The LSU football team’s secondary only lost one starter from 2009 to the NFL draft with the departure of safety Chad Jones.With large shoes to fill, defensive coordinator John Chavis and the coaching staff turned to the lone senior starter in the secondary — Jai Eugene.Eugene has seen action in 38 games throughout his LSU career, all of which came as a cornerback. LSU defensive backs coach Ron Cooper approached Eugene in the offseason and proposed the position change to him, to which he obliged.”I love it. I have more freedom back there,” Eugene said. “It has expanded my knowledge of the game. I really like learning a new position ,and it makes me understand the defense more, too. I sometimes wish I would have moved back there earlier in my years.”The initial outlook for the 2010 starters is beginning to form with spring practices under way.So far this spring, Eugene, junior Patrick Peterson, sophomore Morris Claiborne and junior Brandon Taylor have been getting the majority of the reps with the first-team defense.The only new name to the potential starting lineup is sophomore cornerback Morris Claiborne. Eugene’s move to safety opened up a potential starting job at cornerback, and Claiborne is taking full advantage. Other Tiger defenders spoke highly of the young athlete, who saw action in seven games last season, recording seven tackles. Taylor said Claiborne is going to be a great addition to the defense.”Mo has good speed,” Taylor said. “If someone gets away from him, he’s going to run them down. I’m not too worried about Mo. I’ve seen him play before, and I know he’s going to lock it down over there.”Peterson also said Claiborne has a lot of potential.”He is going to be pretty talented,” Peterson said. “He’s going to be a pretty good corner for us this year.”Peterson said the focus in the secondary this spring has been forcing more turnovers and getting off the field on third downs.”Finishing. That’s one of the main aspects [Chavis] preaches,” Peterson said. “We must get off the field on third-down situations. Sometimes it’s going to be hard, but we have to dig deep as a team and as a unit to make things happen.”LSU ranked No. 9 in the SEC last season in turnovers forced, garnering just 18 takeaways.”Coach Chavis has been stressing turnovers,” Eugene said. “Every opportunity we have to strip the ball or get an interception, we need to maximize it and get a turnover.”The secondary, although young, has some experience and a fair amount of potential. The four defensive backs have combined for 95 appearances in their LSU careers.”We’re young but everybody knows their role, and if everybody knows their role, we will be straight,” Taylor said.As LSU’s anchor in the secondary last season, Peterson, a second team All-American, realizes the youth of the defense and says he is ready to step up as a leader for the Tigers.”It’s been wonderful coming back for my third year and playing with a bunch of good guys,” Peterson said. “We lost a lot of talent and me coming back as a leader, I think I have to take charge, not only in the secondary, but with the defense in general … We need to get the young guys ready to play.”LSU hired Chavis in 2009 to help mend a Tiger defense that struggled in 2008. LSU showed progress, but had a hard time defending the pass last season. The Tigers ranked No. 9 in the SEC in pass defense, allowing 192.4 pass yards per game.Peterson said he sees a strong future for the LSU secondary in 2010.”The defense had a lot of energy last year, so I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like this year,” Peterson said. “I believe we’re going to be much better, more sound, and finish out games just like we started. I can’t wait.”——Contact Mark Clements at [email protected]