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BLOOMINGTON – New IU defensive tackle James Carpenter carried a heavier load than nearly any other defensive lineman in the country last season. Sitting the spring season to rehabilitate a surgically repaired shoulder counted as a well-earned rest.
But time off didn’t make much difference to the James Madison transfer. His position coach and his coordinator both came over from JMU as well, and his head coach is a man Carpenter has followed for five years.
The school may be new, the facility less familiar. Carpenter still got his feet straight under the table.
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“It was a pretty easy transition,” Carpenter told reporters after IU’s second fall practice Thursday. “I’ve been with coach (Curt) Cignetti for five years now, going on six. Very comfortable working with (defensive tackles) coach (Pat) Kuntz. We obviously had a lot of guys come over, so for the most part, the transition was pretty easy.”
Healthy and on the field, Carpenter figures to be a key figure for defense leaning into veteran transfers this fall.
Per Pro Football Focus, Carpenter played 736 defensive snaps last season, second most in FBS among interior defensive lineman. Only Jer’Zhan Newton made more (749 snaps), as they were only DTs with 700 or more snaps.
He started all 13 of James Madison’s games, including the bowl, logging 53 tackles, nine for loss, with four sacks, before entering the transfer portal. Like roughly a dozen other Dukes, across nearly every offensive and defensive position, Carpenter then elected to follow his coach to Bloomington.
Likely to play a key role for Cignetti’s remade defensive line this fall, Carpenter fits neatly into a front four that could be comprised entirely of transfers….
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/james-carpenters-escape-jmu-gives-223028815.html
Author : Indianapolis Star
Publish date : 2024-08-01 22:30:28
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