Arizona 'chess piece' defensive back Genesis Smith 'has a lot of upside'

Like a mad scientist Arizona defensive coordinator Duane Akina isn’t afraid to get creative with the Wildcats’ lineups — or the responsibilities and assignments of each his players.

Akina didn’t rule out the possibility of a six- or seven-defensive back starting lineup for the Wildcats’ upcoming 2024 slate if it meant the Wildcats had their best 11 defensive players on the field.

Arizona, in some respects, is “throwing spaghetti at the wall and seeing what sticks.” That’s how “Star” defensive backs coach Brett Arce put it.

“We’re doing a lot of different things in camp and seeing what sticks out to us, what works, what doesn’t,” Arce said.

The Wildcats are “trying to create a better mousetrap,” Arce said, citing Akina.

“We’re blitzing a lot of guys, and if we have a special weapon, we’re going to fire them. We’re seeing who those (players) are out there.”

One of those weapons is sophomore defensive back Genesis Smith, a Chandler native and Hamilton High School product, who emerged as a freshman last season, recording 24 tackles and one interception — one of six takeaways for the Wildcats in their win over Oklahoma in the Alamo Bowl. His habits away from the field helped him earn a role in Arizona’s defense.

“He came in as a freak athlete, we all knew that. But for him to be a film junkie the way he is — I mean, he’s always in the building, always asking coaches to go through this with him, go through something else with him,” said senior “Star” (or nickel back) Treydan Stukes. “When you see that, with how young as he is, it makes you trust him.”

Smith was primarily a special teams standout and “dollar” package member, when Arizona used its seven-defensive back lineup. Unfortunately for Smith, who signed with the Wildcats as a safety, there hasn’t been a chance for him to crack the starting lineup. Arizona returns starters Gunner Maldonado and Dalton Johnson at safety, and Stukes returns as a fourth-year starter.

“Genesis has a lot of upside,” Akina said at the start of training camp. “Right now, if you were to say, ‘Who’s your starting secondary?’ I could say Genesis Smith is one of our starting defensive backs. Is he trotting out first? No, because there’s so many guys. He’s lined up at a position with Stukes, Maldonado and Dalton. So I’ve got four starting safeties. How I determine who plays, I don’t want to be tied to a depth chart. ... Part of being the best player on the depth chart is, ‘Can you learn more than one position?’ which will help you.”

Added Akina: “So how do you find ways to get him on the field? You don’t want to get tied into a depth chart at one position. It’s about teaching these guys multiple positions and them putting in the time to do that.”

A similar path as Colgate transfer defensive back Owen Goss, Smith is playing both “Star” and safety, “just being a chess piece, going anywhere they really need me,” Smith said. Moving to “Star” behind Stukes is “definitely an adjustment” for Smith.

“It’s a lot more man coverage when you’re at nickel, and (there are) a lot more zone drops instead of being the high safety,” he said. “There’s a lot more man coverage, but it’s not a crazy difference. When you know the whole concept, it’s just another part of the concept that you’re doing.”

Although Smith likely won’t start every game on defense this season, he’ll have a prominent role in Arizona’s dollar package, which was first introduced to Arizona under former defensive coordinator Johnny Nansen in 2022, and serve as the backup non-cornerback in the UA secondary.

The dollar package is “something different, just getting a lot more athletes out there,” Smith said.

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“We just fly around and have fun. Our chemistry on the back end is more built up,” Smith added. “I feel like it’s good that we’re able to get out there and fly around.”

Smith, Goss, Stukes, Johnson, Maldonado, standout cornerback and preseason All-Big 12 selection Tacario Davis and Louisville transfer cornerback Marquis Groves-Killebrew is the first dollar package combination Arizona used in training camp. The 6-2, 203-pound Smith is tied for the second-tallest defensive back in the aforementioned group behind Davis (6-4). Additionally, if Davis or Groves-Killebrew are out, Stukes can slide to cornerback, which happened in the Alamo Bowl, and Smith can step in to play “Star.”

“He’s a fun piece,” Arce said of Smith. “Similar to Owen, he does a lot of different things for us. He plays multiple positions, has a ton of range on the back end on the roof as a post safety and is also great in man-coverage skills. Having a guy like that with position versatility, that puts the time in to learn all of this stuff, too, it’s a fun toy to play with and gives us some flexibility to do a lot of different things.”

Maldonado said Smith is “really coming into his size” and is “just a guy who likes football.”

“When it comes to the mental game, he’s into that stuff. Those are the kind of guys you want playing next to you,” Maldonado said.

With a majority of the defensive secondary starters returning, coupled with the rise of Smith and diamond-in-the-rough find in Goss, “I think we have a lot of potential in the defensive back room,” Smith said.

“I think if we just keep working, keep our heads down, we can be special this year,” he said.

‘God’s plan’

Arizona linebacker Leviticus Su’a came to the UA last season with expectations to compete for the starting “Mike” linebacker role alongside Jacob Manu.

Su’a was a four-star recruit and highest-rated signee in Arizona’s 2023 recruiting class, according to 247Sports.com. The 6-2, 222-pound Su’a was named Trinity League MVP, which normally goes to an offensive player, during his senior season at national powerhouse Mater Dei. The former Mater Dei star redshirted his freshman season at Arizona and “didn’t have that many reps, had a couple of injuries here and there,” he said.

“When spring ball hit, I just started working,” he said. “I’ve been working the whole time. I feel like God has been a blessing.”

Between the coaching change in the last year, along with Su’a’s place on the depth chart with Manu, sophomores Taye Brown and Kamuela Ka’aihue and veteran Justin Flowe in Arizona’s linebacker room, it was conceivable for the Wildcats’ prized ‘23 recruit to bolt after one year. But “God’s plan” kept Su’a in the desert.

“I prayed on it a lot. I just stuck it out. I felt like it would be wrong to have new people come in and then just leave, not give them a chance,” Su’a said. “So I prayed hard on it, trusted (linebackers coach Danny Gonzales) and worked hard and grinded. Got the feedback from him, and I’m enjoying it here.”

Although Manu and Brown are the projected starting linebackers, the Wildcats have depth behind them with Flowe (who could have a blitzing role), Ka’aihue, Su’a and Tulane transfer Jared Small, who is entering his eighth season. Su’a has stood out on Arizona’s defense more so than the last year.

In order to get on the field this season, Su’a understands the importance of special teams and finding other ways to contribute beyond playing linebacker, a message conveyed to him from former Washington and Boise State head coach Chris Petersen, who attended at least two UA football practices in the last week.

“Just going all out. That’s the bottom line,” Su’a said. “Knowing my role on the team. ... That was a big thing I took away from (Petersen’s speech), just knowing your role and always be ready.”