Wright Up the Middle

Rodrique Wright is an explosive, quick and athletic fourth-year starter at defensive tackle who has rapidly developed into one of the nation's top tackles. In 2004, he was tabbed second-team All-America by The Sporting News and honorable mention All-America by Pro Football Weekly, while also being named a consensus All-Big 12 selection.

Hey Longhorn fans,

Spring is coming to an end and we've gotten in a lot practice time with Coach Chizik. When he first arrived at Texas, he stressed the importance of working as a team. He said we have a lot of talent, but he was going to play the guys who are team players. If someone is not a team player, he does not want you on the field. If you are not cheering on the guy beside you and trying to pick him up, he is not interested in you. With all of his credibility, we have no choice but to listen to him and learn. If you look back at the way Auburn played in the SEC, it is unbelievable.

He has met every expectation I could have for a defensive coordinator. He is a really solid guy and is very intense. He means what he says and keeps us pumped on the field. He keeps things honest and tells us to keep it up when you are doing well. Coach Chizik keeps us on a level where we are trying to improve all the time. He is a motivator and I really like him as a coach.

Sometimes, it seems like he's the first to get to a guy to congratulate him for a good play, even though the rest of us are already on the field. Even when we make a play way down the field, he runs down there and pats the guy on the helmet. When we scrimmage, he encourages us to have fun no matter what is going on. Even on the bad plays, he wants us to remember that we are out here because we love our game and that is the reason we should work harder to excel.

As far as the adjustment from last year, Coach Chizik and Coach Robinson have some similarities, but they're also really different. Coach Robinson was a guy who would joke a lot, whereas Coach Chizik is usually pretty serious when it comes down to things. He looks you in the eyes and tells you how things are going to be. Sometimes he works as a drill sergeant, while Coach Robinson tended to speak to the defense as if he were one of us. I like both coaches and both styles, and each is a great defensive coordinator.

It is hard to tell how this year's scheme will differ from last year's. We're still getting into the technical aspect of things. Coach Chizik has told us from the beginning that we have to perfect our base defense before we put any extra touches to it. There are similarities in all of the defenses I have learned. Coach Chizik calls his defense Œplayer friendly' because the terms he uses directly show us what we need to be doing. It's not as hard as it may seem. I feel like it is an advantage to learn so many different defenses because I will always need to be able adjust in my future career.

As a defensive unit, I already see a lot more hype. There is a lot of high-fiving, hand clapping, and running all over the field. We are showing our personality more. Again, the biggest thing Coach Chizik stresses is remembering to have fun. When you hear "have fun," it makes you loosen up and lets things happen more naturally. Obviously, when we are having fun, we are playing well at the same time. I think the fans will see us and feel us having more fun on the field this year.

Hook'Em
Rod