Radio
New Defensive Coordinator Withers excited to be at UNC
Everett Withers comes to Carolina with 21 years of coaching experience under his belt.
Posted — Updated
By Dave Nathan
Everett Withers, UNC’s first-year defensive coordinator, is a man who has seen plenty during a coaching career that has spanned 22 years. From his early days at Austin Peay in the late-80’s, to his stints in the NFL with the New Orleans Saints and Tennessee Titans, Withers' body of work has finally brought him back home to North Carolina.
It’s been a long trek for the Charlotte native. He’s spent time on the gulf coast with Tulane, Southern Miss, and the Saints. He’s coached at Louisville and Texas. He spent time in the mid-south with the Titans and the Midwest with Minnesota. However, he opted leave the Gophers program after just one season to pursue his current position in Chapel Hill. It was a-dream-come-true for Withers - sort of.
“Growing up I wanted to play football at Carolina,” Withers said. “I wasn’t good enough and ended up at Appalachian State…This is the first time I’ve really worked in the state. To be at the University of North Carolina is great, and working for Coach [Butch] Davis is unbelievable. Just being around a guy with so much knowledge defensively, I’m in a dream job.”
Withers welcomed the opportunity to work in such close quarters with a renowned defensive mind, like Davis.
After coaching the defensive line with the Miami Hurricanes and becoming the Dallas Cowboys' defensive coordinator, Davis parlayed his experience into three straight head coaching gigs with Miami, the Cleveland Browns, and now UNC.
“It kind of gives you another sounding board,” Withers said. “When you work with another guy that understands defense and he understands the dilemmas you have on defense, it gives you another person to go to…That’s always comforting to know you’ve got people to bounce ideas off of.”
As for his coaching philosophy, Withers doesn’t mince words. He has one clear, concise vision for his entire defensive unit.
“The defense’s job is to get the offense the ball back,” Withers said. “Our job is to get them as many opportunities to score as possible…If we look at it that way, I think we’ll be a better defense.”
Despite losing Kentwan Balmer, Hilee Taylor, and Durrell Mapp, Withers is equipped with eight returning starters. At this point, he really likes his team at two key positions.
“Up front we’ve got numbers there,” Withers said. “You want to be good right down the middle or your defense and I feel like we can be good right down the middle of our defense.”
Withers, still in the process of fully getting to know all of his players, smiled as he looked at the depth chart splashed across one of the walls in the defensive meeting room. There he saw the names of Marvin Austin, Cam Thomas, Tydreke Powell, and Aleric Mullins.
Those four should comprise what is expected to be a formidable quartet of defensive tackles for the Tar Heels. Withers, flashing a smile as broad as his resume, beamed with excitement as he spoke of Austin’s future.
“The biggest thing with guys that are as talented as Marvin is continuing to push themselves to get better,” Withers said. “I don’t have to worry about that because Coach (John) Blake is going to push him every day. The sky’s the limit for him. He’s athletic, he’s big, he’s strong…He’s on the path to be as good a player as he can be going into his second year.”
In addition to what UNC will boast across the line of scrimmage, Withers likes his last line of defense, too. The safety tandem of Deunta Williams and Trimane Goddard along with Da’Norris Searcy and junior college transfer Melvin Williams gives UNC more of an experienced presence in the secondary.
“You’ve got some guys that have played and had good springs that we feel like can be leaders of our team,” Withers said.
Withers' knowledge of how the secondary works is quite keen. He was a defensive back and captain for the Mountaineers from 1981-85. While coaching at Louisville, he helped guide cornerback Sam Madison to All-America honors. In 2000, at Texas, the Longhorns were the nation’s best team against the pass under his guidance. From 2002-04 his Titans teams tallied 57 interceptions, fourth most in the AFC during that time period.
Time will tell if Withers can make the Tar Heel defense a force to be reckoned with.
But based on his success elsewhere, you have to like his odds.
Copyright 2024 99.9 The Fan. All rights reserved.
