Young's transition looking promising as Southeast Missouri State football wraps up fall camp

Southeast Missouri State's Al Young intercepts a pass intended for wide receiver Evan Scales (11) during a scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

Al Young appears to be settling in, and he's spent the entirety of the 2017 fall camp reminding the Southeast Missouri State football coaching staff of his playmaking ability.

The newly minted cornerback didn't waste any time showing off his skill set in the early portion of Saturday's final scrimmage at Houck Field, as he snagged Nick Sprague's pass out of the air, reaching the highest point possible to come down with an interception against wide receiver Evan Scales.

After graduating from Cape Girardeau Central High School as one of the most decorated athletes in school history, Young signed with Southeast and was humbled by last year's freshman campaign in which he appeared in just three games on special teams.

Since then, Young has transformed himself. He was recruited as a wide receiver for the Redhawks, but his transition to cornerback started during the summer when defensive coordinator Bryce Saia called him into his office to inquire about whether he could handle the cornerback position.

"I was like, 'I'll do whatever to help the team win,'" Young said. "He just switched it over, and I've just tried to take over from there."

Southeast Missouri State quarterback Jesse Hosket throws a pass over defenders Demarcus Rogers (51) and Clarence Thornton during a scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

The sophomore Young recorded a pick in each of the three scrimmages during fall camp. He's currently working with the second team behind redshirt freshman Bydarrius Knighten, but he's received his fair share of reps with the starters as well.

Young's emergence bodes well for a secondary that will be littered with youth in 2017.

"There's a learning curve, and he's done a good job of trying to get better," Redhawks coach Tom Matukewicz said about Young. "I think he's just like the rest of the secondary guys. There's just a lot of guys there that have talent, but they need to continue to improve on their fundamentals."

Senior cornerback Mike Ford leads the defensive backfield, a unit that includes six newcomers and eight underclassmen. Ford and Knighten are expected to start, while Young, sophomore Shabari Davis and freshman Rodney Hawkins will also be in the mix at cornerback.

"We bring back our best defensive players and our best offensive players from a year ago. We lost a lot of the other guys, so those guys have had great camps. They've really impacted team scenarios," Matukewicz said. "The other guys, we're just trying to get them reps. We're trying to get as many mistakes on film as we can so that we can get them corrected and get them progressing.

"I feel good. If I could be able to tell the future, I'd be able to comment more, but for right now, I like where we're at."

For Young, waiting in the wings as a freshman wasn't easy, but it's added a fervor that might not have previously existed.

Southeast Missouri State coach Tom Matukewicz talks to Jermel Adams during a scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

Ford and Knighten knew Young wasn't particularly fond of playing the position. Along with new cornerbacks coach Ray Smith, the two starters worked with Young during the summer to prepare him for the transition.

"We came in on Saturdays and worked out on the field," Young said. "We worked on my back pedal, worked on my breaks, and Coach Saia told me he believed I could be one of the best corners here if I just put my mind to it. That helped me out a lot."

Young excelled on defense in high school but did most of his damage on the offensive side. He finished his prep career with 2,635 yards receiving and 38 receiving touchdowns, both of which are school records, and was a first-team all-state selection three years in a row.

A 2014 Semoball Awards Male Athlete of the Year and 2015 Carr Trophy recipient, Young's transition to defense exemplifies a commitment to three all-important questions that Matukewicz wants his team to adhere to.

"It says a lot about him, and hopefully that says a lot about this team," Matukewicz said. "We tell them all the time, 'There's three questions you ask a teammate: Are you committed to excellence? Can we trust you? And do you care? Obviously you care about whether or not you play and how you play, but do you care about your teammates?' Al does. He legitimately cares about his teammates, and he wants us to win and will do whatever his role in that is. So I appreciate him and his willingness to all of a sudden jump over and help that side of the ball."

Young's presence could eventually go a long way toward correcting a defensive backfield that had just two interceptions throughout all of last season, and there's obviously still plenty of room for him to grow. He's had several missed assignments during camp, but the coaching staff expects those growing pains.

"I just let the game come to me, and the confidence is building me up," Young said. "The team has helped me. Even when I make mistakes, they're still on me -- next play, six seconds. They've helped me a lot, too."

Scrimmage recap

Southeast Missouri State quarterback Jesse Hosket throws a pass during a scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

The situational drills in Saturday's scrimmage allowed for the team to familiarize itself with a number of different scenarios.

The scrimmage began with the offense backed up inside its own 10-yard line. The objective was to get two first downs in order to flip field position. Senior quarterback Jesse Hosket had a 3-yard run on third-and-1 before connecting with sophomore WR Trevon Billington for a 59-yard pass on the following play.

"I just want to teach the team how critical field position is," Matukewicz said. "We're backed up. We've won a football game, and we've lost a football game because if you punt it and give the opponent the ball inside the 50, that's points. Like 78 percent of the time, you're going to come away with points. We can't do that, so we've got to get a couple first downs. The defense has to get the ball back to the offense in scoring position, so that was certainly beneficial."

The Redhawks also ran four-minute drills before going over third-down situations against the scout team.

Hosket faced constant pressure in the pocket, completing 11 of 23 passes (47.8 percent) for 200 yards with one TD and one interception. The offense fumbled the ball away twice.

"Offensively, we sputtered a little bit today," Matukewicz said. "We turned the ball over a little bit, but for the most part, I think we're way further ahead than we were a year ago."

Southeast Missouri State kicker Nicholas Litang practices a field goal after the scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 19, 2017 at Houck Stadium.

Fred Lynch

Sophomore WR Kristian Wilkerson had three catches for 87 yards, while three different running backs each recorded a reception.

The defense's performance was highlighted by senior outside linebacker Kendall Donnerson, who returned a fumble 70 yards for a TD. The Redhawks' running game was held to just 52 yards on 26 rushes, as starting RB Marquis Terry carried the ball just once.

Still, Matukewicz anticipates some early struggles on defense.

"Defensively, I think we'll have some growing pains," Matukewicz said. "I think we're talented, and I think we'll end up playing good defense. It's just that we've got some guys in there for the first time, and so we've just got to handle them well and make sure they stay confident and just keep building for the season."

While most of the positions on the two-deep appear to be set, Matukewicz said he plans to determine the starting specialists during practice this week. Junior Cameron Sanders, a first-team All-Ohio Valley Conference pick in 2016, will handle kick returning duties. The starters at punter, kicker and punt returner have yet to be determined.

The team had a little fun to conclude Saturday's scrimmage. Junior Nicholas Litang and redshirt freshman Kendrick Tiller, both of whom are in the mix to start at kicker, each attempted a field goal while being surrounded by players and coaches. Litang and Tiller were forced to attempt their kicks with water coming in from all sides, as several of the players and coaches were armed with squirt guns.

Both attempts sailed wide left.

"It's one thing to just sit there and kick field goals, but it's another whole thing to kick a game-winning field goal. When the pressure's on, that's their life," Matukewicz said. "They'll kick and then wait around 25 minutes before the next kick, and the problem is they think. They think about the last kick, and the last kick can't affect the next kick. You have to have that kind of mentality, so we put them in these pressure situations and get them to just work on their focus and how they lock in."

The scrimmage concludes fall camp for Southeast. The Redhawks will begin their season against Football Bowl Subdivision opponent Kansas at 6 p.m. on Sept. 2 in Lawrence, Kansas.