ATLANTA- Georgia Tech football continued to prepare for the final scrimmage of Fall Camp on Thursday with a typical in-season Thursday practice in shells. Head coach Geoff Collins led his team through what a Thursday practice is like during the season as they aim to simulate game week in the final days of camp before having a scrimmage on Saturday that will also be a game simulation. After the morning session, linebacker coach Jason Semore and two of his players, Trenilyas Tatum and Demetrius Knight spoke with the media.
Knight had a particularly interesting observation about how the approach to camp this year has differed from previous seasons under Collins. The vibe has been more like game weeks than previous camps per Knight.
"I think that is was a big emphasis starting this summer," Knight said of the changes to how the team approached fall camp this year. "We didn't want to get to camp and then lock it in. We worked on locking it in at the start of the summer so when it came to camp it was an easy transition. We can really buckle down on becoming what we want to be and what we want when the season comes. I think that is a big thing we have accomplished. We just have to stay in that middle ground, keep our heads down, stay humble and continue to push each other each day."
Looking back at the 2020 season, Knight said he thinks that should've been the time the Jackets turned the corner under Collins but the covid disruptions and all the lingering effects of that led to a subpar season.
"Before covid hit there was a big strong bond with that team and had we been able to go into that season (normally) I think people would've seen the strides they are going to see this year," Knight said. "There is definitely a lot more bonding and I can't wait for everyone to see us."
Semore was pretty clear from the jump it is Ace Eley at MIKE and Charlie Thomas at WILL as the starters and they've been working to build the depth behind those two to push them. He said they've gone from too few linebackers to sometimes struggling to get everyone the reps he wants and that is a positive as a coach.
Semore said that Tyson Meiguez is ahead of schedule with his rehab, but he is not full-contact yet, he can do everything but live and thud on the defense and that is more about protecting him than him not being ready physically. They are just being careful with bring him back online. He does everything else except for those live 11v11 periods.
I asked Semore about using a SAM linebacker again, that was a staple of this defense at Temple, but they have not had the personnel at LB or depth to run much of it here. Semore said that they are working Charlie Thomas there and Sirad Bryant there as well as a couple of the rush end guys for specific situations with blitzes or coverages. He said when they go with 3 LBs that allows more guys to get WILL linebacker reps as well with the starting unit so that has given them some multiplicity defensively just like how offenses are multiple and they can match some personnel groupings like heavy TEs or 12 personnel.
On the SAM linebacker things, "we did a lot of that at Temple with Coach Collins, and then we have guys that we really feel good about in those roles to do those kinds of things," Semore said. "We will keep growing with that and just depends on the opponent and play call and stuff like that. So we're being multiple with it right now with different guys and stuff, but we feel really good about it."
On Sirad Bryant, Semore said he has been above and beyond expectations with his performance after moving from safety to linebacker, that is a totally different picture for him of what he is looking at, play calls, scheme and those things and he has not missed a beat. He is working SAM and WILL linebacker now and hanging with the tempo they are installing things at despite learning a new position.
Semore said they need a lot from Tatum this year. He needs to take down the rep load for other players to keep them fresh and he needs to produce. Tatum has been very dependable through camp and he is a guy they could depend on being a starter if needed. Semore said he is really happy with the LB room right now.
I asked Semore about special teams as well since he handles kickoff and punt coverage units and he said that they are still working on the fundamentals with those groups and haven't put in a ton of scheme yet, but they've come a long way with executing and the competition to be on those units has been really strong. He said they will start to narrow things down on who is on which units and set a depth chart for those units soon and then they will ramp up the scheme piece of it.
Knight said he is mostly working at the WILL linebacker spot but he has learned what the SAM and MIKE linebacker spots are so if he needs to step in he can. He feels like they have a better rotation now and he is ready to contribute at the standard the staff wants the defenders to be at. He said he has tried to lock in and master his spot and he can do some different things in the subpackages as well defensively.
Knight said with the design of the defense and having LBs run sideline to sideline having some depth finally should allow them to rotate more guys and create big-play opportunities with fresh bodies.
