Another busy day on the Flats and we spoke to quarterbacks coach/co-offensive/assistant head coach Chris Weinke after practice along with his two veteran quarterbacks Haynes King and Zach Pyron.
This is the first time in several years GT had QB1 and QB2 back in the same offense with the same offensive coordinator and position coach going into spring ball.
Weinke said having that consistency and having two freshmen to add into the mix with walk-on Brody Rhodes has been a lot of fun for him as a coach. he said that there are certain things he looks for with QBs and the room is full of that, toughness and leadership qualities. He likes the way they are laddered out (class separation) and each of the QBs brings a little something different to the table. He said it is also fun because he can't coach each QB the same way so it makes his job exciting.
With King, Weinke said that,
"Regardless of how old you are, whether you're a young guy or you've got experience, I think you always continue to learn you always continue to develop. The challenge I have for my guys every single day is find something to get better at just a little bit each day. And I think over the collective period of time, whether it's it's spring ball, it's the summer leading into camp I think if those guys can just focus on those little things. Obviously, the body of work will be will be special when it's all said and done. More specifically with Hanes obviously had a really good year for us. But he's a perfectionist. And I think when you look at and you go back and you watch every snap from last year, his ability to make big plays not only with his legs, but in the passing game. Obviously, the elephant in the room is the turnovers, right? And we have to clean that up. We cannot provide extra opportunities for the opponent, he knows that he understands it. So you look at every single turnover and why did it happen? And you try to eliminate those things, or the reason that that had happened and I think he's conscious of that. What I don't want to do is take away his aggressiveness. And he understands and knows that. I want to play at full speed, trust in his eyes, and sometimes those things happen, and I think he understands it, but his development in terms of operating our offense, high football IQ really a joy to work with and he speaks the language at a high level understands it. And I only think he's gotten better since last year. I think you look at his release. It's quicker than it was a year ago. It's been something he's been conscious of but his leadership qualities and what he's what he's done for this football team is special."
Weinke said it has been good to get Graham Knowles and Aaron Philo in early especially because they run a pro-style offense and there is a lot of verbiage with it as they try to create mismatches on offense. They are like any young QB learning and absorbing information and he knows what it is like to be in their shoes and he is trying to help them with that process so they can understand what they are doing and then their bodies slow down and that is what they are working on now. Great additions to the QB room and they are wired the right way and want to be great and want to be coached. The bonus is they have two older guys in that room in Haynes and Zach that they can observe every day.
Weinke said it is an honor to be named assistant head coach and his goal is to take some things off Brent Key's plate. It wasn't something he asked for, but he is honored to help. He said that Key gets pulled in a lot of different directions and his job is to ease some of his stress and anxiety by handling some things for him and also to help be a GPS system for Key and help guide him in the right direction with some things.
Weinke said that when Coach Key took over for Geoff Collins the whole program changed and everything in the building changed and he preached toughness every day and that is something at every position that is preached and they look for a full buy-in from every player. He said they are now at the point when you walk into the locker room you can feel that buy-in and sense that something special is happening. He said that doesn't happen everywhere regardless of the level and he thinks that is something Key should get credit for creating here, they've brought the right kids into the program and they support each other, but the ultimate goal is to win a championship and that is the mindset every day and the kids believe it and live it every day. He said that may sound like a cliche but they are building a great culture and that means everyone in the building is collectively pulling the rope together in the same direction and that is really important.
Weinke said that it is fun this spring because they have almost every starter and key back on offense except a handful of guys and there is substitute for experience and the core of the offense is back and now they can expand on scheme whereas last year it was a new staff and new philosophy now you don't have to teach the kids as much and they can just play fast and that allows Buster Faulkner and the offensive staff to be more creative and add to, "one of the most exciting offenses in the country."
HAYNES KING
King said this is year two here and he is stepping up into more of a leadership role and trying to be more vocal especially with a lot of new faces this spring. He said it has been exciting seeing the new defensive staff and new teammates as well.
King said his role with the young QBs is to show him how to do things and set the standard and live up to that standard and show the players how they do things not just in practice or meetings, but outside of the facility.
King said the WRs is fun and there is a lot of camaraderie between the WRs. He said the little guys Malik Rutherford and Christian Leary are always going at it and that is funny as they compete.
King said the scrimmage on Saturday should be a good barometer of where things stand and how they look against a new defense with a new defensive scheme and staff.
King said that the team is full of competitors and the QBs are no different and they are working to see who can squad or bench the most, but they are all family and if anyone needs anything they can just ask.
