Weber State football: Defensive line has personality, looking for impact to match
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- Defensive tackle Kaufusi Pakofe Jr., left, drills with coach Jaylen Johnson on the first day of Weber State football fall camp Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023, in Ogden.
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- Defensive tackle Steven Bryant, right, drills with coach Jaylen Johnson on the first day of Weber State football fall camp Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023, in Ogden.
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- Defensive tackle Kaufusi Pakofe Jr., right, drills with coach Jaylen Johnson on the first day of Weber State football fall camp Wednesday, Aug. 2, 2023, in Ogden.
OGDEN — Defensive line has been the catalyst for many great Weber State defenses in the last decade. WSU’s system of slow-growing contributors eventually led to seasons where all four positions on the line were two-deep on game days.
Weber State’s defense averaged 3.1 sacks per game in 2018 and 2019, with 7.9 and 7.1 in average tackles for loss in those seasons.
The 2021 season saw a major dropoff, with 2.3 sacks and 5.8 tackles for loss per game. Growth was expected in 2022 but, especially at defensive end, two expected starters transferred out and a couple more plaeyrs got hurt.
“We got hit by the injury bug and what (Grant) Duff was able to do up front, he did a heck of a job plugging gaps and still winning games at a high level,” head coach Mickey Mental said. “My defensive staff, they’re great and put their guys in positions to be successful.”
The defense still improved its numbers to 2.5 sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss per game last season. The hope is the 2023 season will see a resurgence in health and high-impact players on the line.
If so, Duff, the co-defensive coordinator and defensive ends coach, thinks good things will happen.
“The personalities, holy jeez,” Duff said. “We’ve got a room full of a bunch of different kinds of dudes but when they come together, they have so much fun. They’re jelling great. It’s a lot of chaos … their personality, when it permeates into our defense, it makes us better.”
Junior defensive end Okiki Olorunfunmi returns for his fourth season in the program. Olorunfunmi was another slow-build player who saw his chance to shine in 2022 taken by injury. He appeared in three games and redshirted, recording five tackles, including a sack in the playoff game against Montana State. He appeared in 11 games as a reserve in 2021, recording 11 tackles.
But the 6-foot-5 end has off-the-charts athleticism and 2023 may be the season it comes together.
“Okiki is about to have a breakout year, I feel really good about where he’s at,” Mental said.
Two more 6-foot-5 players are battling to secure the spot behind Olorunfunmi in redshirt freshmen Cameren Cope and Ashden Oberg.
Coaches anticipated true freshman Carson Mott, previously signed to Cal and Colorado, to be a factor but Mott has gone home for personal reasons. He’s expected to remain with the program and return to school next semester.
At the other end spot, the battle to start is between 6-foot-5 sophomore Brayden Wilson and 6-foot-3 redshirt freshman Keahnist Thompson. Wilson, the Farmington native, totaled 28 tackles last season, including seven for loss. Thompson, the UCF transfer, had an offer sheet full of five-star programs coming out of high school.
“Both of those guys are getting better and both are going to play for us this year, but that’s been a fun battle in this camp,” Duff said.
Wilson’s talent was apparent last season and Thompson has “been nothing but great” since joining the program, Mental said.
The two starting spots inside seem to be fairly secure.
Zeke Birch has bided his time and now has his shot to make a name for himself. The 6-foot-4 junior is in his fifth year with the Wildcats and totaled 24 tackles, with four for loss, last season.
“Zeke Birch is a guy who has played really good ball for us, just behind some veteran dudes, but he’s got all the ability in the world and I’m excited to see him play,” Duff said.
The other guy is Steven Bryant, the junior college transfer who used his limited available appearances last season while redshirting to great effect. In a big home win over Montana, Bryant recorded three sacks and five tackles.
“Everybody saw the Montana game, we’d like to see that a lot,” Mental laughed.
Duff said he plans to “roll five or six deep” between the two tackle spots, something that’s helped Weber State’s defense perform well in the past.
Junior Easton Payne, the Bear River alum, stands to figure into that equation. He’s entering his fourth year in the program and is “a guy fans should know,” Duff said. Olympus High alum Matt Herron “changed his body,” Mental said, and will be in the mix at tackle.
And everyone’s high on sophomore Kaufusi Pakofe Jr., a Hawaii native who prepped at Highland High in Salt Lake City. He’s entering his third season and has yet to see the field, but that should change for the 6-foot-3, 315-pound tackle.
“Kaufusi and Matt, they’ve all done good things in the mastery of their technique, the knowledge of the scheme and what we want out of them,” Duff said.
“Kaufusi,” Mental added, “has a lot of potential and is hopefully about to turn that corner and put it out on the field.”
