Deleted Scenes: Learning the Ropes of the 3-4

I had a story in Sunday's Telegraph detailing how Georgia's defenders have been getting prepared to execute the 3-4 defense once spring practice begins. Obviously, the players are all pretty enthusiastic now, and Todd Grantham has some lofty goals for the next six weeks. While I tried to squeeze as much of that as I could into the story, not every quote made the cut. Here's some of what was said that didn't make its way into the story...

Darryl Gamble on what is required at the new Mike LB position...
“More communication, especially from my part. You’ve got to be able to see more, get the line and even the DBs adjusted to what’s going on in front of us.”

Gamble on the 3-4 vs. the 4-3 defense...
“It’s not very different from under front because you still have the same personnel, it’s just that the ends are standing up and you can do more things out of your four linebackers. It’s pretty much the same basics, but you can do a lot more out of it.”

Gamble on the value of having two seniors -- himself & Akeem Dent -- playing Mike...
“Me and him, we’ve got a lot of reps under our belt, more than a lot of other guys on the defense, so it’ll be better off hearing it from us than hearing from somebody else that doesn’t know a lot about what’s going on on Saturdays.”

Gamble on Warren Belin vs. John Jancek...
“He’s quieter than Coach Jancek was, but he gets his point across. He’s more reserved, but he’ll let you know if you did things wrong and still encourage you if you’re doing things right.”

Gamble on Grantham's take on position changes...
“He told us right now, ‘You’re here, but you might be somewhere else by the time camp comes around. Even after camp, you might be playing another position when the season starts.’ So we’re pretty much trying to learn everything that’s going on so you won’t be lost if there is a position change.”

Marcus Dowtin on how the 3-4 affects him at the Mo position…
“Basically, it’s very exciting to me. I’m going to be able to play free, be a lot more aggressive than I was. And Coach Grantham and Coach Belin seem like they’re going to give me a chance to really show what I’ve got. It seems to be all good things for me. I’m happy with the change and I’m happy with the progress I see us making. There’s a sense of excitement around here.”

Dowtin on how fast the team can adjust to the new scheme this spring...
“You’ll see, it’s going to be quick. The defense is not that hard. We’re getting our plays in a section at a time, and we’re going over it in detail. Guys are working together to relate it back to some of the terms and coverages we used to run. Any similarity we find or that Coach Grantham identifies, we try to spread it around to all the other guys and make sure everybody understands. It seems like it’s going to be a real easy adjustment, and out on the field, we’ve got great athletes. So it won’t be hard to adjust to the 3-4.”

Dowtin on the enthusiasm from players during offseason conditioning...
“From what they said the other day, they gave more A’s than they’ve given in a long time. The guys are really going to work, just really trying hard to impress the coaches and trying to get better. You can tell everybody’s excited around here, especially the defensive guys. We’re ready to go to where I feel Coach Grantham and the defensive staff will just let us play and let us have fun out there. Our class that’s out there now, we all came in together along with a couple of the older guys, so we’re already close-knit and we know each other like the back of our hands. So we’re just waiting to get out there and perform.”

Baccari Rambo on his work with new secondary coach Scott Lakatos...
“I try to go meet with him every day to try to learn how they coach. The meetings, me and Coach Lakatos, he’s showed me on film how the NFL players, DBs, how they train and how the coaches teach them. He said it’s going to be a similar way he’ll teach us. So I try to treat everything like it’s going to be good. I take notes on everything, because I know it’s going to help me in the long run. Coach Grantham, us meeting with him every Wednesday after mat drills and going over the defense, he’s a great coach, and I understand where he’s coming from with his play calling and stuff.”

Rambo on his excitement about the changes in scheme and technique...
“I’m getting very excited because it’s like Coach Lakatos will tell me, he had a couple of DBs work out with some trainers at the Senior Bowl, and how some of the DBs were doing a different footwork from what he was teaching his guys, and he was like, the way he was teaching his guys, that’s the way everybody in the NFL was teaching them. They had a head start on everybody. So I’m very excited. I was sitting there watching film, and by looking at the footwork and listening to the coach talk, I imagine myself making more plays than last year, if I’d done the same thing footwork-wise.”

Branden Smith on Lakatos compared to Willie Martinez…
“Coach Lakatos is real different from Coach Martinez. Both of them have their ways, just teaching different stuff. Now we’ve got to learn the things (Lakatos) is teaching us, and we’re looking forward to learning.”

