ATLANTA- Georgia Tech football returned to the practice fields on Tuesday after two days off following a long scrimmage last Saturday in Bobby Dodd Stadium. After practice, offensive assistants Norv McKenzie and Geep Wade spoke to the media along with running back Jamal Haynes and offensive linemen Weston Franklin and Jordan Williams.
"We are not slowing down for the young guys. We can't slow down because are not a base offense with all our motions and shifts we don't slow down and the young guys have picked it up fast. They are football guys and they've picked it up fast. That is what we want, football junkies," Wade said.
Wade said that they've been working Ethan Mackenny at right guard now to build depth and he is rolling with Ben Galloway with the ones and twos at RG. Mackenny has also been learning right tackle.
Keylan is a guy we recruited that I have total belief in and he is a special kid and he is progressing and we are taking time with him. We started out with Ben working there and we made some changes and moved Ethan down to get some different looks, he moved down last Wednesday, this was his third practice at guard. He is a different kid now, it takes time to mature and he will be a special player and Ben is a player I have total faith in too and I feel good there.
Harrison Moore can play all five positions. They started him at center, moved him to tackle and guard and he is a guy they are very excited about because of his position flexibility.
Wade said they've tried to set a standard here since the very first meeting about how they are going to play and the standard for the Jackets on the field and he told every guy when they met for the first time this year, last year was last year and how they played last year doesn't matter and there is a new higher standard for this year. He said he expects the OL to work on their deficiencies just like he works on his deficiencies as a coach to become a better coach. He is holding them to the same standard he holds himself. He has worked really hard and they've worked really hard. They are working to build a culture here and it is never going to be 100% right or perfect, but if you have confidence, play fast and hit someone in the mouth, it'll take care of itself.
Wade said there were games last year where the O-line played bad and some were okay but they've got to be more consistent and it took until the end of the year to finally figure out who they are under Coach Key in his first year and now they have that understanding, they've got to run off the ball and we've got to run our feed on contact so there is always something, he said even on the last Thursday before the bowl game, at that position there is always something to fix.
Wade talked about how Corey Robinson got benched last year after game one and he worked his butt off for eight weeks straight after that and he helped them win games down the stretch as the LT. He has total believe in Corey at LT. He said that Jameson Riggs got to move up to the ones with Corey banged up and Jameson is just a football guy and it comes easy to guys like that. He doesn't look like a freshman out there, but he has some freshmen moments. He thinks when they come back in August, Riggs will really have elevated his game.
Wade said he doesn't care if someone is two inches shorter than they are supposed to be or 10 pounds less, it is more about the mentality and being able to do it on the field. He said that Tana Alo-Tupuola is a great example of that. He is a center at this level making all the calls and he has his moments, but he is wired the right way just like Riggs and he elevates his game every day. He feels great about the depth at center and Tana is with the twos and before spring is over they'll let him get some one reps to take some hits off Weston Franklin. Gabe Fortson has been the third-team center and they've moved him around after starting him out at guard in camp. Harrison Moore was at center for a few practices and did well, but they needed depth at other places and moved him to guard and Gabe back to center. Harrison has the athleticism they want at center. Tana is 314 pounds and is very athletic despite that and they want to get bigger in there at center and try to keep the same athleticism but get bigger.
On Jordan Williams, Wade said that he has higher expectations than Jordan even has for himself and he was playing at a high level but the end of last season. He needs to elevate his game to the another level and Jordan has played a lot of ball here, but one thing that has really improved with him is playing through minor nicks and dings and he is a different guy now. He thinks the world of Jordan and he can help them win a lot of games.
We spoke to Norv McKenzie and he said the big question is who will be the #2 running back replacing Dontae Smith behind Jamal Haynes going into spring ball and all the guys are pushing for that spot. He has Trey Cooley who played some last year and is in the mix along with Evan Dickens who is having a really strong spring ball and then Chad Alexander and Anthony Carrie who is a mid-year early enrollee and is doing extremely well. He thinks they have a good group of guys who are competing and doing all the little things right.
