Ensworth’s Rico McGraw and Donovan Sheffield are one of the best cornerback duos in the state, but McGraw played free safety in a season-opening 21-14 win over Louisville Trinity on Friday.
“(Rico) is good at both positions,” Tigers football coach Ricky Bowers said. “He’s a good tackler and a good anticipator, and he knows what we do defensively. Our safety positions are sort of leadership positions as well that require some communication.”
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Darius Morehead, P.J. Settles and Thomas Freeland alternated in McGraw’s spot at cornerback.
“Our safeties are more involved in the tackling and we can get them closer to the line of scrimmage, and we can get them more involved in the run game from the safety position,” Bowers said. “So it wasn’t specifically Trinity.”
McGraw probably will spend time at both positions this season.
“It’s going to be based on our needs – who’s tired, who needs to be playing on offense, which younger guys develop more quickly?” Bowers said. “The good news about this is he is versatile. We can use him at any number of positions.”
McGraw made one tackle as Ensworth (1-0) held Trinity (0-1) to 227 yards in total offense. The 6-foot, 190-pound senior made four receptions for 71 yards and one touchdown.
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The Tigers have greater depth at cornerback, making it easier to move McGraw to free safety when needed.
McGraw, who is ranked 13th nationally at cornerback by 247 Sports, has committed to Alabama. He has been clocked at 4.5 in the 40-yard dash.
“He has the right combination of speed and anticipation and strength,” Bowers said. “You’ve got to have all of them in order to play at the collegiate level, of course.”
