At Monday’s press conference, Oregon head football coach Mike Bellotti said that he considers his cadre of defensive backs among the best secondary units in the nation.
“I believe it fully,” senior rover Patrick Chung said.
“I believe that there are a lot of athletes in the secondary that can take the ball away, sack the quarterback and hit.”
“It’s great that people are starting to look at us, but we’re still trying to go out there every day and work hard to better ourselves,” junior cornerback Walter Thurmond III said. “We have to earn it. It’s not going to be handed to us.”
Chung and Thurmond, along with junior cornerback Jairus Byrd, are the incumbent starters on the positional unit widely believed to be Oregon’s best, deepest and most talented. All three are returning for their third year as starters, and Chung and Thurmond were Oregon’s top two tacklers in 2007. Byrd intercepted seven passes last year, the best mark in the Pacific-10 Conference.
Not that any of them remain complacent based on last year’s success.
“Every time I step out there, every day I feel like I have something to prove,” Byrd said.
Byrd and Thurmond, who combined for 12 interceptions and 33 pass breakups, are arguably the two best cornerbacks in the Pac-10 and one of the best starting units in the nation.
“We always push each other in practice. We always try to outdo each other,” Thurmond said. “It just pushes us to be better players.”
Though the fourth secondary position-free safety-is currently up for grabs, junior T.J. Ward is favored to hold onto the spot over sophomore Marvin Johnson. Johnson and redshirt freshman Javes Lewis will back up the safety positions, while Byrd and Thurmond will be supported by sophomores Talmadge Jackson III and Anthony Gildon and junior Willie Glasper.
Byrd credits Oregon secondary coach John Neal and his approach in helping to build the quality depth at one of football’s most difficult positions.
“He really pushes us mentally and teaches us the mental aspect of the game,” Byrd said. “He pays attention to life skills and mental toughness.”
The secondary would’ve taken a drastic hit had Chung, who declared for April’s NFL Draft but withdrew his name, wanted to start a pro career early. Chung decided to come back and graduate with his class, adding to the high opinion of the Ducks’ defensive backfield.
Still, there is much work to be done between now and August 30.
“We have to act like we aren’t recognized. (We have to) just stay focused and just be humble and hungry,” Byrd said.