Move in day for the Boise State class of 2016 is right around the corner. The incoming freshmen have shown their excitement over social media, eager to arrive on campus and make their mark on the Boise State football program. Reid Harrison-Ducros is no exception, as he has been working hard, determined to earn playing time as early as he possibly can.
After his high school season ended, he was part of Team USA where he competed against some of the top talent in the country, matching himself up every day in practice with the top wide receivers. Also, he has been training with two men who know what it takes to succeed at the cornerback position both in college as well as the NFL, Larry Brown and Kevin Mathis. Each of them weighed in on their time with Reid, discussing him both as a person and a player over the years to provide a glimpse of who the Broncos will be getting when he arrives on campus July 3rd.
Larry Brown is a former cornerback for the Cowboys and Raiders who was the MVP of Super Bowl XXX and has also spent some time evaluating players for the Cowboys (including former Boise State cornerback Orlando Scandrick). He has known Reid since elementary school and has worked with him on fundamentals since middle school. “He prioritizes technique, hip movement, coming out of his breaks, that’s the stuff we work on.” It’s the commitment to technique that Brown believes will make all the difference for Reid at the next level.
“Some players can get away with relying on their athleticism in high school” he says, “but technique is what makes the difference at the higher levels. Reid gets it. It’s what puts him over any kid I’ve trained in the country out of all the Division I athletes I’ve worked with. His dedication to technique is at the professional level; he’s that serious about it.”
As to the kind of impact Reid can make at Boise State, Brown talked about him as a person as well as the player. “He will have a great career at Boise State. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if he touched the field as a freshmen. No player is a finished product, but if he gets faster, gets stronger and keeps refining his fundamentals, he will be good. But his greatest trait is that Reid is the complete package, a coach’s dream. They won’t have to worry about him off the field or in the classroom. He’s all-academic, he was a member of the FCA. He is a leader and mentored the younger players at his high school program, including my son. We will miss him.”
Kevin Mathis is another former NFL cornerback. He played for the Cowboys, Saints, and Falcons, playing with players such as Deion Sanders and Reid’s future position coach Ashley Ambrose. Mathis echoed many of the same thoughts as Brown, putting in his own perspective as the two worked together over Reid’s high school career.
“His strength is his technique. That’s what I emphasize because it slows the game down and it closes the gap between taller or more athletic wide receivers. If Reid was a step faster (4.51 40 time) or an inch taller (5’11”) he would have been one of the top high school cornerbacks in Texas because everything else is there. He has great instincts, he understands routes, down and distance situations, He called me up the other day asking to work on foot placement. Most other high schoolers would never think of foot placement.”
To Mathis, it is that mindset that will allow Reid to adjust to the college game quicker than the average player. He explains how “he practices and prepares like a college player already with his film study and preparation, more than any other high school cornerback I’ve trained. Come game time, he knows what to look for and when to look for it because of the work he did during the week. Currently he is trying to get a step faster and if he follows his instincts a bit better he can turn more knock-downs into interceptions then his ability could allow him to see the field within his first two years on campus.”
His stats reflect that statement as he racked up 13 pass break-ups compared to 1 INT, also being in position to make 68 tackles. In addition to this, he played man coverage all year against the team’s number one WR, many of them D1 recruits themselves. Below is a spread sheet outlining Reid’s performance by summarizing how opponents fared against his man coverage last season:
Game
#1 WR
College Committed
Catches
Yards
TDs
1
Qua'Shawn Washington
2017
0
0
0
2
Madux Middaugh
None
0
0
0
3
Romel Price
U Central Oklahoma
1
37
1
4
Anthony Hawkins
Colorado State
0
0
0
5
Greg Garner
2017
0
0
0
6
T. Lunkwitz
2017
1
30
0
7
Tacorian Howard
0
0
0
8
Zach Farrar
Oklahoma
1
37
1
9
Josh Fink
Abilene Christian Univ
9
82
0
10
Aaron Denson
Missouri State
1
11
0
11
Paulson Adebo
Notre Dame
1
9
0
Notes:
Game 3: Catch w/2 mins left & game out of reach
Game 4: Reid INT pass intended for Hawkins on our goal line
Game 5: Greg is FAST!
Game 6: 6’3” 220lb, Reid played him physical all game
Game 7: TH has body like Adonis. Reid played him physical all game.
Game 8: 6’4” 215lb Shut him down all night. Late 4th, SL ran a deep pick route to free him from Reid's man coverage.
Resulted in TD.
Game 9: Planned to not give up deep routes, lots of comebacks. Two deep routes broken up perfectly
Game 10: AD killed every other school, including P5 and several D1 commits. Reid shut him down.
Game 11: Adebo is special athlete. Reid blanketed him all night as starting WR.
The numbers show more often than not, Reid rose to the challenge and was able to play shut down coverage. Now a new challenge awaits him as he is about to enter the college game. If the words of two former NFL players are any indication, he seems prepared to put in the work needed to succeed while surprising a few people along the way, just as he has always has. After all, it was last June when Reid Harrison-Ducros arrived at Boise State camp as a relatively unknown player and impressed the coaching staff so much with his play that he had an offer by the end of the following week. A year later, he comes back to Boise State, this time looking to show the coaching staff he can compete and carve out a role in order to help the team win.
