ATLANTA- Georgia Tech football hit the field for the fifth practice in six days on Wednesday in Bobby Dodd Stadium. Head coach Geoff Collins went light on his players with just shorts and helmets as Thursday will mark the first day in full pads. After a brisk 90-minute session running backs coach Tashard Choice and backs Jamious Griffin and Dontae Smith spoke to the media about fall camp. Choice also spoke about spending Sunday in Canton, Ohio watching his close friend and former college teammate Calvin Johnson get inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
“Calvin was a very unique player when he was here because he was more talented than anybody on the football team,” Choice said. “When I was at university, Oklahoma, and I saw Adrian Peterson, how good he was, how hard he worked and then you see Calvin, and you see how good he is and how hard he worked. They weren't ever overmatched due to their God-given ability. He worked his tail off and he never wanted any recognition. He hardly ever complained, he did things the right way. He chose the harder way a lot of times and he didn't do everything that everybody else did. He challenged me and I challenged him, and I was so proud of him for the simple fact when he told his teammates to stand up (at the Hall of Fame) it just shows you what type of person he is. It showed gratitude for one of the best wide receivers to ever played the game. He acknowledged his teammates, the people that he loved, and went to war with him on the football field.”
Choice thanked coach Collins for letting him take a break in the middle of camp to be with Johnson on his big day.
“So I was truly appreciative of coach Collins, but man is it's unbelievable. If you haven’t been you should go. It is something different man,” Choice said of his experience.
With that experience in mind, we asked Choice if he notices any similarities between Johnson and running back Jahmyr Gibbs who is starting to garner national attention for his elite on the field performance.
“They're very similar for the simple thing, they just work. Calvin, he didn’t want any attention. He didn't talk. I did all the talking, Calvin was just the quiet assassin. Jahmyr is very similar, but he's so very competitive,” Choice said. “They both work very hard. They don't want any recognition and they stay so humble. Jahmyr’s grandmama calls him the humble beast and I think that's what both of them are. It is truly remarkable because I think they learned that from their parents and their coaches that never let them celebrate themselves. I think that's truly remarkable for a football player that is so talented.
Choice said that Gibbs was like that in high school as well.
“I think he's been that way since I've been in high school,” Choice said of Gibbs’ humble nature. “But for me, I make sure I let him know that the expectations and standards for him are way higher. He understands that he has to work harder. He has to do more, so we can win. If he does that then the recognition and all that will handle itself.”
Choice said he is really proud of how the RBs all cheer each other on at practice.
Choice said he watches a lot of Alvin Kamara film to inspire himself about what Gibbs should and can do for this team as a RB.
Choice said part of the reason why none of the big 4 RBs have left via the portal is the mentality they preach about being like the NFL. He said every team he was on he would look around the RB room and everyone else was more or just as talented and they are looking to replace you every day and he said he brings that to the table here and going to the portal is just running away from competition in some ways for those guys because they will all get to play here in this system and each has a role.
Coach Choice talked about how upset he got during practice today with some of the effort during a red zone drill. Coach Collins stopped the drill and they all huddled up and Collins spoke to the whole team and Choice said that he appreciates that coach Collins is at a 10 (out of 10) in practices just like he is.
“Coach Collins was at a pure 10 because you want that thing (red zone work) to look real. If you got to a NFL practice and watch 7v7 in the red zone it is the real deal. It is guys competing because you don’t know if you are going home that day,” Choice said. “For them to get an idea of how important that is now on day three or day four, how important red zone is for in November when we are in the red zone against Georgia. If you can understand that sense of urgency and have that mindset whenever I get on the football field it has to be like a game situation. That is how (Coach Collins) treats it and I think that is the only way you can.”
Choice talked about his relationship with coach Key and they are “brothers from another mother” and they work together very closely especially on blocking schemes and blitz pickups. He said he wishes he had the chance to play with Brent at Tech back in the day.
“We got to be great, I want to win. I’m tired of losing and I’m tired of being where we have been at. It is my job to reinforce that to them (the players.)
Jamious Griffin spoke about his injuries last year and he said he had ankle problems much of the season and now he is healthier and faster than in previous years. Dontae Smith said the Griffin can really fly now. Griffin said Coach Lew deserves a lot of credit for helping him increase his speed.
Jamious has a brother at VT and he said they have a dinner bet every year about who will win the game. He said in 2019 when VT won he had to take his brother out to dinner and he “ate a lot.” Hopes to get him back this year.
Jamious said he really prides himself on his blocking and that is why he was used so much as a third-down back when he was healthy because he can block, catch and pickup tough yards if needed.
Jamious said the biggest thing he is focused on is staying focused when he gets tired. He said camp is a great time to work on that because of the grind.
Jamious said he is not bothered that Jahmyr Gibbs and Jordan Mason get most of the ink in the RB room, he said they just want to be the best overall RB room in the ACC and they feel really confident as a group going into the 2021 season.
Practice ended with a kicking competition between Brett Cimaglia and Jude Kelley and Jamious said they each got on a side and pulled for their guy. Both guys kicked very well.
Dontae Smith talked about how his spring ended with a hammy injury and he said when he got home in the break he realized it was not as bad as he thought and the did what he could to rest it and when he came in the summer he felt really healthy. He did a lot of hot and cold tub work as well.
Dontae and Jahmyr have a major weight gaining competition and he said that has helped both of them stay hydrated during practice with Dontae having a positive influence on Jahmyr after he saw Donate keeping weight on in camp through proper hydration.
Dontae said he tied with Jahmyr as the top lifter at RB and for the fastest RB, though he said Jamious is catching up to them some. Dontae said he hit 20.6 mph running and Jahmyr was right there with him.
