5 Questions: Aztecs safety Cedarious Barfield focuses on self-improvement, on and off the field

BY KIRK KENNEY
AUG. 2, 2023 5:42 PM PT
Cedarious Barfield came to San Diego State as a cornerback out of El Paso, Texas, but has settled in at safety and is now one of the most seasoned players in the secondary.
Barfield is SDSU’s top returning tackler (49), whose accomplishments while starting seven of 13 games last season included an interception, two pass breakups, two forced fumbles and one fumble recovery.
The fumble recovery came after he forced a fumble in the 2022 season opener against Arizona and is most memorable for leading to SDSU’s first touchdown at Snapdragon Stadium.
The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Barfield is using his “COVID year” for a sixth season. The time has been well spent. Barfield earned his undergraduate degree in computer science and will receive his Master’s in December.
Here are five questions with Barfield:
Union-Tribune: How do you set goals for yourself, is it, say, number of tackles and interceptions, or is it in more general terms?
Barfield: “I used to set goals in numbers. I felt that is what put a little more pressure on me. It was mostly getting the ball back. That’s the name of the game when you’re a DB. That’s what scouts are going to look at. Interceptions. Forced fumbles.
“But I feel as though this year is kind of more setting goals and just, where are my eyes each play? Are they looking back at the quarterback or am I keeping my eyes on my man? Being at the right alignment. Being at the right spacing, the right yard line. So when I get those little things down, the plays will come to me. Make the plays that come to you is what our coach always says.”
U-T: There was a lot of turnover on the defense, especially on the defensive line and at linebacker, so what’s the key for the defense to live up to the standards it has set over the years?
Barfield: “It’s going to be one of those things that whoever comes in, we’re going to have to trust them to play their hardest. We might not have a bunch of all-Mountain West guys, but I know for a fact that we’re going to have guys who come in there, bust their butts and play hard. That’s just one thing that as we play, we want to play tougher and harder and longer than the other team.”
U-T: Did Snapdragon Stadium provide a homefield advantage last season, or is that something you have to establish over time?
Barfield: “For the most part I feel it was an advantage because we were able to be in San Diego and a lot of family and friends who maybe couldn’t drive all the way to Carson (during the 2020-21 seasons at Dignity Health Sports Park) could finally make these games. ...
“I feel like this year it’s going to be a little more comfortable, more people are going to want to check it out and it is going to be something that everyone knows about. So I feel that this year it’s going to be a great home-field advantage for us.”
U-T: What do you plan to do with your college degree?
Barfield: “Of course, my No. 1 goal is to go to the NFL, but also to be a software programmer. I was always into technology when I was younger. The fact that I do love challenging things, being a competitor, it all added up together. ...
“Creating apps. Coding. Stuff like that. I remember the first thing I coded was the hare and the tortoise race, and it was cool just creating that. I feel as though I would probably either make games or help code for sports or whatever it might be.”
U-T: What do you do in your spare time?
Barfield: “I’m a big reader ... I love self-improvement books and I like poems. One of the books I just got done reading is ‘Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude.’ I feel like that’s a big thing, taking that into life and onto the football field.
“I like to read poems before games. Just something that lets me mellow out. I’m not one of the guys that’s going around yelling and everything like that. I like to just be chill, have a chill mindset and be ready to go.
“The positive, self-improvement books help me always mentally have a positive outlook. You have to have that, especially as a DB. It’s not going to be a perfect game. Something’s going to go wrong. They’re going to expect you to come back out there and forget about it.”