Nick Emmanwori on Jalon Kilgore stepping up in secondary: 'He looked like me a little bit'

It wasn’t what Nick Emmanwori was used to. He always the type of player that was hard to take off the field once he got on it. But a hamstring injury in week one forced him out of action.

“It was kind of tough watching from the sideline because that’s like the first time I’ve been sidelined probably since my sophomore year of high school. I probably never missed a game,” Emmanwori said.

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Emmanwori missed the rest of that first game followed by the next one. In a way, his injury opened the door for another player to step in. But after all, that’s how he was able to make a name for himself last year when an injury gave him his chance to start.

“When Nick had went down, he was really upset. But the first person he came over to was me. He was like, ‘Hey, you’ve got to step up, be ready, don’t worry about the crowd or nothing. Just keep your head down, just stay focused and execute each play,'” Jalon Kilgore said.

Kilgore, a 6-foot-1, 204-pound freshman, entered early in the first quarter of the season opener. When his chance came, he balled out, recording 12 tackles in a 31-17 loss to UNC.

“He looked like me a little bit the same way how RJ (Roderick) went down first game,” Emmanwori said. “It’s crazy, kind of ironic. He looks as fast. I told him to go out there and just have a good motor, and you’re a freshman. Just play fast just like I was my freshman year.”

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With Emmanwori ruled out for week two, Kilgore made his first career start. He finished with six tackles in a 47-21 win over Furman. He credited a strong offseason to be able to come in right away and make an impact.

“I just looked up to the people that was in front of me so when it was my opportunity I knew exactly what to do, I knew how to execute,” he said. “So just learning how to look and listen before I start talking and actually get into the mix before so when I do get in there I’ll be ready.”

Meanwhile, Emmanwori stood along the sideline knowing there was nothing he could except cheer his teammate on. It was difficult for him but it ended up teaching him a lot.

“The game just looked a little different standing on the sidelines. So I got a lot more gratitude for the game and more interactions with my teammates and just seeing things from a different perspective like helping out when I can and staying positive,” Emmanwori said.

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But he wouldn’t be out for much longer. With a difficult matchup the next week against Georgia, Emmanwori was needed more than ever on defense. So he made his return and played all 80 snaps. He finished with 10 tackles in a 24-14 loss to the Dawgs.

Kilgore played as well, ending the game with five tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss. It marked the first time that him, Emmanwori and DQ Smith all played together in the secondary.

Now with all three healthy, Emmanwori sees communication being something they could all improve upon. It’s what will help them all play the best they can together.

“Coach (Torrian) Gray stresses to us how important it is because some plays in that Georgia game, towards the second half, it wasn’t the worse communication, but we could have been a little bit better,” Emmanwori said. “If we have those plays and we communicate those plays, who knows what happens. Just being the best we can, taking that next step to being one whole defense.”

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