Evaluating UCF's Pickup of Transfer Koby Perry

ORLANDO - When a player develops the way that Koby Perry did for Austin Peay this past season, UCF and many other schools will come after him once he's in the Transfer Portal. The Knights were the lucky winners in the Perry sweepstakes, and the following will define why UCF fans should be happy about him heading to Orlando as a graduate student.

First off, he had 85 tackles during the 2021 season. That’s an awfully good amount of tackles for a safety. Watching his film, however, that’s much more important than Perry’s statistics.

Originally from Covington (Ga.) Alcovy, Perry is listed by Austin Peay at 6’0”, 174-pounds. He plays much larger than his size.

Was gone say this took forever but this perfect timing 🥺 #2022 #LastRide pic.twitter.com/diUhxlfzAw
— Koby Perry (@koby24beast) December 31, 2021

Toughness

If he was only allowed to be defined by a specific position, it would have to be strong safety. That position is the one that comes down into the box like a linebacker and challenges running backs and tight ends; Perry is a hitter.

Despite his lack of ideal size, he’s not a player that’s going to shy away from much bigger players. That’s going to help him in many ways (see position flexibility).

Aggressive Nature

Perry plays forward much more often than he does backwards. That’s just who he is. He could be susceptible to being beaten by really good play-action fakes down the road, but he’s been really good with that style of play, which earned him 1st Team All-Ohio Valley Conference this past season.

Athleticism

He packpedals like a cornerback instead of a safety. Good fluidity, nice side-to-side movement skills, and he does a good job of reaching for the football when he closes in on a wide receiver. Another excellent trait would be his ability to get up to full speed quickly.

Overall, this is a defensive back that’s athletically gifted more like a cornerback in terms of explosive traits. All very good signs.

Position Flexibility

Of course safety will be in play. That’s just the beginning. Perry could be a nickelback, a position that often crosses the talents of a safety and cornerback because of the need to play in the slot. That’s where a running back, smaller wide receiver, or even a big tight end could play. Nickelback is very difficult and requires a great deal of skill and savvy.

When the Knights play some of the teams that like to line up a tight end in the slot that’s essentially a lead blocker on quick screens, Perry will be a good fit for taking on those blocks, getting off of them, and making a play. His tenacity and athleticism is perfectly suited for that role.

That’s good, because UCF is short on linebackers for next season and the loss of linebacker Bryson Armstrong, the player that often played over the slot, is out of eligibility. Perry could be a replacement to play over the slot against teams that really like to throw the football.

Against teams that are much more run heavy, he’s just fine at deep safety. This is a really good overall situation for the Knights, and it’s yet another example of how UCF is using the Transfer Portal to make its roster stronger.