Smith on the impact the new scheme will have on creating turnovers...
“I believe that we’re going to get more interceptions this year. Last year, we didn’t get that many picks, and I believe it was the scheme we were in. The scheme we’re in now, it seems like something everybody’s looking forward to – linebackers, D-backs and especially on the D line.”

Mike Bobo on what it's like to go against a 3-4…
“I think the big difficulty in the 3-4 is you have the outside backers that are backers/rush guys. As an offense, it’s hard to account – do I account for those guys as outside guys as a D lineman or as a linebacker? You’re worried about mismatches and blocking. I still want my left tackle to block that guy, but in that front, my fullback or my back might have to block that outside backer, and that’s a mismatch. So that’s where it causes some confusion for offenses is identifying personnel and trying to get the right matchup on those guys. In a 3-4, you can disguise and you don’t know where they’re coming from. You create mismatches, get to the quarterback and cause confusion.”

Mark Richt on how Georgia's current players are fitting into the new scheme...
“For the most part, I think (Grantham) feels like we’ve got enough of the right kind of body types to fill out this defense. Let’s face it, it’s about guys that will run and hit and play hard, and we’ve got those kind of guys. By the end of the spring we’ll have a better feel if there’s a certain position we might be lighter on that we should be, or maybe we’ll be heavier on one because of the recruitment of a 4-3 compared to a 3-4. But overall, we feel like we’ve got at least two deep of guys that can play at these positions.”

Richt on moving the former DEs to OLB...
“Our Will linebacker is going to be a guy who certainly can play coverage, but he’ll be coming off the edge quite often. Then when we do get into a four-down look, which we will, we’re just going to find our best pass rushers and get them on the edge. And those guys are two of our best pass rushers.”

Todd Grantham on the players' reaction to his approach...
“Players want to win and players want to make plays. They want to please the coach and have success. And as a coach, if you can make players understand that you have their interests at heart and you can make them a better player, I think they pay attention and they’ll give you the effort you need to be successful.”

Grantham on how he'll work to cross-train players...
“You need to have flexibility in your system, but the player’s got to have some flexibility because I’ve always said you evaluate your players 1 through 50, and you want to put the next best player in the game. So I think it’s important that you have players who are flexible and can adjust.”

Deleted Scenes: Stopping Tech's Triple Option

I have a story in today's Telegraph on how Georgia will be approaching Tech's triple option this week. But, of course, fitting that much material into one story was no easy task. So, for a detailed account from Georgia's players and coaches on how to slow Paul Johnson's option, read on...

Pre-snap reads

Gamble on Tech’s simplistic approach…
“Going against other teams, you have to know when they line up in this or when they line up in that. With Tech, they line up in one thing and they run it to the right or the left. It’s about having guys that are more disciplined. It only takes one person to mess up for it to go 80. It’s been said we aren’t a disciplined team, and I think this will be a good way to show the nation how disciplined we are.”

Rennie Curran on the importance of preparations…
“The biggest thing is just taking what they do into account, which is to try to confuse you. There’s a lot more emphasis on the guys just to know their assignments. This is an offense where you can’t make mistakes against them. You have to be executing on every single play, be disciplined on every single play. The biggest thing for us is to keep our assignments and do it to perfection and remember all the things we were taught at the beginning of year.”

Curran on what players look for before the ball is snapped…
“You’re looking at, of course Dwyer, at their A backs, at the linemen keys – which way they’re having their movements to – you’re looking at field position, down and distance, all those things come into effect.”

Curran on learning keys…
“They don’t have a lot of plays, but it’s not about knowing what’s coming. It’s about stopping it. It’s about being disciplined enough to cover every single base in their offense.”

Rodney Garner on getting players prepared for Tech…
“I definitely think the guys that played in the game last year know a little bit more about what to expect. People like Jeff did not play, and I don’t think he knows as much. We’ve watched last year’s film. We’ve watched this year’s film on Tech. I think they’re getting a good idea of what they’re doing. Our biggest thing is we have to be disciplined and focused on doing our job.”

Willie Martinez on knowing what to expect…
“It’s not that difficult from a standpoint of what you have to accomplish, but what they do, they stress you out. You feel like you’ve got a beat on a certain play, and then it’s a misdirection.”

Handling cut blocks

Clint Boling on the difference between a cut and a chop block…
“Cut blocks are legal as long as you’re in front of them. A chop block would be when somebody else is engaged with them and a guy cut blocks, that’s not legal.”

