A heavy rotation at the nickel position through camp has given Kansas football defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald a mix of versatile skillsets at the position and potential for this season.
“We got some guys rotating in there,” Kansas defensive coordinator D.K. McDonald said. “Right now they’re doing a good job. We’re really excited about that position. We got a mix of older guys and younger guys, which is good.”
Versatility helps at any position, but when it comes to playing nickel, it becomes even more so. Players need to have the coverage skills of an outside cornerback while being able to defend the run like a linebacker or safety playing in the box. McDonald said the group has even spent time in fall camp working with defensive ends coach Joe Dineen on pass-rush skills.
Some of the Jayhawks contending for playing time at nickel are traditional outside cornerbacks who are moving inside, like redshirt sophomore Elijah Cannon, who transferred in from Mississippi State, and freshman Trey Brown. For them, the challenge is having to play in the box and shed the blocks of tight ends and offensive linemen that can have around 100 pounds on them.
“(Playing nickel) is the most time I’ve spent in the box playing football in general,” Cannon said. “(Spending) time in the walkthrough, time with my coaches in meetings and going through run fits in practice, it all helps.”
Spacing is important for nickels to be mindful of, and Cannon said he’s focused on what his triangle of defensive backs are at on a play. Knowing where the safety is, the cornerback and where he should be is important to combat route combinations that attempt to find open space within that triangle of defenders.
“Our coaches do a very good job making it known how much (the) formations and stuff are important to the game nowadays,” Cannon said. “It’s a very thinking game. We’re learning certain formations, what I should expect from certain alignments.”
The Kansas defensive backs have the benefit this year of new assistant backs coach Duane Akina, whose focus is the nickel position. He’s a longtime and highly regarded defensive backs coach in college, mostly having spent time and multiple stints at Arizona and Texas. Fifth-year Jayhawk Mason Ellis said Akina has taught him “how to understand what’s coming, and not just be reacting.”
Redshirt sophomore Khijohnn Cummings-Coleman is listed as a safety on the KU roster, but he’s another versatile defensive back who has spent a lot of time at nickel this summer. His size and strength allows him to hold up with the physical aspects of the position.
“He’s an explosive young man,” McDonald said of Cummings-Coleman. “When I talk about guys being able to blitz and cover, he’s able to do that. He’s a thicker body there so he’s able to hold up in the run and do those (types) of things. And so he’s kind of an athlete that we haven’t had here in a while playing that nickel position.”
Cummings-Coleman said he’s trying to be a “student of the game” and is learning from his teammates to get mentally sharp for the position. It helps to have teammates who have played the position at KU to learn from, as well as Cummings-Coleman’s time spent at Iowa State before transferring to KU, the college McDonald last coached at before KU which kept some concepts the same after McDonald left and Cummings-Coleman arrived.
Having the mental quickness to process what opposing offenses are doing allows him to play fast and hit hard, something that Cummings-Coleman really enjoys.
“I like being around the ball,” Cummings-Coleman said. “That’s my favorite thing. Whether it’s out in coverage or fitting the run, I love it.”
Cummings-Coleman isn’t the only defensive back embracing the physicality of the position. There’s a lot of glamor to being the outside cornerback, going one-on-one against an elite receiver and making a play on the ball for a pass breakup or interception. But doing the dirty work in the run game or breaking through the offensive line for a sack has it’s own highlights, and they usually come with big hits.
“I love it,” Cannon said of the physicality. “Ever since I came into the position, I found I love it more and more.”
