In today's age of football, the idea of playing a position by committee - meaning two or maybe three players collectively cover one spot on the depth chart - has become a staple of almost any program.
These positions by committee usually occur at running back, and occasionally quarterback. However, the Wisconsin football team has devised a new position to run by committee: cornerback. The results have been in its favor.
Sophomore Niles Brinkley and freshman Mario Goins, together have manned the corner spot opposite senior cornerback Allen Langford.
Entering the 2008-'09 season, there was uncertainty as to who would line up with Langford at the cornerback position, due to the Badgers losing stellar cornerback Jack Ikegwuonu to the NFL Draft. Langford himself was returning from a knee injury he had suffered the season before against Ohio State, and then-freshman Aaron Henry, who started in Langford's place, sustained a knee injury during practice leading up to the Outback Bowl.
With the loss of Ikegwuonu, and both Langford and Henry rehabbing knee injuries, the Badgers needed someone to rise to the challenge. Brinkley and Goins answered that call, and are staying good friends the entire way.
We got a real good relationship. We laugh a lot, we joke around a lot, he's my boy,"" Goins said. ""But on the field, of course, we each go hard every play. So the competition is always there but we hold no grudges against each other.""
The path that each player has taken to this point couldn't have been more different.
Goins was a highly-touted cornerback coming out of high school in Copperas Cove, Tex. In 2006, he registered 140 tackles, including 11 sacks and two interceptions. He was ranked among the top 50 corners by Scouts, Inc., and in the top 60 according to Rivals.com. Goins came to UW and redshirted his first season, and hasn't been taking his playing time now for granted.
""I really used [redshirting] to my advantage. Everybody, every freshman year, hopes to play,"" Goins said. ""But I was really undersized '¦ and used my redshirt season to get big and build my speed up. I am glad I took that redshirt.""
Brinkley, on the other hand, came to Wisconsin intending to be a wide receiver. He was his high school team's (Beaumont) MVP as a sophomore after catching 52 balls for 930 yards. Despite being injured his senior year, Brinkley registered 15 catches for 210 yards, and was ranked among the top 70 cornerbacks according to (Scout.com.) Despite his high rank at corner, Brinkley envisioned himself as a wide receiver at UW, and with Wisconsin losing wide receivers Brandon Williams and Jonathan Orr, the idea of Brinkley having a shot was not out of question.
But Brinkley ended up redshirting his first season, and after meeting with UW head coach Bret Bielema, began to make the transition to cornerback.
""It was an opportunity that he saw in me, and I knew that I could take that opportunity to get better as a corner,"" Brinkley said.
This season, both Goins and Brinkley have played well at corner, and continue to grow with each week.
""Those two guys, Mario and Niles, have continued to grow,"" Bielema said Monday. ""[The corner position was] a big question mark for us going into this season, especially with the evident redshirting of Aaron Henry, [but] those guys have really continued to grow against some quality opponents on Saturday.""
Brinkley and Goins have made their presence felt on the field. This season, Goins leads the pair with 14 tackles, and Brinkley has 13. Brinkley also has intercepted two passes, both against Marshall, and has one pass break-up.
But it is the pair's ability to compete and play together that has really gotten the coaches' attention.
""I definitely see those guys challenging each other at that spot. They do have a great friendship and they understand that the best guy is going to play,"" defensive backs coach Kerry Cooks said.
""[There's] not anything wrong with going out there and pushing each other to be better. They take it and have a little fun with it but at the end of the day they understand that we want the best player on the field.""
The way Goins and Brinkley have been playing, the coaches will have a harder time choosing who to start.
