FAMU DBs have a rep to protect

By St. Clair Murraine, DEMOCRAT STAFF WRITER

During the early part of the summer, free safety Jason Beach took his cohorts in the FAMU secondary on a three-days-a-week workout.

All the time, Beach couldn't lose images of a decoy receiver pulling him from a pass play. That was enough for the drill of running steps inside FSU's Doak Campbell Stadium to become an every-day routine. Safety Ernest Williams and cornerbacks Donovan Johnson and Michael Creary were right there.

“That workout is going a long way,” Beach said. “DBs have to be able to run all day. We're going to make (receivers) pay. When we get to the ball, we're going to arrive with bad intentions.”

Those are the kinds of words that could draw the ire of receivers throughout the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, but the summertime workouts aren't all that's preparing FAMU's last line of defense. They have a reputation to protect as one of the best at stopping the pass.

The offseason workouts were obvious as they came into camp fit. But more importantly, said Beach, they're more confident.

“We are like one unit out there; soul brothers,” he said. “It's like a fraternity inside a fraternity. We all have faith in each other and that's why we work so well together.”

They want to be better than last season when they were ranked the second-best defenders against the pass. In all, they allowed 11 passing touchdowns.

Improving that will begin with the season-opener against Southern, said Johnson.

“We've got to set the tone early; the first game and every play,” he said.

During the fall drill, the secondary is under the watch of first-year cornerback coach Willie Tillman. He hasn't allowed slouching since his arrival.

But no matter how hard they work, the secondary always works in the shadow of the defensive line. That's until there is a breakdown that allows a play to drift into the defensive backfield.

Coach Rubin Carter said the quartet is earning respect every day in practice, though.

“Everyone knows the value of a good defensive back, especially the cornerback position to be able to defend the pass,” he said. “The way you could get beat quickly is by a long touchdown so they have to be confident in their ability to make sure that they don't give up the big play.”

The two backs and safeties have done more than work on techniques to get better at their assignments.

“We're getting our swagger right,” Williams said. “We're trying to be the best secondary in the nation, and we're trying to keep it up every day.”

Throughout the first three weeks of fall practice, FAMU's defensive front seven has been troublesome for the offense. As usual, the secondary had gone about its business virtually unnoticed.

That should change when the season begins, though, Creary said.

“We're going to get a lot of work; a lot of interceptions,” he said.