Brandon Boykin, Senior, Cornerback, Georgia
Overview:
As a freshman in 2008, Brandon Boykin rarely saw the field as a cornerback, but paid his dues on special teams. He only recorded six tackles, but Georgia saw the potential right away and named Boykin the Bulldog’s Newcomer of the Year on the defensive side of the ball. By his sophomore year Boykin was ready to step into a starting role. He did a superb job in coverage, intercepting three passes, and proved to be very involved in the run defense and totaled 54 tackles.
In 2009 Boykin mixed up his game a little bit. Of course he was still a shutdown corner, but he also did a fine job using his speed to get into the backfield and tallied 6.5 tackles-for-loss and one sack.
Final Projection:
What makes Boykin so valuable is his ability to return kicks. He took over that job in 2009 and averaged 26.0 yards per return and took three kicks back for a touchdown. The opposition tried to kick away from Boykin a little bit in 2010, but that did not stop him from returning a kick 100 yards for a score. Boykin’s ability as a returner will move him past some other corners on draft boards, but Boykin is also a solid corner and has the potential to be a first round draft pick in 2012.
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