‘T-Bird’ Expected to Do More for UCA’s Secondary This Year

CONWAY, Ark. — Despite the loss of two outstanding players in safety Cameron Godfrey and cornerback Andrew Hayes, the deepest position group for Central Arkansas might be the defensive secondary, according to head coach Nathan Brown.

“We’re at a good spot at defensive back, depth wise,” said Brown. “And when I say depth, that’s not just having numbers, but I think we have a ton of quality in that room.

“That starts with TaMuarion Wilson. T-Bird is a two-time All-American, All-Conference player, going to go down as one of the greatest secondary players to ever play at UCA. He’s a guy who has led us in tackles from two different positions. He’s going to start out at our nickel position, kind of a roll-down safety spot. But you’ll see him blitz more this year, we’re going to put him around the ball a lot more.

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“He’s just instinctive, has great size, he has an NFL body. I think he’s going to have an opportunity at the next level with a great year. And another guy like David Walker, he’s an unsung leader of this team. He’s very vocal, plays with a passion and a chip on his shoulder. I think a lot of people see that on Saturdays. But man, he’s special. He’s someone that you love him on your team but you hate to play against him.

“He reminds me a lot of George Odum, who is in his seventh year in the NFL, currently with the 49ers. He was one of those guys that just made plays. I hated to practice against George but on Saturday’s I loved him. It’s the same way with TaMuarion, every time you practice against him, he gets on your nerves, he’s always around the ball, he’s going to play with an edge and talk. But on game day, you’re glad No. 7 is playing for the Bears.

“He’s a good one and he’s been fun to coach for the past four years. And I fully expect him to have his best year yet. He’s prepared to do that, which is hard to say because he’s had a couple of great years already. But I just truly believe that the best is yet to come for him.”

The other top returnee in the talented duo is cornerback T.D. WIlliams from Hollandale, Miss., who had 32 tackles and an interception returned for a touchdown last season.

“If you break our season down last year, nobody on our team played more snaps than T.D. Williams,” said Brown. “He’s a guy that has had big-time interceptions for us, turnovers for touchdowns. He’s just solid. You can put him at three different positions and he will have success at all three. He’ll start out at corner for us, but we can move him into the nickel on third down, we can blitz him. He’d just a smart, cerebral kid, and just a great kid. Such a solid guy every day when he comes in to work.

“When you have a TaMuarion Wilson and a T.D. Williams leading your back end, you’re going to have a lot of success.”

Others returning in the deep secondary include Kemari (KC) Clark, James Jordan, Sean Smith, Jocobrien Eichelberger and Dude Person.

“Another guy we’re looking at to have a huge year is James Jordan,” said Brown. “He’s a guy who has had big moments in the past, and he’s going to play a big role at corner on the other side of T.D. Williams. Sean Smith missed all of last year but he’s back and he’s a guy who had three interceptions in 2022, so we know he can have success at corner.

“Kemari (KC) Clark is back for his senior year. He was injured late in the year last season with a broken arm, but he’s back healthy and has played big games for us. Dude Person, obviously his name is easy to remember. He’s going to slot in as our starting field safety. He played quite a bit last year but he was behind Tra Green, who didn’t come off the field very much. So now Dude has a bigger role, a starting role that I know he’s ready for.

“And maybe one of the best offseasons we have had from a returning guy is Jacobrien Eichleberger. To be honest with you, he can really play all five defensive backfield positions. So when you have a guy like that, a Swiss army knife kind of guy, that gives them more tools in their tool belt, to play more reps, to do more things to get on the field. Ike is a kid that is going to have a huge year and I can’t wait to watch him.”

Brown said another name to watch is Dillon Williams, a sophomore from Southaven, Miss.

“Dillon Williams at boundary safety, is a big, strong kid, 6-foot, 190 pounds. Very physical at the point of attack. I think he will be a name that when this year is over, we’ll be saying going into the 2025 season that there is an all-conference type player.”

The key newcomers looking to make an immediate impact include Mark Dorsey, L.J. Hewitt and Jacoby McQuiller.

“We signed Mark Dorsey in December from the junior college ranks, and he’s going to have a role,” said Brown. “He came in and was ready to compete for a starting job right away. He’s one of the fastest guys on our team and his upside is huge. L.J Hewitt, a transfer from Missouri. is another one, He started out at Missouri, then went to Mississippi Gulf Coast.

“To me he’s the closest thing to (Green Bay Packer) Robert Rochell that we’ve had since Robert was here. He’s a little longer than Robert but he moves like him, he’s fast, he’s twitchy. You can see why he started out at the University of Missouri. He’s going to be competing for starting playing time right away at corner.

“Jacoby McQuiller had a huge spring for us after transferring from East Central Mississippi. He’ll be a nickel, and with his ability, he’ll allow us to move T-Bird around a little bit.”

Brown is confident in his secondary heading into the 2024 season opener at Arkansas State on Saturday.

“That bunch of returnees and transfers has a chance to be a really good group for us,” said Brown. “Along with a good slew of younger guys like Bryson Adamoh (Bryant, Ark.), Brenden Bennett (Bryant, Ark.) and Marquel Hambric (Terrell, Texas). Those are three young freshmen we brought in. Ja’Bauree Lockhart (Camden, Ark.) is another one.

“The cupboard is really full back there, and it’s always good to get a great crop of freshmen to come in and hopefully learn from TaMuarion Wilson and T. D. Williams. Learn from some of those older guys so they know what it looks like when it’s their turn.”