Boling on the risks of chop blocking…
“Sometimes you might just miss and they end up going unblocked and you never want that to happen. But the advantage to the cut blocking is you get them on the ground, and when they’re on the ground, they’re not able to make plays.”

Justin Houston on how to beat cut blocks…
“You have to kind of lighten up. You can’t be as aggressive as a normal team you would play against this offense. You just have to be patient and do your assignment. Our defensive ends with Coach Fab, we practice the cut block all season long, so hopefully those drills will help us this week.”

Demarcus Dobbs on how to approach cut blocks…
“A lot of teams don’t cut block as much as Tech does, so we’re getting away from the whole pounding the football. We have to learn to face chop blocks and get into your right assignments and have good eyes. It’s a different approach. Against this team, penetration will kill you. You don’t want to be on the ground for anything. It’s about having a balanced stance, working hard to defeat a chop block and make a play. It’s a different approach, technically, from any other team.”

Playing with patience

Gamble on avoiding over-aggressiveness…
“It’s pretty much fundamental ball. You have one objective and you have to do that every play. Your keys are your only keys. You can’t try to do anybody else’s job. You have to stick to what the coaches have told you to do.”

Houston on Tech’s ability to capitalize on mistakes…
“You have to be very disciplined. Every guy has an assignment on the field, and everybody has to do their assignment every play. If not, that’s their success. As soon as you make a mistake, they’re going to gash you.”

Dobbs on keeping consistent in your fundamentals…
“Last year, I think we played the option very well. We came out and were sound in what we were doing. But it’s a team you play where they’re not going to get away from the option. It’s just going to be the same play, same play, and they’re just going to look for you to make a mistake. The minute you make a mistake is when it busts out for 60 yards. You just have to play sound football for 60 minutes.”

Martinez on sticking to assignments…
“Any time you face an option football team, you can’t do too many things. That’s part of the game. Their thing is that there’s a threat of an option on every single play. You’ve got to be really disciplined. That’s an oiled machine they’ve got going there. You have to play assignment football, get off blocks, tackle really well. The teams that have been successful, it’s been a combined team effort – winning the field position, doing our part in the kicking game, on offense, and obviously doing our part on defense.”

Curran on the importance of discipline against Tech…
“I would say discipline is the biggest thing against this offense. You don’t want to be too aggressive, but at the same time you have to wrap up and make those hits and tackle them to get those losses. You have to get those blocks and get them to make mistakes themselves, too.”

Executing the defense

Kade Weston on playing your role…
“You have to have be disciplined. Everybody had to focus on their own assignment, don’t try to be a hero or anything. … The key is to have everybody responsible for his own assignment, whatever your matchup is. The coaches did a good job getting that in our head. As a defense you have to go to the ball and make the tackle but against this offense you can’t do that. You have to have discipline. One little mistake can hurt you. The key is to be precise, have everybody handle their assignment and you’ll be OK.”

Martinez on the approach to Tech…
“You’ve just got to do the same thing they do. They execute, they’re disciplined, they’re reading keys. You’ve got to do a good job with your eyes, and when you get there, if you’ve stayed disciplined in your assignment, just make the tackle.”

Reshad Jones on the lessons he learned last season…
“That was the game-winning touchdown, so when we play them, I’m going to remember that and go out and play with my all, and make sure I wrap up the ball carrier on every play and every chance I get.”

Role of the secondary

Brandon Boykin on the threat of the passing game…
“We know they’re going to run the ball. That’s what they do, and the corner has got to be big in the run game this week. But we have to be aware of the passing game because they’re going to run that ball and then try to sneak a pass in on us. We’ve got to be able to read our keys, and our eyes have to be real big in this game.”

Boykin on the role of the corners in the running game…
“Every team as a corner you have to get off the blocks and make a play, but it’s just more of a thing to do against Georgia Tech. We’ve been doing that all year, so I feel like we’re pretty prepared. The corner has got to be key because when they get around that end, the safety should be over the top, but the corner has be key in defending them.”

Boykin on the keys for success for Georgia’s corners…
“Play fast and get off the blocks and tackle well. And you’ve got to play for the whole game. Georgia Tech is going to continue to play in that offense the whole game, so you’ve got to continue to play the whole game.”

Martinez on the importance of fundamental tackling…
“In the second half, we missed tackles. We gave up a lot of big plays. We can’t do that. You’ve got to make them work for it. That’s the biggest key for us.”

