Photo by: WVU Athletic Communications
Mountaineer Secondary to Enjoy Some Good Fortune in 2021
June 04, 2021 02:01 PM | Football, Blog
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia has the good fortune of having Nicktroy Fortune back for his junior season at right cornerback this fall.
The Roswell, Georgia, resident started all 10 games last year and has now played in 21 for his career heading into the 2021 season. The analytical and data website Pro Football Focus recognized him as an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention choice last year after he logged 35 tackles, broke up two passes and made his first career interception in the Kansas State win.
He also generated a career-high eight tackles at Iowa State and registered his first tackle for a loss against TCU.
This spring, we saw a much more confident football player out on the field with two full seasons of college experience under his belt.
A brief conversation Fortune had with his coach, Neal Brown, after the team's second spring scrimmage really gave him a big boost of adrenaline that he needed.
"He told me he just wants me to go out there and play aggressive," Fortune said recently. "Even if I mess up, he just wants me to go out there and play. I've put that in my mind and ever since he told me that I've just gone out there and played ball.
"I've given up some, and I've made plays, so that definitely helped me out when we talked about that," he said. "It just gave me more of a confidence boost so now I've just mainly been going out there and being assertive and stuff like that."
It's perfectly normal for a young guy to play it safe and cautious out there. The psychological scars of getting beat deep for a touchdown are much harder to heal when you are younger. Now, as the team's most experienced corner, his scar tissue is beginning to harden.
That just comes with the territory of being an older, much more mature player.
"My thing was to play with technique and play smart," he admitted. "I was kind of like tentative and timid just a little bit. But I knew going through the spring, the more practices and the more reps I got, I was naturally beginning to come into my own."
Now, if Marvin Mims, Xavier Hutchinson or Erik Ezukanma makes a play on him, so be it. He's going to get right back out there and keep fighting and battling.
"As a corner, you've got to make sure you have that next-play mentality," he explained. "It's kind of difficult sometimes when you give up a deep ball; it's hard to try and let that go."
"When you have that physical body or technique, it's really not a problem – you've just got to execute, but mentally, when you give up a bad play you've got to learn to let that go and go on to the next one," he said.
Fortune is also wise enough to realize that he can't confuse aggression with recklessness. Situations dictate when he can take more chances or sit back and protect deeper areas of the football field.
"There are times when you can be aggressive and there are times when you've got to be smart," he explained. "When it's third and 4 or third and 5, you know you've got to drive on anything short and when it's third and 14, I can play a little more conservatively. That's pretty easy to balance. I know when to be smart and protect the deep balls."
Fortune likens his situation to that of junior wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton's, who has got everything in the toolbox to become an elite player in the Big 12. All Bryce needs to do is believe it and go out there and prove it.
Fortune said they had several discussions about this in the spring.
"I tell him every single day, 'The only thing holding you back is your mind,'" Fortune said. "With Bryce, it's just like me. For me, it was a confidence thing and now my confidence is up there, and I always tell him, 'You've just got to have confidence in yourself' because you see it, he's like 6-4, 225 and he can run.
"What I want to see out of Bryce is him having the confidence knowing when he steps on that field nobody can run with him, nobody can jump with him and he just goes out there and dominates. Once he gets that down, he will be the best receiver in the Big 12," Fortune predicted.
Fortune is also predicting success this fall for Jackie Matthews, the guy who could very well end up lining up on the other side of Fortune at left corner.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College transfer was once a first team junior college All-American on a championship-level junior college team and he will be battling it out this fall with Illinois State transfer Charles Woods.
"Jackie is looking great," Fortune said. "When we do individuals or one-on-one, I'm always making sure I'm watching Jackie so I can learn something from his game. Jackie is definitely somebody who we're going to need and somebody that's going to shock the world because he's been playing at a high level. He's holding his own and really looking good out there."
Others Fortune has been impressed with are receivers Isaiah Esdale, Sean Ryan and youngster Sam Brown, who like Ford-Wheaton, has the physical tools necessary to give defenses issues.
"Every day we go out there and practice I know during one-on-ones there is never a rep when I can relax because they bring it every time," Fortune admitted. "I know every time I step on that field I've got to have my A-game on and if I don't they're going to expose me. Those guys give me great work."
Fortune said he's also getting great work playing under new co-defensive coordinator ShaDon Brown, who oversees the WVU cornerbacks.
Brown is a positive coach who is already spreading his good vibes throughout the Mountaineer defense.
"That's my guy," Fortune said. "At first I was kind of a bit unsure. I didn't really know him and he really didn't know me, but with time I realized how cool of a guy he is – funny; he's never really serious unless he's coaching us up on something we messed up.
"He's always joking," Fortune added. "He's always positive and never negative and that's what I like. I look forward to having a season with him. It's going to be a good time knowing the type of guy he is and a real good dude. He's a family man, too, so I've got a good relationship with him."
