By Kevin Lonnquist
Publisher
Baylor defensive backs coach Kevin Curtis and veteran defensive back Al Walcott met with the media following Tuesday's practice. The Bears are at the halfway point of spring football as they just completed their seventh workout.
Kevin Curtis
(On where Cornerbacks stand) They’re working every single day. I appreciate their attitude. We’ve got some good leadership, some guys who have played some meaningful snaps in Al Walcott and Mark Milton. We’ve got some young talent in Chateau Reed and AJ McCarty and Tevin Williams. Those guys are working and every day getting a little bit better and understanding the system.
(AJ McCarty) Just playing with confidence, and the more reps you get the more confident you get. The one thing you know about AJ is he’s going to play hard. Now it’s just controlling it and understanding exactly what I’m supposed to do. He’s going to play hard, this means a lot to him, and now we’re trying to build other things of make sure I come in and study more film and watch it. Guys like Jalen Pitre and Terrel Bernard left a great example. So those guys have something to follow.
(Having experienced cornerbacks) I think the more games you play, the more relaxed you are going into the game. Sometimes when you’re young, you try to psyche yourself up and think of it as more than what it is. Hey, relax and play, and do what you do in practice, and if practice is a fast level like we talk about, then things will be fine. It’s a comfort for those guys, and they can look for guys like Mark and Al for confidence because they’ve done it before.
(Can the defensive backs be as good as last year) We’re not worried about the whole last year thing. Our focus is everyday just get a little bit better, and then at the end of the season we can kind of talk about that. But right now we’re so focused on be you and get better every single day.
We always want great energy and great execution. We want that edge. That’s our goal every day. We’ll get in a circle and we talk about what each guy is trying to improve on. Every guy has an idea of this is where I want to get better at. We also talk in a group like hey, what do you want to see from this group today? Everybody wants to talk about it and take ownership. This is what we said pre-practice, let’s do it.
(Mark Milton and Al Walcott's strengths) Al brings a physical presence. You saw him blitz, making plays, tackling. Mark can run but also has some savvy of executing the defense, playing in zones. Both those guys bring different things to the table, and we need both.
Chateau (Reed) is constantly getting better and better. You can see in the offseason, him wanting to come and talk about ball a little bit more and get on the board and understand what’s going on. I think he’s understanding everything you do off the field, studying and learning and understanding the system is going to help you on the field.
I think confidence comes from doing reps and doing it right. I think the more and more you make plays, the more and more you come to practice the way you should. You’re going to get balls caught on you, you’re going to miss things. But if you come at the right speed and your eyes are in the right spot, you can take the small wins and keep growing. We want to continue to grow and practice the right way.
A day like this where it’s warm and you’re fighting. It’s just like anything, you’ve got a strain and you’re not 100 percent, we want our guys to continue to fight every single day and compete. What you want to see from a scrimmage when you’re here practicing, things that show up consistently when it goes over to the stadium, and maybe people in the stands and things are a little different, that guys stay consistent and keep doing what you’re doing, not try to do too much.
(Kalon Barnes' 4.23 40 at combine) We all know Kalon can run. We just kind of waited to see what time it was. He can really run and God has blessed him with serious speed.
Al Walcott
My mom likes Alfahiyl. She says that’s how she named me.
(Your role) Honestly I feel I have to show I know the defense and I can help any calls in the defense, help the backers and the safeties in the back end. I feel like they shouldn’t have to be the guys to make the calls. I feel as veterans we should be able to know the stuff and help them with the calls.
(Experience last year) I’m going to be honest, it’s helped a lot. When you’re actually out there, it’s different from practice. When you’re out there in a game, everything is moving so much faster. Especially when you know the defense, I feel like everything slows down.
(96-yard interception return vs. Ole Miss) I feel like the Sugar Bowl pick, I’m going to be honest when I was running I felt like I blacked out. All I know I was just trying to run for my life and score and help the team. In the Sugar Bowl, I felt like yeah I can do this.
I feel like I can do anything I put my mind to. With that confidence, I feel like I can pass it down to the young guys. When they do step into a bigger role, they’re going to be just perfect and execute.
(Adapting to be a leader) I felt I had to adapt because I don’t really feel I’m a talkative guy. I have people tell me people do look up to me and that I have a significant role on this team. That really helps me take that leadership role into the room and to the team.
(Playing cornerback) I feel like it is the hardest position. I feel like it challenges me as a player and a person mentally. As a corner, you have to really be technically sound. Receivers these days are very talented, especially ours.
(Younger guys stepping up) AJ and Chateau are really stepping up as leaders even though they’re younger guys. They’ve got a dog mentality. They’re not going to back down. They lose a rep, they’re going to come back. That dog mentality is really going to take them a long way.
(Baylor receivers) They make us work every day. The receivers are really, really talented, the way they cut and do their routes, I really appreciate it. Gavin, Seth, Armani, all of them, are really talented.
(Chip on shoulders for DBs) Maybe but at the same time no because we know what to expect coming off last year. The guys that left last year taught us everything. We watched what they did and now we know what to expect. We just have to go out there and execute it. I don’t really believe we have a chip on our shoulder because we know we can go up there and do it.
(Next step for you) My eye discipline is very important and my technique. Just working on those this year will help me a lot.
(Origin of first name) My mom had a teacher in New York where she went to school, he was like a mentor and he passed away in a car accident. She liked the name.
