Key said they are excited to get back to playing in Bobby Dodd Stadium after back-to-back road night games. He said the team is excited to be home again after some long weeks and they want to play in front of GT fans again. Key said he hopes they have a really good crowd this weekend.
Key said they addressed the good and bad from the Wake Forest game on Sunday and he thinks they are seeing the recipe for success this team and it is taking shape and it comes down to individual accountability, unit accountability and within the whole team. He said a great example of this came on a third down and the defense told him to go for it on fourth down at the WF35 and if they didn’t get they’d have the offense’s back and get a stop. He said it was the first time this year he heard that from the D and it wasn’t like there were negative things happening earlier in this year, but they really rallied around each other and he said it gives him goosebumps just talking about it. He said it was a major step in building the football program and that is why they were able to win that game in the fourth quarter.
Key said that Bowling Green QB is very talented and they have a good running back #7 that is good at bouncing it outside and run inside as well so they have to keep being disruptive on defense and contain the edges. He said that Scot Loffler is a helluva coach and they gave Michigan a run for their money in the first half of that game. He said defensively BG likes to zone blitz and fire zone blitz and they will bring pressure from all over with six so you have to have a hat on right players as an offense against them. He said the issues he has seen with BG are untimely turnovers.
Key said practice was very spirited today.
Key said the pass protection has been very good by the OL and they are making a lot of strides there but the run blocking needs work and they had some issues picking up some stunts and twists with guys shooting the gaps. He said this isn’t old football where you line up and push the guy in front of you man on man, you have to be able to pick up the right guy and sustain the block. They need to run better as well so they can run more play-action and complimentary plays that come especially when the safeties are cheating up or trying to double different guys (aka Singleton). He said he spends a lot of his time in self-scouting mode on Sunday night and Monday to see if they are showing tendencies or tells. He said most good teams have tendencies because you are doing something good but you need to be able to look at things through the lens of the opposing team to make adjustments.
Key on the penalties said they addressed that on Sunday with the team and it is on him and he may have got the team too amped up leading up to the Wake Forest game and that spilled over into some of that because the emotional stability of young adults is easy to slip to one side and become too emotional. He challenged them hard last week especially the defense to affect the QB and he said they talked about not becoming too emotional when they have success doing that. He said they watched 20-25 plays on Sunday night of the things they are not supposed to do at Georgia Tech.
Key said that Dontae Smith is back at full speed after being banged up and missing the last couple of games and he would like to see them rotate a little more at RB. He said it was hard to stick Dontae in when he was limited in practice because he is concerned about ball security when you haven’t been hit lately. He ducked a question about Jamie Felix also being injured (he isn’t) that Rod threw in with Dontae.
Key said he had a long talk with Kyle Kennard about his penalties on Sunday and Monday and that he reminded him he can both help and hurt his team at the same time when he does something like commit the penalties he did in the WF game. He said Kennard has matured tremendously and he is extremely proud of him for the maturity he has shown in the last year and he had a lot of remorse for the mistakes he made in the WF game but he wasn’t doing anything intentionally to hurt the team but the outcome was what it was and they have to have those conversations and he has been playing very well the last several games and he has to continue to play like that. He said the GT OL has been playing well all preseason and Kennard was getting sacks and he can be a factor in disrupting the run game as well.
I asked about moving Makius Scott to field end for some possessions and he said that they did it a little in the Ole Miss game as well and Makius has the ability to jump in and play that spot, the nose or the 3-tech DT position and when they put him at end it makes them very stout against the run game. He said they are trying to be more multiple upfront overall and they had packages with Kennard and Kevin Harris on the field together as well and Zeek in the middle as a three-down package. He said that also will cause the opposing team to not be so set on seeing certain personnel coming on the field because they are giving them multiple alignments with the same personnel and that makes it harder on the playcaller.
Key said that Horace Lockett is a massive person and he moves extremely well for a man his size and he played a little against Louisville and then a few more each game since then up to 30-35 plays against Wake Forest. He said when they have him and Zeek in the game together that is a big DT package. He said that both Marco and himself have been on Lockett to push him in practice and now he is seeing the rewards in the game. He is not just a guy they want to fill a spot for a few plays a game. He is 6’5” 340 pounds and moves like a dancing bear and now he is learning how to strain, how to finish, how to run to the ball, how to use his hands to get off blockers and they are very excited about him. He has a tremendous future but he has to continue progressing.
Key said having Haynes King who can be a factor in the run game is a huge bonus and it makes life easier on the OL and harder on the DC putting in pass rush and blitzes when the QB isn’t a statue back there. King does a good job of moving the pocket and breaking contain and he keeps his head up and that keeps defenders locked in place on their coverage responsibilities so they like for King to run it 9-10 times a game and he can break down the defense that way. He said that will open up things for the RBs as well. He also noted that on Jamal Haynes long run against Wake, King had two blocks down field for him on a triple-option type play. Haynes has done a good job of running and taking what the defense is giving him on the plays.
Key was amused that I asked him about the anniversary of him taking over for Geoff Collins and he said he is happy every day that he is alive and he has the opportunity to coach these young men and he has a tremendous staff and they are building a successful football program at Tech where the players graduate. He wants to be successful on Saturdays and left it at that.
