Nick Scott coming into his for Albany State

ALBANY — The Albany State Rams have seen their share of phenomenal secondaries come through their football program over the years. From Dan Land and Kenneth Gant in the late 1980s to DeRodrick “Keyon” Nash in the early 2000s, the Rams have never been short on pro level talent at that position.

Sophomore Nick Scott is in line to uphold that legacy and add his name to the list of defensive phenoms who have donned the blue and gold.

“I was aware of that [the legacy of strong secondaries],” he said. “When they first told me that, I was like I got big shoes to fill. I’m just gonna try and live up to that.”

So far he’s living up to the hype. In his freshman year, Scott recorded 33 solo tackles, two interceptions and three pass break-ups. This year, Scott has avoided the sophomore slump and is on track to improve those numbers. In just five games, he’s already recorded 29 solo tackles and broke up two passes.

Defensive backs coach and special teams coordinator Chris Henderson said Scott feels the numbers will continue to improve as he is becoming a more-complete player who can analyze the game rather than just rely on his superior athletic ability.

“Nick has become a better student of the game this year,” he said. “Last year, it was more see ball, hit ball. It was basics for him, but this year, he’s more of a student of the game. He’s studying a little bit more, he’s in film session asking questions, so he’s taking the game a little more serious this year.”

Scott said with a year under his belt, everything seems to be coming to him a lot easier than it was last year.

“I got used to the competition,” he said. “Everything slowed down for me and I learned a lot more about how to play with others on my team and the chemistry got better.

Defensive coordinator Charles Huff said Scott’s worth-ethic has made all the difference.

“Nick is one of our hardest workers, if not our hardest worker,” he said. “He just came to practice every day with a positive attitude and worked hard. He has tremendous athletic ability and plus the hard work he’s put in, he’s having a good year.”

Coming into this season, Scott was named to the SIAC first team for defense, which he said motivated him to work and play that much harder.

“It made me work harder because the more accomplishments you do get, the harder you gotta work. So it just made me work harder,” he said.

The work has been paying dividends for Scott as he not only leads the team in tackles but recorded a career-high 12 1/2 against Delta State last month. Henderson said the most impressive part about the game was not just the number of tackles Scott recorded but the fact that he didn’t miss a single tackle that game as well.

He said Scott has been the most consistent player in an already solid secondary. He’s not only one of their most-consistent, but most-versatile as well.

“Nick plays free safety for us, but he’s pretty much a play-maker,” Henderson said. “He’s a versatile guy and he can kinda do anything you ask him to do. He can tackle, he can cover, he’s just an all-around good football player for us.”

Scott has also been used to return kicks and so far has returned three for a total of 54 yards.

Henderson said Scott being this good this early in his collegiate career gives him a good feeling about the future.

“That means we’ve got some longevity at that safety spot,” Henderson said. “In the past, we’ve had great free safeties and strong safeties to play for us, and he’s nothing short of what we’ve had in the past. He’s lived up to the hype of Albany State being known for our safeties.”