Publisher
Baylor defensive backs coach Kevin Curtis and veteran defensive back Al Walcott met with the media following Tuesday's practice. The Bears are at the halfway point of spring football as they just completed their seventh workout.
Kevin Curtis
(On where Cornerbacks stand) They’re working every single day. I appreciate their attitude. We’ve got some good leadership, some guys who have played some meaningful snaps in Al Walcott and Mark Milton. We’ve got some young talent in Chateau Reed and AJ McCarty and Tevin Williams. Those guys are working and every day getting a little bit better and understanding the system.
(AJ McCarty) Just playing with confidence, and the more reps you get the more confident you get. The one thing you know about AJ is he’s going to play hard. Now it’s just controlling it and understanding exactly what I’m supposed to do. He’s going to play hard, this means a lot to him, and now we’re trying to build other things of make sure I come in and study more film and watch it. Guys like Jalen Pitre and Terrel Bernard left a great example. So those guys have something to follow.
(Having experienced cornerbacks) I think the more games you play, the more relaxed you are going into the game. Sometimes when you’re young, you try to psyche yourself up and think of it as more than what it is. Hey, relax and play, and do what you do in practice, and if practice is a fast level like we talk about, then things will be fine. It’s a comfort for those guys, and they can look for guys like Mark and Al for confidence because they’ve done it before.
(Can the defensive backs be as good as last year) We’re not worried about the whole last year thing. Our focus is everyday just get a little bit better, and then at the end of the season we can kind of talk about that. But right now we’re so focused on be you and get better every single day.
We always want great energy and great execution. We want that edge. That’s our goal every day. We’ll get in a circle and we talk about what each guy is trying to improve on. Every guy has an idea of this is where I want to get better at. We also talk in a group like hey, what do you want to see from this group today? Everybody wants to talk about it and take ownership. This is what we said pre-practice, let’s do it.
(Mark Milton and Al Walcott's strengths) Al brings a physical presence. You saw him blitz, making plays, tackling. Mark can run but also has some savvy of executing the defense, playing in zones. Both those guys bring different things to the table, and we need both.
Chateau (Reed) is constantly getting better and better. You can see in the offseason, him wanting to come and talk about ball a little bit more and get on the board and understand what’s going on. I think he’s understanding everything you do off the field, studying and learning and understanding the system is going to help you on the field.
I think confidence comes from doing reps and doing it right. I think the more and more you make plays, the more and more you come to practice the way you should. You’re going to get balls caught on you, you’re going to miss things. But if you come at the right speed and your eyes are in the right spot, you can take the small wins and keep growing. We want to continue to grow and practice the right way.
A day like this where it’s warm and you’re fighting. It’s just like anything, you’ve got a strain and you’re not 100 percent, we want our guys to continue to fight every single day and compete. What you want to see from a scrimmage when you’re here practicing, things that show up consistently when it goes over to the stadium, and maybe people in the stands and things are a little different, that guys stay consistent and keep doing what you’re doing, not try to do too much.
(Kalon Barnes' 4.23 40 at combine) We all know Kalon can run. We just kind of waited to see what time it was. He can really run and God has blessed him with serious speed.
Al Walcott
My mom likes Alfahiyl. She says that’s how she named me.
(Your role) Honestly I feel I have to show I know the defense and I can help any calls in the defense, help the backers and the safeties in the back end. I feel like they shouldn’t have to be the guys to make the calls. I feel as veterans we should be able to know the stuff and help them with the calls.
(Experience last year) I’m going to be honest, it’s helped a lot. When you’re actually out there, it’s different from practice. When you’re out there in a game, everything is moving so much faster. Especially when you know the defense, I feel like everything slows down.
(96-yard interception return vs. Ole Miss) I feel like the Sugar Bowl pick, I’m going to be honest when I was running I felt like I blacked out. All I know I was just trying to run for my life and score and help the team. In the Sugar Bowl, I felt like yeah I can do this.
I feel like I can do anything I put my mind to. With that confidence, I feel like I can pass it down to the young guys. When they do step into a bigger role, they’re going to be just perfect and execute.
(Adapting to be a leader) I felt I had to adapt because I don’t really feel I’m a talkative guy. I have people tell me people do look up to me and that I have a significant role on this team. That really helps me take that leadership role into the room and to the team.
(Playing cornerback) I feel like it is the hardest position. I feel like it challenges me as a player and a person mentally. As a corner, you have to really be technically sound. Receivers these days are very talented, especially ours.
(Younger guys stepping up) AJ and Chateau are really stepping up as leaders even though they’re younger guys. They’ve got a dog mentality. They’re not going to back down. They lose a rep, they’re going to come back. That dog mentality is really going to take them a long way.
(Baylor receivers) They make us work every day. The receivers are really, really talented, the way they cut and do their routes, I really appreciate it. Gavin, Seth, Armani, all of them, are really talented.
(Chip on shoulders for DBs) Maybe but at the same time no because we know what to expect coming off last year. The guys that left last year taught us everything. We watched what they did and now we know what to expect. We just have to go out there and execute it. I don’t really believe we have a chip on our shoulder because we know we can go up there and do it.
(Next step for you) My eye discipline is very important and my technique. Just working on those this year will help me a lot.
(Origin of first name) My mom had a teacher in New York where she went to school, he was like a mentor and he passed away in a car accident. She liked the name.
