Is Taylor Mays good enough on his own to propel USC to the top like he propelled this receiver to the ground?
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Each and every year writers are guilty of labeling teams as “one of the best” at something, or “one of the five deepest” at a position, but very few writers take the time to figure out who really has the best section of a defense, or an offense. I myself am guilty and said it a minimum of 30 billion times per conference in the recent conference previews.
But today we will actually look to see which teams really do have the top units in college. You will get the top-5 from each of the positional units, a few teams that just missed the short list, and a couple of small school teams that don’t get the love they deserve.
The defensive side of the ball is a very hard thing to because of the diversity and the pain of statistics. Most of the teams on these lists are decided by talent, experience, depth, success, and potential, more than the true stats can tell. Oklahoma is statistically not a great team on defense, but the team has one of the best units in college. It’s simple to know that the SEC is a defensive league that does nothing but bleed talent, but it is much harder to look past the stats, and to see who really is the best.
And finally there are the DBs. The typical team uses two corners and two safeties, but there are so many crazy formations with the DBs that it is hard to truly tell which is the best. Some schools play a full time nickel defense (five DB), which can sprout into its own variations of the backfield. Rice uses a weak safety position in addition to the other DB, San Diego State will be trying out an “Aztec Back” this year that utilizes a player that is half safety and half LB. Tulsa uses two alternate players called the Bandits and the Spurs to utilize their five DB system, but for the majority of these rankings (at least the BCS teams) you will see only four DBs in the field.
The Smaller School Units
TCU — the Horned Frogs did lose great talent from the team last year, but the team has one of the scariest Nickels (addition of a weak safety) in college. Both corners have started all three of their first three years at TCU, and Tekerrein Cuba returns from injury to that WS spot.
ECU — The Pirates have one of the best small school defenses with a ton of talent and depth at DB. Van Eskridge will be drafted early in the 2010 draft and there is a ton of ball hawking deep talent throughout the team. Emanuel Davis will be a small school star name by the end of the season as well.
Best of the rest
Boise State — Boise State is the best small school unit at DB, but the team is also one of the best of the rest as well. The Broncos also have the best full time Nickel backfield in college, and plan to run it full time this year. It all starts with the stud corner Kyle Wilson who might be the 2nd or 3rd best CB prospect in the 2010 draft. Wilson had five picks, and as a side note had three return touchdowns for the special teams. Brandyn Thompson and Jeron are returning starters for the broncos, and there is deep talent at safety.
Ohio State — Ohio State’s secondary would not be on a typical year’s list but overall the teams in college are “weak” this year. There is a ton of safety and cornerback talent throughout college, but there are not many teams that are good all around with both sides of the DB. The Buckeyes bring back three starters in CB Chimdi Chekwa, SS Kurt Coleman, and FS Anderson Russell. Senior Andre Amos will likely get the other corner nod, but there is a ton of experience depth behind the starters.
Alabama — The Tide have been able to make a name for themselves in each part of the rankings, and will likely have one of the three most talented and potential filled defenses in college. The backfield has a ton of talent including 1st day draft pick Javier Arenas at corner, joined by junior Kareem Jackson who is damn talented in his own right. Justin Woodall and sophomore Robby Green will dominate the backfield. The team has good depth as well in Dre Kirkpatrick and Alonzo Lawrence who are two top notch freshman corners.
THE LIST
5. Virginia Tech Hokies
The Hokies have a ton of potential and might end up with the most complete defense North of the SEC. The Hokies has a solid line, decent enough talent at LB, and one of the five best DB units in college. The backfield starts with the great CB Stephan Virgil who brought in six picks a year ago for the Hokies. Senior safety Kam Chancellor could have been the first safety taken had he left early for the draft, but the team is more than happy to have him back. Dorian Porch is one of the better SS in the ACC, and expect decent things from junior CB Rashad Carmichael. The team has a ton of sophomore and junior talent for depth, and even more depth than they can put on the field for 2009. Overall the team finished last season with the 16th best pass defense and 8th in interceptions.
4. USC Trojans
There is one thing for sure about the Trojans this year, and that they have potentially the most talented group of DB’s. The problem however is that the backfield lost two key starters from the team, and overall the defense lost eight starters. It is an impressive feat to finish 1st in passing defensive yardage, but when the defense is unable to stop the run or pressure the QB as well as it did last year, it’s hard to expect great results.
