Traveon Beck, Cal's Rodney Dangerfield

With the ubiquity of 11 personnel in football as a whole, the nickel cornerback position is that much more important. At Cal, that position is filled by Traveon Beck, who became a 12th starter for the Bears in 2018. He started four out of Cal's 13 contests, playing 507 reps (a number that ranked 10th among Cal defenders), and with the defense as a whole facing 921 plays, Cal used the nickel position around 54% of the time.

This is important for a big reason, because you can make the argument that Beck makes the most impact of any nickel back in the conference. Yet when it comes to conference honors, Beck is locked out. He was left off even honorable mention for the all Pac-12 team (he's not alone in that regard). He wasn't put in the Athlon preseason all Pac-12 team that came out Tuesday (eight other Bears did). Like Rodney Dangerfield, he gets no respect.

Despite that, Beck performed at an elite level in 2018, which flies under the radar thanks to his position and his size. That's something that Justin Wilcox has touched on about Beck, noting that while he's undersized at a listed 5'9" and 160 lbs, he has 'elite quickness.' Without Beck, the Bears would not have ended their 14 game losing streak against USC, as he made a key stop on a fake field goal and intercepted JT Daniels to set up Cal's second touchdown to take the lead.

There's plenty of numbers to back up Beck's proclamations of being 'the best nickel in the country,' as the former St. John Bosco star goes into his senior year.

By the Numbers:

Beck had 269 reps in the slot in 2018, and was targeted on 52 occasions, allowing 31 receptions for 200 yards, with no touchdowns allowed. Nationally, Beck ranked (among DBs who played at least 195 snaps in slot coverage):

- Tied for fourth with 3 interceptions in the slot (tied for first in the conference with Ugo Amadi)

- Sixth in fewest yards allowed (second in the conference behind Arizona's Tristan Cooper, who faced 21 fewer targets than Beck and allowed 199 yards)

- 5th in yards per snap (0.74, the top mark in the Pac-12)

- 2nd in passer rating allowed (43.8, again the top mark in the Pac-12)

He also allows less than 4 yards per target, which is the best mark in the Pac-12 by a lot among slot corners (next closest is Utah's Javelin Guidry, who allowed 6.15 yards per target). In short, Beck may have allowed completions on just under 60% of his targets in the slot, but he limited yardage and was known for tackling bigger than his size indicates.

Beck also graded out fifth highest per PFF among his fellow Cal defensive regulars, 33rd among Power 5 cornerbacks, 9th among Pac-12 corners in general. There aren't many returning defenders better than Beck, and along with that, Beck only was penalized once in 2018.

Beck also saved the Bears against BYU, getting an interception three plays after Vic Wharton muffed a punt deep in BYU territory.

Another year older, with another year of knowledge, with the experience of the entire returning defensive backfield around, means that Beck should have more opportunity to prove his value to everyone outside the program. After last year, it'll be no surprise to those inside the program for him to get better, and maybe he'll get the respect he deserves.