Kedrick Whitehead will be among Blue Hens football players recognized before their final game at Delaware Stadium on Saturday.
Then he’ll do everything to make sure he and his teammates can earn a postseason encore.
Only after that will Whitehead begin to reflect on a career in which he’ll, rightfully, take immense pride.
The Middletown High grad has become one of the best players nationally at a position, safety, he never played until his second college season at the only Division I school that offered him a scholarship.
It’s no wonder that, when numerous Delaware players put their names in the transfer portal after last year’s firing of coach Danny Rocco, Whitehead was among those who did not.
“It was a viable option, but it really wasn’t something I wanted to pursue because Delaware took a chance on me when none of those other schools that would take a chance if I entered the portal did back when I was coming out high school,” Whitehead said.
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That loyalty has paid off in a 2022 season in which Whitehead is on the watch list for the Buck Buchanan Award, given annually to the best defensive player at the Division I FCS level.
The 17th-ranked Blue Hens (7-2 overall, 4-2 CAA) host No. 12 Richmond (7-2, 5-1) in a game with FCS playoff implications Saturday. Kick-off is at 1 p.m. (NBC Sports Philadelphia Plus).
Delaware will recognize more than two dozen graduating seniors in pregame ceremonies, though some do have eligibility and will return. Whitehead is among those who do not.
He played in 11 of the Hens’ 12 games as a true freshman in 2018, when Delaware reached the FCS playoffs for the first time since 2010. That year he was an outside linebacker.
Whitehead has been a starter at safety the four seasons since. The 2021 spring season did not count against players’ eligibility due to COVID-19, the NCAA ruled.
At Middletown, Whitehead was a four-year starter and two-way standout. He was All-State having gained more than 2,500 yards as a running back and making 125-plus tackles at linebacker his last two years.
“I never played safety a day in my life until my sophomore year in 2019 when I was able to make the transition,” Whitehead said. “I definitely think that’s one of my prouder accomplishments, just being able to be able to say that and accomplish everything I have on the field.”
Whitehead’s 267 career tackles rank 25th all-time at Delaware. He also has five career interceptions, including this season against Rhode Island and Towson, three fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles.
His favorite among those takeaways is the interception and 22-yard return that set up Delaware’s first touchdown in the 19-10 2021 spring FCS playoff win over Sacred Heart at Delaware Stadium.
“Versatility is probably the thing that he has that makes him special, along with his intelligence and just feel for football,” first-year Delaware coach Ryan Carty said. “He’s very savvy.”
That versatility, Carty added, allows Whitehead to play up near the line of scrimmage and take on bigger blockers and ball carriers, to step back into man-to-man pass coverage or be the high safety patrolling a wide area in which his speed is valuable.
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Whitehead’s knowledge and knack for quickly deciphering and reacting to what he’s seeing makes him like another coach on the field, Carty added.
“He’s also extremely physical,” Carty said, “so when he comes down and makes a play, you feel it. And there aren’t a lot of safeties who can do both. There aren’t a lot of nickelbacks who can do both and he can. He can play run and play pass extremely well. He’s not just good at one and OK at the other.”
Whitehead, who has NFL aspirations, has earned All-CAA recognition three times, been a preseason and postseason All-American and is in his third season as a team captain, too.
“I know that I wouldn’t want to be an offensive play caller against Kedrick Whitehead,” Carty said.
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