Upgrade or Downgrade? Cornerback
by captainqtp on Jul 13, 2009 2:27 PM PDT
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PrintI thought Cornerback would be another good position as a candidate for today's upgrade or downgrade poll. Last year, Michael Norris started for us and did a fantastic job, earning Pac-10 honorable mention. I was a little surprised on how well he did, considering how teams had to pick on him simply because he was opposite our potential All-American, Alterraun Verner. I also wasn't sure about his physical tools, but he sure proved me wrong, especially with that incredible interception in the final game against USC.
After spring, it looks like Aaron Hester will be starting opposite Verner. Here he was covering Rosario during spring practice:
Photo Credit: dabruins07 (flickr)
Aaron Hester is only a redshirt freshman, one of many young guys slated to make it into the starting lineup this year. Brian Dohn said he isn't sure if Hester will be able to put together a 2009 that was as good as Norris's 2008, but that he probably has more upside than Norris. What do you guys think?
Is Aaron Hester an upgrade, downgrade or about the same as last year's Michael Norris?
After today, I'm thinking I'll move over to the defensive line, since at linebacker we have two established starters from last year, and Akeem Ayers who ended up earning a starting spot towards the end of the year in 2008.
This is a FanPost and does not necessarily reflect the views of BruinsNation's (BN) editors. It does reflect the views of this particular fan though, which is as important as the views of BN's editors.
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Either an upgrade or about the same... that looks pretty unanimous
If we all think that Glenn Love is probably an upgrade and Aaron Hester is an upgrade, then basically we upgrade at every position in the secondary. Last year I thought we had a solid bunch. I don’t need to say much about Verner, Norris was All Pac-10 Honorable mention, Lockett was picked up by an NFL team, and Moore did more than any freshman in recent years including Verner (although I’ll never forget Verner’s pic-6 as a freshman).
Why is our secondary this season consistently rated lower than USC, Cal, and Oregon’s? I know they have good players, like USC’s Taylor Mays, but hell, we have good players too.
Look at this article for example.
Three PAC-10 teams made the Sporting News top 5 secondaries, and none of them were UCLA. Personally, I think we have an excellent chance of outdoing USC, Cal, or Oregon next season. Maybe we’ll outdo all of them. So I leave it to you guys. Is our secondary underrated?
In terms of athletic ability
I do think its an upgrade. The key will be experience though. Norris was getting beaten up early part of last season before coming around later in the year (much like Lockett to a certain extent). I think we will take our lumps with Hester early but if he can develop and blossom taking advantage of this athletic/physical skills, it could be a lot of fun (and yes an upgrade).
Our secondary is young
With the exception of ATV, the rest of our secondary will most likely be underclassmen (e.g. Moore, Hester, Dye, Love) with very limited on-field experience. If you look at the projected depth charts for sc, Cal and Oregon, they’re loaded with upper classmen who have had significant playing time. Our secondary just isn’t there yet. Give them this season to develop, then we’ll talk. The big question marks for us will be how good will our underclassmen be in Game 1, and how quickly will they adjust.
Norris was a sure burn early in this past season
as Nester mentions. Those are hard lessons to learn, and Norris weathered them well. Not knowing Hester’s abilities, lessons learned take precedence over raw abilities. Norris stays.
Wash
Wasn’t a big Norris fan but he did come to play down the stretch. Hester has NFL measureables and ability but no game experience. When ATV started, he took his lumps but he was wise beyond his years. Hester’s game is more physical and aggressive. We’re going to see a lot of PI’s called on him until he finds that perfect balance.
The talent level in the secondary has significantly improved but they lack experience and haven’t proven themselves at this level. The unit will get the recognition once they make plays. Also, our secondary will only be as good as the Front 7, especially the DE’s getting pressure on the QB.
Thank you (Nestor?)
for the picture insertions on these posts. They really look great.
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