COLUMBIA, Mo. - Aarion Penton didn't need any instructions in an open field tackle drill Saturday.
He fluidly tracked down a fellow defensive back who caught a swing pass and drove his shoulder into the receiver to push him out of bounds. The read and ensuing hit drew praise from a coach.
Getting praise has not been hard to come by for the senior in fall camp.
"I'm excited because he's got so much experience," head coach Barry Odom said. "We've talked about experience doesn't mean a whole lot if you don't do something with it and he has."
The two-year starter will almost undoubtedly be starting for Missouri in the Sept. 3 opener at West Virginia. Still, he is trying refine certain aspects of his game.
Get more interceptions. Grow into as a lock-down cover corner. Become a defensive leader.
While Penton was not overly vocal at practice Saturday, he was still encouraging his teammates through drills, whether it was cheering teammates on or patting guys on the back for making a nice play.
"My job is to lead the rest of the DBs and corners," Penton said. "and stay mentally tough and focus in every play, every rep. And also compete when the ball is in the air, compete, don't wait for it, challenge receivers."
Penton kicked around the idea of declaring for the NFL Draft, but ultimately decided to return to Missouri to continue to improve his game.
Odom and Penton discussed what he needs to do to improve. He told Penton he has one shot left in college, and so far, Penton is up to the challenge.
"Aarion does a good job doing whatever's asked of him," cornerbacks coach Greg Brown said. "He'll do whatever technique the defense calls for him to play in."
Missouri's defensive technique in 2016 will likely an adjustment for Penton.
Under first-year defensive coordinator DeMontie Cross' scheme, Penton will be focused more on playing the pass than stopping the run. When Odom was the defensive coordinator, one of Penton's primary jobs was as a run-stopper.
It was a job he excelled at so much Pro Football Focus named him the third-best returning Southeastern Conference corner, with his skills against the run weighing highly. However, he only had one interception in 2015, which he sees changing with a new focus.
"It's strictly hip-to-hip coverage, one-on-one coverage," Penton said of the changes. "It gets me ready for the next level."
Penton did snag a few interceptions in drills, including one where he made a leaping grab and toe-tapped his way to stay in bounds. He also fielded punt returns earlier in the day. On one play in particular, he cut past two defenders before turning into the open field.
The senior did have the most punt returns for the Tigers last year with 15 for 126 yards and a touchdown. Odom, however, might be hesitant to keep him there.
"If a guy's playing starting corner who's played that many snaps, then you ask him in a punt situation to, 'Hey, go line up, catch a punt, you've got to return it,'" Odom said. "We've got to make sure of the volume of reps and things he's getting, I don't want to take away from him being a good corner."
Odom added he would be more inclined to use someone else after a long defensive series, since by that point he would just want all his defenders off the field. Odom left Penton's name among the four or five guys he still has in the mix for the job, though.
Special teams and defense are not the only areas Penton said he hopes to improve; he also wants to step up his game in practice to help the Tigers offense.
"I feel like we'll be one of the best defenses they'll see all season," Penton said, "and if we raise our intensity, play at a high level every time we come out when we play in between the lines, the offense should be very comfortable when the season comes around."
Much of whom the offense will line up against in practice still has yet to be determined, including who starts at corner across from Penton. T.J. Warren is currently listed as the starter, but Cross said it is still an open competition.
Penton has been impressed by the team's young corners, and is not picky about who gets the nod. Yet, while there is a competition across from Penton, Cross is still pushing him to his limits.
"He stays out, he just wants to keep getting better each day we come together as a defense," Penton said, "and it's going to help us in the season that he's so hard on us now because he wants everything to be pretty much perfect, because everything he has us doing has set us up for success."
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