The mental aspect

Boling on how cut blocks begin to frustrate defenders…
“When you start cutting a guy, they get aggravated when you’re all over their knees and things like that. It’s frustrating, and you don’t want the offensive linemen doing that to you. So they start easing off a little bit and you can tell they’re not rushing as hard.”

Curran on the dangers of loosing up as the game progresses…
“Going into the game, we thought we had a good grasp on it, and if you look at the start of the game, we were doing fine. But once guys started to relax and weren’t wrapping up or a guy forgets the pitch or forgets the dive, that’s when they get those big yardage gains off of your mistakes. So it’s not even really necessarily what they’re doing. It could be you shooting yourself in the foot.”

Martinez on maintaining perspective…
“You can’t get frustrated. You can’t. A 5-yard-gain play could be a really great play for us. If you tackle them and you did everything right, you get up and do it again. You can’t get frustrated.”

Garner on avoiding frustration against the option…
“That’s what you’ve got to guard against. You guard against frustration, and you’ve got to play football. Obviously in their scheme, that’s what they do, they cut block. We’ve spent a lot of time this week working on cut blocks, keeping our feet back, and just focus on playing football. We can’t get so consumed with that that you’re not attacking, you’re not getting off the ball, you’re sitting there waiting and playing cautious. That’s what you don’t want to do. You want to go out there and play your game.”

Dobbs on Georgia’s mentality this week…
“It’s been the emphasis all year. We’ve looked to this game and tried to prepare for it mentally. We know we had a lot of scrutiny come down on us last year after we lost to Tech, and the only way to redeem ourselves is after this win.”

Deleted Scenes: Problems on the Ground

I have a story in today's Telegraph on what's been ailing Georgia's running game. There was plenty of info I couldn't squeeze into the story though, so I figured we should post it here.

Mark Richt on what needs to happen to get the running game going...
"We definitely need to run block better. I actually think we’ve pass protected pretty well, but we need to run block better, and that includes tight ends. There are times that the offensive line does it and the tight ends get tossed around. Every once in a while we’ll have everything blocked to the T, then the fullback takes an edge off a linebacker and doesn’t go right down the heart of a guy. When they get in situations where it’s just one guy, we need yards after contact. So it’s a little bit of everything right now in the running game."

Joe Cox on how much the lack of a running game hurts the ability to open up the playbook...
“You can tell that it does affect us a little bit because we’re getting stuck in third-and-long situations. If you want to run the ball on first and second down, you have to get yourself in a manageable third down. We didn’t do that in the first half. I don’t really think it’s a problem, but it’s something we’ve got to focus on it this week and get it right.”

Cox on the problems with the running game...
“I think there’s been times where, you’re not going to be able to block every run play completely right and just go to the house for a touchdown, especially when you play good defenses. LSU had a fantastic defense, especially in their front seven. You’re not going to be able to just stone those guys. I think there’s been instances of the line having a missed assignment or maybe not holding on to a block long enough, then there’s been times where backs have missed the hole. It’s not like there’s one huge problem, it’s everybody executing on the same play instead of having somebody miss something on every single one of them. It’s something that we’ve just got to execute better.”

Cox on whether it's harder to not have a true No. 1 tailback...
“I would like to say it’s not, but it does help when you have a guy like that and people have to be worried about the run. The run game opens up everything else, especially in our offense. We need to do a better job of executing our run plays so it can affect our run plays when we do play-action pass. We’re not worried about having one guy get all the carries in a game, but we’ve got to be able to execute better with the guys we do have.”

Cox on Washaun Ealey's pass blocking...
“Like any freshman, you’ve got to every now and then help them out and remind them, but his technique’s good and he’s a strong kid.”

Cox on handling Ealey's first taste of playing time...
“I had no clue. It was pretty funny. The first thing I thought was, great, now I’ve got to go out here and make sure he knows what to do on every play. But he looked comfortable. We didn’t want to get in there and be telling him all this stuff. I was just like, leave him alone and let him run. He knows what he’s doing and I think he’s going to get a lot of confidence from that experience.”

(*Note, he was laughing about the "make sure he knows what to do" comment.)

Cox on whether it's the line or the tailbacks that has been the problem...
“I think there’s been instances of both. We’re not going to get 10 yards a carry every time we touch the ball, but there’s been opportunities for better runs and there are times when there hasn’t been opportunities to run. It’s been a little bit of both and it’s something that we’ve got to work on. You can see when our running game did start to pick up, everything else started clicking.”

