Position Battles To Watch #1: Timmons v. Lynn?

Topic: Who SHOULD win and who WILL win this position battle?

1. Timmons v. Lynn for the cornerback position opposite A.J. Wallace.

Pete's Take--This should be an interesting battle that could last late into fall camp. If Knowledge Timmons is ever going to be anything besides a special team guy, he has to do it now. No one questions his speed and athleticism, but will that translate onto the field? D'Anton Lynn on the other hand seems to have all the tools to be special. His father is an NFL coach, he picked up things quickly enough that he played as a true freshman, and he was highly recruited out of high school (by the likes of Oklahoma, USC, Ohio State, and Florida). I don't know if he is the athlete that Timmons is, but he is probably able to make up for it with natural ability and intelligence. My bet would be on Timmons because when do we not play the veteran player? And for a prediction, I bet he has a better year than A.J. Wallace.

Greg's Response--I also think that Timmons will win the job, but the only way he has a better year than A.J. Wallace is if Wallace re-injures the infamous hamstring injury that has plagued him the last two seasons. In that case, Timmons and Lynn would be sharing the field together. Lynn will likely play the nickel-back role like King and Wallace did before moving into the starting line up the next year. On a similar issue, when and how much is incoming Freshman Darrell Givens going to play? Givens has stated that the staff told him he'd have a chance to start his Freshman year and if not, that he could play nickel-back. But with Wallace, Timmons, and Lynn taking up the top three spots, Givens might have a hard time finding the field for any meaningful minutes once the Big Ten schedule rolls around.

Pete's Final Word--I agree that the loser of the battle will be on the field anyway. I think Lynn has a nice body to play nickel-back. I would much rather see a big corner than a safety that doesn’t have the same cover ability. On the Givens front, we have to get him some time. He will probably be starting opposite of Lynn next year and he has to see some time before then. If he doesn’t, then we will be in all sorts of hurt. On that note, I think Stephon Morris and Derrick Thomas should all see time this year. I don’t care if it is just during the non-conference. The only returning cornerbacks next year will be Lynn, Givens, Thomas, Morris, and possibly Michael Wallace if he doesn’t gray-shirt. With the way the schedule is looking, they all should play for most of the second halves of games. Plus, throw them in on special teams and make sure they are ready to start at Alabama next year.