 "Photo: Karl Anderson")
During one of Texas Tech's practices this spring, receiver Ed Britton was slashing through the secondary, and just as he was securing a crisp pass from quarterback Taylor Potts - he got absolutely trucked.
Britton fell to the ground, the ball flew in the air and safety Cody Davis - who laid the hit - made the interception and sprinted downfield.
It was a remember-his-name moment for spectators watching the practice.
"That's what I try and do," said Davis, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound redshirt freshman from Stephenville. "I think that's an up-and-coming staple of my game, I guess, just trying to make a loud hit and come downhill."
That was one of Davis' big hits on the day, and his first-team partner, safety Franklin Mitchem, has turned in some haymakers this spring as well.
Tech will need more of those plays if it plans to adequately replace the loss of dynamic duo Daniel Charbonnet and Darcel McBath, who were both seniors last season.
McBath and Charbonnet combined for 12 interceptions and three touchdowns in 2008, but while statistics are a visible part of the game and worthy of noting - the chemistry and communication from the tandem will be sorely missed.
"That's probably been the hard thing so far," Davis said, "is just communicating all the way through and making the changes in the defense whenever the offense motions or something like that."
This is where the expertise of safeties coach Carlos Mainord, a veteran of 40 years, comes in. His next task is to rebuild a depleted secondary that also lost its second stringers.
The first step?
Ease these talented, young safeties into their new starting roles and try to get all the safeties, including Jared Flannel, Brett Dewhurst and recently converted linebacker Julius Howard acclimated to their defensive assignments.
"We're just having to make a little more calls on our own," senior linebacker Marlon Williams said. "Having to help them get the checks, but they're just growing up, maturing real fast and they're making a lot of plays."
Tech defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill said he doesn't worry about the progress of the safeties because he knows they're in good hands, not only with Mainord, but by facing a potent, popular Big 12 Conference offense every practice.
"(Mainord's) done well everywhere he's been, from college to pros and back to college," McNeill said. "So they're being coached by one of the best. (The safeties) face a top offense in the country every day passing-wise, and total offense-wise, so anything that they'll see in the fall, they will have no doubt have seen in the spring from our offense."
The 6-foot-2, 200-pound Mitchem had a solid year on special teams last season and finished the campaign with 15 total tackles and two forced fumbles in 12 games. In 2007, he broke his ankle and sat out the campaign, adding some adversity to his young Tech career.
"It was a different experience," he said, "because I've never had a serious injury like that before."
Mitchem, who was recruited by Arizona State, Ole Miss and Oklahoma State to name a few, has looked solid with the first team, displaying his big-hit ability and intelligence to pick up plays quickly.
For example, during Wednesday's practice, McNeill was working with the defense and liked a particular read that Mitchem made and said to him, "You look so much better out there. The first day (of spring practice) you looked like Daffy Duck."
Mitchem and Davis said while they don't feel overwhelmed when looking at the reclamation project at safety, they both show a willingness to build off last year's playmaking safeties.
"I feel a little bit of pressure, because it's my first time starting for a Big 12 school," Mitchem said. "We got the best competition out there in the country, next to the SEC, so we gotta bring our game any time."
Mainord said this is one of the more rare situations he has experienced in his career. With all five senior safeties, including Jordy Rowland and Anthony Hines, moving on after 2008, he knows the talent is there to replenish the position, but the experience will only grow with time.
"We're taking it slow because we want them to have a basic foundation of what we want to do," Mainord said. "Then from there we can expand on it, but until they get that foundation, it's hard to expand to something else. You gotta crawl before you can walk."
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