ATLANTA- Wednesday marked the final media availability for Georgia Tech football prior to the spring game. The Jackets will have a walk-through at Bobby Dodd Stadium on Friday and then practice #15 will be the annual spring game on Saturday in Bobby Dodd Stadium. A trio of defensive players spoke to the media on Wednesday, safety Jaylon King, defensive tackle Akelo Stone and defensive end Sylvian Yondjouen.
For King, this spring marks his return to the field after breaking his tibia in the Pitt game in week five last year on the road. He was only cleared to run just before the start of spring ball.
"It has been slow and steady progress," King said of his return to the field. "It was really weird. I didn't think I would have to teach myself how to walk again, but for the first month or so I had to walk heel-to-toe without swinging my leg out and things like that. After the December break, around mid-January, and into February things started picking up and I was able to start jogging and running. Then around early March, I was able to turn and cut without feeling much pain or as much stiffness around the leg area."
The injury and severity of it came because of a pre-existing issue with a stress fracture in his leg he was trying to play through and a fluke moment in the Pitt game turned that into a full-on break.
"It was an issue that we were watching starting back in the summer. I had stress fractures throughout my leg so we were just trying to monitor it and try to make it through the season. Unfortunately during the Pitt game, I got into an awkward situation and the tibia ended up fracturing and snapping," he said. "I ended up getting a couple of pins and a rod down the leg."
King said spending time off the field gave him a different appreciation for the whole game because he could watch the entire team without just focusing on his spot and he got to watch the offense more and learn why they were doing things and why they worked or didn't work and that gave him some perspective on how to play defense better.
King said the competition has been fun in the safety room this spring and they are always sharing tips and trying to help each other. It is not a cutthroat thing.
King said during his injury he was in team meeting and then would do rehab and he would watch the installs at practice and he would try to help Clayton Powell-Lee with stuff from the sideline.
King said his confidence is slowly coming back in his leg, he said he is at about 80% right now but he can do all the drills, it was just very weird when they started doing them again.
King said that he has been impressed with the two transfer LBs, Andre White Jr. has been out some with an injury, but he really has enjoyed watching Braelen Oliver in front of him this spring and how quickly he has learned the schemes.
When asked about comparing his experience under different head coaches, King said that Coach Key is very straightforward and only cares about ball. He really could careless about what goes on if it doesn't help to win and to bring "GT back to glory."
King said that Key has done a nice job of mixing the types of practices to give them quality reps and be physical, but pull back when needed, he said it makes it seem like it isn't more physical than the past, but the quality of work is probably higher now.
King graduated in the fall with a degree in Civil Engineering, he said the toughest part about it was once he got high enough up in his program they ran out of people who could tutor him in the AA so he had to use more peer groups. He is aiming to start his master's at GT in building construction this fall.
Next up was Akelo Stone, I asked him about his strides on the field this spring, he said he has been more focused on and off the field and he is trying to just take each day as it comes instead of getting caught up in other concerns.
Stone said that having Coach Coleman back is cool and he had already built a relationship with him off the field. He said as far as technical coaching goes, Coleman wants them to use their hands more than they did last year and that wasn't a huge part of their game last year, he wants them to be very violent with their hands. He thinks all the DL are playing at a high level.
I asked him about Brian Baker being on staff, he said that he has been very beneficial as a guy who coached at the highest pinnacle of the game and he has tremendous football knowledge, but he preaches that it is about fundamentals and technique and that is what makes great DL, he said he is a great compliment to coach Coleman.
I asked Stone about the young DLs, he said that KJ Miles, Horace Lockett, Shymiek Jones and Jason Moore are all grinding and trying to get the techniques down and improve every day. He said that has been the overall approach for the DL as a group.
Stone said the toughness thing you could see with him as a position coach on the staff and he knew once he became the head coach that toughness would be part of the DNA of the team. Stone said that you could really see that in the workouts and how hard they worked and how tough Coach Key wants them to be. More weights and things of that nature.
