Cal Focusing on Improving the Cornerback Position This Spring
Cornerback was a position of concern for Cal in 2021, and defensive coordinator Peter Sirmon wants to do something about it.
"That's a position we're really putting a lot of focus in," Sirmon said following Friday's practice. "How are we going to develop that room."
An argument has been made that cornerback is the most important position on the defense. That point of view suggests that if you have solid cornerback play, defensive play-calling and defensive scheming are much easier, and the rest of the defense will take care of itself.
Last season, Cal's corners did not play the ball very well in the air, what Sirmon calls "the moment of truth."
"We need to improve in those situations," he said.
The Bears' cornerbacks were also hit with too many pass-interference penalties.
Lu-Magia Hearns solved some of that when he became a starter three games into the season as a true freshman, but the other corner spot remains in question. And the Golden Bears' starting defense also included a nickel back in most games last year, and that spot needs to be filled too.
Josh Drayden, an accomplished nickel back, is gone, hoping to make in an NFL team. He played in 55 games at Cal, including 22 starts, and he started all 12 games in 2021.
Also gone is Chigozie Anusiem, who was a starting cornerback for the 2021 opener, but was replaced by Hearns early in the season. Anusiem received little playing time in the second half of the season and has since transferred to Colorado State.
So who will be the other starting corner along with Hearns, and who will be the nickel back?
Collin Gamble started eight games last season so he is a candidate, although he has been unable to participate in spring ball because of injury. Kaleb Higgins has shown some skill after redshirting his freshman season in 2021.
But the most likely candidate to be a starter at cornerback is Isaiah Young, who started three games last season and has impressed coaches in the spring.
"Isaiah Young, I think, has had a really nice spring," Sirmon said. "What we see is significantly more consistency,."
If you are looking for a darkhorse at the cornerback spot, try Tyson McWilliams. He did not play in a single game in his first two seasons at Cal, but he is getting a long look during the spring and performing pretty well.
At 6-foot-2, 200 pounds, McWilliams stature may be his biggest asset.
"My length and size -- that's something that's pretty uncoachable," McWilliams said in the video atop this story.
He's still thin at 200 pounds.
"I'm working to put some weight back on after my shoulder surgery," he said.
But he feels more confident now. "Just reacting to plays more," he said.
McWilliams' place in the cornerback pecking order will be determined to a large extent by how he performs in the Saturday scrimmages, which is as close as Cal gets to game-simulated situations during the spring. A key scrimmage will be held tomorrow (Saturday).
"This Saturday, for instance, will be big for T," Sirmon said.
McWilliams agrees.
"Yes, for sure," he said. "We're thin, so there's going to be a lot of opportunities."
The responsibility for improving the cornerback position falls on Cal's two defensive backs coaches -- Terrence Brown and Tre Watson. Watson handled the defensive backs himself in 2021, but Justin Wilcox added Brown in the offseason to help Watson.
Many schools have two defensive backs coaches, but most places have one focusing on safeties and the other working with cornerbacks, but as Sirmon notes in the video below, neither Watson nor Brown works exclusively with safeties or corners. They both have the same responsibilities on and off the field.
"There is no delineation in what their responsibilities are," Sirmon said.
How well that coaching structure works out will be determined by the performance of Cal's secondary.
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