Troy Pride Jr. Striving For Greatness
Notre Dame cornerback Troy Pride Jr. didn’t get on the field as a freshman until game five in his freshman season last fall. As a sophomore, the 5-foot-11, 187-pounder got spot playing time to start the year but broke into the rotation against USC two weeks ago.
Pride wasn’t discouraged by the reduction in playing time to start 2017, but it motivated him to start to become a bigger playmaker as he has seen others in his position take the next step.
“I’ve focused on getting back to playing football,” stated Pride. “I’m getting into my technique more and being a student of the game. It just clicks sometimes. Sometimes you have a bad time, but it just clicks.
“You start to build consistency, and it gets you to where you want to be.”
Notre Dame’s top three cornerbacks have made plays at crucial moments this year, and it’s something the group takes pride in.
“I really think it’s great competition,” Pride said of the cornerback unit. “There are guys that want to play and have the desire to play. They have a competitive nature each day to make plays to get on the field.”
With the depth at cornerback, Pride knew he had to raise his game and to have his game click has been a welcome addition.
“It’s a great challenge for me to play well enough to be the guy,” explained Pride. “In our defense, we want to make plays. If you’re making plays, you’re in there. With Shaun (Crawford), Nick (Watkins), Julian (Love), Donte (Vaughn), we just like to compete, make plays and be the guy.”
The cornerback room has also modeled their game after The Justice League. Pride believes it gives them a small edge and it’s hard to argue against it.
“We wanted to make a statement for ourselves,” laughed Pride. “As a corner group, we wanted to make a name for ourselves. The Justice League came up as a pretty good group to set ourselves.
“That’s what we want to be and inspire to be.”
Pride arrived on campus known as a speed guy, as he won four state track titles as a senior, so it’s not a surprise to see who he picked out of The Justice League.
“I got the tag of Flash, so that’s who I am,” said Pride. “It’s really just your pick of the litter. Julian Love is Aquaman, Nick Watkins is Batman, Shaun Crawford chose Black Condor, and Donte Vaughn is Cyborg.”
Speaking of track, Pride saw success as a freshman this spring for the Irish. The Greer (S.C.) native ran 6.77 in the 60m, 21.75 in the 200m and 10.47 in the 100m.
Pride believes track does help him on the football and didn’t feel he got stretched too thin last spring by playing both sports.
“I would personally never say spending my opportunities would be a negative,” stated Pride. “I continue to work and be competitive. I feel like track has helped me continue my competitive nature.
“It has made me faster for football.”
Notre Dame isn’t known as a track program, but several football players have participated in both sports. Pride has spoken to two of the best to do both to pick their brain.
“I’ve actually talked to Rocket (Ismail) and Allen Rossum,” said Pride. “We’ve had two different experiences, but they just tell me to keep steadfast and to keep working. It’s about continuing to strive for greatness.”