Yondjouen was up last and he said he has been really inspired by watching Keion White's journey. He said last year Keion had that giant club on his hand and was just playing so hard and he has seen guys get drafted, but not really his position group so it is inspiring to all the DLs, it shows how real and attainable it can be through hard work. He said he is dreaming about joining him in the NFL and he would likely be the first Belgian football player in the NFL.
He said that White taught him about toughness playing through all the stuff he had to deal with like the club or the leg injury and just being focused on helping the team and doing your best job.
Yondjouen said he will still watch tape of himself from four years ago and he looks at everything as a teaching rep and a chance to correct things, he thinks he will be a lot more productive this year.
Ken asked him about something we see at the end of practice, the DL doing up/downs and he said that is caused by false starts, coach Coleman wants zero false starts and that is about mental toughness and not physical toughness so there is no excuse for doing that.
Brandon Collier the guy from PPI who helped get Yondjouen was there watching practice and I spoke with him and asked Yondjouen about the journey from being a guy who hadn't played real competitive football to a potential starter in the ACC, he said there have been a lot of ups and downs since he got to GT and even just understanding what the O-line is doing to what the QB is doing has changed completely. He said when he started playing he would just play his gap and whatever happened there happened, but he has learned to understand the game and how to impact it and why and what the offense is trying to do and how to read his keys so he can follow the game easier and react at a higher level. He just didn't have that base knowledge coming in.
Yondjouen also said the workouts were more focused in the weight room with AJ Artis and then transitioning that work to the field is more tangible than with the prior staff.
Yondjouen said that coach Key is really straightforward and if you do something wrong you know it immediately. He tells you the truth and there is no other way. No one is lying about what you can and cannot do. Everyone there is trying to get better and coach Key is the one pushing everyone.
I asked him about the competition with ET (Etinosa Reuben) and Josh Robinson and he said that they are really cool with each other and can correct each other and everyone is just working hard.
Yondjouen said it would be a big deal to get into the NFL for him and the kids back home. Yondjouen apparently still talks to hundreds of aspiring Belgian kids who want to play college football and tries to help them from here. Collier said that Yondjouen is constantly sending him kids to look at and try to help. He takes a lot of pride in it and wants to help expand the NFL footprint and CFB footprint in Europe.
For King, this spring marks his return to the field after breaking his tibia in the Pitt game in week five last year on the road. He was only cleared to run just before the start of spring ball.
"It has been slow and steady progress," King said of his return to the field. "It was really weird. I didn't think I would have to teach myself how to walk again, but for the first month or so I had to walk heel-to-toe without swinging my leg out and things like that. After the December break, around mid-January, and into February things started picking up and I was able to start jogging and running. Then around early March, I was able to turn and cut without feeling much pain or as much stiffness around the leg area."
The injury and severity of it came because of a pre-existing issue with a stress fracture in his leg he was trying to play through and a fluke moment in the Pitt game turned that into a full-on break.
"It was an issue that we were watching starting back in the summer. I had stress fractures throughout my leg so we were just trying to monitor it and try to make it through the season. Unfortunately during the Pitt game, I got into an awkward situation and the tibia ended up fracturing and snapping," he said. "I ended up getting a couple of pins and a rod down the leg."
King said spending time off the field gave him a different appreciation for the whole game because he could watch the entire team without just focusing on his spot and he got to watch the offense more and learn why they were doing things and why they worked or didn't work and that gave him some perspective on how to play defense better.
King said the competition has been fun in the safety room this spring and they are always sharing tips and trying to help each other. It is not a cutthroat thing.
King said during his injury he was in team meeting and then would do rehab and he would watch the installs at practice and he would try to help Clayton Powell-Lee with stuff from the sideline.
King said his confidence is slowly coming back in his leg, he said he is at about 80% right now but he can do all the drills, it was just very weird when they started doing them again.
King said that he has been impressed with the two transfer LBs, Andre White Jr. has been out some with an injury, but he really has enjoyed watching Braelen Oliver in front of him this spring and how quickly he has learned the schemes.
