AJ Irving On Dalhousie's Defensive Dominance
By Meredith McCullum
AJ Irving is a defensive back for the Dalhousie Football Club. In his second year on the team, Irving is undertaking a bigger leadership role within the defensive line, as Dalhousie looks to repeat as champions of the Atlantic Football League (AFL).
In their second game of the season, the Tigers gave up only 9 points to the Holland College Hurricanes. While Irving is a critical piece of Dalhousie’s defense, their dominance has come from the strength and unity of all 12 players on the field.
I sat down with Irving to talk about his expectations on the season and his thoughts after the first home game against Holland College.
Q: How did you guys manage to turn around the momentum and find a way to win this one?
“Honestly it starts from the top; Coach Freddy is always in our corner. He’s always keeping us level headed no matter the situation and I think that’s really where it starts but honestly our defense is just a 12 man unit. Where we may lack, we have 11 guys around [us], 12 guys on the field to pick up the slack when needed. But it’s really just because we’re so tight as a unit and because every single player on this defense can make a play when needed. So when the time comes that we really need a stop or we really need a stand, or we need a rebound from something that happened in the game, our defense is always here from us. So honestly I’d just say it’s the team environment we have and coach Freddy and everyone keeping us level headed.”
Q: Defensively, you held them to just nine points. How were you guys able to do that?
“Everyone on this defense is hard headed - they make big plays, they make big hits. They’re always willing to lay themselves down for everyone else on the team. It’s just inspiring to see how we can all come together and play as a unit. That’s all there really is to it. There’s no secret play, secret sauce. It’s just how hard we play and how much we wanna play for each other.”
Q: You have a big challenge ahead, playing against UNB next week. What can you take away from the two wins so far and how will you prepare for the match ahead?
“We really just play our game, no matter where it is. As long as we do what needs to be done, you know, snap in, snap out we ’ll just keep practicing hard. We will win games during the week and honestly just staying consistent with what we’re doing [is important]. I’m confident in the coaches and in this team that we’re gonna bounce back and have a huge game next weekend.”
Q: How do you feel entering this season, coming off the championship win last year?
“Coming into this season I’m excited to make an impact, our defense looks great and I’m really excited to play for coach Freddy Diab.”
Q: What are you looking forward to with the changes in the system and the differences this year with new head coach Freddy Diab?
“Coach Freddy brought in the system during spring camp, and honestly, I love it. It's a lot of fun to play. We get to fly around as a team, and we have athletes at every position. So, it’s gonna be an awesome year defensively and our offense is gonna once again be one of the best in the league, in my opinion. We’re excited just to show what we’re made of and show what we can do. We’ll put the league on notice for sure.”
Q: How did you get into Football?
“I got into football when I was four. I started playing flag football when I was young and I’ve loved it a lot since. In high school, I played for St Michaels in Toronto, Ontario. That school has a great football history, so I really got into it there. I had some great coaching and I fell in love with it ever since, so it’s been awesome.”
Q: What would you say to Dalhousie students and fans to encourage them to come out to games?
“Dal Football is one of those teams that you wanna see because we’re gonna do things that frankly have never been seen in Dal history. We are one of those teams that’s exciting to watch. We fly around, we hit and we have fun with it too. We’re just gonna put some points on the board and it’s gonna be Dal all day every day. So those game atmospheres are gonna be great for fans to come out and see”
Dalhousie’s next game is Homecoming on September 27 at 4pm against the University of New Brunswick (UNB) Reds. Both teams are 2-0 so far this season. Their most recent matchup came in the 2024 AFL Championship game which Dalhousie won 48-23.
The Tigers are hoping for another big crowd - and more offense - in their second home game of the season.
“There’s no sport like football,” says Irving, calling on Dalhousie students to come support the team at Homecoming. “This team will do everything we can to put on a show for you guys.”