I asked about how they handle Trelain Maddox as he recovers from his knee injury and he said Trelain is a very mature kid who loves ball and it is pretty easy to keep a kid like that motivated. He is in every meeting and he calls on him in meetings and he is on the sideline taking mental reps and he is always keeping an eye on him to make sure he is doing that and what he loves about Maddox right now is he is playing the game without being able to play the game, he has a mature approach that will be a pro's approach to things. He walked back with him from practice today and they went over some plays that happened and even special teams reps to make sure he was paying attention to everything. He is still staying involved.
I asked about Carrie as well, he said that Carrie is having a good spring ball and you worry about how a freshman grasps the offense and how will they be in pass protection or if they are a physical kid or will they get bullied in pass protection and he is doing really well with the playbook and also doing fine in pass protection as well. He still has some things to learn in terms of where he fits in protection, but when it comes to fitting up on a guy and protecting, he has actually showed that he can and he is more than willing to and that is the biggest thing. Is he a willing blocker? So I'm excited about where he is right now and the progression he has taken from practice one to practice eight. McKenzie isn't worried about Carrie's confidence, he is a very confident kid and he takes to coaching.
McKenzie said he isn't worried about complanicy from Jamal Haynes because he loves ball. He is very competitive. They have a standard and is either above or below and he had a aura about him today because he wasn't up to the standard today and it bothers him. He said that he has a high standard for himself and when he doesn't reach it on a particular play he gets upset with himself. They have a great relationship and he reminds him he has to have short term memory out there and you can't let a bad play lead into another bad play or a bad series or a bad game. That is something they work on with Jamal.
On Trey Cooley, Norv said that he expects him to play like he did in the first two or three games of the season and they saw little glimpses of how he can play, but he wasn't consistent after the first two or three games, that word consistency is big for Trey this spring. He has shown flashes but it is a matter of doing it all the time on 2nd and one or 3rd and one. He is a talented player and they've talked a lot to him about honing in the same details of the run game and the pass game. He has embraced that and worked on it.
I asked McKenzie about more two-back sets and varying the use of the RBs more to get them more involved both in the pass game and unique running plays because of the experience and depth coming back offensively, he said that they were each assigned NFL teams to look at in the offseason and he got the 49ers and to look at what those organizations did well and fine tune things for the offense. He said when you watch NFL film you see a lot of 20 personnel and even plays with guys who have running backs type skills line up in the backfield or a RB flexes out and they had some of that, but it is something they can add more in year two to the offense.
"We are not slowing down for the young guys. We can't slow down because are not a base offense with all our motions and shifts we don't slow down and the young guys have picked it up fast. They are football guys and they've picked it up fast. That is what we want, football junkies," Wade said.
Wade said that they've been working Ethan Mackenny at right guard now to build depth and he is rolling with Ben Galloway with the ones and twos at RG. Mackenny has also been learning right tackle.
Keylan is a guy we recruited that I have total belief in and he is a special kid and he is progressing and we are taking time with him. We started out with Ben working there and we made some changes and moved Ethan down to get some different looks, he moved down last Wednesday, this was his third practice at guard. He is a different kid now, it takes time to mature and he will be a special player and Ben is a player I have total faith in too and I feel good there.
Harrison Moore can play all five positions. They started him at center, moved him to tackle and guard and he is a guy they are very excited about because of his position flexibility.
Wade said they've tried to set a standard here since the very first meeting about how they are going to play and the standard for the Jackets on the field and he told every guy when they met for the first time this year, last year was last year and how they played last year doesn't matter and there is a new higher standard for this year. He said he expects the OL to work on their deficiencies just like he works on his deficiencies as a coach to become a better coach. He is holding them to the same standard he holds himself. He has worked really hard and they've worked really hard. They are working to build a culture here and it is never going to be 100% right or perfect, but if you have confidence, play fast and hit someone in the mouth, it'll take care of itself.
Wade said there were games last year where the O-line played bad and some were okay but they've got to be more consistent and it took until the end of the year to finally figure out who they are under Coach Key in his first year and now they have that understanding, they've got to run off the ball and we've got to run our feed on contact so there is always something, he said even on the last Thursday before the bowl game, at that position there is always something to fix.
Wade talked about how Corey Robinson got benched last year after game one and he worked his butt off for eight weeks straight after that and he helped them win games down the stretch as the LT. He has total believe in Corey at LT. He said that Jameson Riggs got to move up to the ones with Corey banged up and Jameson is just a football guy and it comes easy to guys like that. He doesn't look like a freshman out there, but he has some freshmen moments. He thinks when they come back in August, Riggs will really have elevated his game.
