UNLV returned to the field for a second outing this week on Thursday and helping lead the charge at Rebel Park on the defensive side of the ball was Super Senior Austin Ajiake.

The linebacker from Fremont, California, now wears a captain's "C" patch on his chest after emerging as a team leader last fall. In fact, the Honorable Mention All-Mountain West backer turned a lot of heads en route to earning UNLV Defensive MVP honors after averaging 9.25 tackles per game (fourth in the MW), including tallying 18 takedowns vs. Utah State alone.

The man widely known in the program simply as AJ met with the media following practice and talked about his expanded role as a veteran leader.

"On a personal level, I take pride in it. It's not something that I take lightly. And it's a seat that I want to sit in. I'm fortunate enough that my teammates thought of me as a captain and it's a responsibility that I don't take lightly. It makes me have to step up even more not only on the field, but just vocally as a leader for the defense. And like I mentioned earlier, I want that pressure on my shoulders."

Asked for specifics about being a leader, Ajiake said the key is consistency on and off the field.

"I just have to be the same person every day. It doesn't matter if I feel like I didn't get enough sleep, it doesn't matter if I feel like I woke up on the wrong side of the bed, or whatever. It doesn't matter. My teammates don't really care. They expect me to lead. Not just me -- there are others and we all work off each other and we're trying to get this thing rolling in the right direction."

The Rebels return to the field for their next practice on Saturday morning.