Film Don't Lie | Chance Tucker
Notre Dame cornerbacks coach Mike Mickens has done a tremendous job of identifying and landing cornerback talent in this class considering where things stood at the position when he was hired. He just landed himself another one when Chance Tucker pledged to the Irish, the third corner in the class.
What he lacks in experience at the position, he makes up for in athletic traits that should translate well at the next level. This is a fast, competitive defender that I see as underrated relative to his ranking.
Height: 6’1”
Weight: 170
Projected Position: Cornerback
ISD Grade: 91 (4-star)
National Average Grade: 87.2 (3-star)
What he does best:
He’s a great athlete with good long speed. His ability to sink his hips and explode stands out. He mirrors receivers like a defender in basketball denying an entry pass.
Tucker has great ball skills. He tracks it really well and has a great awareness of when he is beat and needs to recover or when he is in-phase and can turn his head to make a play. Here he is making a great play on the ball in-phase with the receiver.
Here he is making sure to finish through the catch point of the receiver to cause an incompletion.
Tucker has the skills to play press and shows good instincts in zone coverage as well. This is someone who can develop into a complete corner and the physical part of the game is clearly something he embraces. He’s a strong tackler.
What he needs to improve:
He’s only played one year at corner after playing safety and receiver before so you can see he needs work in some areas, particularly in press coverage with his footwork and jam. Everything he needs to improve is coachable and he should learn from experience there as well.
What’s his ceiling?
Out of the three corners Notre Dame has committed, I believe Tucker has the highest ceiling. He checks so many boxes with his game and has the kind of speed necessary to excel at the corner position.
He was timed with a 10.97 100 meters at his only track event of 2020 before sports were shut down and typically the first meet isn’t where an athlete runs his fastest.
He’s a fit at field corner for the Irish and they definitely needed to find someone to play there with Philip Riley and Ryan Barnes better suited to play the boundary or potentially move to safety.
Tucker is someone who would have had a good opportunity to bump up his rating with some camp performances, but regardless of that, the film doesn’t lie. This is a very big pickup for Notre Dame and he has the talent to develop into a multi-year starter.
Coach | New 2021 CB Commit Chance Tucker "Good Fit" For Notre Dame
BREAKING | 2021 CB Chance Tucker Commits To Notre Dame