Spring is Time for Learning

Apr 13, 2023 | Football, Sports Extra

By: D. Scott Fritchen

Van Malone has long known this time would come. The Kansas State assistant head coach/passing game coordinator/cornerbacks coach knew that he would have to replace departing senior cornerbacks Julius Brents and Ekow Boye-Doe after the Big 12 Championship season.

Boye-Doe, an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention selection, made 35 career starts. Brents, an All-Big 12 First Team selection, made 27. Together they were among the best cornerback tandems in the league for the Wildcats, who finished 10-4 with an appearance in the Sugar Bowl.

"When you look at last season in that (cornerback) room, Julius and Ekow had more reps than anybody, so to lose their rep count is a challenge to replace, but I've been impressed with all our guys," Malone said in a spring news conference on Wednesday.

Fortunately, it appears that Malone has options for the two cornerback spots, potentially feeling comfortable in having four to five different cornerbacks see the field in the fall.

"I'm excited where I'm at right now because I have four or five guys from a physical standpoint who've shown they can do it," Malone said, "and they continually impress myself and the other coaches on our staff that from a mental, assignment and technique standpoint they can go out and be able to be successful."

For now, it appears that sophomore Jacob Parrish is the No. 1 standout while fellow sophomore Omar Daniels and sophomore junior-college transfer Will Lee III could battle for the other cornerback job.

The 5-foot-10, 178-pound Parrish, an up-and-comer from Olathe North High School, saw action in all 14 games last season and played a majority of the Big 12 title game, setting a career high with four tackles and one pass breakup in place of injured Boye-Doe.

"He's continually stood out being as young as he is and does things at times that you don't even coach," Malone said. "He understands angles and body position and there are no words sometimes to describe the things that he does from an athleticism standpoint."

Daniels is a 6-foot, 178-pound native of Moultrie, Georgia, who played in the Texas Bowl against LSU to preserve his redshirt, then saw time in 10 games a year ago, posting one tackle against Alabama in the Sugar Bowl.

"He's been around here a while, but hadn't played as much, but he has a big-time understanding of the system," Malone said. "He has a big-time understanding of the way we do things and an understanding of the communication that's need to play the position."

K-State delved into familiar territory when it went into Iowa and found Lee at Iowa Western Community College. At 6-foot-3, and 190 pounds, Lee is the tallest cornerback on the K-State roster, providing some of that size that helped to make Brents a force over his career. Lee, considered the No. 15-rated junior-college prospect in the Class of 2023 by On3, earned NJCAA first-team All-America honors after posting 34 tackles, a tackle for loss, an interception and 10 passes defended in 12 games in 2022.

Lee transferred to K-State in time for spring practice.

"(Lee) just walked into the room and has been behind because these other guys have been on campus and they know the stretch routines and where to find the training room," Malone said, "but he's finding his way and I continually see flashes of athleticism that lets me know he's going to be just what we need with this group."

Malone added: "There's no guy at this time that's just stood out among the rest because they all have really good strengths and they all have some weaknesses. I'm excited for them all to fit into the group, which he think will be able to help us compete for a Big 12 Championship again."

However, here's another player to keep an eye on: Keenan Garber. Although the 6-foot, 181-pound native of Lawrence began last season as a backup wide receiver, he switched to cornerback. Garber, considered one of the fastest players on the team, saw action in all 14 games and even played 21 snaps in the Sugar Bowl due to mounting injuries in the defensive backfield. He made his first-career tackle in the Big 12 title game.

"Keenan wasn't getting the reps that he would've liked as a wide receiver, and we had some injuries and things that we were dealing with at cornerback from a depth standpoint," Malone said. "It actually ended up being a perfect marriage.

"Little did we know we'd have injuries that would force him onto the field earlier than he would've liked. The thought process was we were going to put him over here and learn the position and in the spring he'd be able to learn more and compete. Because of his speed and athleticism we just felt the need to throw him in there a little bit earlier and it worked out."

Juniors Jordan Wright and Justice Clemons are interesting prospects as well. The 6-foot, 178-pound Wright came to K-State last summer after playing the 2019 and 2021 seasons at Fullerton College. Clemons arrived at K-State last summer as well after playing two seasons at Tyler Junior College. They redshirted the 2022 season for the Wildcats while engraining themselves in the defensive system.

"(They) didn't get the benefit of a spring," Malone said. "Spring practice is where you learn the most. When you get into fall camp, there's some learning involved, but it's not like spring practice. To have (them) around to be able to go through the fall and gain experience and understand the communication, it's invaluable at this point."

K-State began spring practice on March 7 and will conclude its regimen of 15 practices on Saturday.

"Especially at (cornerback), you have guys who all the sudden have an ankle or a hamstring and you have those little injuries that prohibit a guy from being at his best," Malone said. "I'm excited to have as many guys as I can be in the pot for us to be able to pull from."

In Malone's words: Offensive standouts

"From an offensive standpoint, the guys who've stood out to me — I won't necessarily say all these guys have stood out because of their practices because some of them have not been able to get as much time on the field due to injuries or things of that nature — Phillip Brooks has stood out, Keagan Johnson, Xavier Loyd, RJ Garcia II, those guys are the receivers and I see them every day. Those guys have done a great job and some of them have played quite a bit here but some of them are getting better every day as they develop. DJ Giddens has done a good job and he'll be a great player along with Treshaun Ward. I've been impressed with those guys as they've come along. On the offensive line, Cooper Beebe, Christian Duffie along with Kaitori (KT) Leveston. Those guys are mainstays and they've played around here for a good minute. But Andrew Leingang is a young guy who's been really impressive to me. I don't get a chance to see offensive linemen much but I've been impressed with those guys. At quarterback, Will Howard has shown great leadership and great command of the offense. From a defensive standpoint, just watching him, I couldn't be more impressed by his leadership and what he does for the offensive side of the ball. He's continually gotten better every practice. Avery Johnson is incredibly athletic with the ball in his hands. He shows big-time speed and ability to be able to push the ball down the field. He shows big-time promise. So does Jake Rubley and Adryan Lara. Those guys at the quarterback position have shown some really special things."

In Malone's words: Defensive standouts

"Defensively, I'm going to give you two names that you'd better know how to say because I've had some struggles, but Uso Seumalo, a defensive tackle, and he's playing very well this spring. The other name is Tobi Osunsanmi. Tobi has been very impressive just because of his physicality and his ability to be able to run. Both of those guys are very green, but they continue to make plays and they're continually productive out there. On the defensive front, Khalid Duke, Nate Matlack, those guys have played some good football around here, but I've been impressed with Chiddi Obiazor, a guy who was here early and who's done a good job this spring. Jake Clifton, Austin Moore, Daniel Green, and really Jake Clifton being a younger guy, it's kind of funny to put him in the group with the older guys, but he's played some good football and had some good snaps for us last season. I've been impressed with him along with the mainstays and Desmond Purnell. Those guys continue to provide us leadership. Really from a whole defensive standpoint, Austin and Daniel, those guys have shown to be the guys who we'd say are the leadership right now. At safety, VJ Payne, Kam Sallis, Marques Sigle, Wesley Fair, all of those guys along with Colby McCalister, those guys continue to get better every day. Colby is rehabbing and doing his thing in terms of leadership and getting better every day. I'm excited for that group."