Last season, coach David Elson gave the responsibilities of the safety positions to two red-shirt freshmen.

Now, safeties Ryan Beard and Mark Santoro are going into their sophomore years as they look to keep their starting jobs.

Maintaining their starting spots is far from a guarantee, however.

“Competition is a big thing now and in the fall,” first-year defensive secondary coach Scott Booker said. “We don’t want anyone to feel like they have a starting job – those guys are going to be pushed.”

Last season, Beard and Santoro combined for 101 tackles and 5 interceptions.

Santoro said he thinks that the two of them complement each other well.

“We lift each other up a little bit,” Santoro said. “It’s fun to see (Beard) on the other side.”

Booker echoed the thoughts of Santoro.

“They are able to play off each other well,” he said. “They have a good relationship and communicate well, so they are able to know what the other is going to do.”

Defensive Coordinator Mike Dietzel believes Santoro has been the strongest of the safeties during spring practice.

“He’s a smart player with a good grasp of the defense and how it all fits together,” Dietzel said.

He also said that Beard is a game-changing safety with potential to make big plays in key situations.

Having the year of starting experience could give them an advantage when it comes to developing a depth chart.

“They have been in places like Alabama and Kentucky, so Tennessee and places like that won’t intimidate them,” Booker said.

Dietzel said he thinks there is a different mindset after the first year playing.

“When you’re first coming out, all you think about is what you have to do, but after the experience, your focus is now focused on beating the offense.”

Santoro said he feels a lot different this spring practice than last year.

“Last year, I was new to it, and I feel a lot better this year,” Santoro said. “I think I can be a leader on the field this year and help out more.”

There are plenty of other players contending for the safety position this year as well, including juniors Orlando Misaalefua and Clint Mitchell.

After the first four days of practice, Elson said Misaalefua had performed the best.

“He is a guy that has really stepped up and put himself in a position to play,” Elson said.

Mitchell is recovering from an injury, and Dietzel said he is not as far along as the others.

As spring practice reaches its halfway point, the coaches are seeing their players gradually getting better.

“(The safeties) are doing a better job of disguising our coverages and learning the cover-two defense,” Booker said.

Dietzel has liked what he has seen but still hopes for improvement.

“They just need to continue to get better and play physical,” Dietzel said. “They need to be good run-stoppers and obviously take away the deep ball.”

Spring practice continues on Friday with Western’s next scrimmage on April 18.