Nate Gabriel doesn’t pretend to be the loudest voice in the room. In fact, the West Virginia defensive lineman freely admits that speaking up has never come naturally. But this summer, the junior has been pushing himself to do more of it, and that started in a small way before his news conference even got rolling inside the Milan Puskar Center team room.
Before anyone else had a chance to speak, Gabriel opened by asking the room how everyone was doing.
It was a modest moment, but one that fit the broader message around him: West Virginia needs more from one of its most experienced returning defensive linemen, and that includes more words.
“I definitely have to step out of my comfort zone to do something like that because we do have vocal leaders, but we need more,” he admitted.
Gabriel, from Auburndale, Florida, played in all 12 games last season and logged 321 total snaps. His busiest day came in the regular season finale against Texas Tech, when he was on the field for 34 snaps. That workload was limited, but the expectation now is much bigger for the 6-foot-3, 294-pound junior.
Rich Rodriguez made it clear why that matters. With the roster leaning young and short on seniors, the veterans who have already been through it are being asked to set the tone.
“Without a whole lot of seniors, and even last-year players if you want to call them that because everyone now has five years, the leadership has got to come from guys who have been here and played a little bit like Nate,” Rodriguez explained.
The coach said Gabriel has been reliable in every setting.
“He's been fantastic on and off the field,” the coach added. “I don't need leadership during practice because that's what the coaches get paid to do, but in the locker room and off the field when they're on their own, you need somebody who is mature who can lead them the right way, especially with all these new guys.
“How we do things is going be new and our program is run a certain way,” the coach continued. “What I'm asking for the veterans is to help educate our guys that this is how practices are run and these are our expectations.”
Gabriel said that has been a focus since before summer workouts began.
“Going in before summer, I was having talks with my coach and he was saying, 'Yeah, you're a good example leader but we need you to be more of a vocal leader.' That's what I'm working on,” Gabriel said.
“Sometimes, it comes natural to me and some days I don't want to do it, but as a leader you have to get up and do it,” he added.
He’s also trying to take cues from senior safety Kamari Wilson, a Memphis transfer who is comfortable saying what he thinks and saying it loudly.
“He's really been the example of the vocal leaders we need right now,” Gabriel admitted.
On the field, West Virginia is looking for more from its front four, especially more steady production and more disruption. Defensive coordinator Zac Alley has already addressed that early in camp, and Gabriel said the message is clear.
“He wants more physicality, of course, and he needs more pass rush and us just getting to the quarterback, and I can say that's what we need to work on.”
That progress has been noticeable to the people lining up against him every day. Junior offensive guard Nick Krahe, who has seen Gabriel up close for three seasons, believes the next step is coming.
“ Nate Gabriel has taken a big step,” Krahe said. “I've been with Nate for three years now, and I've seen him progress every single year. He's going to be a great player, and we're going to need him up front.
Krahe pointed to Gabriel’s strength as the trait that stands out most.
“He's a strong dude,” he mentioned. “Right when he came in as a freshman, he was a strong dude, and he's gotten a lot stronger.
He can hold the point, and I think that's big for him. Trying to figure out how to get around him as an offensive lineman is big.”
Assistant coach William Green, who works with Gabriel and the rest of the defensive linemen, said the same thing in different words.
“The big thing for him is playing with the energy and the effort he does every single day,” he said. “And just being a leader. We talk to him about that, not just in the room, but being one of the leaders on the team, because he's got the type of personality to do that.”
The phrase circulating among the players is “whatever it takes,” though Gabriel joked it gets cleaned up a bit.
“We just cut out all the outside noise,” Gabriel explained. “We just work on what we need to work on.”
Green echoed that approach.
“We're going to do whatever it takes to win,” Green mentioned. “I'm pretty pleased that we're getting better.”
Gabriel’s loyalty is part of the story, too. Now three years into his college career, he said he hasn’t gone anywhere else, and he’s not changing now.
“I'm the same man since high school, never transferred, and I'm going to be the same man in college,” he said. “I'm just a loyal guy, I guess.
“I just like sticking with my guys,” he concluded.
West Virginia finished practice on the Steve Antoline Family Practice Field before an afternoon thunderstorm moved through the area. The Mountaineers are set to practice in full pads Tuesday, then return for another full practice Thursday and a closed scrimmage Saturday morning. There are 11 practices left before the start of the fall semester on Tuesday, August 18.
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