Brandon Shelby on young DB room, nickel position, much more
Kansas has a young defensive back room with players looking to step into bigger roles. Defensive backs coach Brandon Shelby met with the media Saturday, discussing how he’s approaching coaching the young group, who’s working at nickel, and how DJ Graham has impacted the room.
Coaching a young group has been a ‘reset’ for Shelby
When Shelby worked as a defensive analyst last season, Cobee Bryant and Mello Dotson were the big contributors at cornerback. Now that they have both graduated, the room is a lot younger and Shelby called it a reset.
“You get these freshmen in here, and you have to start from the little things — you can’t assume they know,” Shelby said. “In our meetings, we’ve been focusing on: Where’s my alignment? Where are my eyes? Communication. This past couple days we’ve been harping on having good communication when people shift, motion, and move, and then also doing your job.”
Shelby said young corners have a tendency to look in the backfield and rely on their athletic ability to make a play. In college, you have to stay focused on the guy in front of you.
“In high school, they could look in the backfield, play a double move, and get an interception,” Shelby said. “But when you’re going against [Emmanuel Henderson Jr.] and guys who can run and move, if you do that, it’s going to be a long afternoon. So we keep harping on that as we move forward.”
Mason Ellis, Syeed Gibbs, Laquan Robinson getting work at nickel
Ellis has gotten praise throughout camp as a player who can impact the Jayhawks. Shelby said Ellis has great attributes like his intelligence and can do things to be a successful nickel corner.
“He does a great job of being physical when you need it and also has the ability to cover and help us out in pass coverage as well,” Shelby said. “So really excited about what he’s done these past few days at camp.”
Shelby said that Ellis and Syeed Gibbs are doing a great job at nickel, along with Laquan Robinson. Kansas’ DBs coach said competition is good for the position.
“At the end of the day, it’s a position where you have to go out there and go every day,” Shelby said. “We want competition, and we’ve had that thus far. These guys will keep pushing one another, and I expect that to happen as we get closer to camp ending and getting closer to game week.”
DJ Graham II providing experience for younger players
Graham transferred to Kansas from Utah State after spending four years at Oklahoma. He’s been nicked up at times during camp, but is progressing. One of the biggest things he brings to the table is his leadership and experience.
“He’s a vocal guy with a lot of experience, and when he’s on the football field, it calms the younger guys down,” Shelby said. “That’s what you look for from him. He’s going to keep building and do great things for us this season.”
Shelby said Graham’s calming presence is different to his “hollering and yelling.” Graham has been able to make an impact on the younger players.
“On the sideline yesterday, he helped us out when we had to go to the box in the new stadium with substitutions,” Graham said. “When young guys came off the field, he talked to them and calmed them down — ‘Hey, this is what you saw, this is what you’re looking at.’ He’s a veteran presence, well spoken, articulates well, and has played a lot of football.”
