All-CAA receiver will see action on defense for ODU

By Rich Radford
The Virginian-Pilot
© December 1, 2011

NORFOLK

All-Colonial Athletic Association first-team receiver Nick Mayers did not work out with Old Dominion's wide receivers Wednesday.

He worked out with the defensive backs instead.

With desperate times calling for desperate measures, ODU coach Bobby Wilder called Mayers into his office Sunday afternoon.

"I ran down our injury list in the secondary and asked Nick if he'd be willing to move to cornerback this week," Wilder said. "He said, 'Coach, I'll do whatever it takes for us to win.' "

The Monarchs (10-2) travel to Statesboro, Ga., Saturday to meet Georgia Southern (9-2) in the second round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.

ODU's secondary, particularly the cornerback positions, has been fraught with injury and illness.

Junior T.J. Cowart sustained a season-ending arm injury in the second week of the season. Sophomore Aaron Evans is doubtful for Saturday with a knee strain. Erik Lewis, the team's leader in interceptions with five, sustained a thigh contusion Saturday and is questionable. And Reggie Owens is sidelined with mononucleosis.

Switching positions is nothing new for Mayers. He has played a variety of wide receiver positions for the Monarchs and has at times lined up at tailback. He has even played quarterback in the Monarchs' occasional wildcat scheme.

But switching to the defensive side of the ball is a somewhat extreme move. The 5-foot-7, 170-pound Mayers, however, has been a standout on special teams with a dozen tackles while covering on kickoffs and punts. And this is not that unusual a move for him.

Mayers, a redshirt junior, played both ways in high school.

"The only time I wasn't on the field back then was for kickoffs," Mayers said. "I was even the holder on field goals and extra points."

Mayers, however, has made his mark at ODU as a receiver and led the Monarchs with 57 catches for 658 yards and seven touchdowns.

"We have a plan for him this weekend that will get him on both sides of the ball," Wilder said. "I see him taking 40 to 50 reps defensively, playing special teams and getting about 25 snaps on offense."

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With all of those injuries,

Submitted by MFish on Thu, 12/01/2011 at 9:55 am.

With all of those injuries, my guess is that ODU hasn't been throwing many cut blocks at the defense during practice this week. That is something that most players don't see much against more traditional offenses. They'll see lots of them on Saturday and it can be very frustrating to have one's legs cut out from under them play after play. I'm talking cut blocks, which are totally legal and not chop blocks which are not. There is a big difference between the two.