Behind the challenges Kris Abrams-Draine faces moving to outside corner for Mizzou football
Kris Abrams-Draine's career has moved fast in his first two seasons at Missouri.
He started as a three-star receiver signee, earning playing time against Alabama and rushing the ball once for three yards. That was the only statistic he recorded on offense.
By the end of the 2020 season, he was playing defensive back and recorded a tackle against Mississippi State. That switch is coming full circle in 2022 as Abrams-Draine is competing for one of the Tigers' outside cornerback spots.
"The expectation is really to compete and know my keys and get better every day," Abrams-Draine said. "I'm doing good at learning the outside."
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Of all the challenges Abrams-Draine has faced, the biggest is yet to come this season.
Abrams-Draine is now moving from defending the slot and line of scrimmage as the Tigers' slot defender to outside cornerback. As an outside cornerback, he will be tasked with guarding some of the best receivers in the nation during SEC play.
Even more daunting, he will be on his own.
"It's basically an island," Abrams-Draine said. "In the slot, I have help over top or in the inside, but I have to be more locked in on keys and the receiver and the opponent I'm playing."
MU coaches are confident Abrams-Draine can learn how to play the outside. It's not hard to imagine his success after how he played in 2021.
As Missouri's defense frantically searched for fixes last season, Abrams-Draine emerged as perhaps the biggest bright spot.
After he earned the nod as starting nickel back, Abrams-Draine did everything but play on offense. He played in 13 games in the 2021 season, starting 10.
He played mainly in the slot but also on the outside when needed. He was one of the Tigers' best playmakers, grabbing three interceptions, recovering a fumble and recording a team-high seven pass breakups.
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Pro Football Focus named Abrams-Draine to its all-SEC honorable mention team in 2021 and lists him at No. 5 in its early 2023 NFL Draft cornerback rankings.
He also impacted special teams, gaining 484 yards from kick returns. He made his biggest splash with a blazing 100-yard return for a touchdown against Tennessee.
"I'm a football player," Abrams-Draine said.
First-year defensive backs coach Al Pogue has seen this first-hand, labeling Abrams-Draine as "very coachable."
From spring practices to going into preseason camp, Pogue noted that the ability Abrams-Draine has as a playmaker highlights what makes him special.
"It just his overall knowledge of the game, his ability to catch the ball and just make plays on the ball," Pogue said. "He understands the game from a whole other perspective."
Abrams-Draine will have some help learning. He said he asks Ennis Rakestraw, his fellow outside cornerback on the opposite side of the field, questions every day about playing outside.
Rakestraw said he remembers telling Abrams-Draine during their freshman season in 2020 how good he would be at defensive back.
"If you stick to this, bro, you're going to be good," Rakestraw said. "You already got the ball skills because you came from receiver. Like, you just a ball magnet. Then I was like, as long as you get the little fundamentals down, you're going to be good."
Now, Rakestraw said he and Abrams-Draine tell each other when they miss things on the field to hold each other accountable but to also teach other aspects of playing on the outside.
Starting spots must be earned, even as Abrams-Draine and Rakestraw are favored to start on the outside.
To earn that spot, Abrams-Draine has to show he's learned how to take on the role.
Pogue said the skill Abrams-Draine has is why the transition won't be much of an issue physically. It comes down to the mentality of playing on the outside, where Pogue said corners need to have both skills and confidence to make plays.
"Do you have that dog in you to say, 'Hey, I'm going to defend this ball, man, and make this play," Pogue said. "He definitely has that."
The 2021 season showed that Abrams-Draine doesn't shy away from making plays.
Now, with the spotlight on him, he will be called upon to guard SEC receivers like Georgia's Adonai Mitchell, Florida's Justin Shorter and Tennessee's Cedric Tillman.
Guarding those players well can put Abrams-Draine on the NFL's radar.
"He wants to be as good as he can," Pogue said. "He just looks to prove that he belongs amongst the elites."
Chris Kwiecinski is the sports editor for the Columbia Daily Tribune, overseeing University of Missouri and Boone County sports coverage. Follow him on Twitter @OchoK_ and contact him at CKwiecinsk@gannett.com or 573-815-1857.
This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Mizzou football's Kris Abrams-Draine transitions to cornerback
