Valrie From 1C Action should be Valrie's middle name. , last "I love to before hit. I was playing strong safety year I got hurt in fall preseason practice," Valrie said. "Playing strong safety is more physical than free. You're a headhunter, taking on the lineman, then looking for the running back. I like to play free better. You can get a running start and then hit somebody.' Valrie's team-highs on fumbles and interceptions isn't by accident. "Kerry's an impact football player," Davis said. "He's always around the ball. In the scrimmage the other day, Valrie tackled a guy and knocked the ball loose. (USM) Coach (Curley) Hallman said, 'Valrie, you're slipping. Last year, you'd have caused that fumble and recovered it.' That's the kind of player he is. Always making things happen.' Valrie had anxiously awaited his sophomore season. But he went down with an injury in the final scrimmage before the season opener against Stephen F. Austin. "Somebody rolled up on his ankle," Davis said. "He missed the first two games. Kerry's the one guy that had played the year before a significant amount. We missed him." Valrie missed playing, especially against 16 Kerry Valrie (16) had 58 tackles and three Florida State. The Seminoles whipped USM 49-13. "I thought I might have a chance to play, but the ankle wasn't ready," Valrie said. "It was frustrating being on the sidelines, not being able to help the team." The Golden Eagles finished with a 10-2 record and an Independence Bowl victory, but the secondary took a lot of heat in the off-season. USM surrendered 2,677 yards and 22 touchdowns during the regular season. "We let people get behind us and we didn't make the plays," Valrie said. "But we are more experienced this year. The Clarion-Ledger interceptions as a sophomore. "We are going to go to the football. We can't have busted coverage and we've got to have good technique. If you mess upon any of those, you can get beat deep. And that's the worst thing in the world." Valrie and the USM secondary will get an opportunity to see how much they've improved Saturday when the Golden Eagles meet No. 6-ranked Florida State in the season-opener at 11:40 a.m. in Jacksonville, Fla. on TBS. "We've got to get out there and prove something," Valrie said. "We got pushed around by them last year. We've got to play hard and not give up the big plays."
