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Finishing up on my positional rankings heading into this upcoming college football season, we take a look at the best corners in the nation. We have press corners, playmaking zone guys and all-around DBs. This position group has a lot of quality at the top and it was hard for me to keep this list at five names. Once again, these rankings are based on those guys as college players - not eventual draft prospects.
#1 Greedy Williams, LSU
This dude is an All-American shutdown corner with elite size at 6’2”. Williams recorded six interceptions over the course of the 2017 season and knocked down another nine, despite offenses stopping to throw his way at some point. In the Citrus Bowl, Notre Dame barely targeted him, but once they got “greedy”, he punished them with an INT.
The LSU corner allowed the second-lowest passer rating in 2017 at 22.9. Williams plays with a serious swagger and while he is very good in off-coverage, he is outstanding in press, where he can impose his will on pass-catcher off the snap. He gets extremely physical and uses a ton of stack technique.
The Tigers' DB tackles receivers coming across the field into his area, but he is not the type of guy who will jump on piles. As a cover-guy, however, he is incredible and has a unique gift of being able to play the receiver and turn his head around at the last second to locate the ball.
#2 DeAndre Baker, Georgia
The Bulldogs needed a true number one corner to take the next step and DeAndre Baker proved to be that guy last year. He doesn’t quite reach six feet but has very long arms. The Georgia DB won’t give away the coverage his defense is in and shows different looks to keep quarterbacks on their heels.
Baker trusts his eyes in zone and is aggressive in man. Unlike a lot of defensive backs, he really gets his paws directly on the ball instead of just ripping through whatever they can grab. He does a nice job using the sideline as his friend and pushes receivers into the boundary, as he loves to play press and keeps sticky coverage, even when his man crosses the entire field.
Watch his tapes versus Missouri or Mississippi State – he was all over their receivers for 60 minutes and I don’t think you can put a single reception by them onto his account. While he can be bodied by bigger wideouts and gives up contain on a few occasions when trying to cheat inside, he surrendered a passer rating of just 32.7 overall in 2017.
#3 Mark Gilbert, Duke
After limited playing time as a freshman, Gilbert exploded in 2017, intercepting six passes and knocking down another ten, while allowing a completion percentage of just 38.3 on 60 targets.
The young man they call “Gilbert Island” is 6’1’’ and makes some tremendous plays down the field. Last year he intercepted or deflected 26.7 percent of the passes thrown his way. Gilbert has the speed and quickness to stay glued to receivers all over the field. He trusts himself to stay with receivers in trail technique and plays through the hands of those guys once the ball arrives.
At his length he displays tremendous change of direction, so he can really stick his foot in the ground and drive on the ball. However, he lacks some physicality as a run defender right now at 175 pounds, so he will need to add to his frame.
#4 Julian Love, Notre Dame
This Irish corner already appeared in every game as a freshman but became a household name last year. Not only did he take two of his three interceptions back to the house, Love was also tied for second in the country with 18 passes defensed in 2017.
He plays a ton of off-coverage and is an instinctive playmaker at that corner position, who keeps his eyes on the quarterback, anticipates route patterns and is not afraid of undercutting different routes around him.
When guys catch the ball in front of him he doesn’t wait for them, but rather aggressively finishes tackles for minimum gain. Love attacks so quickly upfield out his backpedal, that he even contests simple slant and hitch routes. While his height falls under the six feet mark, he is a smooth athlete, who competes for the ball in the air.
#5 Kris Boyd, Texas
Boyd already saw quality action in his first two years with the Longhorns, when he appeared in 20 games, but he turned into one of the premiere cover-guys in college football in 2017, when he intercepted two passes and knocked down another 15
At six feet, 200 pounds he doesn’t shy away from physicality one bit. He fights for the ball in the air and forces a lot of passes to fall to the ground, going through the receiver’s hands. While I like him best in press-coverage, Boyd has no problem turning his hips in cover-three against vertical routes and quickly gets himself in perfect position to high-point the ball from the inside shade.
He does a nice job passing on assignments and making things easier for the safety behind him and when nobody enters his zone, he can still drift downfield. Boyd is a violent hitter and willing run-supporter, who isn’t scared of anybody. He might not have elite long-speed, but he damn sure had enough to expose guys like Texas Tech’s Dylan Cantrell and Oklahoma State’s Marcell Ateman, who he got very physical with.
Honorable mentions: Lavert Hill (Michigan), Michael Jackson (Miami), Byron Murphy (Washington)
