Blue & Gold Illustrated: 2020 Notre Dame Football Preview
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DEFENSIVE BACKS BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED 2020 FOOTBALL PREVIEW ✦ 107 POSITION COACHES Terry Joseph is in his second year as the defensive pass game coordinator and his third season as a mentor for Notre Dame's secondary. He has now coached defensive backs at the Power Five level for each of the last 10 years. Last year, Joseph oversaw a unit that helped the Fighting Irish rank third in the na- tion in passing defense (168.5 yards allowed per game) and fifth in team passing efficiency defense (110.15 rating). His safety triumvirate of seniors Alohi Gilman and Jalen Elliott plus freshman Kyle Hamilton was par- ticularly effective, ranking fourth, fifth and seventh, respectively, on the team in tackles. The trio com- bined to make 164 stops while intercepting seven passes — highlighted by a team-high four by Hamil- ton — and breaking up another 10. Joseph had a successful first season in South Bend, helping Notre Dame's passing defense improve in several categories. Most notably, the Fighting Irish ranked No. 6 in the country in team passing effi- ciency defense (105.58 rating) while finishing with 12 interceptions — seven by the safeties — and just 10 touchdown passes allowed. Joseph joined the Irish after one year as the de- fensive backs coach at North Carolina. Prior to UNC, Joseph served as the defensive backs coach at Texas A&M for three seasons (2014-16). He tutored an Aggies pass defense in 2015 that ranked fourth na- tionally in passing yards allowed per game and 18th in pass efficiency defense. Previously, Joseph spent two seasons at Nebraska as its secondary coach (2012-13). Despite the loss of two returning starters, his 2012 secondary led the nation in lowest opponent completion percentage (47.1 percent), ranked fourth in pass defense (168.2 yards allowed per game) and ninth in pass efficiency defense (105.32), while helping the Cornhuskers to a 10-win season. Joseph also served as the defensive backs coach and recruiting coordinator at Tennessee from 2010-11. In 2011, the Volunteers finished 12th nationally in passing yards allowed with an average of just 177.8 yards per game. In 2010, he helped UT rank among the top 20 nationally with 18 interceptions. He also spent three seasons at Louisiana Tech (2007-09), where he served as the secondary coach and recruiting coordinator, and was a graduate as- sistant at LSU in 2006. Joseph began his coaching career in the Louisiana high school ranks, working as an assistant coach at two New Orleans area schools. He worked at Arch- bishop Shaw from 1999-2002 and at Destrehan High School from 2003-05. He earned his bachelor's degree in marketing/ business administration from Northwestern State in 1996. He was a baseball standout at the school, and is one of only 12 players in Southland Confer- ence history to earn first-team all-conference honors three straight seasons. Joseph was a 13th-round MLB Draft choice of the Chicago Cubs and played four seasons in the minor leagues with the Cubs and San Diego Padres. Joseph comes from a football coaching family. His cousin Vance Joseph is the former head coach of the Denver Broncos and current defensive coordina- tor of the Arizona Cardinals, while another cousin, Mickey Joseph, is the wide receivers coach at LSU. Mike Mickens is in his first season in charge of Notre Dame's cornerbacks and his eighth as a coach on the collegiate level. His arrival in South Bend re- united him with head coach Brian Kelly, for whom he played for while at the University of Cincin- nati from 2005-08. Mickens came to South Bend following two seasons coaching cornerbacks at his alma mater, where the Bearcats had back-to-back 11-win seasons while winning two bowl games and one American Athletic Conference (AAC) East Divi- sion championship (2019). The 2019 UC squad led the AAC in scoring defense for the second straight season and ranked among the league's top three in rushing and total defense. The 2018 edition of the Bearcats defense ranked among the top 15 nationally in rushing defense, scoring defense and total defense. Before returning to his alma mater, Mickens spent four years as the cornerbacks coach at Bowling Green. He helped the Falcons to a Mid-American Conference championship in 2015, when BGSU was the only team in the league with more interceptions (20) than TD passes allowed (19) and boasted a conference-leading plus-12 turnover ratio. Mickens began his coaching career as the corner- backs mentor at Idaho in 2013, after serving as a defensive assistant at Cincinnati (2011) and Indiana State (2012). During his playing career at Cincinnati, Mickens was a three-time All-Big East selection, plus earned All-America accolades (FWAA and Playboy) and was a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award in 2008 after helping the Bearcats to a berth in the Orange Bowl. He is the school's career leader in interceptions (14) and interception return yards (296). The Dayton, Ohio, native — who graduated from Cincinnati with a bachelor's in criminal justice in 2011 — was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the 2009 NFL Draft. He also had stints with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Cincinnati Bengals, as well as the CFL's Calgary Stampeders, before retiring due to injury. RETURNING PLAYERS LITCHFIELD AJAVON • S So. • Baltimore Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 198 • Saw action in two games as a rookie in 2019. • Notched 62 tackles, one sack, one interception and two forced fumbles as a senior at Episcopal High School. • Named to the 2018 USA Today All-State first team, the 2017 Virginia Independent Schools Ath- letic Association All-State second team and the 2018 All-Interstate Athletic Conference first team. • Competed in Nike's The Opening Regional in New Jersey. • Ran the 300-meter hurdles and 4x100 men's relay for Episcopal track and field. • Regarded by Rivals as a four-star talent, the No. 4 player in Virginia, and the No. 9 safety and No. 106 overall recruit in the nation. TARIQ BRACY • CB Jr. • Milpitas, Calif. Ht.: 5-10 • Wt.: 180 • Played in 12 contests and made two starts in 2019, and tallied 34 tackles, seven passes broken up, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. • Tied a career high with seven tackles in the win over Virginia. • Played in 12 games in 2018, and recorded 18 tackles with one forced fumble. • Finished his career at Milpitas High School with 6,450 all-purpose yards (3,755 rushing, 1,659 receiving, 436 on kickoff returns, 449 on punt returns and 151 on interception returns), 112 tackles, 14 interceptions and 73 touchdowns (47 rushing, 19 receiving, three interception returns, two punt returns, one kickoff return and one fumble return). • Named first-team All-Metro by The San Francisco Chronicle as a junior and senior. • Listed as a four-star prospect, the No. 45 player in California, and the No. 22 athlete and No. 302 overall player in the nation by 247Sports. Year G-GS TT TFL Sacks Int. PBU 2018 12-0 18 0.0 0.0 0 0 2019 12-2 34 0.0 0.0 0 7 Totals 24-2 52 0.0 0.0 0 7 DJ BROWN • S Jr. • Annapolis, Md. Ht.: 6-0 • Wt.: 194 • Played in nine games in 2019 and made seven tackles. • Saw snaps in just one game in 2018. • Competed in the 2018 Under Armour All-American Game. • Helped St. John's College High School to a 9-2 record and its first Washington Catholic Athletic Conference football championship since 1989. • Rated by ESPN as a four-star talent, the top player in Washington, D.C., and the No. 28 cornerback and No. 225 overall recruit in the nation. SHAUN CRAWFORD • CB 6th-Sr. • Lakewood, Ohio Ht.: 5-9 • Wt.: 180 • Started eight of the 11 contests he played in, overcoming a dis- located elbow suffered in game four against Virginia. • Returned after missing just two games, and finished the season with 28 tackles (one for loss), one interception, two passes bro- ken up and one QB hurry. • Was named an honorable mention selection for