Key said they addressed the good and bad from the Wake Forest game on Sunday and he thinks they are seeing the recipe for success this team and it is taking shape and it comes down to individual accountability, unit accountability and within the whole team. He said a great example of this came on a third down and the defense told him to go for it on fourth down at the WF35 and if they didn’t get they’d have the offense’s back and get a stop. He said it was the first time this year he heard that from the D and it wasn’t like there were negative things happening earlier in this year, but they really rallied around each other and he said it gives him goosebumps just talking about it. He said it was a major step in building the football program and that is why they were able to win that game in the fourth quarter.
Key said that Bowling Green QB is very talented and they have a good running back #7 that is good at bouncing it outside and run inside as well so they have to keep being disruptive on defense and contain the edges. He said that Scot Loffler is a helluva coach and they gave Michigan a run for their money in the first half of that game. He said defensively BG likes to zone blitz and fire zone blitz and they will bring pressure from all over with six so you have to have a hat on right players as an offense against them. He said the issues he has seen with BG are untimely turnovers.
Key said practice was very spirited today.
Key said the pass protection has been very good by the OL and they are making a lot of strides there but the run blocking needs work and they had some issues picking up some stunts and twists with guys shooting the gaps. He said this isn’t old football where you line up and push the guy in front of you man on man, you have to be able to pick up the right guy and sustain the block. They need to run better as well so they can run more play-action and complimentary plays that come especially when the safeties are cheating up or trying to double different guys (aka Singleton). He said he spends a lot of his time in self-scouting mode on Sunday night and Monday to see if they are showing tendencies or tells. He said most good teams have tendencies because you are doing something good but you need to be able to look at things through the lens of the opposing team to make adjustments.
Key on the penalties said they addressed that on Sunday with the team and it is on him and he may have got the team too amped up leading up to the Wake Forest game and that spilled over into some of that because the emotional stability of young adults is easy to slip to one side and become too emotional. He challenged them hard last week especially the defense to affect the QB and he said they talked about not becoming too emotional when they have success doing that. He said they watched 20-25 plays on Sunday night of the things they are not supposed to do at Georgia Tech.
Key said that Dontae Smith is back at full speed after being banged up and missing the last couple of games and he would like to see them rotate a little more at RB. He said it was hard to stick Dontae in when he was limited in practice because he is concerned about ball security when you haven’t been hit lately. He ducked a question about Jamie Felix also being injured (he isn’t) that Rod threw in with Dontae.
Key said he had a long talk with Kyle Kennard about his penalties on Sunday and Monday and that he reminded him he can both help and hurt his team at the same time when he does something like commit the penalties he did in the WF game. He said Kennard has matured tremendously and he is extremely proud of him for the maturity he has shown in the last year and he had a lot of remorse for the mistakes he made in the WF game but he wasn’t doing anything intentionally to hurt the team but the outcome was what it was and they have to have those conversations and he has been playing very well the last several games and he has to continue to play like that. He said the GT OL has been playing well all preseason and Kennard was getting sacks and he can be a factor in disrupting the run game as well.
I asked about moving Makius Scott to field end for some possessions and he said that they did it a little in the Ole Miss game as well and Makius has the ability to jump in and play that spot, the nose or the 3-tech DT position and when they put him at end it makes them very stout against the run game. He said they are trying to be more multiple upfront overall and they had packages with Kennard and Kevin Harris on the field together as well and Zeek in the middle as a three-down package. He said that also will cause the opposing team to not be so set on seeing certain personnel coming on the field because they are giving them multiple alignments with the same personnel and that makes it harder on the playcaller.
Key said that Horace Lockett is a massive person and he moves extremely well for a man his size and he played a little against Louisville and then a few more each game since then up to 30-35 plays against Wake Forest. He said when they have him and Zeek in the game together that is a big DT package. He said that both Marco and himself have been on Lockett to push him in practice and now he is seeing the rewards in the game. He is not just a guy they want to fill a spot for a few plays a game. He is 6’5” 340 pounds and moves like a dancing bear and now he is learning how to strain, how to finish, how to run to the ball, how to use his hands to get off blockers and they are very excited about him. He has a tremendous future but he has to continue progressing.
Key said having Haynes King who can be a factor in the run game is a huge bonus and it makes life easier on the OL and harder on the DC putting in pass rush and blitzes when the QB isn’t a statue back there. King does a good job of moving the pocket and breaking contain and he keeps his head up and that keeps defenders locked in place on their coverage responsibilities so they like for King to run it 9-10 times a game and he can break down the defense that way. He said that will open up things for the RBs as well. He also noted that on Jamal Haynes long run against Wake, King had two blocks down field for him on a triple-option type play. Haynes has done a good job of running and taking what the defense is giving him on the plays.
Key was amused that I asked him about the anniversary of him taking over for Geoff Collins and he said he is happy every day that he is alive and he has the opportunity to coach these young men and he has a tremendous staff and they are building a successful football program at Tech where the players graduate. He wants to be successful on Saturdays and left it at that.