After his high school season ended, he was part of Team USA where he competed against some of the top talent in the country, matching himself up every day in practice with the top wide receivers. Also, he has been training with two men who know what it takes to succeed at the cornerback position both in college as well as the NFL, Larry Brown and Kevin Mathis. Each of them weighed in on their time with Reid, discussing him both as a person and a player over the years to provide a glimpse of who the Broncos will be getting when he arrives on campus July 3rd.
Larry Brown is a former cornerback for the Cowboys and Raiders who was the MVP of Super Bowl XXX and has also spent some time evaluating players for the Cowboys (including former Boise State cornerback Orlando Scandrick). He has known Reid since elementary school and has worked with him on fundamentals since middle school. “He prioritizes technique, hip movement, coming out of his breaks, that’s the stuff we work on.” It’s the commitment to technique that Brown believes will make all the difference for Reid at the next level.
“Some players can get away with relying on their athleticism in high school” he says, “but technique is what makes the difference at the higher levels. Reid gets it. It’s what puts him over any kid I’ve trained in the country out of all the Division I athletes I’ve worked with. His dedication to technique is at the professional level; he’s that serious about it.”
As to the kind of impact Reid can make at Boise State, Brown talked about him as a person as well as the player. “He will have a great career at Boise State. It wouldn’t surprise me one bit if he touched the field as a freshmen. No player is a finished product, but if he gets faster, gets stronger and keeps refining his fundamentals, he will be good. But his greatest trait is that Reid is the complete package, a coach’s dream. They won’t have to worry about him off the field or in the classroom. He’s all-academic, he was a member of the FCA. He is a leader and mentored the younger players at his high school program, including my son. We will miss him.”
Kevin Mathis is another former NFL cornerback. He played for the Cowboys, Saints, and Falcons, playing with players such as Deion Sanders and Reid’s future position coach Ashley Ambrose. Mathis echoed many of the same thoughts as Brown, putting in his own perspective as the two worked together over Reid’s high school career.
“His strength is his technique. That’s what I emphasize because it slows the game down and it closes the gap between taller or more athletic wide receivers. If Reid was a step faster (4.51 40 time) or an inch taller (5’11”) he would have been one of the top high school cornerbacks in Texas because everything else is there. He has great instincts, he understands routes, down and distance situations, He called me up the other day asking to work on foot placement. Most other high schoolers would never think of foot placement.”
To Mathis, it is that mindset that will allow Reid to adjust to the college game quicker than the average player. He explains how “he practices and prepares like a college player already with his film study and preparation, more than any other high school cornerback I’ve trained. Come game time, he knows what to look for and when to look for it because of the work he did during the week. Currently he is trying to get a step faster and if he follows his instincts a bit better he can turn more knock-downs into interceptions then his ability could allow him to see the field within his first two years on campus.”
His stats reflect that statement as he racked up 13 pass break-ups compared to 1 INT, also being in position to make 68 tackles. In addition to this, he played man coverage all year against the team’s number one WR, many of them D1 recruits themselves. Below is a spread sheet outlining Reid’s performance by summarizing how opponents fared against his man coverage last season:
Game
#1 WR
College Committed
Catches
Yards
TDs
1
Qua'Shawn Washington
2017
0
0
0
2
Madux Middaugh
None
0
0
0
3
Romel Price
U Central Oklahoma
1
37
1
4
Anthony Hawkins
Colorado State
0
0
0
5
Greg Garner
2017
0
0
0
6
T. Lunkwitz
2017
1
30
0
7
Tacorian Howard
0
0
0
8
Zach Farrar
Oklahoma
1
37
1
9
Josh Fink
Abilene Christian Univ
9
82
0
10
Aaron Denson
Missouri State
1
11
0
11
Paulson Adebo
Notre Dame
1
9
0
Notes:
Game 3: Catch w/2 mins left & game out of reach
Game 4: Reid INT pass intended for Hawkins on our goal line
Game 5: Greg is FAST!
Game 6: 6’3” 220lb, Reid played him physical all game
Game 7: TH has body like Adonis. Reid played him physical all game.
Game 8: 6’4” 215lb Shut him down all night. Late 4th, SL ran a deep pick route to free him from Reid's man coverage.
Resulted in TD.
Game 9: Planned to not give up deep routes, lots of comebacks. Two deep routes broken up perfectly
Game 10: AD killed every other school, including P5 and several D1 commits. Reid shut him down.
Game 11: Adebo is special athlete. Reid blanketed him all night as starting WR.
The numbers show more often than not, Reid rose to the challenge and was able to play shut down coverage. Now a new challenge awaits him as he is about to enter the college game. If the words of two former NFL players are any indication, he seems prepared to put in the work needed to succeed while surprising a few people along the way, just as he has always has. After all, it was last June when Reid Harrison-Ducros arrived at Boise State camp as a relatively unknown player and impressed the coaching staff so much with his play that he had an offer by the end of the following week. A year later, he comes back to Boise State, this time looking to show the coaching staff he can compete and carve out a role in order to help the team win.
