In early September, Missouri cornerback E.J. Gaines learned the first of many lessons as a first-year starter. He was outpaced, outsmarted and simply outmatched by Arizona State’s receiving corps, and his team ultimately suffered a crushing overtime loss in the Arizona desert.
Two months later, senior cornerback Kip Edwards called Gaines “the best corner in the locker room.”
Interesting how motivation and improvement often work hand in hand.
“I think every experience he has, and especially some of the tough experiences like he had against Arizona State, are things that he’s learned (from) and he’s certainly improving,” coach Gary Pinkel said. “He’s done it with work ethic. When it’s all said and done with him, it’s going to come down to how hard he works. How good do you want to be?”
Right now it looks like Gaines wants to be one of the top cornerbacks in the Big 12 Conference, if not the nation. The first-year starter has 13 passes defended (11 pass breakups, 2 interceptions), good enough for fifth in the NCAA and first in the Big 12.
Missouri might be middle-of-the-pack when it comes to pass defense (its 2,003 yards allowed is the fourth-worst in the Big 12), but Gaines has had a breakout season with more than his fair share of big moments. He made a big impact against the top-ranked Oklahoma State offense, taking an interception out of the end zone for 54 yards when his team was finding momentum hard to come by.
His performance Saturday at Texas A&M was one to behold. Gaines made a career-high 10 tackles and broke up four passes. He lived in Aggie receiver Jeff Fuller’s shadow all game, limiting him to just one catch for 13 yards in a second half in which A&M scored just three points. Gaines earned Big 12 Player of the Week honors Monday for his efforts.
“I feel like he has confidence anyways, but I feel like as the season has progressed he’s got a lot of opportunities to show what he can do,” senior safety Kenji Jackson said. “A lot of times, he might not get a lot of balls thrown at him. But against Texas A&M, they tested him a lot and answered the call.”
Gaines has experienced a sort of trial-by-fire in his first year as starter, lining up across from talented receivers like OSU’s Justin Blackmon and Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles every other week. But Gaines has gotten by with pure athleticism, able to recover and get his body into position to knock balls down without getting interference.
“I feel like I might not be as big as other corners but I do like to be physical out there,” Gaines said. “I feel like my tackling kind of shows that. I just try to be physical with receivers regardless of how big or how small they are. You’ve just gotta know how to play them, and I use that to my advantage.”
Gaines acknowledged his season has been a journey of growth, but called it a “gradual” one. Ultimately, the lessons learned along the way have shaped the difference between the cornerback that walked off the field in Tempe in September and the one who strode confidently onto Kyle Field on Saturday.
“You have to learn from your failures to get better,” Gaines said. “If you only learn from your success, then you kind of plateau and you never get better than what you are right now. I think I’ve learned from my failures.”
Pinkel said Gaines’ character will ultimately help him maximize his potential in the coming seasons.
“He seems like the kind of young man who will do what it takes,” Pinkel said. “I have no reason to believe differently. Look what he’s like now. Can you imagine in two years what he’s like?”