Over the past year, the corner’s increased success has been due in part to the fact that he has begun to play more physically and to jam receivers at the line, forcing them to try to beat him.

“[Previously], even when we thought he could play tight man-to-man or tight zone, he was always a little reluctant to do that,” Murphy says. “I’m not sure he bought into the fact of how good he was.”

His coach is even willing to compare him to one of the best cornerbacks in the world.

“He plays out there like a dominator, like a Darrelle Revis relative to the NFL,” Murphy says. “He realizes what he can do, and it’s been kind of a revelation, I think. It’s just been such a huge boost to his confidence level, his leadership level, and his production level. ... He knows anyone he lines up against, he can play against.”

Things haven’t always come this easy for Hanson, who spent most of his pre-college years growing up in a single-parent household.

But despite the challenges that presented, Hanson continued to work hard on and off the field, becoming a multi-sport star in Lafayette, Colo., before arriving in Cambridge.

At Harvard, Hanson has had to manage his pre-med courseload while also picking up everything there is to observe about other teams’ wideouts during football season.

“You’ve got to study up on [receivers] and know them as well as they know themselves,” Hanson explains. “You need to at least have a clue of what he’s doing so you can defend him and be aggressive.”

But while the senior has been as successful at learning his opponents’ tendencies as anyone in the league, he’s also been a great teacher as well.

“He’s been pretty much the leader of our group,” Owusu says. “Just being able to learn from him and all the things he’s done on and off the field has been an inspiration.”

—Staff writer Scott A. Sherman can be reached at ssherman13@college.harvard.edu.