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Opposite Woodi Washington, Oklahoma Coaches Still Searching for the Best Corner

Originally posted on FanNation All Sooners
By John E. Hoover | Last updated 8/19/23

NORMAN — Having Woodi Washington on one side of the field has been almost a luxury for the Oklahoma coaching staff this preseason.

“You can say, ‘Hey, this is what it looks like,’ ” said defensive coordinator Ted Roof. “So they get a picture — the way Woodi prepares, the way he handles himself, just the type of worker, competitor and young man he is. It’s a great example for our other guys.”

Heading into the final week of training camp, Roof, Brent Venables and cornerbacks coach Jay Valai are still trying to identify the best of those “other guys.”

“It’s a multi-person competition,” Roof said, “that’s up for grabs right now.”

Washington, a fifth-year senior from Murfreesboro, TN, comes into 2023 with 23 career starts and 33 appearances overall as a Sooner. OU’s starter at the other corner will begin the season with zero starts.

The main candidates so far have been sophomore Gentry Williams, junior college transfer Kendel Dolby, and freshmen Jasiah Wagoner, Makari Vickers and Jacobe Johnson. Kani Walker, a transfer last year from Louisville, has also been in the mix. All have had moments in camp worthy of mention from the group’s elder statesman.

“Guys are out here competing,” Washington said. “ … Jasiah, Makari and Gentry, Kani, all those guys are competing, trying to get a spot.

“Gentry’s doing a great job. I’m not sure who’s going to start on the other side right now, but they’re really out here competing every day, and Gentry’s doing a good job trying to be a leader in the group as well.”

The importance of having two capable corners in high-level college football can’t be overstated. The natural isolation of the position lends itself to giving up big plays. But when one corner can lock down like Washington and the other has no significant game experience on his resume´, offensive coordinators and quarterbacks — especially in the Big 12 — will exploit that. Defenses have to adjust by rolling extra safety coverage over to help, and that weakens the whole defensive structure.

“The competition’s been great,” Venables said. “Love that group of guys. Just trying to strain them, get them ready and get them game-ready.”

Venables knows the value of having a second corner who can be trusted. This year, however, it has to happen fast, and it might happen on the fly. Venables has been happy about the group's progress since spring practice.

“Dolby’s a guy that’s actually played some college football, and he’s had a really good camp — had a better camp than he had spring,” Venables said. “Makari Vickers is having a better camp than he had spring — not that that’s earth-shattering there, just making improvement that you want those guys to make. Really, the whole group is improving. So, I’m really excited about that group of guys, about the improvement they’ve made.

“Again, we’re not where we got to be. That’s not coach-speak; we just got a lot of work to do. There’s going to be plenty of moments of failure along the way that, ‘Oh yeah, yep, they didn’t see that; that’s the first time they saw that. Let’s teach them.’ These are a group of guys that are super coachable. There’s no finger-pointing. These are guys that take responsibility, stay even-keel. I like that group of guys. Jay’s done a good job bringing that group along.”

Everyone learned last year that whoever wins the job early doesn’t necessarily own it all season. Wyoming transfer C.J. Coldon didn’t play much early in the season but benefited from his maturity and his experience and ended up leading the team in interceptions.

“C.J. came in, he was a summer (arrival) guy,” Washington said. “At first he wasn’t playing, was probably fifth or sixth on the depth chart, wasn’t getting a lot of time. He got hurt, ended up getting hurt and kind of just looking back and realized that all he has to do is listen to what Coach Valai is saying. Once he got everybody to do that, it kind of brought the whole room up. C.J. did a great job of being competitive and just keeping that mentality of doing exactly what the coach is telling him to do.

“I saw him making plays, so it kind of made me want to make more plays as well. Like I said, he came in, came and played five, six games and had five interceptions. Seeing him do that, it just made me want to make more plays as well.”

Valai will ultimately play the best of the bunch, even if it’s a true freshman like Vickers or Wagoner — the latter of whom quickly blossomed as a future star in the early stages of camp.

“I think Jasiah’s a pit bull,” Washington said. “Like, whenever the ball comes his way, he’s going to get it. He’s violent at the point of attack. He’s just a dog. He’s a pit bull. You can see it, not only in practice but in the film room. He’s competing to make sure that when coach is asking questions, he’s answering it first and just doing things like that.”

And he and Vickers are not the only rookies making a preseason splash. Johnson also has flashed early and might earn a long look from Valai as the season progresses.

“Jacobe Johnson’s doing a great job as a summer enrollee, so he’s kind of a little behind on a few things, but he’s getting it quick,” Washington said. … “an athletic freak. The guy’s fast. He can jump. He can get in and out of cuts. Once he gets adjusted and learns the defense as well as the guys that know it, then he’ll be a key factor for us.”

Ultimately, Valai and Roof need to have confidence that whoever wins the job in August is the right guy to step on the field against Arkansas State on Sept. 2 — and beyond. That confidence comes from the trust that’s building every day in practice.

“Got guys working hard to grab it. Fighting,” Roof said. “We just keep evaluating and keep grading and keep coaching and they’ll keep working and keep playing and it’ll flesh its way out.”