Nate Brooks, once maligned corner back, is officially back. He was named a semifinalist for one of the more prestigious awards in the game: the Jim Thorpe Award. The award fills the trophy cases of such luminaries as Hall-of-Famers Charles Woodson, Deion Sanders, and NFLers such as Terrell Buckley, Terrence Newman, Aaron Ross, Michael Huff and others.
Just last year, injuries and some poor play (one contributing to the other) put him on the bench behind Eric Jenkins for a spell but he has returned to form and is back to being a lockdown corner. He has four interceptions on the year, tied for 2nd in the nation (with ten others) and has been instrumental in the defense’s improvement from last season. He forced a crucial fumble last game against UAB that ended a long Blazer drive.
As Kemon Hall returns to the lineup, Nate Brooks should have more opportunities to get interceptions. That should increase his chances for getting to the next round of cuts.