The best play I saw today was a nice touchdown toss by Jordan Yates to Malachi Carter in the corner of the end zone over his shoulder. Myles Sims had a great pick in the end zone on a tipped ball that was a real highlight type play, hopefully they’ll put that out later on social media.
“Calvin was a very unique player when he was here because he was more talented than anybody on the football team,” Choice said. “When I was at university, Oklahoma, and I saw Adrian Peterson, how good he was, how hard he worked and then you see Calvin, and you see how good he is and how hard he worked. They weren't ever overmatched due to their God-given ability. He worked his tail off and he never wanted any recognition. He hardly ever complained, he did things the right way. He chose the harder way a lot of times and he didn't do everything that everybody else did. He challenged me and I challenged him, and I was so proud of him for the simple fact when he told his teammates to stand up (at the Hall of Fame) it just shows you what type of person he is. It showed gratitude for one of the best wide receivers to ever played the game. He acknowledged his teammates, the people that he loved, and went to war with him on the football field.”
Choice thanked coach Collins for letting him take a break in the middle of camp to be with Johnson on his big day.
“So I was truly appreciative of coach Collins, but man is it's unbelievable. If you haven’t been you should go. It is something different man,” Choice said of his experience.
With that experience in mind, we asked Choice if he notices any similarities between Johnson and running back Jahmyr Gibbs who is starting to garner national attention for his elite on the field performance.
“They're very similar for the simple thing, they just work. Calvin, he didn’t want any attention. He didn't talk. I did all the talking, Calvin was just the quiet assassin. Jahmyr is very similar, but he's so very competitive,” Choice said. “They both work very hard. They don't want any recognition and they stay so humble. Jahmyr’s grandmama calls him the humble beast and I think that's what both of them are. It is truly remarkable because I think they learned that from their parents and their coaches that never let them celebrate themselves. I think that's truly remarkable for a football player that is so talented.
Choice said that Gibbs was like that in high school as well.
“I think he's been that way since I've been in high school,” Choice said of Gibbs’ humble nature. “But for me, I make sure I let him know that the expectations and standards for him are way higher. He understands that he has to work harder. He has to do more, so we can win. If he does that then the recognition and all that will handle itself.”
Choice said he is really proud of how the RBs all cheer each other on at practice.
Choice said he watches a lot of Alvin Kamara film to inspire himself about what Gibbs should and can do for this team as a RB.
Choice said part of the reason why none of the big 4 RBs have left via the portal is the mentality they preach about being like the NFL. He said every team he was on he would look around the RB room and everyone else was more or just as talented and they are looking to replace you every day and he said he brings that to the table here and going to the portal is just running away from competition in some ways for those guys because they will all get to play here in this system and each has a role.
Coach Choice talked about how upset he got during practice today with some of the effort during a red zone drill. Coach Collins stopped the drill and they all huddled up and Collins spoke to the whole team and Choice said that he appreciates that coach Collins is at a 10 (out of 10) in practices just like he is.
“Coach Collins was at a pure 10 because you want that thing (red zone work) to look real. If you got to a NFL practice and watch 7v7 in the red zone it is the real deal. It is guys competing because you don’t know if you are going home that day,” Choice said. “For them to get an idea of how important that is now on day three or day four, how important red zone is for in November when we are in the red zone against Georgia. If you can understand that sense of urgency and have that mindset whenever I get on the football field it has to be like a game situation. That is how (Coach Collins) treats it and I think that is the only way you can.”
Choice talked about his relationship with coach Key and they are “brothers from another mother” and they work together very closely especially on blocking schemes and blitz pickups. He said he wishes he had the chance to play with Brent at Tech back in the day.
“We got to be great, I want to win. I’m tired of losing and I’m tired of being where we have been at. It is my job to reinforce that to them (the players.)
Jamious Griffin spoke about his injuries last year and he said he had ankle problems much of the season and now he is healthier and faster than in previous years. Dontae Smith said the Griffin can really fly now. Griffin said Coach Lew deserves a lot of credit for helping him increase his speed.
Jamious has a brother at VT and he said they have a dinner bet every year about who will win the game. He said in 2019 when VT won he had to take his brother out to dinner and he “ate a lot.” Hopes to get him back this year.
Jamious said he really prides himself on his blocking and that is why he was used so much as a third-down back when he was healthy because he can block, catch and pickup tough yards if needed.
Jamious said the biggest thing he is focused on is staying focused when he gets tired. He said camp is a great time to work on that because of the grind.
Jamious said he is not bothered that Jahmyr Gibbs and Jordan Mason get most of the ink in the RB room, he said they just want to be the best overall RB room in the ACC and they feel really confident as a group going into the 2021 season.
Practice ended with a kicking competition between Brett Cimaglia and Jude Kelley and Jamious said they each got on a side and pulled for their guy. Both guys kicked very well.
Dontae Smith talked about how his spring ended with a hammy injury and he said when he got home in the break he realized it was not as bad as he thought and the did what he could to rest it and when he came in the summer he felt really healthy. He did a lot of hot and cold tub work as well.
Dontae and Jahmyr have a major weight gaining competition and he said that has helped both of them stay hydrated during practice with Dontae having a positive influence on Jahmyr after he saw Donate keeping weight on in camp through proper hydration.
Dontae said he tied with Jahmyr as the top lifter at RB and for the fastest RB, though he said Jamious is catching up to them some. Dontae said he hit 20.6 mph running and Jahmyr was right there with him.
The best play I saw today was a nice touchdown toss by Jordan Yates to Malachi Carter in the corner of the end zone over his shoulder. Myles Sims had a great pick in the end zone on a tipped ball that was a real highlight type play, hopefully they’ll put that out later on social media.