Season tickets for the 2021 campaign are now on sale through the Mountaineer Ticket Office and can be purchased by calling toll-free 1-800-WVU GAME or by logging on to WVUGAME.com.
The Roswell, Georgia, resident started all 10 games last year and has now played in 21 for his career heading into the 2021 season. The analytical and data website Pro Football Focus recognized him as an All-Big 12 Honorable Mention choice last year after he logged 35 tackles, broke up two passes and made his first career interception in the Kansas State win.
He also generated a career-high eight tackles at Iowa State and registered his first tackle for a loss against TCU.
This spring, we saw a much more confident football player out on the field with two full seasons of college experience under his belt.
A brief conversation Fortune had with his coach, Neal Brown, after the team's second spring scrimmage really gave him a big boost of adrenaline that he needed.
"He told me he just wants me to go out there and play aggressive," Fortune said recently. "Even if I mess up, he just wants me to go out there and play. I've put that in my mind and ever since he told me that I've just gone out there and played ball.
"I've given up some, and I've made plays, so that definitely helped me out when we talked about that," he said. "It just gave me more of a confidence boost so now I've just mainly been going out there and being assertive and stuff like that."
It's perfectly normal for a young guy to play it safe and cautious out there. The psychological scars of getting beat deep for a touchdown are much harder to heal when you are younger. Now, as the team's most experienced corner, his scar tissue is beginning to harden.
That just comes with the territory of being an older, much more mature player.
"My thing was to play with technique and play smart," he admitted. "I was kind of like tentative and timid just a little bit. But I knew going through the spring, the more practices and the more reps I got, I was naturally beginning to come into my own."
Now, if Marvin Mims, Xavier Hutchinson or Erik Ezukanma makes a play on him, so be it. He's going to get right back out there and keep fighting and battling.
"As a corner, you've got to make sure you have that next-play mentality," he explained. "It's kind of difficult sometimes when you give up a deep ball; it's hard to try and let that go."
"When you have that physical body or technique, it's really not a problem – you've just got to execute, but mentally, when you give up a bad play you've got to learn to let that go and go on to the next one," he said.
Fortune is also wise enough to realize that he can't confuse aggression with recklessness. Situations dictate when he can take more chances or sit back and protect deeper areas of the football field."There are times when you can be aggressive and there are times when you've got to be smart," he explained. "When it's third and 4 or third and 5, you know you've got to drive on anything short and when it's third and 14, I can play a little more conservatively. That's pretty easy to balance. I know when to be smart and protect the deep balls."
Fortune likens his situation to that of junior wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton's, who has got everything in the toolbox to become an elite player in the Big 12. All Bryce needs to do is believe it and go out there and prove it.
Fortune said they had several discussions about this in the spring.
"I tell him every single day, 'The only thing holding you back is your mind,'" Fortune said. "With Bryce, it's just like me. For me, it was a confidence thing and now my confidence is up there, and I always tell him, 'You've just got to have confidence in yourself' because you see it, he's like 6-4, 225 and he can run.
"What I want to see out of Bryce is him having the confidence knowing when he steps on that field nobody can run with him, nobody can jump with him and he just goes out there and dominates. Once he gets that down, he will be the best receiver in the Big 12," Fortune predicted.
Fortune is also predicting success this fall for Jackie Matthews, the guy who could very well end up lining up on the other side of Fortune at left corner.
The Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College transfer was once a first team junior college All-American on a championship-level junior college team and he will be battling it out this fall with Illinois State transfer Charles Woods.
"Jackie is looking great," Fortune said. "When we do individuals or one-on-one, I'm always making sure I'm watching Jackie so I can learn something from his game. Jackie is definitely somebody who we're going to need and somebody that's going to shock the world because he's been playing at a high level. He's holding his own and really looking good out there."
Others Fortune has been impressed with are receivers Isaiah Esdale, Sean Ryan and youngster Sam Brown, who like Ford-Wheaton, has the physical tools necessary to give defenses issues.
"Every day we go out there and practice I know during one-on-ones there is never a rep when I can relax because they bring it every time," Fortune admitted. "I know every time I step on that field I've got to have my A-game on and if I don't they're going to expose me. Those guys give me great work."
Fortune said he's also getting great work playing under new co-defensive coordinator ShaDon Brown, who oversees the WVU cornerbacks.
Brown is a positive coach who is already spreading his good vibes throughout the Mountaineer defense.
"That's my guy," Fortune said. "At first I was kind of a bit unsure. I didn't really know him and he really didn't know me, but with time I realized how cool of a guy he is – funny; he's never really serious unless he's coaching us up on something we messed up.
"He's always joking," Fortune added. "He's always positive and never negative and that's what I like. I look forward to having a season with him. It's going to be a good time knowing the type of guy he is and a real good dude. He's a family man, too, so I've got a good relationship with him."
Season tickets for the 2021 campaign are now on sale through the Mountaineer Ticket Office and can be purchased by calling toll-free 1-800-WVU GAME or by logging on to WVUGAME.com.
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