Rennie Curran on seeing Ealey develop in practice...
“Those first couple weeks of practice, he wasn’t running the ball as tough. You could tell he was kind of nervous going against the starters. He was trying to measure himself or worried about whether he was going to get hit hard. But after a while, he stopped caring and started running hard and he lost that fear, which has made the biggest difference in his game. He’s matured a lot as a player in a short amount of time.”

Curran on Ealey's ability...
“You can feel it when you hit him. He’s a big boy that I feel like can carry the load. Some freshmen, you look at them and you can tell that it’s going to take another year. You can tell with him that if he just gets that mental side right, he’s going to be a great player.”

Washaun Ealey on whether he was surprised to play this year...
“At first I was thinking they were going to redshirt me, but they kept telling me to keep practicing hard and learning the plays and that I’d play.”

Ealey on wearing Knowshon Moreno's number...
“It’s some big shoes to fill, but they just gave me a number and I just rolled with it. I was hoping to get No. 3 but a senior, Bryan Evans, he got it.”

Ealey on what he thought when he first found out he'd wear No. 24...
“I really didn’t want it at first because I knew I had big shoes to fill. And with my name being Washaun and his name being Knowshon, I knew I’d get a lot of comparisons. But I just rolled with it.”

Ealey on his first taste of action...
“I was nervous at first but when I got in the huddle, Joe was there encouraging me telling me to just play ball.”

Ealey on putting his successful high school career behind him...
“It was very hard for me to just leave it behind, but I know I’m on a different level right now and everybody’s good.”

Ealey on his performance in his first game...
“I did pretty well, but I think I could do a lot better. It’s hard to say I did well because we lost, but in the future, I think that’ll change.”

Deleted Scenes: Rantavious Wooten

In case you haven't read it yet, I have a story in today's Telegraph on the development of freshman receiver Rantavious Wooten. After earning just one snap in the first two games, Wooten has seen his playing time increase dramatically in the past two weeks, including hauling in two crucial third-down receptions against Arizona State.

While the story turned out to be much longer than I'd hoped, I didn't come close to getting all my Wooten-isms in. So, here's a few more snippets from my interview with him, for your reading pleasure…

David Hale: I know you're fast, but there are certainly a few other speedsters on this team, including Bryan Evans and Branden Smith. So, who's fastest?

Rantavious Wooten: There are some fast guys, but running routes during one-on-ones, I feel like I can compete with whoever they say the fastest is, I feel like I’m right there with them.

DH: You've been praised for your route-running pretty much since Day 1. How did you get so good at it?

RW: I learned on my own how to do things. I do a lot of studying of guys like Percy Harvin and Desean Jackson. That’s who I really look at to see how they run their routes and think about would I run my routes the same way. Just be smart and think, if I was a DB, what would I do to him. I think about it that way and then do the opposite of what he’s doing.

DH: What was it like against Arkansas when you finally got some real playing time?

RW: It was pretty good. Of course I was nervous. It was a great environment and the fans were rocking. But to get out there, getting my first hit, it loosened me up a little bit. After that, it kept rolling, my confidence was way up because I wasn’t expecting to play that much. Everything is just falling into place now.

DH: Tell me about your first catch. It looked like you had a little hitch in your route, but you recovered and hauled in a long one right near the sideline.

RW: The way we usually run it at practice is to wait until the last second and he throws it over the opposite-side shoulder, so that’s what I was really trying to do was try to keep my line and stay close as long as possible and then look back at the ball and separate at the end.

DH: What has it been like earning more playing time while Marlon (Brown) is still waiting?

RW: Marlon’s just working. We know things will happen, and we both need work as freshman. We’re both working hard and just pushing each other in practice. We’re going to get there no matter what, and hopefully he’ll get more playing time and I’ll get more playing time.

DH: Has Marlon kept a good attitude despite not seeing much action?

RW: He’s not discouraged or anything. He knows what he needs to work on, just like I know what I need to work on. Everything Coach asks him to do, he’s doing, and his time is going to come. He’s that ideal receiver that’s got the body, the vertical, the hands. He’s going to get there, he’s just got to apply himself.

DH: A.J. Green has obviously been a big topic of conversation this week, and everyone I ask says that they don't even make a big deal about his great catches anymore since they see him do it in practice so often. You weren't around him last year, so I'm curious, is it still impressive to you when you see him make some of those grabs?

