Myles Wolfolk looking to stay healthy, make a difference this year at UNC
After two seasons of battling injuries, Myles Wolfolk is bringing a new perspective to his final season of eligibility at North Carolina.
The defensive back suffered season-ending upper body injuries in both 2018 and 2019, as well as dealing with a lower body injury in 2019. He’s appeared in just nine games across the past two years.
Despite the difficulty of not being able to play a game he loved, Wolfolk said his injury allowed him to become a “fan” and get a new perspective on what was going on on the field.
“I knew the defense,” he said. “I knew everything that was going on. I was still in the meetings, so I’m still able to give my wisdom, my experience from what I’ve seen and what they haven’t. So just having that presence and having that ability to give back to them while I was still here, not playing, was good for me and good for them as well.”
Prior to his injury last season, Wolfolk led the defense with three interceptions in five games. He also had 25 tackles.
His leadership didn’t stop when his time on the field did.
“Well, Wolf’s always been like a really vocal leader, even when he was down and out last year when he was hurt,” linebacker Jeremiah Gemmel said. “He was always vocal and always talking to the guys.”
“Wolf is, he’s a great leader,” defensive back Trey Morrison said. “Very vocal. He knows everything, so he’s just a great guy to lead. And when he’s on the field he’s just a true ball player. I love the way he plays, he goes and gets the ball. He’s not afraid to make that big play. Wolf is a great guy, great player.”
Wolfolk said he comes by his vocal leadership naturally. His dad was a head football coach, so he’s been around football his whole life. He also has a knack for helping people both on and off the field.
“I’ve always liked helping people in general, not just on the field, but in general,” Wolfolk said. “So anytime I can help I try to help, and that’s a good part of being a leader is just helping the guys around you and bringing them to the same level you’re on because me, I’m a competitor. I like to play football. I love the game, so I want everybody on the same level as I am. I want everybody to be as good as I am, if not better.”
Wolfolk wasn’t the only defensive back to go down with a season-ending injury last year. Patrice Rene, Bryson Richard and Cam’Ron Kelly were sidelined mid-season as well. They’re all returning this season, and the defensive backs are expected to be one of the groups with the most depth, despite two backs opting out of the season.
“We were really heavy in that area with depth,” coach Mack Brown said. “So we’re not to a point now where we started looking like we were last year.”
While Wolfolk is happy to be back on the field, leading his teammates and helping create depth for the Tar Heel defense, he’s carrying the lessons he learned in his time off the field last season with him.
“I learned how to support my teammates when it’s not about me,” Wolfolk said. “I’ve always been supportive of my teammates like I said. They’re really not my teammates, they’re my brothers. We go through this stuff every day together and we become a family. So I was just supporting my family. It definitely made me better.”