When Payton Pierce was asked about Devin Sanchez on Thursday after practice, the linebacker flashed a bright grin when discussing his teammate.
"He's got the most confidence I've seen in someone in a while," Pierce said. "It's good to have a cornerback that's confident in what he's doing."
Pierce began meeting with the media right after Sanchez wrapped up his turn speaking with the press.
When Sanchez spoke minutes before Pierce, Sanchez echoed that mentioned confidence.
"I feel like my old self. I feel very comfortable out there, not being so timid," Sanchez said. "I'm very confident that I can go out here and play with anybody in the country."
The timidity that Sanchez mentioned stems from an inconsistent role during his freshman campaign in 2025.
He appeared in 13 of 14 games last year, which featured one start against Illinois, resulting in 409 total snaps between defensive back and special teams on the year.
But not all snaps were created equal.
"Last year was very hard," Sanchez said. "It's more so not being on the field ... I played a couple games where I played for these 50 snaps, and then coming out that next week playing eight snaps."
Despite having some struggles as a freshman, aspirations remain high for Sanchez. And thanks to going up against the best wide receiver in the country every single day, Sanchez has big goals in mind for himself this year.
“I'm tryna go get that (Jim Thorpe Award). That's my main goal, become an All-American, and I feel like I can do that, especially with the spring I had, going against (Jeremiah Smith) every day, and then this camp I'm going to have," Sanchez said. "It's just going out there competing and knowing that there's no better corner in the country better than me.”
“I'm very confident that I can go out here and play with anybody in the country.”– Devin Sanchez on his mindset entering the 2026 season
Going against Smith time and time again has proven to be beneficial for Sanchez. The wideout makes it "very uncomfortable" for Sanchez, but the cornerback wouldn't trade that for anything.
"That's what I like, because if I'm comfortable, then this is not the place for me," Sanchez said. "So being uncomfortable with the play calls, going out there and guarding J.J. for every practice, matching up with him every time, that's uncomfortable. And I feel like you got to be a real stud to go out there and do that."
As a result of guarding Smith, Sanchez feels like his teammates are "counting" on him to guard opposing No. 1 wide receivers once the season starts.
He highlighted Cam Coleman, the Auburn transfer now on Texas, Indiana's Charlie Becker and Oregon's Dakorien Moore and Evan Stewart, both of whom can be viewed as the top guy in their own right.
But if anyone believes they can shut down alpha wideouts, win the Jim Thorpe Award (which is given to the top defensive back in the country) and become an All-American, Sanchez believes it'll be him.
"I feel like these guys are really counting on me. I'm counting on myself, my family's counting on me, and then this whole fan base is counting on me," Sanchez said. "So I feel like it's a big task, there's a lot that comes with it, and it's for a guy like me that's not scared of it."
