Kendrick Working To Improve Corner Skills

It isn't every day a player goes from being a contributing wide receiver one season to being a second-team All-ACC selection at cornerback the next.

Derion Kendrick did just that last season. With the Tigers short on bodies at corner during the spring of 2019, Kendrick made what was thought to be a temporary move from his position at wide-out to help with depth.

However, he flashed so much potential the move quickly became permanent. Kendrick would go on to win a starting job opposite of A.J. Terrell and become one of the best cornerbacks in the ACC last season.

With Terrell now a member of the Atlanta Falcons, Kendrick becomes the elder statesmen at the position for the Tigers. He has spent the offseason working hard to become a more well-rounded player and says no area is off-limits when it comes to mastering his craft.

"Everywhere, man-to-man, zone, it doesn't matter," Kendrick said when asked what he's been working on. "Just my game as a whole. Not just trying to be labeled as a man-to-man corner or none of that. Just trying to be the best corner I can be. Just taking it day by day working on getting better technique-wise and also just knowing my plays and what everybody's doing around me. Just knowing my playbook. You're trying to get better as a whole, and just trying to take it day by day and get better."

Mastering a position starts with doing the little things right. Kendrick is dialed in when it comes to doing those things and says he and his teammates have been going above and beyond throughout the summer in order to be the best they can be.

"We all got to get more film in," Kendrick said. "Just a little work after practice. A lot of technical stuff in taking care of our bodies, and getting our hydration in, which is what you need to do. Just doing the little things right and then it will work out by itself."

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