Kolpack: Bison found an athletic LB gem in Donovan Woolen

NASHVILLE, Tenn.

The Texas in North Dakota States football seasons over the years will not be possible this season, the result of the Division I FCS national championship game being moved to Nashville this January.

That doesnt mean theres no Lone Star State vibe to the Bison.

NDSU had high hopes sophomore linebacker Donovan Woolen from Frisco, Texas, could make an impact in his first year as a starter.

They liked his size at 6-foot-4 and 219 pounds.

They like the way he could move.

ADVERTISEMENT They really like him now.

Woolen returned an interception 34 yards for a touchdown against Tennessee State on Saturday afternoon at Nissan Stadium, an NFL field that doesnt often see blowouts like the 59-3 Bison win.

Hes super lanky, super athletic, said Bison defensive end Toby Anene.

Its awesome seeing him make plays like that.

The pick was about as athletic as it gets.

Tigers quarterback Byron McNair almost got leveled by Anene, but escaped and started scrambling to his right, which was the start of a play that went haywire.

It was just fate, I wasnt supposed to get the sack and Donovan was supposed to get the pick-six, Anene said.

I missed the sack and Donovan makes up for it so its nice having playmakers all over the field.

Donovans a great player, hes a great guy so Im super happy for him.

McNair appeared to have an opening on his throw downfield, but Woolen showed why 6-foot-4 is a tough thing to throw against.

He reached over and nabbed the throw in front of the receiver with one hand like a basketball player grabbing a rebound and was off the other way.

PICK SIX! Donovan Woolen snares it with one hand and goes 34 yards to the house! pic.twitter.com/QbDPUhmKN3 I just stuck my hand out and grabbed it, Woolen said.

Once its in your hands as a defensive player, you want to score so sprint as fast as you can to the end zone.

ADVERTISEMENT Showing a couple moves more akin to a running back, Woolen scored easily and it was 38-0.

Woolen was playing a zone defense at the time.

McNair came in for starter Jonathan Palmer after the first quarter and neither ended up having much success.

In all, the Tigers played three quarterbacks who went a combined 8 of 18 for 61 yards.

Just read your keys and stay on point with everything, Woolen said.

We were really aggressive and that really showed.

His position was manned by Enock Sibomana last season, but Sibomana entered the transfer portal in the offseason and ended up at the University of Wyoming.

There was speculation that Woolen would have challenged for the starting job anyway after a successful season of growth as a true freshman.

Bison head coach Tim Polasek said theres plenty of growth left in the tank, especially now that hes playing full-time, and he wouldnt be surprised if he was much better after the eighth game than he is after NDSUs 2-0 start.

Last year was more of an acclimatization to college football for Woolen, with the Bison using him mainly on special teams.

I really didnt care who was in the program, Donovan Woolen was going to have the shot to be the starter this year, Polasek said.

ADVERTISEMENT Hes strong in pass defense, able to match up man-to-man with receivers.

Thats where his 6-4 frame comes into play.

NDSU appears better at matching up in man coverage this year compared to last season, and thats not just the cornerbacks or safeties.

The linebackers are part of that conversation, too.

Woolen is part of that conversation.

He is all of 6-4, Polasek said.

His length in zone coverages is a big deal.

A big, long kid and athletic on top of it.

We appreciate anybody and everybody who has played here in the past but Donovan Woolen really allows us to do some coverage things.

Granted, The Citadel and Tennessee State wont scare many teams with an air raid offense.

NDSU couldnt have picked two more mediocre passing offenses to face.

That wasnt Cam Ward on the Nissan Stadium field, he plays on Sundays with the Tennessee Titans.

The Bison have plenty of opposing quarterbacks left on the schedule who can zip the rock, with Aidan Bouman of South Dakota, Tommy Rittenhouse of Illinois State and now Jerry Kaminski of North Dakota coming to mind.

So call it a good start for the defense finally heading to a home game next week against Southeast Missouri State.

And nothing more.

It was fun today, flying around with those guys, Anene said.

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