Texas A&M's Micah Riley, Mark Nabou Jr. and Dalton Brooks met with the press prior to the start of fall camp.
Micah Riley, Tight End
On returning to camp healthy after offseason shoulder surgery...
"I'm excited. I'm healthy for the first time in a while. I had shoulder surgery this offseason, so I've been working on that all offseason with Dalton, Des and Tommy. We're all healthy and ready to go, and we're very excited for camp."
On the unity of the tight end room...
"I think we've meshed really well. We spend as much time together as you can imagine. We've had extra meetings and done a lot throughout the offseason to build chemistry and make sure everyone is comfortable with each other and the scheme. We spent the entire offseason together, especially making an effort to bring the transfer guys in. We're an older group, but we also have a lot of young players, and it's our job to bring them along, teach them and make sure they understand what they're learning and why they're learning it. I think we've done a good job of that."
On the goals for the tight end room...
"Our coach talks about it a lot. We've got something to prove. There's not a lot of attention around our room, and we kind of like it that way. We've got talented receivers, a talented offensive line and a talented quarterback, and all those pieces will open things up for us. So just being versatile, being ready, being prepared and being quarterback-friendly. Whenever Marcel needs me, I'll be open. I'll be ready. That's just kind of the standard of our room."
On tight end Houston Thomas...
"Just a good locker room guy with great chemistry. He's hilarious. He's from here, so he takes care of all the guys. He shows us around and takes us to the best food spots. He's been a great addition to the room, and we're happy to have him."
On playing in Holmon Wiggins' offense...
"I can't give you too much, but I think things will be similar. We try to keep everything as common and consistent as possible. I think things will be great. He's proven that he's great at his job, and getting this opportunity to show what he can do as an offensive coordinator is great for his path and his career. We're super excited. There wasn't anybody else we wanted."
On entering the season injury free...
"I've had shoulder issues since high school, and I've been playing with an injury for three years. The last two years I was at Auburn, I had a torn labrum and had to wrap it up and play through it. I got comfortable doing that, so now it's kind of weird coming into the offseason actually being able to use both of my arms. This is the best I've felt in a long time, conditioning-wise, body-wise and mentally. I'm very blessed and excited."
On being named a team captain...
"I called my mom immediately. All I could think about was my teammates and what an honor it is that they voted for me to lead this team and be a captain. I'm so blessed. I'm very thankful."
On how his previous injury affected his game...
"I think it's something I've dealt with for a long time, something I just had to get past. Being able to block with both hands is huge. A lot of times I had to put my body on people, which is kind of how I block anyway, but just being stronger with that hand and cutting off the C-gap, those are small things. I've had to find a way to get comfortable without being able to use it. Like I said, this is the first time I've had both of my arms healthy, so it'll be good. I'm blessed and really excited."
On Mark Nabou's leadership...
"We love Mark. He's the only returning starter on the offensive line, and we have a bunch of new transfers, so he's done a really good job of bringing all the guys together. We've gone hunting together and gone out to eat, just building the best chemistry we can. He's the rock of that offensive line. He's making all the calls, pointing things out and telling guys where we need to be looking based on the defensive structure. He's been vital. He's an important part of this team."
On why he believes he was voted a team captain...
"I think I'm honest, and I'm not scared to communicate with coaches or players when things aren't going the way they need to. If we have a standard, I think my job is to uphold that standard no matter what it is. I think the guys trust me, believe in me and know I'm the same person every single day. Those are traits I try to carry with me. That's something my mom raised me on, and I just try to be that person every single day."
On the talented freshman class...
"This freshman class is probably the most talented group of kids I've ever been around. I was at Auburn when we had the Freeze Four, with Cam Coleman and those guys, but this is probably the most talented all-around group I've been around. They work hard, they show up every single day and they do what's asked of them. We're very excited. You can look at any position room, and it's true."
On his leadership during difficult moments...
"Theo and I talked about that afterward. That's my best friend, so knowing he had a bad play and was probably going to be in his head about it, my job, even though I wasn't on the field, was to grab him and say, 'Hey, we've still got time left. This game's not over.' I think that's the culture of this team in general, picking each other up when things go wrong. This is the SEC. There are going to be bad plays. There are going to be days when you're struggling. At the end of the day, whoever pushes through, grabs each other and holds each other up is going to win. That's our culture."
On his relationship with Marcel Reed...
"Marcel and I have really built our relationship this offseason. If he went to Nashville, I'd be like, 'Where are you? I'm coming.' My job is to make things easy for him. That's really the whole offense, and we take pride in that. If he needs me to run a route at 10 yards and roll it to 12, I'm running it at 10 and rolling it to 12. Whatever he tells us or needs from us, we need to do. That's how teams win. All offseason I've been asking what he wants from me, what he needs, and just being there when he needs it."
On being able to play more physically now that he is healthy...
"Yes, sir, I hope so. That's been my thing my whole career. I've always been a physical, big kid, and in order to get on the field, I've had to put my head down and block. I plan to do the same thing, but obviously I'd like to get the ball a little more this year. Hopefully, we'll see that happen. I'm excited."
On the physicality of the SEC...
"The SEC is physical, but I think even the guys we brought in from smaller schools understand the culture, the work ethic and what our team is built around. Everybody is competing to become a better version of themselves and a better player. That's been important for this team, and it's paying off across every position room. We're excited."