King really enjoys working with Coach Weinke every day, he has done it on every level and coached it on every level and he provides knowledge every day whether it is competing and carrying out your fake or just about being a man outside of the QB room. He is always checking on them and has a personal relationship with each of them.
I asked King about turnovers and avoiding losing his aggressiveness but being smarter about dangerous throws, he said that he still needs to be aggressive but he needs to be more intelligent when he takes those shots. How are you taking the shot? He said that Weinke does a great job of breaking that down and he said that consistency in your daily life even down to how you wake up and start your day carries over into sports and school and then everything will fall into place.
Pyron was up last and I asked him about finally having the same offense for back-to-back seasons for the first time since almost middle school. He changed offenses several times in HS and then twice in college already. He said that Weinke told him a story about Brett Favre and how he ran the same offense the whole time in the NFL and it allowed him to break everything down to the smallest detail and he would repeat that process every year even though he knew it already and he said that is how they do things at GT. Both Zach and Haynes know the offense, but they act like they don't know it all and relearn it each camp and that has allowed Zach to elevate his game because he has a deeper understanding of the calls and why they make them. A year ago he wouldn't have understood that part but now he does.
On his own game, he is trying to also elevate his football IQ more along with being more accurate. He said that accuracy is one of the most important elements for a QB and that starts with his feet and he has been working hard on his feet this spring.
Pyron said that King has been great to learn things from and they are super competitive every day and he likes seeing how King handles everything and what he learned from his dad who is a legendary head coach in Texas and how he has this high football IQ, all that is off the charts with King and seeing how King breaks down film and they have a close relationship and joke and have funny text chains with the QBs and stuff.
He was asked weirdly about running packages and if that is something they work on now (it isn't at all) Pyron said they are not working on subpackages or anything like that right now, because that is more of a game plan thing week to week. He wants to be on the field because of his competitive nature and hopes that is something they do more of this season, but they are in base installation right now just two weeks into spring and that is something they work on going into the season not in the spring.
Pyron said the two young QBs are like sponges right now learning from both King and himself as well as Rhodes and they are wanting to learn and grow and they don't miss stuff, they want to be great. He said it makes him feel good about the future of Georgia Tech football when he is gone seeing that the program will be in good hands down the line with Knowles and Philo when it is their turn.
Pyron said he worked really hard to improve his arm strength and speed up his release and those are always things that can be refined and improved upon.
This is the first time in several years GT had QB1 and QB2 back in the same offense with the same offensive coordinator and position coach going into spring ball.
Weinke said having that consistency and having two freshmen to add into the mix with walk-on Brody Rhodes has been a lot of fun for him as a coach. he said that there are certain things he looks for with QBs and the room is full of that, toughness and leadership qualities. He likes the way they are laddered out (class separation) and each of the QBs brings a little something different to the table. He said it is also fun because he can't coach each QB the same way so it makes his job exciting.
With King, Weinke said that,
"Regardless of how old you are, whether you're a young guy or you've got experience, I think you always continue to learn you always continue to develop. The challenge I have for my guys every single day is find something to get better at just a little bit each day. And I think over the collective period of time, whether it's it's spring ball, it's the summer leading into camp I think if those guys can just focus on those little things. Obviously, the body of work will be will be special when it's all said and done. More specifically with Hanes obviously had a really good year for us. But he's a perfectionist. And I think when you look at and you go back and you watch every snap from last year, his ability to make big plays not only with his legs, but in the passing game. Obviously, the elephant in the room is the turnovers, right? And we have to clean that up. We cannot provide extra opportunities for the opponent, he knows that he understands it. So you look at every single turnover and why did it happen? And you try to eliminate those things, or the reason that that had happened and I think he's conscious of that. What I don't want to do is take away his aggressiveness. And he understands and knows that. I want to play at full speed, trust in his eyes, and sometimes those things happen, and I think he understands it, but his development in terms of operating our offense, high football IQ really a joy to work with and he speaks the language at a high level understands it. And I only think he's gotten better since last year. I think you look at his release. It's quicker than it was a year ago. It's been something he's been conscious of but his leadership qualities and what he's what he's done for this football team is special."
Weinke said it has been good to get Graham Knowles and Aaron Philo in early especially because they run a pro-style offense and there is a lot of verbiage with it as they try to create mismatches on offense. They are like any young QB learning and absorbing information and he knows what it is like to be in their shoes and he is trying to help them with that process so they can understand what they are doing and then their bodies slow down and that is what they are working on now. Great additions to the QB room and they are wired the right way and want to be great and want to be coached. The bonus is they have two older guys in that room in Haynes and Zach that they can observe every day.
