By Haddy Barghouti – Spear Reporter | SJSU’s defense huddles up during Spring Game on April 26. (Photo by Aaron Johnson – The Spear)
Following a solid season, the Spartans’ secondary aims to build on its success while reinforcing the rest of the defense.
The Spartans’ secondary entered the offseason determined to keep forcing turnovers after recording 21 last season.
“The biggest goal we always start with is learning and understanding the system,” cornerbacks coach Greg Burns said. “Consistency in play calling, fine-tuning all the movements that are needed from fundamentals, backpedaling, trust, and all that type of stuff.”
SJSU’s defense forced 28 total turnovers, with only seven of them coming from plays other than interceptions.
The Spartans had 11 different players with an interception last season.
“Our secondary has developed a lot from day 14 versus day one,” redshirt senior defensive back Isiah Revis said. “It started in winter training and we’ve got a lot closer personally to each other, and that made it easier to be more cohesive on the field.”
Revis, a veteran defensive back entering his third season with the Spartans, will look to build chemistry with the new secondary pieces after posting a career-high two interceptions last season.
“Having guys that have been here and being able to run those player-run practices have been huge,” head coach. Ken Niumatalolo said.
SJSU’s secondary has lost several key defensive backs heading into the offseason, including standout safety Robert Rahimi, who recorded five interceptions and one sack in his first season with the Spartans.
However, the Spartans added new talent, including freshman cornerback. JT Taylor, who recorded seven interceptions during his time at Pacifica High School.
“We’ve got some new guys that are here, they’re trying to figure things out, they’re learning,” Niumatalolo said. “That’s a position we’re definitely looking at trying to short some holes on our corner spots but some guys have stepped up and JT’s been doing good.”
The Spartans and Burns secondary unit ranked first in the Mountain West Conference in defensive passing yards, and while matching that success may be a challenge with new faces in the lineup, the team still has three months to address it.
Burns said the secondary will always start with the overall group of the entire defense.
“Run into the ball, being physical, minimizing the vertical passing game in regards to the deep balls,” Burns said. “We’re gonna take pride in simply giving great effort which we call the blue line and then being physical.”
The Spartans and their secondary unit will open the season at home on Aug. 28 against Central Michigan, which could serve as a solid starting point for building chemistry among the new defensive backs, as Central Michigan ranked 104th in the Football Bowl Subdivision last season, averaging just under 185 passing yards per game.
