Corley adjusting to new role as two-way player
EAST LANSING – US Army All-American Donnie Corley has already established himself as a future star at wide receiver, with 23 catches for 323 yards and three touchdowns in eight games as a true freshman at Michigan State.
The former Detroit Martin Luther King star is just getting started in his secondary role at corner, after making his debut on defense last weekend in a 32-23 loss to Michigan.
“Me making plays on offense can give me confidence on defense to make more plays,” said Corley, who played eight snaps on defense against the Wolverines. “I really like that about it.”
Corley practiced sparingly on defense last week, participating in a handful of one-on-one periods at corner while spending most of his time on offense. He was utilized exclusively on defense in man-to-man coverage.
“They kind of just put me in good positions like man-to-man situations instead of putting me in on motion,” Corley said. “They didn’t put me in situations where it was spread and there check calls because I didn’t go through any of that. They did a great job that.”
Corley believes the snaps he received against Michigan will be a catalyst for his growth as a contributor on defense. “I feel like I had just enough to snaps to give me a feel for what’s going on,” he said.
As Corley gains experience at defensive back, Michigan State will expand how he’s used at the position.
“We've done it before, so we're working towards it,” Mark Dantonio said. “He's got to be able to play fundamentally sound out there as well. There's different coverages. Again, as I go back and say, Okay, you're a freshman, regardless of your level of ability you're still a freshman and there's a lot of things going on out there in terms of coverages changing based on sets, motions, things of that nature, squeeze sets, bunched-up sets, things of that nature, how to play those.”
Corley totaled 1,403 yards and 14 touchdowns, while averaging 23.8 yards per catch on offense as a senior at Detroit Martin Luther King. On defense, Corley totaled 90 tackles and 10 interceptions.
Dantonio envisions Corley eventually playing a two-way role like Tony Lippett did for him at Michigan State as a senior two years ago. Chris Gamble did the same thing for Dantonio when he was defensive coordinator under Jim Tressel at Ohio State.
“I really see him being a lot like Tony Lippett in a lot of ways, understanding everything defensively to be to put him in there when we need him,” Dantonio said. “When I was at Ohio State, the most Chris Gamble ever played was 113 plays one game. He was over a hundred six games in a row. So it can be done. Lippett has played a lot of plays in the past, too. Now he's starting in the NFL as a corner in his second year. So it can be done.”
Lippett finished his Spartan career with 149 catches for 2,247 yards (15.1 avg.) and 15 touchdowns in 54 games. The former Detroit Crocket star was selected in the 2014 NFL Draft as a corner after being selected the Big Ten’s wide receiver MVP as a senior. Lippett is currently a starting corner for the Dolphins as a second-year player.
“That’s the only thing scary about (playing two ways),” Corley said. “I’ve been playing receiver my whole life and kind of want to go to the league as. But if that’s the best thing to do, anything can happen.”
Dantonio believes Corley’s future is at wide receiver.
But I think he's got a big upside as a wide receiver, can make a lot of plays,” Dantonio said. “So I think his home is at wide receiver, and then he has to transition to corner as we go.”
Corley split practice periods between offense and defense for the first time on Tuesday.
"Today is the most time I've had on defense," Corley said. "Usually, I just go over there for one period just to get the feel of it. Now that I know the offense, I can go on defense and still know what's going on with offense instead of missing stuff."