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Gearing up for the season: Defensive backs
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And so we get to the final entry in the series. We've been breaking down the Virginia roster position-by-position, and the series saves the best for last. Virginia is strongest and deepest in the defensive secondary. In the interest of egregious self-linkage, and so you can catch up if you missed anything, the first six entries were: Offensive line; running backs; wide receivers/tight ends; quarterbacks; defensive line; and linebackers.
As I mentioned, the position where UVa has the most talent is undoubtedly the secondary. There is both talent and depth. Here are the players expected to play the biggest roles:
Ras-I Dowling: Virginia's only representative on the preseason all-ACC squad as selected by members of the media, Dowling is a shut-down cornerback. If there are any early departures to the 2010 NFL Draft, Dowling is the most likely candidate.
Chris Cook: Teams could always avoid throwing to Dowling's side of the field, but then they'd have to throw to Chris Cook's. Cook has had a star-crossed career at Virginia. A broken leg ended his very promising freshman season early, and he missed three games his junior year with a sprained knee. To top it off, academic problems kept him ineligible all through 2008. Regardless, Cook is a well-respected senior leader and a captain by vote of the team. He's also tall and rangy and very skilled, and along with Dowling makes a formidable cornerback duo.
Chase Minnifield: Cornerback is in the blood for Minnifield - his father is Frank Minnifield, the former Cleveland Browns Pro Bowl corner. Minnifield will have to wait one more year for a starting job, but he's a crucial reserve who played extensively last year as a redshirt freshman, and made an impression. He'll be the first defensive back off the bench in nickel packages, and in the event of injury to a starter, Minnifield will ensure there's very little drop-off at the position. He's also employed at times as a kick returner.
Rodney McLeod: McLeod moves to safety from cornerback last year, which he played as a true freshman. The coaches have repeatedly praised McLeod for his football sense, which should be put to good use at safety, the last line of defense. Just a sophomore, McLeod will nevertheless be counted on as a leader on defense. Like Minnifield, he's also athletic enough to be used as a kick returner.
Corey Mosley: Mosley was a starting safety for most of the season last year after being promoted from the special teams, and learned the trade under Byron Glaspy, one of the smartest players to come through UVa in a while. Like McLeod, Mosley is just a sophomore, but expectations are extremely high for the pair of young starters at safety.
Brandon Woods: Bumped by Mosley from his starting job after three games, Woods' experience will nevertheless be vital to the success of the secondary. A senior this year and one of only two in the entire secondary, Woods will provide much needed stability if the younger starters begin to experience some of the ups and downs that go with inexperience.
Bottom line, this is the deepest, most talented secondary UVa has had in a long time. This will give the defense two major advantages. One, obviously, it will be very difficult to pass against Virginia's defense, and if the offense can jump out to a lead, it'll be that much harder for opponents to catch up. Second, the question marks in the inexperienced linebacking corps are softened somewhat with a dependable second line of defense behind them. The secondary is one position Virginia fans won't have to spend any sleepless nights over this season.
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