 "Photo: Sam Grenadier")
Texas Tech junior cornerback Jamar Wall expects quarterbacks to be a little more cautious when they look his way this season.
"They probably won't test me as much because they like testing new guys," he said. "Now that they've seen me out there, it's gonna be a little harder."
So what does Wall do for an encore?
"It's a whole new season, so what I do, I like to get better," said Wall, who was one of three Tech players, along with Michael Crabtree and guard Louis Vasquez, to earn a spot on the 2008 preseason All-Big 12 Conference team. "I don't just ignore (last season), but I'm like, 'OK, I had five interceptions, get six. I had 50 tackles, get 60.' I always use it for improvement."
Of course it helps when an All-American is lining up across from him on a regular basis.
Wall said the mutual relationship helps him get better at disguising coverage as he tries to befuddle the connection between Tech quarterback Graham Harrell and Crabtree.
"Graham is a smart guy," Wall said. "So it's not gonna take much for him to start figuring out stuff. I try to keep changing it up for them to make us better, as well as them better."
On occasion, Wall said Crabtree will turn to ask for advice after a play is over, so Wall does the same.
"He helps me," Wall said. "If I need some help on something, he asks me 'How would that break look, how did that break look?' He does his best to disguise too, because he knows he's gonna be double teamed and everything else this year too."
Cornerbacks coach Brian Mitchell said the two positions can learn so much from each other, so it makes sense to share some knowledge from time to time.
Mitchell said Wall "hasn't had one day where he's let his practice habits go south," which goes back to playing against Crabtree so often.
"You can't take a play off because he looks like he's trotting, and then all of a sudden he takes off, and he's scoring a touchdown," Wall said. "You always have to be on your toes, because he's so explosive."
One aspect of Wall's game that seems to put him in position to make an easy interception is his attention to detail, Mitchell said, which is so essential to Wall's technique considering he is not the fastest corner on the team.
Some of those plays still may not come so easy this season, Wall said, especially considering how teams may aim at the right corner, where experience is limited.
After L.A. Reed went down with an injury during an Aug. 19 practice, the competition to replace a void left by former two-year starter Chris Parker reopened. Therefore, Wall said leading other corners, such as Brent Nickerson, LaRon Moore and Pete Richardson, will be an important task throughout the season.
As for Wall being one of the best cornerbacks in the Big 12, Mitchell said he will have to wait and see.
"I've never studied the other (Big 12 corners), so I couldn't tell you that," Mitchell said. "I'll let his peers decide that. The only thing I'm concerned about is just work and make this team a better team, and if he's a part of that equation, like he is right now, he's gonna make this team better."
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