Date: 8/25
Position: Safeties
Position Coach: Matt Kitchens

Returning Letterwinners (Key stats): Malcolm Buggs (9 games played, 23-15—38 TT, 3 TFL, 3 PBU, 2 FR); DJ Daniels (12 GP, 8-5—13 TT); Sterrling Fisher (12 GP, 9-5—14 TT, 1 PBU); Nigel Lawrence (12 GP, 47-36—83 TT, 1½ TFL, 3 PBU, 3 FF); Tobias Moss (12 GP, 22-6—28 TT, 2 INT, 9 PBU); Tyree Vines (12 GP, 2-1—3 TT)

Letterwinners lost (Key stats): Antonio London (10 GP, 1-0—1 TT); Jeremy Reaves (12 GP, 70-34—104 TT, 7 TFL, 3 INT, 8 PBU, 3 FF, 2 FR); Neiko Robinson (1 GP, 2-1—3 TT); T'Qwan Robinson (12 GP, 3-0—3 TT, 1 TFL)

Newcomers (Yr., Previous school): Jordan Mims (Jr., Pearl River [Miss.] CC); Spencer Perry (So., Notre Dame); A.J. DeShazor (R-Fr., Lakeland [Fla.] Lake Gibson HS); Keith Gallmon (Fr., Mobile [Ala.] Christian School); Josh Gillard (Fr., New Orleans [La.] Holy Cross School); Tyrone Hall Jr. (Fr., Theodore [Ala.] HS)

Miscellaneous Notes
-Reaves was the first member in program history to garner a Sun Belt Conference individual award after he was selected the Defensive Player of the Year last fall.
-He departed as one of just two players to record 300 or more total tackles in a career while ranking first on the school's all-time list in interceptions (8), forced fumbles (9) and passes broken up (22) as well.
-After recording 64 stops in his first year as a junior-college transfer, Neiko Robinson suffered a season-ending injury in the 2017 opener after making only three tackles at Ole Miss.
-Lawrence is the team's leading returning tackler after finishing second on the squad last fall; he also tied for the team lead with three forced fumbles and was named honorable mention all-league.
-Buggs had recorded six stop in 23 games over his first three years with the program — although he missed the 2016 campaign due to injury — but was second among Jaguar safeties in the category last season.
-Moss, who ranked among the top 10 in the Sun Belt in passes defensed last fall, was moved from cornerback to safety at the start of spring practice.
-Fisher averaged more than a tackle per game while appearing in every contest as a redshirt freshman in '17.
-Daniels and Vines were both contributors on multiple special teams units in addition to their defensive backfield duties last year.
-Perry was considered a four-star recruit when he signed with Notre Dame out of IMG Academy, while DeShazor earned three stars from multiple recruiting organizations and was a third-team all-state selection following his senior season.
-Gallmon — a three-star prospect — garnered all-state honors each of the last three years while Hall Jr. helped his team to the state playoffs each of the last two seasons.

Matt Kitchens
-On improvement he has seen in the group since the spring: "The improvement we have seen has been drastic.  After coming in here and installing a whole new scheme, from where we started to where we are now we have seen tremendous improvement.  That starts with the senior leadership that I have in my room, I have guys who have played a lot of downs in a lot of different defenses who we can mix and match to make it work in this scheme.  They've been able to grasp it quickly because of their experience."
-On what he believes the strength of the group is: "The first thing they do well is communicate, which is important because safeties need to talk on the back end of the defense.  Another strength is the amount of time they put in before and after practice, watching tape, coming in and asking questions."
-On his expectations for Malcolm Buggs and Nigel Lawrence as seniors: "They are two great kids who work extremely hard, that's the biggest thing I want everyone to know.  I don't worry about having to rev those two up on a day-to-day basis, they are already revved up.  That's a pretty good start, but they've also played a lot of games so they have a lot of experience and have become better players during their careers.  My expectations are high for them, but they are also high for everyone in my room — which they should be."

Malcolm Buggs
-On the strength of the group this year: "The strength of the group this year is depth; we are able to go two-, and in some positions, three-deep.  We seem to have developed a certain level of competition, we want to come out here every day and drive each other to be better; that alone keeps us on our toes and is helping prepare us for the competition we will face this season."
-On his development since becoming a starter: "Last year was my first year starting, getting that year under my belt has done a lot for me not just individually but as a leader.  I am able to bring a lot more to the table when it comes to physicality and the mental aspect of the game and being able to see things before they happen."
-On his attitude entering his senior year: "I am ecstatic, to say the least.  Every day I come out here — I was redshirted one year due to injury — and see this new Jaguar Training Center and all the things going on in this program is a blessing.  I try to tell everybody to come out here, have fun and enjoy themselves, but also to take advantage of their development and not waste a day.  I am trying to play my role well and pray that we get to where we need to be this year."

Nigel Lawrence
-On what he's doing to help fill the leadership void at the position with Jeremy Reaves' departure to the NFL: "I'm just taking things one day at a time really.  I'm just trying to encourage the younger guys and be more active with my teammates.  I just want to be there for them and try to do anything I can to help this team."
-On what he thinks the strength of the safeties is: "We're just a family really.  We can come to each other about anything.  We're all willing to further our knowledge of the game.  When you have that element in the [position] room, the sky's the limit."
-On what he has improved the most at during his time here at South to put him in position for his expected role as a senior: "I feel that I've grown a lot since I got here, both physically and mentally.  The best thing I've done since I got here was just focus on improving mentally in the classroom and on the field.  I've also gotten better with people socially."

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