When asked about comparing his experience under different head coaches, King said that Coach Key is very straightforward and only cares about ball. He really could careless about what goes on if it doesn't help to win and to bring "GT back to glory."
King said that Key has done a nice job of mixing the types of practices to give them quality reps and be physical, but pull back when needed, he said it makes it seem like it isn't more physical than the past, but the quality of work is probably higher now.
King graduated in the fall with a degree in Civil Engineering, he said the toughest part about it was once he got high enough up in his program they ran out of people who could tutor him in the AA so he had to use more peer groups. He is aiming to start his master's at GT in building construction this fall.
Next up was Akelo Stone, I asked him about his strides on the field this spring, he said he has been more focused on and off the field and he is trying to just take each day as it comes instead of getting caught up in other concerns.
Stone said that having Coach Coleman back is cool and he had already built a relationship with him off the field. He said as far as technical coaching goes, Coleman wants them to use their hands more than they did last year and that wasn't a huge part of their game last year, he wants them to be very violent with their hands. He thinks all the DL are playing at a high level.
I asked him about Brian Baker being on staff, he said that he has been very beneficial as a guy who coached at the highest pinnacle of the game and he has tremendous football knowledge, but he preaches that it is about fundamentals and technique and that is what makes great DL, he said he is a great compliment to coach Coleman.
I asked Stone about the young DLs, he said that KJ Miles, Horace Lockett, Shymiek Jones and Jason Moore are all grinding and trying to get the techniques down and improve every day. He said that has been the overall approach for the DL as a group.
Stone said the toughness thing you could see with him as a position coach on the staff and he knew once he became the head coach that toughness would be part of the DNA of the team. Stone said that you could really see that in the workouts and how hard they worked and how tough Coach Key wants them to be. More weights and things of that nature.
Yondjouen was up last and he said he has been really inspired by watching Keion White's journey. He said last year Keion had that giant club on his hand and was just playing so hard and he has seen guys get drafted, but not really his position group so it is inspiring to all the DLs, it shows how real and attainable it can be through hard work. He said he is dreaming about joining him in the NFL and he would likely be the first Belgian football player in the NFL.
He said that White taught him about toughness playing through all the stuff he had to deal with like the club or the leg injury and just being focused on helping the team and doing your best job.
Yondjouen said he will still watch tape of himself from four years ago and he looks at everything as a teaching rep and a chance to correct things, he thinks he will be a lot more productive this year.
Ken asked him about something we see at the end of practice, the DL doing up/downs and he said that is caused by false starts, coach Coleman wants zero false starts and that is about mental toughness and not physical toughness so there is no excuse for doing that.
Brandon Collier the guy from PPI who helped get Yondjouen was there watching practice and I spoke with him and asked Yondjouen about the journey from being a guy who hadn't played real competitive football to a potential starter in the ACC, he said there have been a lot of ups and downs since he got to GT and even just understanding what the O-line is doing to what the QB is doing has changed completely. He said when he started playing he would just play his gap and whatever happened there happened, but he has learned to understand the game and how to impact it and why and what the offense is trying to do and how to read his keys so he can follow the game easier and react at a higher level. He just didn't have that base knowledge coming in.
Yondjouen also said the workouts were more focused in the weight room with AJ Artis and then transitioning that work to the field is more tangible than with the prior staff.
Yondjouen said that coach Key is really straightforward and if you do something wrong you know it immediately. He tells you the truth and there is no other way. No one is lying about what you can and cannot do. Everyone there is trying to get better and coach Key is the one pushing everyone.
I asked him about the competition with ET (Etinosa Reuben) and Josh Robinson and he said that they are really cool with each other and can correct each other and everyone is just working hard.
Yondjouen said it would be a big deal to get into the NFL for him and the kids back home. Yondjouen apparently still talks to hundreds of aspiring Belgian kids who want to play college football and tries to help them from here. Collier said that Yondjouen is constantly sending him kids to look at and try to help. He takes a lot of pride in it and wants to help expand the NFL footprint and CFB footprint in Europe.
