CEDAR CITY, Utah – The Southern Utah Thunderbirds are five days deep into fall camp, and co-defensive coordinator Ryan Hunt is liking what he sees.

Hunt, who brings 10 years of SUU football experience, is in the works of packaging the Thunderbird defense. Despite losing a strong defensive class last year, including three NFL products whom Hunt played a vital role in developing, the T-Birds have an impactful group of returners ready to hit the field full speed on September 1. 

The first-year co-defensive coordinator provided some insight on his evaluation, focuses, and excitement this far into fall camp.

Q: What's your evaluation one week into practice?

A: Right now we're still heavy on the install, still trying to learn plays, figuring out where players fit on the depth chart, and things like that. I see a lot of enthusiasm and a lot of encouragement going on between offense and defense, so we're looking good so far.

Q: What is your biggest focus moving forward with spring camp?

A: I'm looking to solidify the depth chart of who our guys are going to be and who our eight, nine, 10, or 11 guys are that are going to travel, what positions they're going to play, and in what packages.

Q: There are a lot of players battling for playing time and a starting position-- how does that elevate fall camp?

A: It makes it really good. On the d-line, we're super deep. I feel like we have 13 or 14 guys that could travel in any given year. We may have 13 or 14 guys that could travel this year, and so with that competition, to crack the top 10 or top 11 on the d-line is really tough. Guys have to come and work hard every day, and that competition makes us all better.

Q: What should Thunderbird fans be most excited for this year?

A: We're going to have a team that's going to work hard. We're going to have a team that does things right. Coach (Demario) Warren has done a good job on instilling that in the guys. And as far as product, anybody that sit in the stands is going to watch an exciting game of football. Our offense is fast pace. They throw the ball down the field, and we've got a good run game. We've also got an aggressive defense. With all those things together, we'll definitely have a fan-friendly game.

Q: You lost a lot of defensive leaders last year; Who do you see stepping up in leadership roles?

A: We lost a lot of good guys last year, but we have a lot returning. We have Robert Torgerson back, Taylor Pili is stepping up on the d-line, Fesi Vaa'ivaka is also in that mix, and on that same level, Taylor Nelson is a natural leader. He logged a lot of reps last year as a first-year starter for us. Then on the back end we have Josh Thornton, and he played a valuable part in what we did last year.