On Marcel Reed's leadership...
"He's become more vocal with the whole team, telling guys where they need to be and how everything needs to be structured for him to succeed. He's worked hand in hand with Coach Lynch and Coach Wiggins to make sure everything is dialed in and detailed before we even get into camp. Day one shouldn't be the first time we're running through plays. We should already understand what we're doing and why we're doing it. I think he's done a really good job explaining that to the young guys and the players we brought in.
Mark Nabou Jr., Offensive Lineman
On what gives the offensive line confidence it can reload instead of rebuild...
"Definitely the experience we have. With the four new additions we have, they all have experience playing in the SEC, so that gives us an advantage. We also have young guys who are hungry and want to play. They can see those older guys are here to compete, and Coach Cush isn't going to give anyone a job. You have to earn your spot."
On Adam Cushing's impact on his development...
"I'm still learning. Coach has been teaching me all the coverages and defenses, which helps me get everyone on the same page. Coach and I are going to be really close during the season."
On being the lone returning starter...
"It's about getting mentally and physically right. I've been working with Coach Moffitt and Coach Blake, making sure I'm mentally prepared to take on this role. I also want to make the guy to my left and the guy to my right better and keep improving."
On transitioning from learning from veteran players to becoming one...
"It makes it easier when you have a group that's so hungry to learn. This freshman class, guys like Blake Ivy and Pop, they all want to play. You can see their desire not only on the field but in the locker room."
On entering the offseason healthy...
"I have no worries. My body feels fresh, my knee feels stronger and my mindset is clear. I think that's the biggest difference."
On the depth of the offensive line...
"We wanted to be like the defensive line because they're always rotating guys in and staying fresh. Now we have enough guys where it's the same for us. We can rotate in the first quarter or on the first drive, depending on how everyone's feeling. I think the depth we have is amazing."
On building chemistry with incoming transfers...
"By prioritizing things off the field. The offensive line, tight ends, running backs, Terry and I all go hunting. We go fishing and do a lot of non-football activities to get closer and build chemistry."
On competing against the defensive line in practice...
"Their hands are very active, and they're very physical. You feel it when their hands get on you, and you have to be mentally prepared to take on that battle every rep."
On the offensive line's hunting trips...
"We go hog hunting. Honestly, we try to hunt anything that moves, except deer because we can't hunt deer yet."
On the best hunter in the offensive line room...
"Me and Wilk shot at something, and it just kept running. It didn't even go down, so I don't know who's the best."
On Micah Riley being voted a team captain...
"Micah isn't afraid to say what's on his mind. He's very vocal. You can hear his voice throughout the whole locker room. Him not being afraid to speak up brings a lot of value as a captain."
On what Wilkin Formby brings to the offensive line...
"He brings confidence. Some transfers come in a little quiet or shy, but on his first day we heard his voice and could feel his presence. Coming from Alabama also brings a lot of value to our room."
On where the team stands entering fall camp...
"This team is very strong. I feel like this whole team is a threat, from our offense to our defense. Just give us some time, and we're going to show it."
Dalton Brooks, Safety
On the coaching staff's praise of the secondary this offseason...
"We have an older secondary, so it means more this year. We have a lot of the same people coming back, and we have a much stronger bond, even more than last year's team."
On what this defense brings that previous teams did not...
"I feel like we bring aggression. As a defense, you need aggression, and as DBs, that's one of the biggest things you need. Playing on the edge, playing the field, all of that, you need aggression everywhere."
On creating turnovers and making plays with the ball...
"Yeah, I'm always looking forward to doing that. If the ball falls into my hands, it falls into my hands. I want to create turnovers and run with the ball, but as far as tipped balls and things like that, if they happen, they happen. I'd rather get it with a turnover."
On the competition at cornerback this offseason...
"Very competitive. We have young guys coming in who are good. We have older guys who are good as well. It's a room that competes, and everybody in there knows that. Every week, somebody different could go out there and start."
On Micah Riley being voted a team captain...
"He's always positive, and I think that's one of the biggest things you need on a team. No matter what's happening or what's going on, he's always positive."
On Micah Riley entering the season healthy...
"Even during his injury, he was always positive. Every single day he was telling me to keep my head up and keep pushing. We were all struggling because we love to play football. At the end of the day, he'd tell us it was going to come back to us. He kept telling us to keep our heads up, and he does that for the whole team. I think that's what makes him a great leader."
On making turnovers a defensive emphasis...
"We talk about it every day, punching at the ball and going after the football. Those are things we're going to emphasize a lot this year and throughout camp. As players, we're going to hold each other accountable even more than the coaches."
On the changes Lyle Hemphill has made entering the season...
"We're mixing it up. We have to, especially going into our third year in the scheme. You've got to change some things, and that's what he's doing. He's mixing things up, putting people in positions to make plays, and I think it's going to help us a lot."
On improving the defense's interception numbers...
"It's just us getting older and becoming more comfortable in the scheme, being where we need to be. We had a few opportunities last year, but we didn't capitalize on them. I feel like if we had, the numbers would have looked a lot different."
On what Tawfiq Byard brings to the safety room...
"He brings aggression, which we love, and he's smart. He has a lot of knowledge of the game, and he brings that to us. Then we can pass that along to the younger guys, and that helps the whole room get better."