Nebraska lost three veteran starters from its 2021 secondary.
Safeties Deontai Williams and Marquel Dismuke and cornerback Cam Taylor-Britt became staple players in the program.
They were talented, reliable and knowledgeable collegiate athletes. Coaches on the field.
This offseason, Travis Fisher takes the act of revamping the Husker secondary as a personal challenge.
“It’s always a challenge when you lose a lot of guys who played a lot of football, and then you get some guys in and the first thing you say is, ‘Inexperienced,’†says the fifth-year Nebraska defensive backs coach. “That’s been a challenge for me. You get some guys who are inexperienced and get them on the field, and get them experience really fast. You get them as many game-speed reps in practice as possible and let them go out and see what they’ve got.â€
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Come summer, he’ll have seven new scholarship defensive backs in his meeting room. But during spring drills, which began Monday, the number is five: Javier Morton (junior college transfer), DeShon Singleton (junior college transfer), Tommi Hill (Arizona State transfer), Omar Brown (Northern Iowa transfer) and Jaeden Gould (true freshman).
All of those guys are here to play right away, although Brown currently is recovering from injury.Â
Singleton and Hill, in particular, appear in especially prime position to challenge for starting jobs — at safety and corner, respectively.
The 6-foot-3, 210-pound Singleton, from Hutchinson (Kansas) Community College, is capable of playing corner, but his size and range makes him better suited for safety.
Hill, 6-foot and 205 pounds, is “hungrier than a hungry dog, man,†Fisher says.
Bring on the competition. That’s what spring practice is about.
“We couldn’t have brought in a better group of guys,†Fisher said earlier this week. “Some of the younger guys who are coming in are not your typical younger guys coming in that are going to sit in the back of the room. I mean, (Monday) was the first day of meetings and I asked a young kid a question, and he was the loudest guy in the room. I mean, he was yelling (the answer), and fast.â€
Fisher would say only that it was a true freshman. The coach didn’t want to name names. But the 6-2, 190-pound Gould, a four-star recruit from Oradell, New Jersey, is the only true freshman defensive back on hand for spring drills.
Safe to say he’s made a strong early impression.
Safe to say Fisher is confident in the defensive backs he’s recruited.
No surprise there, right?
“The energy’s there,†Fisher says. “The character’s there. Guys were making plays (Monday) on the field, showing a little character after the play. I let it go. I let it go today. Let them feel good about themselves, being out there happy and flying around. I think I got the character in the room I need.â€
Nebraska does have the luxury of returning 2021 starting corner Quinton Newsome, who made 57 tackles and broke up four passes. He definitely earned his Blackshirt last season, Fisher says.
“You've got to think about it,†the coach says. “It’s tough to start for me for 12 games because I’m asking guys to do things that guys in the National Football League do.â€
Along those lines, Fisher believes if Newsome continues on his current track, “Quinton will be the next guy to play on Sundays from here.â€
In addition, safety Myles Farmer played in every game last season and started the final four, and cornerback Braxton Clark, an intriguing player at 6-foot-4 and 200 pounds, played in every game and recorded five tackles and two pass breakups.
At nickel, Isaac Gifford, a sophomore from Lincoln Southeast, played in every game in 2021, including extensive action in the final two after senior JoJo Domann was sidelined by injury. Sophomore Javin Wright (6-4, 210) could also push for the starting job at nickel, Fisher says, along with Singleton, Farmer and Marques Buford.Â
In fact, Fisher refers to Buford as “my hidden gem.â€
“You look at him and say, ‘He’s 5-9, he’s a corner,’†Fisher says of the 190-pound DeSoto, Texas, native. “No, he can play any position in the secondary. I have him at safety right now. At his size, you wouldn’t think a guy would be so physical. But he ain’t scared of nobody. He’s fearless.â€
All in all, Fisher likes the secondary’s depth. In that regard, he has an interesting message for his returning players who have the most experience: Don’t get too comfortable.
“Every year that I played in the NFL, the teams brought in someone to take my spot,†he says. “I’m talking about every single year.â€
A second-round pick out of Central Florida, Fisher started 74 games at corner from 2002 to 2008 for the St. Louis Rams and Detroit Lions.
He had to battle hard pretty much every day.
“It’s just a mentality, and it’s the same way here,†Fisher says. “I didn’t bring in guys to be anyone’s backup. I brought in guys to play. If I was a guy who was here already, I’d be like, ‘Oh, it’s time to pick it up.’â€
Let the competition begin.