Byron Cowart

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espn.com

 

Switching positions has given new life to former top recruit Byron Cowart

Greg OstendorfESPN Staff Writer

AUBURN, Ala. -- If you go back and look at the last five players who were ranked No. 1 overall in the ESPN 300, it’s a pretty impressive group.

Two (Robert Nkemdiche and Mario Edwards Jr.) are playing in the NFL. A third (Leonard Fournette) is a potential top-10 draft pick later this month. Even last year’s No. 1 overall player (Rashan Gary) made an immediate impact at Michigan with 27 tackles, five tackles for loss and a sack this past season.

So where does that leave Byron Cowart, the No. 1 player in the 2015 class?

In two seasons at Auburn, the former five-star defensive end has a grand total of 12 tackles and he’s yet to record a sack. It’s understandable to struggle as a true freshman in the SEC. But as a sophomore last year, Cowart watched from the sideline as true freshman Marlon Davidson essentially took his job and made the kind of early impact he was supposed to make.

To be fair, Cowart missed Auburn’s last three games last fall after he underwent an emergency appendectomy. And maybe it’s too early to call him a bust. But Auburn defensive line coach Rodney Garner told reporters last week that he wishes they would’ve redshirted Cowart his first year on campus.

This is the No. 1 overall player we’re talking about.

 

Byron Cowart, the nation's top 2015 recruit, has played sparingly at Auburn during his first two seasons. Greg McWilliams/Icon Sportswire

As it stands, Cowart will be a junior this coming season. In an attempt to find a way to get him on the field, the coaches have moved him from end to tackle this spring, and it might end up being the best thing that could’ve happened to him.

"He’s a different Byron," Davidson said. "That’s all I can say. He has come a long way, and every day he has taken a step forward. Every day. He’s always telling me, ‘Come on, baby. We got it, baby.’ He’s got that swag about him now, and he’s looking great.”

“Moving from end to tackle, that’s going to cause a lot of mismatches on the inside,” added Auburn linebacker Darrell Williams. “I feel a lot of that -- playing with more swag -- is coming from him feeling a little better as far as playing on the field. I feel like that’s where it’s coming from. He feels good while he’s playing.”

Listed at 258 pounds on his ESPN recruiting profile, Cowart has bulked up to 280 pounds since he first got to Auburn. He’s working to get bigger and stronger so he can play on the inside, but he still has the mentality and the background of a pass-rusher.

"He just seems more comfortable," Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele said. "He gives us a pass rush in there, too, more than just pushing the pocket. He is a pass-rusher in there as a 3-technique because he has the skill set to do that. Rodney’s done a great job with him on the little things and the rundowns of pad leverage, using his hands, dominating blocks, tearing off of blocks. He’s getting better. He just seems more comfortable.”

 

However, this renaissance at defensive tackle doesn’t mean that Cowart is going to slide right into the starting lineup. There are plenty of players competing for the same spot this spring, including Dontavius Russell, Derrick Brown and Andrew Williams -- three players who all saw time and played well on the defensive line for Auburn last season.

But there’s at least a glimmer of hope for the former No. 1 overall player. There’s an opportunity, especially now with some of the lofty expectations removed, for Cowart to make an impact this fall.

"There’s a point where every player has gotten down on theirself,” Davidson said. “But it’s just about how you respond to the next play, how you respond the next day, the next practice and just taking advantage of it.”

The time is now for Cowart to take advantage of his opportunity.

[WFE12 9,191]

It'll be great if him and Derrick could be the bulldozers we need against run heavy teams like bammer.