Since position switch, how picks leader Juwan Foggie found success in 49ers’ defense

Consider the Charlotte 49ers’ conversion of Juwan Foggie from wide receiver to linebacker a success.

Want to measure that success? Foggie, who spent his first two 49ers seasons as a receiver, now has as many interceptions as receptions with Charlotte.

“Hah! I guess I never saw that coming,” says Foggie, who had more than 2,300 receiving yards at High Point Central High.

“But I worked hard and got some great help from my coaches,” adds the Football Bowl Subdivision leader in interceptions this season.

Foggie caught seven passes in his freshman and sophomore seasons with the 49ers, but shortly after New Years in 2017 he went to head coach Brad Lambert and suggested a change to defense. He felt more at home on the other side of the ball.

The 49er coaches had seen some of that, too. As a special teams player, Foggie had blocked a punt that resulted in a touchdown and recovered a punter’s fumble for another touchdown. So they launched the receiver-to-linebacker conversion.

Foggie worked hard in the offseason and by August 2017, the 49ers’ coaching staff thought he was ready to start.

He responded by picking off a pass, recovering a fumble, and finishing third on the team in tackles last fall. In the offseason, the 49ers hired Glenn Spencer, formerly of Oklahoma State, as defensive coordinator.

“Coach Spencer has really helped my IQ on the defensive side of the ball,” Foggie says.

And the learning curve has gone off the charts this season, as Foggie has six interceptions, including two he returned for touchdowns. He had two interceptions, one for a touchdown, in Saturday’s 20-17 victory over Southern Mississippi.

Foggie, 6-foot-1 and 234 pounds, has become a key part of the 49ers’ defense that ranks 17th overall in FBS, allowing an average of 318.6 yards a game. It ranks sixth against the run (89.8 yards a contest).

Charlotte faces a big test Saturday, when the 49ers face the SEC’s Tennessee at 4 p.m. in Knoxville. Tennessee quarterback Jarrett Guarantano is completing 64 percent of his passes this season and has thrown eight touchdowns against only two interceptions.

Playing at 100,000-seat Neyland Stadium is the kind of game Foggie dreamed about when he came to Charlotte.

“It’s one of the biggest stadiums in college football,” he says. “What an atmosphere it’ll be to play in.”

Ask Lambert about Foggie, and two things come up.

“His work ethic is unbelievable,” Lambert says. “He comes in every day, ready to work. And he loves playing the game. I’m really proud of him.”

The other subject is Foggie’s … well, verbosity.

“He’s always talking to somebody,” Lambert says with a laugh. “He’s talking to his teammates, to everyone. Sometimes he’s even talking to me.”

Foggie responds to that with a smile.

“I really enjoy myself,” he says. “And I’ve enjoyed the move to defense. It’s a lot more fun being the one who delivers the hit, rather than receiving it.”

Foggie says he and other team leaders are reminding players not to look at the 49ers’ record – 4-4, just two victories away from the program’s first bowl berth – and to concentrate on one day at a time. He recalls two years ago, when Charlotte was 4-5, amid talks of a bowl game. Instead, the 49ers lost their final three games.

“I think some people were looking ahead,” he says of the 2016 season. “This time, we’re concentrating on today. What can we do today to make us better? What can we do today to be ready for our next game?”

Lambert says one of Foggie’s strengths is his even temperament – “staying on an even keel,” he calls it.

“Not too high, not too low,” Foggie says. “Just come to work hard every day – and keep learning.”