RW: Every time I see him make a great catch like that, it’s never, ‘OK, he just made that catch.’ I’m always excited. Every time he makes a catch, I’m excited. I’m on the sideline pointing to him. Everybody else will be like, ‘Yeah, he caught it.’ I’m like, ‘Wow, did you see how he caught that?’ Even though I see him make that kind of catch a lot, it still has that ‘Wow’ factor for me.

DH: OK, I have to ask you about the YouTube clips with your high school highlights. The "Wooten da ball carrier" stuff… it's like those Free Credit Report commercials. It's so annoying, yet so catchy. What do you think about it?



RW: When I first posted it on YouTube, people were commenting on it, but they weren’t leaving comments about the video itself. They were leaving comments about the narrator. They were talking about the announcer and how bad he sucked and what he kept saying. I was like, ‘Man, he’s going to start something with this.’ Every comment was ‘Wooten da ball carrier,’ or ‘He may go.’ It looked like it came up here, too, and that’s what people are saying now.

DH: So have you spoken with the Georgia PA guy to see if you can get that call made during games here?

RW: I haven’t talked to him yet about that. I don’t plan to. But the more I get involved in the offense and the more I touch the ball, I’m pretty sure that it’ll carry over.

DH: Well, despite the lack of 'Wooten da ball carrier' references last week, you did get a nice cheer of 'Woooooot' from the crowd after your first catch. How'd that make you feel?

RW: It was crazy. I didn’t know what to think. I was excited because I knew that the fans had accepted me now. It just felt great. It was amazing, and I walked off the field smiling.

Deleted Scenes: Georgia's Leadership

I feel like I've probably written a bit too much about the Bulldogs' improved attitude this offseason, but hey, whan you've got to find 8 months worth of stories without a game being played, you've got to come up with material from somewhere, right?

Anyway, I think the newsworthy stuff from my story in today's Telegraph are the quotes, particularly Mark Richt's mention that this team might have the best leadership of any he has coached. Still, there were plenty of quotes that didn't make it into the story, so I figured I should post them here...

Rennie Curran on the team's attitude...
“It’s been night and day with the morale of the team, the attitude of the guys. Whether it’s running 10 hundreds or whatever, everybody’s just focusing on doing whatever it takes. It’s great to have all the guys buy in and know that when they come to Butts-Mehre, it’s time to work, that they separate the work from the play.”

Curran on what has changed...
“I feel like we have just a lot of hungry guys who are ready to get out there and make things happen. You look at the guys who left and the guys who are replacing them – Brandon Boykin for Asher Allen, Darryl Gamble coming in there for Dannell, Bryan Evans – these are guys who have been waiting to get the opportunity and are just hungry and excited about wearing the ‘G’ and are dedicated. I’m excited. Whenever we step out on the field as a defense, it’s a good feeling knowing I’ve got guys who are as dedicated as I am and want us to win as much as possible.”

Curran on what the coaches did to create more leadership...
“Coaches have always been trying to get us to understand it’s not about how many times they tell us certain things, it’s when we as players take charge and take that leadership to get better. Right now, I think we’re in a position where we realize all those things they’ve been saying, all the things it’s going to take to make us successful.”

Michael Moore on the personality of last year's team...
“We were a team full of stars and I guess they’re trying to say we didn’t handle it the right way. I don’t want to say that, but maybe we should have taken a different approach.”

John Lilly on how Richt tried to shape the personality of this year's team...
“Coach Richt really set the tone early in the offseason, and he would continually remind everyone that the star of this team is going to be the team. You think about a lot of great teams that there have been throughout the last several years and in many cases the teams that won national championships, it was hard to really pinpoint a guy that really stood out or was a do-it-all guy. That’s probably where it started, and he’s tried to make a point of emphasizing that. But then the players have to buy into that with a very unselfish and team-oriented attitude. We’ve got a lot of guys who have won a lot since they’ve been around here. The guys that just got here want to win. I think they know what it’s going to take to get that done.”

Mark Richt on how the team developed new leadership...
“A group of men just decided they wanted to make a difference in leadership, especially our seniors, and there’s just been a very strong buy-in.”

