UGA's budding star Quincy Mauger can be used like Damian Swann

The minute I found out that former University of Alabama secondary coach Jeremy Pruitt would be leaving his post as the defensive coordinator for the BCS National Champion Florida State Seminoles, to take the same job at the University of Georgia, I began to think of how much the Bulldogs’ secondary would receive an injection of wisdom and sound teaching.

After all, when you’re the No. 1 pupil of the best defensive mind in all of football, Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban — who also happens to specialize in defensive backs — you’ve got a lot working in your favor.

So although he was taking over a unit downtrodden with underachievers, nevertheless, it was also a unit chock-full of NFL-caliber talent.

Pruitt was blessed with a host of pass-rushers — most notably Leonard Floyd, Jordan Jenkins and Lorenzo Carter — who were equally adept at playing in reverse in addition to getting after the quarterback.

On the second level, the duo of Amarlo Herrera and Ramik Wilson was not only the finest in the Southeastern Conference, they may have been the premier duo in the country.

But moreover, Pruitt took a ragtag bunch in the secondary and unearthed a few gems from a unit many thought would hold Georgia back from its bright national title hopes. Well, ultimately, the ‘Dawgs were held back from that title, but little blame could be placed upon the secondary.

In fact, on a defense that ended up being the No. 17-ranked unit in the nation, some could argue the secondary was the strength — with the lion’s share of the praise being heaped upon a player many considered the be the weakest link the prior season, departing senior DB Damian Swann.

Pruitt Brought The Best Out Of Swann

Swann is an uber-talented defensive back who has the skills to play numerous positions. Pruitt will not only put him in spots to succeed, but he will also clean up the nuances that hamper his game. By playing Swann on the inside in sub packages, he will eliminate a lot of the down-field routes that he’d encounter on the island outside. He will also bring out the physicality in Swann’s game, similar to another of his corners that had safety skills, former Bama corner Dre Kirkpatrick — currently of the Cincinnati Bengals. Kirkpatrick once struggled with deeper routes, but excelled at the line of scrimmage, thus throwing off the timing of deeper routes and forcing throws elsewhere. With a clearer role and a coaching upgrade, look for a bounceback season from Swann and the Georgia defense as a whole.

That quote is an excerpt from an article I did on Swann prior to last season entitled: This is the season Georgia CB Damian Swann finally puts it all together.

I feel kind of prophetic as Swann did end up having a really good year under the guidance of Pruitt. As much as I would like to claim Ms. Cleo-like status, that prediction was based mostly on having a feel for the scheme and watching Pruitt use former Florida State DB, and current St. Louis Ram, Lamarcus Joyner in a similar fashion.

Both Swann and Joyner are a couple of corners with a safety-like skill set as they are much more physical than the average corner, and they work very well within zone concepts. Swann excelled in both his ability to play in the opposition’s backfield as well as his propensity for creating turnovers.

In a multiplicative defense, you often needs players who are versatile enough to hold down a myriad of positions as the defense is deployed a few different ways, conceptually. A lot of people concentrate on edge-players, and rightfully so, but if the defensive backs aren’t savvy enough to be adept in area and man principles, you may still have some trouble on your hand in certain packages.

In Swann, Pruitt was blessed with a chess piece who could play on the outside and cover X- or Z-receivers; he was a nightmare at the nickel corner spot; he’s the best Cover-1 safety I’ve seen in a long time.

If Swann would’ve played free safety his entire career, I’d be willing to bet he’d be viewed as a lock for a second-round selection. Savvy NFL teams may view his ability to oscillate between corner and safety as a reason to take a flier on him in the second round, anyway (you hear that, Atlanta Falcons?).

Just look at his range and instincts on this interception above from a single-high safety position; Swann is the truth.

Quincy Mauger Is The New Swann

As a former 3-star prospect out of Kell High School in Marietta, Ga., which goes to show how ranking recruits is an inexact science, the 6’0″, 199-pound Quincy Mauger is exactly what the doctor ordered for a scheme based on manufactured-pressure schemes and pre- and post-snap deception.

Although Mauger is a free safety by trade, he really does have a corner’s skill set: smoothness out of his transition phase, short-area agility and really good hands. He displayed this when I saw him play in high school, and his transition to college was as smooth as his pedal.

Check out this theft by deception from Pruitt and Co. The post-snap swap of duties from Swann and Mauger undoubtedly caused this turnover as the latter went from showing off-man coverage on the slot to becoming the single-high safety — getting some serious depth — and breaking on the corner route.

Being a great safety entails being in the right spot to “receive blessings,” as a coach of mine would often say. Ed Reed, formerly of the Baltimore Ravens, was exemplary of being a johnny-on-the-spot safety as even when he wasn’t making a play he benefited from tipped passes and forced fumbles by others — like Mauger was in the above sequence.

Mauger is a physical player who would do well as the hired gun in fabricated-pressure package. And as we’ve seen, he’s already played the “Star” position as the nickel corner and understand route concepts.

But moreover, he’s the type of safety who can play around the line of scrimmage and excels in the single-high Cover-1 scheme — like in the above sequence where he nearly decapitated South Carolina’s Nick Jones (h/t to Fansided).

UGA has definitely found a defensive back in the mold of Swann who will make stuff happen on that back end in Mauger; watch out for that ‘Dawg defense.