Weinke said it is an honor to be named assistant head coach and his goal is to take some things off Brent Key's plate. It wasn't something he asked for, but he is honored to help. He said that Key gets pulled in a lot of different directions and his job is to ease some of his stress and anxiety by handling some things for him and also to help be a GPS system for Key and help guide him in the right direction with some things.
Weinke said that when Coach Key took over for Geoff Collins the whole program changed and everything in the building changed and he preached toughness every day and that is something at every position that is preached and they look for a full buy-in from every player. He said they are now at the point when you walk into the locker room you can feel that buy-in and sense that something special is happening. He said that doesn't happen everywhere regardless of the level and he thinks that is something Key should get credit for creating here, they've brought the right kids into the program and they support each other, but the ultimate goal is to win a championship and that is the mindset every day and the kids believe it and live it every day. He said that may sound like a cliche but they are building a great culture and that means everyone in the building is collectively pulling the rope together in the same direction and that is really important.
Weinke said that it is fun this spring because they have almost every starter and key back on offense except a handful of guys and there is substitute for experience and the core of the offense is back and now they can expand on scheme whereas last year it was a new staff and new philosophy now you don't have to teach the kids as much and they can just play fast and that allows Buster Faulkner and the offensive staff to be more creative and add to, "one of the most exciting offenses in the country."
HAYNES KING
King said this is year two here and he is stepping up into more of a leadership role and trying to be more vocal especially with a lot of new faces this spring. He said it has been exciting seeing the new defensive staff and new teammates as well.
King said his role with the young QBs is to show him how to do things and set the standard and live up to that standard and show the players how they do things not just in practice or meetings, but outside of the facility.
King said the WRs is fun and there is a lot of camaraderie between the WRs. He said the little guys Malik Rutherford and Christian Leary are always going at it and that is funny as they compete.
King said the scrimmage on Saturday should be a good barometer of where things stand and how they look against a new defense with a new defensive scheme and staff.
King said that the team is full of competitors and the QBs are no different and they are working to see who can squad or bench the most, but they are all family and if anyone needs anything they can just ask.
King really enjoys working with Coach Weinke every day, he has done it on every level and coached it on every level and he provides knowledge every day whether it is competing and carrying out your fake or just about being a man outside of the QB room. He is always checking on them and has a personal relationship with each of them.
I asked King about turnovers and avoiding losing his aggressiveness but being smarter about dangerous throws, he said that he still needs to be aggressive but he needs to be more intelligent when he takes those shots. How are you taking the shot? He said that Weinke does a great job of breaking that down and he said that consistency in your daily life even down to how you wake up and start your day carries over into sports and school and then everything will fall into place.
Pyron was up last and I asked him about finally having the same offense for back-to-back seasons for the first time since almost middle school. He changed offenses several times in HS and then twice in college already. He said that Weinke told him a story about Brett Favre and how he ran the same offense the whole time in the NFL and it allowed him to break everything down to the smallest detail and he would repeat that process every year even though he knew it already and he said that is how they do things at GT. Both Zach and Haynes know the offense, but they act like they don't know it all and relearn it each camp and that has allowed Zach to elevate his game because he has a deeper understanding of the calls and why they make them. A year ago he wouldn't have understood that part but now he does.
On his own game, he is trying to also elevate his football IQ more along with being more accurate. He said that accuracy is one of the most important elements for a QB and that starts with his feet and he has been working hard on his feet this spring.
Pyron said that King has been great to learn things from and they are super competitive every day and he likes seeing how King handles everything and what he learned from his dad who is a legendary head coach in Texas and how he has this high football IQ, all that is off the charts with King and seeing how King breaks down film and they have a close relationship and joke and have funny text chains with the QBs and stuff.
He was asked weirdly about running packages and if that is something they work on now (it isn't at all) Pyron said they are not working on subpackages or anything like that right now, because that is more of a game plan thing week to week. He wants to be on the field because of his competitive nature and hopes that is something they do more of this season, but they are in base installation right now just two weeks into spring and that is something they work on going into the season not in the spring.
Pyron said the two young QBs are like sponges right now learning from both King and himself as well as Rhodes and they are wanting to learn and grow and they don't miss stuff, they want to be great. He said it makes him feel good about the future of Georgia Tech football when he is gone seeing that the program will be in good hands down the line with Knowles and Philo when it is their turn.
Pyron said he worked really hard to improve his arm strength and speed up his release and those are always things that can be refined and improved upon.
