Garrett Bradbury hasn’t been at NC State for two full years yet and has already lined up with three different position groups. He’s on the move again this spring, but he’s at least staying on the offensive line.
The Charlotte native came in as a 6-3, 250-pound tight end and redshirted his first year on campus while playing the same position he did in high school.
Then his nomadic journey began. After adding weight and tipping the scales north of 270 pounds last spring, he switched his jersey number from 38 to 91 and flipped to the defensive line, lining up at tackle where the team was short on numbers due to injuries and graduation.
After spending the spring on defense, he stayed in the trenches but switched back to the other side of the ball and became an offensive guard last fall, donning No. 65 and logging 36 snaps in three games. He appeared in eight more games on special teams.
“I think it will just calm some nerves,” he said of how last year’s limited experience can help going forward. “You’re obviously still going to be nervous, but you’ve seen some of it.”
The weight has continued to go up, but another change came with it when the Wolfpack opened practice this spring — Bradbury slid over from guard to center, where NCSU must replace graduated starter Quinton Schooley. Bradbury had never snapped a ball before, but the redshirt sophomore hasn’t had a problem with moving around before and is more than happy to try something new again to help his team.
“It’s a different world in there, but you always need guys that can play different positions,” he said. “It’s a lot different. I like it, though.
“You’re the captain of the O-line [at center], you’re making all the calls and telling everyone where to go. At guard, you just listen to the center. But now I’m telling people where to go, so I’ve got to know a lot more stuff and know all of the pieces that are moving in the picture, [and] be able to help the other guys on the offensive line get where they need to go.”
One other new aspect the 6-3, 293-pounder has had to adjust to is that it’s all about how the collective unit plays up front. That has its advantages and disadvantages, according to Bradbury.
“It’s a lot less individualistic — you’ve got to work as a unit,” he said. “If four guys do the right thing and one guy messes up, the play is done, so a lot more leadership qualities need to come out. We’ve just got to keep working as a unit.
“There’s a lot less glory, but a lot more work.”
Another difference for the big men is they’ll be working with new offensive line coach Dwayne Ledford after former mentor Mike Uremovich left this offseason to take the offensive coordinator job at Northern Illinois.
Bradbury noted that the operation under Ledford, a former NFL offensive lineman despite playing mostly on the defensive side in college at East Carolina, is another change from last year. He contends that is where his inexperience might actually give him an edge; he’s still learning and not set in any ways up front.
“This new system is a lot different in so many different ways,” he explained. “We’re a real young group, but I think the different coaching style is going to help us out.
“[Ledford] brings a lot of intensity, I think his style of play is going to fit us real well. … He played a long time so he’s heard a bunch of different coaches, a bunch of different systems, and he’s bringing all of the stuff that works best for him to us. That’s been really good for us so far.
“He’s big on effort, so hustling to the ball, finishing the play and just the things that don’t take too much talent — he’s really stressing those, which will help us down the road.”
Bradbury said he is getting comfortable in his new role at the pivot, but after just a few practices he admits that there’s a long way left to go. With the line looking to replace three starters from last year and only several inexperienced youngsters on the roster, he’ll have plenty of company when putting in extra work before and after practice.
“We’re meeting up at night, getting pizza and watching film,” he said. “We’re coming early and staying later; we all need it.
“We’ve just got to get this offensive system down … it’s a completely different style of blocking with Coach Ledford’s system. We need more than 15 practices [the number each team receives in the spring under NCAA rules], but we’ve got to get all we can from those 15.”
More of The Wolfpacker’s spring football coverage
• Premium observations from the open portion of the first practice
• NC State blending old with new
• Q&A: New offensive coordinator Eli Drinkwitz
• Matthew Dayes ready to go full speed again
• Nyheim Hines balancing two positions, sports
• Redshirt year gave Stephen Louis chance to get healthy, stronger
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