The Wisconsin football team is looking to develop its younger cornerbacks in 2023 but it can take time
MADISON – Wisconsin cornerbacks coach Paul Haynes, who worked the last three seasons at Minnesota, and three of his players met with reporters Friday.
The three players were Jason Maitre, a transfer from Boston College, Alexander Smith and Ricardo Hallman.
Here are selected comments from those interviews:
Paul, you have three cornerbacks with game experience – Alexander Smith, Jason Maitre and Ricardo Hallman. After that you have some young guys, including two early enrollees, who it appears you are trying to develop. How long will it take to develop them so that they are ready to play in a game?
Haynes: “It takes some time. Two of them have been here. Two of them should still be walking the halls of high school. So, every rep that they get is kind of like a battle scar a little bit. It is like they are getting the calluses on their hands. And they are getting better. But there is always something new that they have to work on. … We’ve still got the summer to go. We’ve still got fall camp to go. You still (have) the beginning part of the season and then you start getting into Big Ten play. So, I always put a mark of, maybe by Big Ten play. It depends on how they are growing.”
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Jason, you’re 5-10 and 188. Braelon Allen is 6-2 and 240. The other day you didn’t hesitate to meet him one-on-one in the hole. Do you think that fearlessness sends a message to your teammates?
Maitre: “Definitely. I don’t fear anything when I’m on the football field and that’s how I play. And I want people to know that … all across the country. I’m going to take whatever you want to bring at me, to be honest. Being an older guy, even though I am new here, I want to lead by example. Leading by example can be anything, by how hard I play. I know when people see that on tape they go: OK, if he is willing to do that, why not (me)?”
Ricardo, you started the first seven games last season but then struggled at Michigan State and played in only two of the last six games. Was it difficult going from starting to not playing much at all? And how does it feel to be getting a second chance this spring?
Hallman: “It was definitely difficult at the time. I’m not going to lie. I went through a self-battle a little bit. My confidence was up and down. But I knew it wasn’t going to let it affect me too long. I got myself out of it. It was fun getting back into the lineup and to be able to start in the bowl game and get back to where I was ... And with Coach Fickell coming in, bowl prep and getting a fresh start with a new (staff), I think that really flipped a switch in me."
Alexander, the new staff brought in several transfer wide receivers to improve the depth on that unit. What has it been like in practice going up against that crew?
Smith: “They bring it every day. Whether it is the ones, twos or threes … whenever you go out there you are going against somebody who is trying to compete. I think that competitive nature, that competitive spirit out of everybody. It raises the bar every day.”
Jason, your teammates say you never stop talking on the field. CJ Williams loves to talk as well. Who talks more on the football field? You or CJ?
Maitre: “Me. There’s probably nobody on this team that talks more on the field than me. I’m not going to lie. Growing up I’ve always been considered a smaller guy. I just feel like I’ve always got to play with an edge. Off the field I’m the happiest person ever. But on the field … I just lose my mind. Play hard. Play fast. Have an edge and be a dog.”
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin football team's cornerbacks talk spring practice, season
