“It’s probably the most fun I’ve had coaching in my career.”

Like many other positional groups on the Virginia football team, energy and enthusiasm are oozing from the defensive tackles group led by coach Kevin Downing. Guys are flying all over the field, eager to showcase all the hard work they put in during the winter.

Downing specifically credited head strength and conditioning coach Adam Smotherman with getting his guys in the right state, physically, to maximize their potential improvements this spring.

“You can’t talk about anybody in my room without talking about the job Coach Smo and his staff did. I mean those guys are stronger, those guys are bigger,” Downing said. “A lot of times, you can coach them as much as you want, be as fundamentally sound as you want, but it all starts in the weight room for us. Coach Smo and his guys did as good a job as anybody I’ve been around this winter.”

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