Ole Miss Former Player Profile: Cordera Eason
Spring football at Ole Miss in 2014 was heavy on running backs and there have been a lot of moving pieces in the backfield. To discuss this position we interviewed former Ole Miss running back Cordera Eason on the MakeItRainSports show on RebelSportsRadio, who was a critical piece of Ole Miss’ team from 2006-2009.
He was also a big part of that big win in Gainesville we highlighted last week. (2008 Ole Miss at Florida Rivalry Rewind)
Give us your impression of Coach Hugh Freeze and how he is doing leading the Rebs.
I’m not surprised he has been successful. My first two years Coach Freeze was here under Orgeron. His will to win and his play calling I knew he would get a shot; I didn’t know it would be Olemiss, but he deserved a shot. He is progressing faster than I or a lot of people thought.
Coach Freeze has made recruiting the running back a priority and there are a lot of guys battling for a chance to get on the field. Actually seven running backs are on the roster not counting Kailo Moore. Is that too many guys? How do you see that playing out?
It will certainly create some competition. Seven is a crowd and they will push each other. When I was there we had 5. It’s the spring so there will be some guys moved around closer to the season. You want a lot of competition during the spring and see what they can do. I don’t have a problem with that during the spring but it will probably be pared down to 4 or 5 before the season.
Ole Miss is not short on football celebrities through the years. Denzel Nkemdiche has become a leader on this team at a pretty young age. Is it concerning that maybe he has let the spotlight get the best of him?
Yea, it is kind of concerning, he is a leader, his brother looks up to him and other guys. I’m in touch with people on the team; I talk to CJ Hampton. He tells me Denzel is a great leader. I think he just got caught up in the college life. In order for him to be a leader he will have to rein it in a little bit.
Our leader was Peria Jerry. He was one of the biggest guys on the team but he was the first guy to finish sprints. Patrick Willis used to carry a gallon of water with him everywhere he went and I still do that sometimes because of him. Denzel just needs to understand as a leader you have to lead every day. Just focus on the season at hand. Ole Miss has a great future that he will be a big part of.
In, 2008-2009 you were part of an impressive running back corp, with Dexter McCluster, Brandon Bolden, Enrique davis, and others. You guys had the speed back, big backs and everything in-between. How does this 2014 group compare to that team?
We had it all, Bolden could catch out of the back
field, I could make the tough yards and break it down field, we had Devin Thomas too, who was a good back, we just had so many guys on the team. McCluster; we all know what he brought to the table. Enrique was a great back. Coach Nutt was in heaven and he didn’t have to worry about us too much. Us players decided how we started sometimes between the group, we would get together and agree who would start against which teams and who would play after halftime.
Looking at Walton and Mathers, Walton is the McCluster of the two. Mathers is not real big but he plays like a big back, some of the younger backs are a little bigger and should step up. I see great things coming with this group.
Your last two years you played in back to back Cotton Bowls. Tell us about how great it was to play in “Jerry’s World.”
Oh yeah, not only did we play in “Jerry’s World,” but we were one of the first teams to play in the new Cotton Bowl and the last team to play in the old Cotton Bowl. I don’t know which one was better for me. I do know it was hard to us to stay focused with that huge screen. Coaches had to get on us to stay focused. I enjoyed both and we obviously took care of business. We won both games and it’s a part of history, no matter which way you look at it, you can’t take that away from us!