Wildcats hope to be senior sharp on the corners
Teams won’t be able to cut corners against El Dorado’s defense this season. The Wildcats have two of the state’s best cornerbacks in seniors Mario Ganter and Bryson Boulden. The duo hopes to anchor a much improved defense.
“They’re looking pretty good, playing physical, looking good in coverage. I’m pretty excited about the season. I can’t wait to see them against somebody other than ourselves,” said first-year cornerbacks’ coach Greg Roberson.
“Competitive, it’s consistent competition on a daily basis. Mario and Bryson and even some of our younger corners, they’re competing everyday against those receivers. They are going at it.”
Ganter is a three-year starter at the position and is considered one of the state’s top college prospects. Boulden came on strong last season and asserted himself as the other starting cornerback.
“I think they have a lot of potential as a duo. Mario just has a lot of great tools to him. He plays with great focus, very physical and a lot of great patience,” said Roberson. “And then you have Bryson, he just has a knack for finding himself around the ball and in coverage. I really like both of those guys. On either side, I feel comfortable and I can trust those guys to get the job done. They love to compete. They love to be in coverage. They love that one-on-one. That’s what they live for. It’s a thrill for them and I’m excited about it.”
Ganter has earned a reputation. Quarterbacks tend to avoid throwing in his direction. That could mean more action for Boulden.
“I could see teams trying to avoid Mario but I think they might want to be careful. Bryson is very competitive and I think he kind of knows a lot of people may go away from Mario and come at him,” said Roberson. “I think he’s accepted that challenge. You can tell in practice. He really competes hard in practice because he knows he has Mario on that other side. He doesn’t want to let the team down if he happens to be that target. He walks around in practice with that target on his back. That’s how he practices. He competes hard every day.”
Roberson said he could play up to four or five corners on a Friday night. The rotation could include senior Tyree Kendrick and sophomores Jakobe Shipp and Caden Perry.
“He’s been showing some good things. He’s continuing to grow and get better. I like the improvements he’s starting to make,” Roberson said of Kendrick.
“(Shipp) has been doing really good things and he’s growing everyday and competing hard. I really like what I’m seeing out of Caden Perry. He’s also getting some work in at the safety spot. He’s been going back and forth from safety to corner. I think he can help us in a lot of ways if he can put it all together.”
As a group, Roberson said the cornerbacks have shown a stick-togetherness that he likes.
“They are just brothers. They all have a great bond with each other. They laugh. They joke but they challenge each other every day,” he said. “Mario and Bryson, both of those guys are the big brothers of the group. They try to do all they can to help bring the rest of those guys along. They tell them, if something goes wrong with us, we need ya’ll to step in and don’t miss a beat. I love that they brought that kind of competition and challenge to the position group. That’s what I want to see.”