Category Archives: Video

Ethan Wolf

On the question of whether someone is stepping up to replace the pass-catching void of Jason Croom from last year, Wolf said that there’s a lot of depth at the tight end position with him, Eli Wolf, Jakob Johnson, and Austin Pope.

Wolf also emphasized that the chemistry on the team is really good, even with the new guys. There were some very productive individual workouts throughout the summer, which he said was “very encouraging compared to camps in the past.” Hmm. Somebody should have circled back around to that.

When asked to comment about the differences between former offensive coordinator Mike DeBord and current OC Larry Scott, Wolf said that Scott is “very energetic.” He also mentioned that they have already installed their base offense that they ran last year and have added some new stuff as well. He said that he’s expecting to see more differences as time goes on and that he’s “excited to see how [Scott] distributes the ball this year.”

Colton Jumper

Jumper seems to be in tune with Jones on the challenge of having summer classes still going during fall camp, saying that “We’re still in summer school right now, so that’s been kind of a struggle because guys still have classes.”

Asked about the linebacking corps in general, Jumper noted that nothing’s really settled right now. He’s currently practicing at Mike, but he’s also played Sam, Will, and something called Cheetah, too, which sounds so much more cool, and is willing to fill in wherever needed.

Butch Jones talked to reporters after practice last night and started with saying that the challenge right now is balancing practice and summer school. The message to his team was to make sure they are not just spending their time at practice, but investing it, and he said that having fall camp while summer school was going on was going to help develop mental toughness.

Jones also addressed several other issues:

• He dodged a question about whether either Quinten Dormady or Jarrett Guarantano had separated themselves from the other in the ongoing quarterback battle saying instead that both are improving every day and gaining confidence.
• When asked specifically about Dormady, Jones said he is consistent and getting more comfortable and vocal. He then said the same about Guarantano. Specifically, he’s watching several things, including their body language after a play to see whether it changes depending on how the play went.
• Jones said that all three freshmen running backs are looking good and are going to play. They’re being taught the difference between being a rusher and being a running back, that they need to be able to run, take care of the football, pass protect, and carry through well on run fakes. He says they’ve handled it extremely well and that much of the reason for that is that John Kelly is doing a good job of mentoring them and helping them get ready. And don’t forget that Carlin Fils-aime is also still in the mix. So it looks like it’s not just Kelly and Fils-aime but that they’re getting the freshmen ready to contribute as well.
• The team is starting to sprinkle Georgia Tech preparation into their practices. At this point, they are not especially concerned about who the Yellow Jackets quarterback is going to be. They’re more concerned just about their offense, which Jones characterized as a very, very explosive one that causes mismatches and match up problems. They are going to run their offense regardless of who’s manning the QB position. Jones hasn’t tabbed anyone in particular to be the scout team quarterback, saying the main challenge is being able to simulate the speed of the game with that type of offense.
• After a brief hesitation, Jones acknowledged that the senior cornerbacks do have a leg up on the others just due to experience. He again mentioned how much he’s liking Justin Martin, that he’s growing up and maturing. Emmanuel Moseley getting cleared for all drill work is also a good thing. But the young guys are pushing the older guys.
• When asked what they’re doing, if anything, about opposing teams kicking away from kick returner Evan Berry, Jones said simply that they need to be solid in their schemes and that the goal of the kick return unit is to get good starting field position for the offense. When teams “sky-kicked” against the Vols, their starting position was between the 34- and 37-yard lines, which they’ll gladly take.
• At weakside linebacker, Quart’e Sapp is apparently still “very limited,” but Cortez McDowell has had a good camp. Jones likes that they have some versatility at the linebacker spot and specifically mentioned Elliott Berry and Dillon Bates. They’re happy to have Darrin Kirkland Jr. and Colton Jumper back, and they’re all being pushed by the young guys.