Taylor Mays is one of the two best safeties to come around in college the last few years. Eric Berry gets a ton of credit for his skills at Tennessee, but few appreciate what Taylor Mays has done for USC. Mays has amazing height, speed, athleticism, and ball explosion technique that teams literally do not want to throw his way. Mays is joined by SS Josh Pinkard who is one of the better DB in the PAC 10. Kevin Thomas and Sharreece Wright will likely get the nods at corner, but don’t be surprised to see T.J Bryant and one of a ton of great recruits get some snaps and plays under their belts.
3. California Golden Bears
The Bears backfield not only had one of the best score stopping units, but one of the best ball hawking and pass shutdown units in college. In fact the team only allowed 12 TD passes while sucking in 24 interceptions for the year. You have to start talking about the best CB tandem in the country in Darian Hagan and Syd’Quan Thompson. Syd’Quan is one most underrated players in the country, and junior Darian Hagan will likely become one of the best DB in the country after another good season in 2009. Combined the two players brought in 126 tackles, seven picks, and 29 pass blocks.
As a whole, the Bears return all four starters from last year including two senior safeties and the two dominate corners already mentioned. The Bears have some good experience and depth in junior Chris Conte, sophomore safeties D.J. Campbell and Sean Cattouse, and freshman corner Marc Anthony. That’s right folks, the Bears even recruited Jennifer Lopez’s husband and the number one selling salsa musician of all time. Or maybe it’s a 19-year old kid from Arizona.
2. Tennessee Volunteers
The Volunteers might end up with the undisputed best DB Unit in college when it is all said and done, but the team must prove to the country that it can rebound from some of the losses this offseason. The only way you can start an argument for Tennessee is to mention Eric Berry, one of the scariest and most elite safeties to come around in some time. Berry has averaged six picks a year (7 last year) in his first two years for an average of almost 40 yards returned per interception. Berry also has three pick 6’s for his name too. Berry is one of the fastest, most athletic, best hitting and ball hawking players in college.
Berry is not alone however as a ton of recruitment talent will be coming into the team, combined with a ton of experienced and powerful talent. Junior corners Dennis Rogan and Brent Vinson will be fighting off senior Marsalous Johnson and sophomore Art Evans for the entire season. At FS, Stephaun Raines looks primed and ready to start, but don’t discount the potential in freshman Prentiss Waggner to get some snaps. Overall new coach Lane Kiffin had one of the best defensive recruiting classes, and will likely start the “rebuilding” process well for the Vols.
Never forget that with the arrival of Lane Kiffin at head coach brought in one of the best defensive coordinators ever in Monte Kiffin. Monte has spent the last few years creating amazing defenses for the Tampa Bay Bucs, and will likely take the team that finished 3rd last year (4th in passing) into the elite defense in college. One thing few discount for the Vols this season is that the defense will be potentially even better than last year because of the gains and improvements on the offense.
1. Florida Gators
Not a bigshock for the Gator nation, but it also might not be a good one. If the Gators get too cocky and assume that they are the best at everything, then they might assume that the season is already over. Overall the Gators might have the most experience and depth in college, but they have the number one team that physically scares you to throw to. Eric Berry might be the best ball hawking safety in college, but never discount Ahmad Black however as he might be the most underrated player on the Florida squad, and potentially the SEC. Black who is the junior SS brought in seven sacks a year ago (2 for scores) at an average of 27 yds/int. Major Wright will likely be one of the first four safeties taken in the 2010 draft should he declare, and corner Joe Haden might be the best corner in college.
Janoris Jenkins came into his own as a freshman last season and will likely propel himself into one of the top corners in college this season. Overall the front four of the backfield is packed full of day 1 draft picks, and the second (and third for the matter) string of the team has a ton of talent as well. In fact the second string has three experienced seniors and a sophomore in Will Hill to create an awesome amount of depth for the team. The scary thing to think about however is that the Gators have one of the two best CB tandems in college, and likely have the best safety tandems as well.
Overall the gators finished first in picks and in interception touchdowns. The team looks to be even better with experience, especially since the front four of the DB are filled with three juniors and a sophomore. If by chance they all stay another year for the 2010 season, it might be the best DB tandem ever. Either way though look for a stout defense overall and a ton of amazing plays for the Gators.