Knight said he is 240 now and he was 230 a year ago and was unsure how to deal with the weight, but now he feels comfortable at 240. He said that he credits Chick fil-A fries for his weight gain. He said it is scary how well he moves at 240 now and it is showing up in his playing.
They did Thursday races and Knight was the fastest LB on the day and he said it is a close race between him, Charlie Thomas and Taylor McCawley for the fastest LB on the tea.
Knight said that the game at Clemson last year showed what the defense and this team is capable of when they play well and it opened a lot of eyes within the team and they are trying to be that team that went toe-to-toe with Clemson.
Trenilyas Tatum is still kind of media shy so it was a lot of quick answers to questions. Tatum said he is working both MIKE and WILL now after focusing mainly on MIKE last year. He said he has gotten stronger and faster since the summer.
Tatum said that Coach Semore is one of the smartest guys in the building and he has really enjoyed playing under him and he has been a plus for the LB group. He said the overall LB play has been more consistent this fall.
Tatum said they have made a lot of changes to the defense from a year ago both in the front and backend on how they do things.
Tatum said that Chip Long's offense has also been a good challenge because he changes things up and shows them a lot of looks and some things they've never seen before with formations or looks and it forces them to step up their communication on the field.
Tatum said that Coach Collins has been significantly more involved with the defense and having him around has led to guys being more locked in in meetings and even in practice, he said that Collins tries to make sure everyone is on point.
Tatum said the LB position will be much more aggressive than last year and they like what they are doing with the tweaks to the scheme.
OF NOTE:
Collins pulled us into the middle of the field during some 11v11 thud and explained some of the concepts they are running and how the defense works and what the offense was trying to do at times as well. It was interesting to see how the process works for the Thursday practice where they work on some team stuff and then dive into more specific areas like goal line or situational football as well as individual instruction mixed between and special teams. Collins even explained the coverages and what specific players were supposed to do based on the look the offense was giving.
Highlight plays:
The defense was having a strong morning at times, pretty balanced though overall
Charlie Thomas had a pick-six.
Jeff Sims hit Ryan King for a long touchdown 40+yd throw.
Avery Boyd had two really great catches on plays where he had to make adjustments to balls, one was a deep ball from Zach Pyron 30-yds in the air and the other was 20+ yards from Zach Gibson. The second one got the team fired up for him as it has been a long road for Boyd after injuries the last two years.
Knight had a particularly interesting observation about how the approach to camp this year has differed from previous seasons under Collins. The vibe has been more like game weeks than previous camps per Knight.
"I think that is was a big emphasis starting this summer," Knight said of the changes to how the team approached fall camp this year. "We didn't want to get to camp and then lock it in. We worked on locking it in at the start of the summer so when it came to camp it was an easy transition. We can really buckle down on becoming what we want to be and what we want when the season comes. I think that is a big thing we have accomplished. We just have to stay in that middle ground, keep our heads down, stay humble and continue to push each other each day."
Looking back at the 2020 season, Knight said he thinks that should've been the time the Jackets turned the corner under Collins but the covid disruptions and all the lingering effects of that led to a subpar season.
"Before covid hit there was a big strong bond with that team and had we been able to go into that season (normally) I think people would've seen the strides they are going to see this year," Knight said. "There is definitely a lot more bonding and I can't wait for everyone to see us."
Semore was pretty clear from the jump it is Ace Eley at MIKE and Charlie Thomas at WILL as the starters and they've been working to build the depth behind those two to push them. He said they've gone from too few linebackers to sometimes struggling to get everyone the reps he wants and that is a positive as a coach.
Semore said that Tyson Meiguez is ahead of schedule with his rehab, but he is not full-contact yet, he can do everything but live and thud on the defense and that is more about protecting him than him not being ready physically. They are just being careful with bring him back online. He does everything else except for those live 11v11 periods.
I asked Semore about using a SAM linebacker again, that was a staple of this defense at Temple, but they have not had the personnel at LB or depth to run much of it here. Semore said that they are working Charlie Thomas there and Sirad Bryant there as well as a couple of the rush end guys for specific situations with blitzes or coverages. He said when they go with 3 LBs that allows more guys to get WILL linebacker reps as well with the starting unit so that has given them some multiplicity defensively just like how offenses are multiple and they can match some personnel groupings like heavy TEs or 12 personnel.
