Nick Coleman Relishes Opportunity For Irish Secondary In 2016
In any great defensive back you can typically find an incredibly confident player in both his approach and demeanor.
Sophomore Nick Coleman seems to be no exception, and he hopes the production follows soon.
For an Irish secondary hoping to rebound from a 2015 that featured too many explosive plays by opposing offenses, Coleman thinks attitude is part of the solution to becoming one of the nation’s most respected secondaries.
“Every day we talk about being the best secondary in the country,” Coleman said. “I think we have the depth with the guys now off the redshirts and the incoming freshmen. ... We're learning every day and listening to our coaches.”
Second-year defensive backs coach Todd Lyght is focused on improving a unit that lost two starters to the NFL while relying on inexperience in junior Nick Watkins and sophomores Coleman and Shaun Crawford. Watkins recently suffered a fractured left humerus that Notre Dame hopes will allow him to return for summer workouts.
“I think the open competition is great,” Lyght said. “Everybody is still challenging for the starting spots and we know that we're probably going to have to play eight guys deep across the board, especially with our nickel and dime package. So everybody is going to have a hand in making this team successful on the back end.”
Coleman registered 44 snaps as a freshman in 2015 while his classmate Crawford sat out the season — after earning the No. 1 nickel back position — due to a torn ACL. Coleman said the defense is coming easier to him in his second year in the program.
“I feel so much more comfortable since the first day I got here,” he said. “I remember fall camp I really didn't know too much, but I was just out there trying to make a play. It was tough, but now I actually know why I'm doing certain things and why I'm running over here. It's just so much easier to play the game and being able to play at a high level.”
Coleman starred as a two-way player at Kettering (Ohio) Archbishop Alter High School, where he recorded 48 tackles and three interceptions as senior while rushing for 1,125 yards and 13 touchdowns as a running back.
While transitioning to a defense-only contribution in 2015, he said Cole Luke and KeiVarae Russell were instrumental in helping him become well-versed with coordinator Brian VanGorder’s defense.
“Last year KeiVarae brought such a focus and energy. It was great to work with him for that year and I knew everyday if I wasn't that spark, I would sure enough hear it from KeiVarae,” Coleman said. “With Cole, he's just such a smart player. He knows the game. Learning from him last year and Devin too, Devin knows the entire defense. Learning from them and working with them has kept me alive.”
The injury to Watkins, arguably the frontrunner for a starting cornerback post, opened up more opportunities later in the spring for Coleman, even if it wasn’t the way he desired.
“Nick is one of my best guys. It was terrible to see him go down obviously,” Coleman said. “You don't want that to happen to anybody, but at the same time it's an opportunity for me to come in and show everybody that I'm a lockdown corner and that I can play the position and be dependable. ... When he comes back, we'll just be that much better.”
Coleman hopes he plays an integral role in that improvement at what he sees as one of football’s most vital positions.
“I feel like the game has changed just as far as football completely,” he said. “It's about corners, wide receivers, quarterbacks and offensive and D-line play. The running backs and linebackers are out there too, but I feel like it's a corner-wideout game. You've got to bring it every day and continue to get better.”