Film Room: 4-Star Cornerback Terhyon Nichols

The wins keep rolling in for the Wildcats on the recruiting trail. For the second straight day the Kentucky defense added a four-star defender. Cornerback Terhyon Nichols is unlike any of his predecessors in the Kentucky secondary.

This is not the first time Vince Marrow has recruited a four-star defensive back from the Cincinnati metro. Mike Edwards was a three-year starter for the Wildcats and Alex Afari made an impact in 2022 as a true freshman. Neither were ranked as high as the newest addition to the 2024 recruiting class.

Terhyon Nichols (pronounced Tuh-Ryan) is the first consensus top 300 defensive back to commit to Kentucky in the Mark Stoops era. He’s the No. 188 player in America in the On300 and ranked No. 268 in the On3 Industry Ranking, a proprietary algorithm that compiles ratings and rankings from all four primary recruiting media services.

Speed over Size

One other thing that separates Terhyon Nichols from most Kentucky cornerbacks is his size. The Cats love to roll out guys that range from 6-foot-2 to 6-foot-4 on the outside of the defense and play zone coverage. Terhyon Nichols is a 5-foot-10.5 shutdown corner. How does one compensate for a few inches in height? Incredible closing speed.

While playing deep safety in cover-three, his teammate loses the wide receiver during the quarterback’s scramble. Despite being five yards behind the receiver and almost a third of the field away, he is able to recover to make a touchdown-saving tackle.

Throughout his career Nichols will be tasked to cover taller wide receivers. That does not mean the wide receiver will be the most physical player in the one-on-one matchup. Once the cornerback identifies a deep fade, he gets right under his opponent’s chin and makes life difficult for the wide receiver. The pass is delivered on target, but Nichols is right on time, raising his arm between the receiver’s and breaking up the pass.

Terhyon Nichols has Next Level Stuff

Kentucky seeks out specific athletic traits on the recruiting trail. For defensive backs, there’s one thing that separates the good from the great: instincts. Mark Stoops rose through the coaching ranks because of his ability to develop defensive backs, but the best of the best have uncoachable instincts.

Throughout Terhyon Nichols’ highlight tape he identifies the play before it happens. Some times it is jumping a route. Other times he’s just cutting one off. This time the offense is trying to run a trick play. They fake a swing pass to the running back, then try to slip a screen to the offensive tackle on the back side. Nichols doesn’t give the big fella a chance to enjoy his time in the spotlight.

Time and time again, Terhyon makes outstanding plays on the football field. He’s not afraid to lower his shoulders or take a risk for the ultimate reward. Some of his best work is in the return game. He returned a couple of punts for scores last fall, including one that would make Lynn Bowden blush.

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