On the SAM linebacker things, "we did a lot of that at Temple with Coach Collins, and then we have guys that we really feel good about in those roles to do those kinds of things," Semore said. "We will keep growing with that and just depends on the opponent and play call and stuff like that. So we're being multiple with it right now with different guys and stuff, but we feel really good about it."
On Sirad Bryant, Semore said he has been above and beyond expectations with his performance after moving from safety to linebacker, that is a totally different picture for him of what he is looking at, play calls, scheme and those things and he has not missed a beat. He is working SAM and WILL linebacker now and hanging with the tempo they are installing things at despite learning a new position.
Semore said they need a lot from Tatum this year. He needs to take down the rep load for other players to keep them fresh and he needs to produce. Tatum has been very dependable through camp and he is a guy they could depend on being a starter if needed. Semore said he is really happy with the LB room right now.
I asked Semore about special teams as well since he handles kickoff and punt coverage units and he said that they are still working on the fundamentals with those groups and haven't put in a ton of scheme yet, but they've come a long way with executing and the competition to be on those units has been really strong. He said they will start to narrow things down on who is on which units and set a depth chart for those units soon and then they will ramp up the scheme piece of it.
Knight said he is mostly working at the WILL linebacker spot but he has learned what the SAM and MIKE linebacker spots are so if he needs to step in he can. He feels like they have a better rotation now and he is ready to contribute at the standard the staff wants the defenders to be at. He said he has tried to lock in and master his spot and he can do some different things in the subpackages as well defensively.
Knight said with the design of the defense and having LBs run sideline to sideline having some depth finally should allow them to rotate more guys and create big-play opportunities with fresh bodies.
Knight said he is 240 now and he was 230 a year ago and was unsure how to deal with the weight, but now he feels comfortable at 240. He said that he credits Chick fil-A fries for his weight gain. He said it is scary how well he moves at 240 now and it is showing up in his playing.
They did Thursday races and Knight was the fastest LB on the day and he said it is a close race between him, Charlie Thomas and Taylor McCawley for the fastest LB on the tea.
Knight said that the game at Clemson last year showed what the defense and this team is capable of when they play well and it opened a lot of eyes within the team and they are trying to be that team that went toe-to-toe with Clemson.
Trenilyas Tatum is still kind of media shy so it was a lot of quick answers to questions. Tatum said he is working both MIKE and WILL now after focusing mainly on MIKE last year. He said he has gotten stronger and faster since the summer.
Tatum said that Coach Semore is one of the smartest guys in the building and he has really enjoyed playing under him and he has been a plus for the LB group. He said the overall LB play has been more consistent this fall.
Tatum said they have made a lot of changes to the defense from a year ago both in the front and backend on how they do things.
Tatum said that Chip Long's offense has also been a good challenge because he changes things up and shows them a lot of looks and some things they've never seen before with formations or looks and it forces them to step up their communication on the field.
Tatum said that Coach Collins has been significantly more involved with the defense and having him around has led to guys being more locked in in meetings and even in practice, he said that Collins tries to make sure everyone is on point.
Tatum said the LB position will be much more aggressive than last year and they like what they are doing with the tweaks to the scheme.
OF NOTE:
Collins pulled us into the middle of the field during some 11v11 thud and explained some of the concepts they are running and how the defense works and what the offense was trying to do at times as well. It was interesting to see how the process works for the Thursday practice where they work on some team stuff and then dive into more specific areas like goal line or situational football as well as individual instruction mixed between and special teams. Collins even explained the coverages and what specific players were supposed to do based on the look the offense was giving.
Highlight plays:
The defense was having a strong morning at times, pretty balanced though overall
Charlie Thomas had a pick-six.
Jeff Sims hit Ryan King for a long touchdown 40+yd throw.
Avery Boyd had two really great catches on plays where he had to make adjustments to balls, one was a deep ball from Zach Pyron 30-yds in the air and the other was 20+ yards from Zach Gibson. The second one got the team fired up for him as it has been a long road for Boyd after injuries the last two years.
