The Redhawks’ secondary is looking to make a statement early on, with three new starters including Cape Girardeau local Al Young.
This past offseason, Southeast football lost five of its defensive starters, including cornerbacks Rico McWilliams (Washington Redskins) and Michael Ford (Detroit Lions). Cornerback coach Ray Smith said even with these losses, he does not expect a drop-off from last year’s defense, which allowed just 15 touchdowns during Ohio Valley Conference games, the third least.
“Everywhere you go, the first couple of games might be a little rough, because you’re getting adjusted,” Smith said. “But by the time we get to the OVC, we’ll be primed and ready to go.”
The Redhawks will play games against Arkansas State, Dayton and Southern Illinois University-Carbondale before starting OVC play against Eastern Kentucky on Sept. 22.
Smith believes Southeast’s defensive backs have what it takes to be the top unit in the conference and expects nothing less.
“We want to be the best at everything we do, and we want to be great at it,” Smith said. “Our goal is to be one of the top [defensive back groups]. If we aren’t number one, we aren’t going to be happy. We don’t want to be just average, we want to be great. Our expectation is to be the best.”
Sophomore Bydarrius Knighten will be transitioning from free safety to strong safety this season with the loss of Omar Pierre-Louis. Junior DJ Freeman will slide into the free safety spot after transferring in from Northeastern Oklahoma A&M.
Both starting corners, Young and redshirt junior Taj Jenkins, spent most of last season on special teams only, and are having to step into bigger roles this season. Jenkins has been with the team for four years, after redshirting his freshman year. He is prepared to fill those shoes, and has been looking to graduated seniors for advice.
“I talk to Mike probably every other day, just checking up on him, seeing how he’s doing,” Jenkins said. “[We] exchange film, exchange pointers–[I’ve] been getting to know him more and getting to know his situation with the Detroit Lions. I’ve also been talking to Rico, who went off to the Redskins. I’m just picking their brains, trying to see what I can do to possibly end up where they are.”
Even with the reduced amount of reps these last few seasons, Jenkins does not think he is at a disadvantage. His hard work has led him to the position he is in, and he believes that he deserves to be getting reps as much as the next guy.
“These last few years, I’ve been under some really good guys, and I just kind of watched their preparation. So even though I wasn’t necessarily getting those big reps, I was watching from behind the scenes how they took the preparation,” Jenkins said. “So now I just kind of imitate what they did, and see some of the things that they may have done wrong and I try to fix that to make sure that I don’t fall into the same issues that they had. I just go off of the older guys that were in front of me, and I just try to follow in those footsteps.”
Young, a junior, also is also hoping to capitalize on the increased playing time.
“I’m trying to better my game on special teams because I know a lot of people look at that, and I’m trying to develop that at a higher level,” Young said.
Young is excited to be a starter for Southeast this season, after starring at Cape Girardeau Central during his high school days. His connection with the community has followed him to the Redhawks.
“Being a hometown kid and then coming to college to be a starter, it means a lot,” Young said. “It shows that I put in a lot of hard work on and off the field. A lot of people [have] seen me play in high school and loved the way I played, and still show that they support me every step of the way. Having the community behind my back means a lot.”
Young and Jenkins are two players who stay in regular contact with the graduates from last year, and coach Smith believes that connection is special.
“A lot of these guys still talk to Rico, Omar, Mike. That tells you how tight we are as a group,” Smith said. “I still talk to those guys, too. We all are a tight family. It’s just one of those things, family over everything. Last year, they showed them how to be a pro’s pro.”
Jenkins agreed with Smith, and reiterated how tight-knit of a group they are.
“This is one of the closest groups that I’ve been a part of on SEMO’s campus, as far as all of us interacting with each other,” Jenkins said. “We all feel like we kind of have each other’s back. Regardless of who is in the game with me, I feel confident that they know what they’re doing and that we’ll get the job done. I expect us to be one of the better DB’s in the OVC this year.”
Again, Smith does not feel like this season will be any different from last, from the defensive back’s standpoint.
“The guys coming back have been with me for two years now and they’ve been acclimated to the system,” Smith said. “There’s going to be a little drop-off, but I don’t think it will be a dramatic one like people are expecting. I think we still have a chance to be a good secondary like we were last year.”
The secondary is looking to make a statement early on, and will see their first bit of action against Arkansas State on Sept. 1 in Jonesboro, Arkansas.
