Gonzaga (DC) cruised to their second consecutive win to start the 2023 season on Friday night, defeating Calvert Hall 26-0 one week after dominating Archbishop Carroll on the road. The Eagles’ defense has found its stride with several coveted pieces leading the way, like Florida State verbal DD Holmes and 2025 four-star safety Kainoa Winston, but cornerback Devenchi “Deuce” Arnold is among those playmakers in the secondary.
The 6-foot-1, 180-pound athlete is looking to prove himself among the top defensive backs in the area after being sidelined midway through his sophomore year.
“I’d say probably say just getting my confidence back up,” Arnold said about his progress over the last year. “I was injured maybe halfway through the season, so just getting my confidence back up through the time, getting back on the field and just rehabbing. Just staying aggressive, keep playing with confidence. Last year before I got hurt, they weren’t really throwing the ball my way so it’d get boring sometimes. So just try to make plays.”
After helping the Eagles pull off the win on Friday, Arnold made the trip to College Park with his dad on Saturday where he arrived roughly two hours before kickoff.
“I was on the field for pregame just seeing the players warm up, but I got there pretty early. was just dapping us up, nothing too much. Got to stay locked in,” Arnold added.
Arnold is no stranger to College Park, most recently visiting at the end of July, but Saturday marked his first gameday experience at Maryland where he was able to keep a close eye on the secondary.
“I was looking at the corners a lot when they were on defense. I was most definitely enjoying the experience because, not my first time at Maryland, but first time having the experience of getting on the field, talking to the coaches so just trying to soak it all in. They’re one of the schools I’m most definitely interested in because it’s not far away from me. I like the program, I like coach Locksley, I like the energy he brings so definitely one of the schools I’m interested in.”
While defensive coordinator Brian Williams is the area recruiter, cornerbacks coach Henry Baker has been the primary point of contact for Arnold so far and they were able to reconnect afterward.
“I talked to him after the game a little bit. Not too much, just how the game went, but it was really good talking to him.”
Boston College and Virginia Tech join Maryland among the Power Five schools to offer Arnold early on as the Terps are becoming a familiar face for the DC target.
“The more I go up there, the more conversations I have with them, we’ll start to connect better.”
Arnold could return to College Park for a Big Ten game later this fall, but coming out of the weekend, the projected three-star target has no further visits set.
Arnold is not yet rated by On3.
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