Wade said he doesn't care if someone is two inches shorter than they are supposed to be or 10 pounds less, it is more about the mentality and being able to do it on the field. He said that Tana Alo-Tupuola is a great example of that. He is a center at this level making all the calls and he has his moments, but he is wired the right way just like Riggs and he elevates his game every day. He feels great about the depth at center and Tana is with the twos and before spring is over they'll let him get some one reps to take some hits off Weston Franklin. Gabe Fortson has been the third-team center and they've moved him around after starting him out at guard in camp. Harrison Moore was at center for a few practices and did well, but they needed depth at other places and moved him to guard and Gabe back to center. Harrison has the athleticism they want at center. Tana is 314 pounds and is very athletic despite that and they want to get bigger in there at center and try to keep the same athleticism but get bigger.
On Jordan Williams, Wade said that he has higher expectations than Jordan even has for himself and he was playing at a high level but the end of last season. He needs to elevate his game to the another level and Jordan has played a lot of ball here, but one thing that has really improved with him is playing through minor nicks and dings and he is a different guy now. He thinks the world of Jordan and he can help them win a lot of games.
We spoke to Norv McKenzie and he said the big question is who will be the #2 running back replacing Dontae Smith behind Jamal Haynes going into spring ball and all the guys are pushing for that spot. He has Trey Cooley who played some last year and is in the mix along with Evan Dickens who is having a really strong spring ball and then Chad Alexander and Anthony Carrie who is a mid-year early enrollee and is doing extremely well. He thinks they have a good group of guys who are competing and doing all the little things right.
I asked about how they handle Trelain Maddox as he recovers from his knee injury and he said Trelain is a very mature kid who loves ball and it is pretty easy to keep a kid like that motivated. He is in every meeting and he calls on him in meetings and he is on the sideline taking mental reps and he is always keeping an eye on him to make sure he is doing that and what he loves about Maddox right now is he is playing the game without being able to play the game, he has a mature approach that will be a pro's approach to things. He walked back with him from practice today and they went over some plays that happened and even special teams reps to make sure he was paying attention to everything. He is still staying involved.
I asked about Carrie as well, he said that Carrie is having a good spring ball and you worry about how a freshman grasps the offense and how will they be in pass protection or if they are a physical kid or will they get bullied in pass protection and he is doing really well with the playbook and also doing fine in pass protection as well. He still has some things to learn in terms of where he fits in protection, but when it comes to fitting up on a guy and protecting, he has actually showed that he can and he is more than willing to and that is the biggest thing. Is he a willing blocker? So I'm excited about where he is right now and the progression he has taken from practice one to practice eight. McKenzie isn't worried about Carrie's confidence, he is a very confident kid and he takes to coaching.
McKenzie said he isn't worried about complanicy from Jamal Haynes because he loves ball. He is very competitive. They have a standard and is either above or below and he had a aura about him today because he wasn't up to the standard today and it bothers him. He said that he has a high standard for himself and when he doesn't reach it on a particular play he gets upset with himself. They have a great relationship and he reminds him he has to have short term memory out there and you can't let a bad play lead into another bad play or a bad series or a bad game. That is something they work on with Jamal.
On Trey Cooley, Norv said that he expects him to play like he did in the first two or three games of the season and they saw little glimpses of how he can play, but he wasn't consistent after the first two or three games, that word consistency is big for Trey this spring. He has shown flashes but it is a matter of doing it all the time on 2nd and one or 3rd and one. He is a talented player and they've talked a lot to him about honing in the same details of the run game and the pass game. He has embraced that and worked on it.
I asked McKenzie about more two-back sets and varying the use of the RBs more to get them more involved both in the pass game and unique running plays because of the experience and depth coming back offensively, he said that they were each assigned NFL teams to look at in the offseason and he got the 49ers and to look at what those organizations did well and fine tune things for the offense. He said when you watch NFL film you see a lot of 20 personnel and even plays with guys who have running backs type skills line up in the backfield or a RB flexes out and they had some of that, but it is something they can add more in year two to the offense.
