More: Hunte working to become playermaker; Day 9 notebook

Simeon Smiley isn’t skipping any study sessions this spring.

He can’t afford to.

The redshirt freshman is practicing at three positions: Nickel, where he spent last season; cornerback, where he shifts to occasionally now; and safety, where he’s also getting repetitions while others at the position are injured.

“Kind of like school, to pass exams you have to put in extra work, studying a little more, watch more film,” said Smiley on Monday, following the Boilermakers’ nine practice of the spring. “So that’s what I do for this, in learning three positions, you have to learn how to do everything. Because when you get out there, they expect you to know it.”