Antonio 'Noodles' Hull gets cooking in Wyoming's secondary
LARAMIE, Wyo. (AP) - Antonio Hull is making a name for himself this fall camp.
Or, better said, a nickname.
When Hull was younger, his father dubbed him "Noodles," after Robert De Niro's character in the 1984 film "Once Upon a Time in America."
"He was the youngest, but he was the leader of his group, so my dad just started calling me that," Antonio Hull said.
Now, "Noodles" is one of the young members of the Wyoming secondary expected to lead despite still being in their teens.
Hull, a sophomore, won't turn 19 until late October.
"I always think about that, like, 'I'm young out here,' and it just pumps me up to even make plays, being this young," Hull told the Casper Star-Tribune (http://bit.ly/2bB1YCd). "But I'm mature now."
Hull started at cornerback in the final nine games of his true freshman season.
After C.J. Jennings, Wyoming's starting boundary corner after spring, transferred to Southern Illinois, Hull took over a starting spot once again - not that he had ever stopped gunning for it.
"It was always (a) competition," cornerbacks coach John Richardson said. "It was never solidified. And that's why he's playing the way he's playing, because he knows his job is not safe. It's competition throughout and nobody's safe. A corner has to bring it every single day."
Hull was the first Wyoming defensive back to haul in multiple interceptions this fall camp.
"He's been doing great every day," junior cornerback Rico Gafford said after Hull intercepted his second pass. "He's leading us in picks right now, so he's doing a good job."
Hull returned two of his first three interceptions for touchdowns.
"I definitely am improving," Hull said. "Every day I'm trying to improve, and that's what I'm focused on is developing my game better more and more every day.
"... I just want to make more plays. I want to get around that ball, get my hands on the ball."
Thanks to his experience last year, he now knows what it takes.
"I just know the grind," he said. "I know the grind and what it takes to be on the field and what it takes to make plays on the field at this level."
The youth in Wyoming's secondary is even more noticeable with junior starter Robert Priester sidelined by injury for most of fall camp so far.
Priester was the only junior or senior defensive back listed in Wyoming's pre-camp, two-deep depth chart. His absence has led to added snaps for players like redshirt freshman Davion Freeman.
Still, sophomores Hull, Marcus Epps, Chavez Pownell, Anthony Makransky and Andrew Wingard, also out with an injury, all have starting experience in the secondary.
"The thing is you take your bumps when you're young, so we hope a lot of those bumps and bruises are out of the way," Richardson said. "That's our goal, but the best part is they have three more years and they've already played, and they played in clutch situations, big-time games and everything already.
"Best thing about when guys go from freshmen to sophomore, they shouldn't have a shock factor to them anymore. They've already played in front of a bunch of people, played on national TV and things like that, so we're expecting that experience to pay off."
That goes for Hull as much as anyone.
"He's a year older now, so he's understanding the playbook," Richardson said. "But now he's getting more confidence, because he knows what he's doing. Big confidence guy. Every corner should have it, so he's improving very well for us."
Even if he isn't yet 19.
"I always played one year up," Hull said. "So I think that gave me a little edge to just be ready and play with the big boys."
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Information from: Casper (Wyo.) Star-Tribune, http://www.trib.com