SEASON OUTLOOK: Secondary Odum re-stocking stable after graduation exodus Posted on 08/29/2010 by PonyFans.com No position group on the SMU roster lost more key players over the offseason than the secondary. The defensive backfield lost six players who either played major roles in 2009 or were expected to do so in 2010, or both, including graduated seniors Bryan McCann, Rock Dennis and Bryce Hudman, and cornerback Derrius Bell, who retired for medical reasons. Junior Chris Banjo returns for his third season as the Ponies' starting free safety (photo by Travis Johnston). The Mustangs’ secondary collected 13 of the team’s 17 interceptions last year, including nine by defensive backs who no longer are on the roster: Dennis, who had five, McCann, who had three, and Bell, who had one. But secondary coach Derrick Odum is not one to sit around and think about “what ifs” and players who should or could be on the practice field. Assistant coaches often fall back on the mantra that they “can only coach the players they have,” and Odum is doing just that. There’s no denying the talent that is gone from last year’s roster: McCann is in training camp with the Dallas Cowboys after picking off three passes a year ago and graduating as Conference USA’s active career leader; McCann snagged a team-leading five interceptions, one of which he returned for a touchdown to seal the Mustangs’ victory over East Carolina. Hudman was a versatile safety who excelled in numerous defensive roles and on special teams. Bell surely would have started again in 2010, had his career not been cut short by concussions. But it’s not like Odum’s secondary cupboard is completely bare. Senior cornerback Sterling Moore and junior safety Chris Banjo return, and each could contend for All-Conference USA honors. Moore was something of an unknown quantity when he joined the Ponies last year, but by the end of the year, he might have been the defense’s best player. He has good speed and the strength and technique to fight bigger receivers for passes. “Sterling can cover every kind of receiver — big guys, fast guys, strong guys,” Odum said. “If someone is a little bigger or faster than he is, he makes up for it because he’s smart, tough and has great technique, and he studies his opponents enough that he knows what they’re going to do.” Sterling Moore returned from a knee injury in time to play in SMU's crushing of Nevada in the Hawaii Bowl (photo by Webmaster). At the other cornerback spot, Odum and defensive coordinator Tom Mason are hoping they have found gold with another junior college cornerback from California in Richard Crawford. Listed at 5-11 and 180, Crawford has run with the first-team defense almost since the start of preseason camp. He has outstanding speed, and has shown good ball skills in seven-on-seven and 11-on-11 drills. Moore and Crawford will be backed up (and joined in certain situations in which the opposing offense adds extra receivers) by veterans Bennie Thomas, Keith Robinson, Jeremy Gray and Chris Castro, and several true freshmen, including Chris Parks and Kenneth Acker. Banjo has started at free safety since his arrival at SMU, and will retain that spot in his junior season. The most wide-open competition in camp has been next to him, at the strong safety spot, where two returning players — sophomore Ryan Smith and redshirt freshman Jay Scott — have been competing with a pair of veteran transfers: Blinn College’s Justin Sorrell and Syracuse graduate Randy McKinnon. All four have shown ability at the position in preseason camp, Odum has said all four will play, either on defense or special teams or both. Smith has spent most of the team’s preseason camp running with the first-team defense. “Smitty has been going with the first team, but they all have shown some talent,” Odum said. “With Rock (Dennis) and Bryce (Hudman) graduating, the assumption was that there was nobody in that spot who could play. Now it looks like it could be a real position of strength for us, because we have great depth there, and those guys can play Chris’s position, too. We teach our guys to play both safety spots, and they can.”