ORONO — Jeffrey DeVaughn was adamant about one thing when he came to Maine to play football. He was a cornerback, not a safety.

Or so he thought.

“In high school I tried (playing safety) at a practice, like one play, and I said, ‘Nah, I don’t like it.’ There’s too much focusing and I’ve got to know what everybody else has got to do,” DeVaughn said Tuesday, three days after making his first career interception.

As Maine’s starting strong safety.

It was a transformation made out of desperation for the redshirt freshman from Folcroft, Pennsylvania. DeVaughn was the fifth option at cornerback when the season began, and a season spent stewing on the sideline seemed likely.

Injuries to safeties Darrius Hart and Mozai Nelson created an opening. DeVaughn was reluctant to move but was smart enough to recognize an opportunity when he saw one.

“Corners have to be your elite athletes. He’s got the speed but he didn’t have that fast-twitch change of direction,” Maine Coach Jack Cosgrove said. “He didn’t want to move at first. His statement was, “Well, you haven’t given me enough time at corner.’ And he was right. He said, ‘Coach, I’ll do whatever I’ve got to do because I want to play.’

“Every week he practiced he got better. You could see him acquiring the skills. He’ll come up and tackle you.”

DeVaughn saw his first action at safety late in a 38-7 loss at Tulane. He recovered a fumble on his first sequence. He deflected a pass that was intercepted by Randy Samuels on his next.

“I was like, ‘Dang, I can do this a little bit,’ ” he said. “Then the next game I didn’t play. I said, ‘Oh, probably one and done.’ ”

He needn’t have worried. By last Saturday DeVaughn was making his first start, in a 10-7 loss to Towson. He figures to get another this Saturday when Maine (3-6, 3-3 Colonial Athletic Association) plays its final home game, against Elon (3-6, 2-4).

DeVaughn’s interception Saturday came in the first quarter after defensive end Mike Kozlakowski tipped a Connor Frazier pass high in the air. DeVaughn waited eagerly for it to fall into his hands, cradling it like he was fielding a punt.

“I saw the quarterback turn his shoulder to me. I was thinking pick-six. I was kind of mad that Koz tipped it. I was right in the passing lane, but Koz made a good play,” DeVaughn said. “I was saying, ‘This is my first college pick; don’t drop it, don’t drop it.’ And I didn’t.”

DeVaughn added a tackle for a loss and a pass breakup to his starting debut. He wasn’t the only redshirt freshman who impressed on an otherwise-forgettable evening for Maine. Defensive end Connor Walsh saw the most action of his career due to injuries to Jean Point-Dujour and Zachary Hume. Walsh got his first sack to end a third-quarter drive for Towson. He also forced a fumble that the Tigers recovered.

For a team that will lose starting defensive ends Trevor Bates and Kozlakowski to graduation, Walsh’s emergence bodes well. Walsh played linebacker at Boston College High in Milton, Massachusetts, and said Maine was the only college that recruited him as a defensive end. Villanova wanted him to play tight end but he was determined to stick with defense.

Walsh added 25 pounds to his 6-foot-3 frame while sitting out last year, up to 255 now. He has been a fearless presence on the Black Bears’ kick coverage unit, and was sent into action at defensive end in the opener at Boston College. It didn’t go well.

“I screwed up bad and that hurt me for awhile,” Walsh said. “It was a zone-read and I was supposed to sit for the quarterback, and he went right around me for a 20-yard gain.”

Walsh earned his way back onto the field with strong showings in practice. By last week, knowing that he was going to see extensive action, he was talking with DeVaughn and another classmate, defensive tackle Andrew Stevens, about how exciting it would be for all of them to make big plays. Stevens finished with two tackles, sharing on one behind the line of scrimmage.

Walsh’s big moment came on a third-and-19 play on which he was lined up wide with the sole mission of rushing at Frazier. The offensive lineman was late trying to block him, and Walsh buried the unsuspecting quarterback for an 8-yard loss to force a punt.

“I couldn’t even believe it happened. I never really expected to get a sack my freshman year,” Walsh said. “Afterwards I came to the sideline, everyone was cheering for me. That’s when it sunk in.”

It’s sinking in for DeVaughn as well, that his future at Maine will be at a position he once shunned. He’s aiming high.

“I think I can be a ballhawk. I think I can be free back there,” DeVaughn said.

“When I’ve got my confidence, I think I can be the best athlete on the field.”

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