Dynamite Dozen: Ajiero a key man on the North Cobb defense

On a North Cobb team full of offensive firepower, cornerback Quentin Ajiero is one of the top defensive players.

Ajiero said he prides himself on bringing a high level of intensity to the Warriors’ defense.

“That’s something I really like to do,” Ajiero said. “I like to be aggressive. I like to get people off me, be physical and make plays.”

North Cobb coach Shane Queen said Ajiero’s level of physicality is something that most modern cornerbacks don’t bring to the game.

“That’s what coaches love,” Queen said. “The 7-on-7s make a lot of kids enjoy football in shorts, but at the end of the day, you’ve got to go out there and be physical. He’s, again, a throwback-type player that doesn’t mind running through your soul.

“He brings an edge to our defense that, when you get on the edge, you better make sure you know where No. 5 is because he’s going to bring the pads and he’s going to hit you every play. That’s the physicality part of it that I love to see.”

Ajiero made 47 tackles, five tackles for loss and had an interception last season. He said one of his personal goals for this season is being more of a ball-hawk.

“I want to become a way better player than I was last year,” Ajiero said. “I want to turn those pass breakups into picks and make a lot more plays.”

The 5-foot-10, 175-pound Ajiero committed to Duke on July 23 over Georgia Tech, Wisconsin, Boston College and Wake Forest, but he said his focus remains on the 2022 season and helping his senior class reach its goals.

“We feel like this is our senior year, so we’ve got to take over,” Ajiero said. “We’ve got a real dog team. I’ve never seen anybody lift like these dudes that we work with every day, and we’ve got some really good coaches to put it all together.”