New defensive coordinator, Norvell ‘just connected’
The first phone conversation between Memphis coach Mike Norvell and Adam Fuller wasn’t supposed to be long. It was a formal interview for Norvell looking to fill his defensive coordinator vacancy.
Yet over the next 90 minutes, Norvell and Fuller found each other to be kindred spirits. Both were coaches who organized everything to its finest detail.
Norvell scribbled at least three to four pages of notes from the call. Fuller found that when Norvell had an idea, it would be exactly the way he saw it or better.
“It felt like I was talking to an old high school friend,” Fuller said. “It just connected.”
With Fuller as Memphis’ new defensive coordinator, Norvell not only found a coach who shared his passion for details but also one who adds a necessary spark to a unit that struggled with consistency.
What Fuller brings to Memphis
With Chris Ball leaving to become Northern Arizona’s head coach, Norvell said that finding a defensive coordinator was one of his key priorities. Fuller came highly recommended.
In his six seasons at Marshall, including as defensive coordinator this past year, Fuller was known for developing players who attacked the ball and focused on stopping the run.
Marshall was ranked eighth nationally in run defense and seventh in total sacks this past season, just two of more than 30 defensive categories in which the Thundering Herd ranked in the top 35 nationally.
The Thundering Herd were 13th in third-down defense and also forced 24 turnovers, four more than Memphis did.
Norvell watched every Marshall game, and what struck him was how the defense played with energy and passion. Fuller noted that while he wants to be aggressive, he wants his players to have great fundamentals and technique as well.
“I want to have a group of 11 guys that chase the football with unbelievable effort that you can feel from any seat in the stadium,” Fuller said. “We’ve got to be great tacklers, and that starts with angles. Those are things (that) are important to me and things that we coach every day regardless of what coverage we’re going to play.”
Will Memphis switch to a 4-3 defense?
Fuller oversaw a 4-3 defense at Marshall, but neither he nor Norvell would commit to switching exclusively to it.
Under Ball, Memphis showed multiple defensive fronts. Fuller said the scheme will change from week to week, and Norvell added the only change was that the front would be more aggressive than it had been previously.
“We want to be able to adapt to the skills and talents that (our players) have,” Norvell said. “I think that as you go and look throughout Coach Fuller’s track record, that’s the one thing he’s done as good as anybody.
Fuller said he’s studied Memphis’ personnel heading into spring practice,
MARSHALL ATHLETICS
and after being formally introduced to the team Sunday, he was more confident with what he had to work with.
“We’ve (got) a good group returning, but it’s a new year. It all starts over, and I’m looking forward to taking the first step with these guys,” Fuller said.
Why Memphis?
Fuller was aware that Memphis has been a launching pad to bigger jobs but said what sold him here was Norvell and the job he’s done the past three seasons.
“When you work in college football, you want to be at a place where football is really important. Memphis is that,” Fuller said.
During that first conversation, Fuller was convinced Memphis would be a great fit based on how similar he and Norvell were. Although Memphis has seen defensive assistants leap to jobs at Auburn and Texas Tech, Fuller said what Norvell built was attractive enough for him.
The challenge of working with a different staff also excited him. After speaking with fellow assistants Deke Adams (defensive line), Kevin Clune (linebackers) and TJ Rushing (defensive backs), he didn’t think the adjustment would be too difficult because of how open-minded everyone was.
Given how quickly he bonded with Norvell, Fuller was excited to see how things would jell with the rest of the staff.
“It’s going to be a lot of work. It’s starting all over,” Fuller said. “But I think the theme you’ll get with our new staff is that it’s a lot of work but we’re inspired by each other to go to work.”