Antoine Brooks Jr.

Safety / Maryland

Ed Hunt:  How do you feel today going into your first Senior Bowl practice?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  I feel good.  Everything has held up.  I just can’t wait to play football and pretty much most happy on the field.

Ed Hunt:  Is Maryland a school that focuses on DBs?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  Yeah, I mean they do focus more on DBs and running backs. They look like “RB-U” school now with the running backs they get.  But they focus on DBs, you can say that.

Ed Hunt:  Who is the DB coach at Maryland?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  It’s Cory Robinson and coach John Hope.

Ed Hunt:  Did they give you some advice for the Senior Bowl?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  I wasn’t really talking to Cory Robinson, but coach Hope just told me to play hot and run to the ball.  It was really just the little things you can get because little things turn into big things.  Coach Hope got no room for error honestly.

Ed Hunt:  Why were you guys not talking, was that just the system of the team?

Antoine Brooks Jr: No, it wasn’t like we weren’t talking.  Just coach Hope was my position coach, so you know I would say what’s up to him.  He always got on the hard things.  If I did something wrong, most likely he is going to give it to me.  It was just like coach Hope.  Coach Hope was just like a father figure to me.  We argue from time to time, but I didn’t really talk back to him.  I honestly miss coach Hope right now.  I would love to see him in person right now.  I have to take this journey on my own.

Ed Hunt:  Who was the hardest receiver you faced in the Big 10?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  KJ Hamler. 

Ed Hunt:  What are your biggest strengths?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  My biggest strengths would probably be physicality, explosiveness and my instincts.

Ed Hunt:  What do you want to show NFL teams here in Mobile?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  They want to know that I can backpedal and play true safety.  I want to stand up and play DB.   

Ed Hunt:  Can you talk about your experience covering the slot and how that can help you?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  Covering in the slot, helped me a lot with my feet.  I had a couple of injuries and it prevented me from learning how to work my feet and all that.  Coach Aazaar Abdul-Rahim, he was my coach.  He is at Boston College.  He taught me.  He was my DB coach the first two years.  He was really good with me being a technician.  That was the thing that I put in my head all the time is to stay low, show my feet and show with power.  You can play as high as you want to, it’s really just a memory thing for me.

Ed Hunt:  If you could pick a position that was the best fit for you, what would you pick?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  Probably strong safety.

Ed Hunt:  Have you played special teams at Maryland?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  Of course!

Ed Hunt:  How many years did you start?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  I started my sophomore year, so three years.

Ed Hunt:  What job did you have on special teams?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  I had punt and kickoffs and kickoff return.

Ed Hunt:  Did you talk to a lot of scouts already?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  They are talking to me.  They are talking to me about special teams.  Tell me to write down plays for them.  They’re asking me about stuff off the field and on the field.  They’re just asking me a lot of questions.  Questions that I’m ready to answer, honestly.

Ed Hunt:  Are they saying anything as a defensive back? Like any strength or any weakness?

Antoine Brooks Jr:  They say I’m explosive.  They’re saying I play hard.  Just showing that I got all the ins.