Days away from Auburn’s first spring scrimmage in Jordan-Hare Stadium, defensive coordinator Will Muschamp said he is pleased with the progress the secondary has made thus far this offseason as coaches continue to define roles at key positions.
“We purposely, some days, throw a lot at them to see how they adjust and how they handle it,” Muschamp said. “I think that’s something that you always have to be able to do, especially when we are in the spring and not in a game situations.”
The secondary was area of concern for the Auburn in 2014, but players have been stepping up this spring as the defense continues to show steady improvement in the early stages of the Muschamp era.
The former Florida coach told the media Thursday night, April 2, that Derrick Moncrief can be an “effective player “ for the Tigers heading into the fall as the junior continues to improve at defensive back.
“Derrick has done a nice job, he’s playing at the nickel position for us,” Muschamp said. “I think he’s done a nice job progressing. He has to continue to work on some of the coverage things in space, but he’s a guy that certainly has the skill set to play that position.”
However, according to Muschamp the most impressive player of the unit has been cornerback Joshua Hosley, who has shown coaches “outstanding” coverage skills against “a very good corps of wideouts” this spring.
“Josh Hosley is having an outstanding spring,” Muschamp said. “He’s really come on. He runs well on the top end, plays the ball well down the field.”
Junior safety Johnathan Ford is also separating himself in a tight race for playing time at defensive back as Auburns returning starter at safety.
“Rudy Ford is a guy that right now could go play corner for us and I know that we could win with,” Muschamp said. “He’s an outstanding guy on the top end as far as his speed is concerned. One of the faster defensive backs that I’ve been around. Continues to learn our scheme and system. I’ve been very pleased with how he’s progressed.”
Freshman Tim Irvin has also been a factor for the Tigers. Although struggling with a nagging hand injury, Irvin has received reps with the first-team and will provide quality depth for the Tigers in 2015.
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