LU's Lee eager to make up for breakdown

Don’t let your guard down, and keep your swagger.

That’s Liberty cornerback KaJuan Lee’s theme for the 2010 season, and for good reason. Lee had a spectacular sophomore season for the Flames in ’09, intercepting a team-high five passes, and he played a huge role in a defense that was an FCS-best plus-21 in turnover margin.

But one play still haunts Lee, a breakdown at Stony Brook in the final minute that cost the Flames a chance at securing a third straight outright Big South championship.

Liberty was playing a zone-fire defense to try to cut off big plays. The Seawolves lined up with two receivers on the left side, and the inside receiver, Jordan Gush, ran a smash route to the left sideline. Lee, stationed on that side, bit on the underneath route the other receiver ran, leaving Gush wide open. Michael Coulter hit him for a 64-yard gain, setting up his 10-yard, game-winning TD pass to Gush.

In adrenaline-filled situations, mistakes happen. For Lee, it was a momentary lapse. Unfortunately, it came in a huge moment.

“Looking back on it, I didn’t do my job,” Lee said. “The guys were depending on me and I let them down. But you always have to have a short memory at cornerback. You have to bounce back. I’ve learned a lot during spring and an training camp, and I feel confident going into this season.”

A play like that will test a player’s resolve. It can break him, or it can toughen him. Lee doesn’t duck questions about the play, because he’s used it as a learning experience. And he knows he has no choice but to better himself, considering the Flames’ competition at cornerback this season.

Liberty is truly two-deep at corner, with Lee and Donald Manns listed as starters and emerging sophomore Kevin Fogg and former Pittsburgh transfer Ron Hobby as backups. Plus, the coaching staff is high on sophomore Pierre Hawkes, who provides additional depth at the position.

“What’s happened with KaJuan is that KaJuan has matured,” Liberty coach Danny Rocco said. “He’s taken ownership of the position and the responsibilities that go with playing out there on the island like that. The biggest thing is the competition. That gets your attention.

“We’ll be playing those four corners all year long. Because of the competition, they all know they can’t have a bad day. … That’s why he’s more mature. He’s having fewer and fewer bad days, and more and more good days as he’s getting ready to start this game.”

Lee said practices have been tough this summer as all five players are working hard to earn their playing time.

Said Lee: “The competition on the back end is tremendous. We’ve got a couple of guys behind us that we can rotate, and we can just keep our focus and just hone in on everything we have to do. The competition is amazing. I can get a rest, and the guy that comes in there plays just like a (starter). We can have a great defense back there. I believe that wholeheartedly.”

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