh. So, yeah, it went well I think. Obviously, shaking the rust off, but today was a good day."
On if being in pads Tuesday was the first time since the bowl week
"Yeah, same thing as all the other guys here. So, not as clean as (Wednesday). I think (Wednesday) was overall smoother for everyone, which was good to see."
On going against Ezeiruaku in 1-on-1's
"It was good. It reminded me of back at BC. We lined up against each other every single day. So, it was like a little piece of BC back out here which was cool."
On how it's been living out this experience with a teammate
"It's been awesome. I remember when we both got the invite, we were thrilled about it. Super happy for each other obviously, we're teammates. We care about each other and hope for the best for each other, so it's just awesome to see and to go through this with him."
On the experience playing locally for BC
"Playing at BC was awesome. I have a lot of family in Massachusetts, so the ability for them to come to every home game was incredible. It felt like I needed 15 tickets every week. I travel with a big crowd. So, having all the family there was always awesome. Being home was nice as well. I wasn't too close to home, but you need to stop by any afternoon it's not that far. So, that was something that was great about going to BC and I'm happy it worked out."
On being a Pats fan growing up
"It was hard not to be, right? Growing up in Mass, that regime was crazy."
On if he had spoken with BC High head coach (NAME)
"I haven't been able to talk to him yet. I know he stopped by a couple practices in passing. But, I haven't really sat down and had a good, long conversation with him."
On what playing for Bill O'Brien was like
"He was great. All the guys loved him. He did a really good job as a head coach. Demanding, but respectful. I think he handled the whole situation very well and we had a successful year and I'm excited for the future."
On working with Doug Marrone
"Having a guy like that on staff is awesome. He was a great asset for a lot of the guys. Sort of pick his brain. We got to actually work with him when Coach (Matt) Applebaum would be traveling or busy with something. When it was the offseason, Coach Marrone would step in and do indy sessions. So, just things like that are really valuable as an O-lineman. He has different teachings than Applebaum, but the more you can learn and put in your bag for later, the better you're going to be. So, he was very valuable."
On Marrone's personality
"He's an awesome guy. Really funny. We all got along really well with him. It was awesome having him around. We all liked him a lot."
On what scheme he believes fits him best
"We ran a lot of zone at BC. We also did a lot of gap-scheme, things of that nature. I wouldn't say one is particularly better for me than others. I'd say I'm pretty versatile in terms of play style, which is a good thing."
On if he has a specific position he likes best
"So, my career started actually at guard. I got a couple starts at guard, not many, I knew I would play tackle eventually. I tried to focus on that. But, started at guard a few games, both left and right. Started my first time, really, at tackle for the whole season was in 2022, started at left tackle. Bumped over to right tackle for the last two years. So, I've played a bit of everywhere. I think that's something that's helped my game as well. Not only playbook wise, but understanding what everyone's got to do because I've done it. But, also, having the versatility that's able to play in any given spot."
On if he's met with the Pats
"Yeah. We've had a lot of meetings here. A lot of guys have met with most of the teams so far, so yeah I have...it went great. Every meeting I've had has been awesome. Really great people."
On what he brings to a team off the field
"I think...last year at BC I was elected captain, which is something that meant a lot to me because I'm not a huge ra-ra guy. I kind of lead through example. I lead in one-on-one settings I would say. So, the fact the teammates recognized that to the point where they elected me as a captain was really moving for me. I was super honored to be elected captain and again, if you're a ra-ra guy, everyone sees you giving the pregame speech. And they completely deserve to be captain, right? That's all necessary, but a leading style like the one I have, to be elected captain is really cool."
On getting drafted to a team that may not win right away
"Take the coaching, right?. The coaches are always going to have the answers, that's their job. They provide you with the answers to the test and then it's out job to go out there and do it. So, really hone in on the coaching and then make sure there's a good foundation culturally that everyone can buy into. I'm not saying I'm going to do that alone anywhere, the foundations are already built. A team that's rebuilding though. it might be a little scattered. So, just really honing in on that culture and just building from the ground up as a team."
