Scott Shafer announced Tuesday that sophomore Corey Winfield has moved from wide receiver to cornerback — a move the head coach is all too used to.

With Syracuse, Shafer turned Da’Mon Merkerson from receiver to corner and Merkerson started in 12 games as a senior defensive back in 2012.

Londen Fryar, the son of former NFL wide receiver Irving Fryar, made the switch while Shafer was the defensive coordinator at Western Michigan and ended up earning all-conference honors. Shafer also guided Kelvin Hayden to the defensive side of the ball while he was at Illinois, and Hayden will enter his 10th NFL season this fall.

“I’m not saying Corey’s going to do that,” Shafer said after Syracuse’s fifth day of training camp. “But I think there will be a day when Corey Winfield is a very good corner.”

Shafer said that Winfield hung his head for 5-10 minutes when told about the switch, but came back in the room “ready to go.” Winfield didn’t play in any games as a freshman last season, and Shafer added that his length and vertical leap make him too athletic to be a reserve.

On top of that, Shafer shed some wisdom on what the move could mean for Winfield.

Said Shafer: “One thing I’ve noticed is that they get more phone numbers from pretty girls when they move to defense.”