It’s young, it’s inexperienced -– but who cares?
The UCF Knights’ secondary is dangerously talented.
I asked the rest of the defense what they plan to do to help our secondary this year and each one shot back at me that the secondary will hold its own.
Key Players on the Secondary:
FS Derrick Hallman 6-0 213 Jr. – Moved from Linebacker to Free Safety, which keeps this talented player on the field. He had 57 tackles, eight tackles for loss, and six pass breakups last year in nine games.
SS Reggie Weams 6-0 191 Jr. – The Longtime reserve will finally get a chance this year to prove he belongs in the starting lineup.
CB Emery Allen 5-9 177 Sr. – Has the best cover skills and will be leaned on to contain each teams top WR.
CB Justin Boddie 6-2 184 Jr. – Will compete with Darrin Baldwin and Josh Robinson to keep his job but may be better suited as a safety on this defense.
Others in the Mix: Josh Robinson, Michael Greco, Darin Baldwin
Strengths: Athleticism. If they quickly figure out all the tendencies of opposing offenses, they will be strong.
Weaknesses: Inexperience. Although they’ve seen time on the field, this will be their first time playing at each position.
Position Overview: The rest of the defense is so strong and I don’t see this group letting us down either.
Since that Christmas Eve night when place kicker Matt Prater missed the extra point to lose the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl, UCF has been searching for the answer to that position.
Key Players on the Special Teams:
PK Nick Cattoi 6-5 209 So. – Large for a place kicker, he looks forward to pack a punch every time he puts it through the uprights.
P Blake Clingan 6-3 228 Jr. – Consistent through his career, but hopefully has added a little more power to his leg and can consistently put the ball inside the 20.
PR Josh Robinson 5-10 181 Fr. – This diaper dandy looks to make big places replacing Smokin’ Joe.
KR Darin Baldwin 5-11 200 Jr. & Johnathan Davis 5-9 195 Fr. – With the season-ending injury to Khymest Williams, these two look to take over all kick returns. Look for Davis to impress in an effort to demand carries in the backfield.
Strengths: We have no shortage of talented athletes to excel at kick returns and coverage.
Weaknesses: Cattoi hasn’t experienced a high pressure situation; hopefully he will be put into a lot of situations to impress.
Position Overview: A strong performance every game from the special teams will go a long way to help our Offense.
