UMass security Javon Batten made an unfavorable first impression when coach Don Brown convened the Minutemen for the opening of spring ball.
The 6-3, 200-pound sophomore from Brooklyn ultimately caught on to Brown’s methodologies and meticulously labored his approach up the depth chart to a beginning job.
Batten will make his second profession begin when UMass (0-2) hosts Stony Brook (0-1) within the dwelling opener on Saturday (3:30 p.m.) at McGuirk Stadium.
“There was a time during spring I might have traded him in for two used footballs,” mentioned Brown. “But he actually simply continued to develop and get higher and change into extra attentive and extra assertive along with his teammates.
“I just think his best days are certainly in front of him and the confidence is starting to show in him.”
Batten performed scholastically for nationally-known Erasmus Hall High School within the Flatbush part of Brooklyn and was used totally on the Minutemen’s particular groups final season.
Brown gave Batten his first begin in final Saturday’s 55-10 loss at Toledo and received greater than he anticipated from his untested rover. Batten led UMass with seven tackles that included 4 solos towards the Rockets.
“He really had his first action as a guy playing the majority of the game and I thought he did very well,” mentioned Brown. “I believed he performed extraordinarily nicely for a first-time starter.
“He can really run. He’s one of those guys that is 6-3 and 200-plus pounds and can run and those guys are hard to find.”
Brown started his second tenure at UMass acknowledged as top-of-the-line defensive strategists in school soccer, a popularity earned throughout his coordinator time at Maryland, Connecticut, Boston College, Michigan and Arizona. Brown’s standing within the FBS neighborhood may be intimidating to a younger wannabe studying a brand new system.
By the tip of coaching camp, Batten had come to phrases along with his state of affairs and have become a bodily and vocal presence within the Minutemen’s defensive backfield.
“I think I had coach’s issues at first and I wasn’t coachable,” mentioned Batten. “But then I realized that he was trying to help me. I started listening to the coaches and developed better as a player over the spring and the summer.”
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