Richt on what the leadership has been like this year vs. others...
“I think we have a lot of strong leaders this year, and Rennie is certainly one of them. I really like what Evans has done. Prince Miller, Reshad, Gamble, Jeffrey, Geno, Rod Battle and of course Rennie. A lot of guys are really making a point to be leaders. It’s outstanding. Rennie is a big part of it, but some years, quite frankly, that leader is outnumbered. It looks like an overwhelming task. But Rennie’s got a bunch of guys like him that are very motivated to do well, do it the Georgia way, do it the way the coach says, and they’re the quality control at practice as much as the coaches are. And that’s what I told the guys, as much as we can be a player-driven team, then the coaches don’t have to spend as much time driving you and can spend time teaching and guiding you. You’d rather be taught and guided than pushed. So if you can find a way to motivate from within, coaches can spend a lot more time teaching.”

Richt on how much of a role the coaches have in developing leaders...
“We have a huge hand in that. It’s our job to cultivate the culture that we’re after, and it’s up to us to recruit the type of players that are going to buy in to the Georgia way. We have to understand that on the front end. Some guys, quite frankly, got it before they got here or had a very strong bent to be a leader. A guy like Rennie, Rennie showed up, loved Georgia, worked hard, was going to do what Coach said from Day 1. With some guys, you have to develop that trust. Some guys need to learn how to work. Some guy need to learn what the Georgia way means. It’s a culmination of that kind of thing, but once you get the culture right, you hope it will continue. This year, maybe more than any year that I can remember, if the young guys watch the old guys and say that’s the way to do it, we’ll continue to have a great culture on this team.”

Deleted Scenes: Curran's Leadership

If you checked out the blog yesterday and read my post on Rennie Curran, you already know I had a story in today's Telegraph on the Georgia linebacker.

But even between the story in the paper and the post yesterday, I still had plenty of good quotes left over, so I figured they were worth posting here. So, here ya go...

Chase Vasser on Rennie's leadership...
"He's very intense, but when I make mistakes, I try not to get down on myself because I want to be perfect, but he's the first person to come to me and tell me to relax. He's a true leader."

Nick Williams on what Rennie brings to the defense...
"Truthfully, every play before the play, you think, oh man, I've got to be on my Ps and Qs. I have to be on top of my game. You have a guy like Rennie, and every play he's going hard. He's running hard, you know he's going to be in the right spot at the right time. When I'm out on the field, I'm just like, I'm going to match Rennie. I'm going to run to the ball, do the little things, work on my technique. It's amazing to see his field presence. I can just play fast because he'll call out everybody. He'll tell them all the calls so I can just play fast."

Williams on whether it's worse to be corrected by Rennie or Coach Jancek...
"I think I'd say Rennie because he'll tell me, 'Man, you've got to get that right.' Coach is going to coach you regardless, whether you're doing right or doing bad. You might think you had the perfect play, but the coach is going to tell you you need to fix this or fix that. But Rennie, But it's rewarding though."

Rennie Curran on what it's like to be a star now...
"When I go back to high school, little kids ask me for my autograph. It's kind of a surreal feeling to go back and experience that when you've always been that young kid. Even when I walk through the mall and see my jerseys hanging up, it's like, wow, I really have come a long way. I have a good family, and it hasn't changed me. I'm still the same guy. I still keep the same people around and everything. It's a good feeling to just come up here and work hard and just see the fruits."

Curran on being snubbed by many preseason All-SEC lists...
"It definitely gives you a little bit of motivation to know that people might not respect you as much as you think they should, but at the end of the day, you're just trying to win those games. If the offense is doing well, the defense is doing well and we're winning games, that respect is going to come. The lists that they're making because their teams made it far. They made it to the SEC championship, to the national championship. We can't expect to get respected when my defense isn't producing and people are getting 40 points on us. That's how it works."

Curran on how he feels about the Bulldogs' successful offseason...
"It's a real proud feeling to know where we came from last year and how much that affected our season and how we all responded. The leadership helped people realize why we came here – and that was to go to school, play football and hopefully make a living for yourself one day. We just realized that and refocused and come in day in and day out and handle whatever task we were faced with."

Curran on the morale of this year's team vs. last year...
"It's been night and day with the morale of the team, the attitude of the guys. Whether it's running 10 hundreds or whatever, everybody's just focusing on doing whatever it takes. It's great to have all the guys buy in and know that when they come to Butts-Mehre, it's time to work, that they separate the work from the play."

Curran on his goals for this season...
"Really my goal is just to pretty much be as perfect as I can on the field and continue to improve on the field. I don't really care about how many tackles I have or anything, but if I'm doing the right thing to help the team, that's the main thing. I don't want to be the guy to mess up that causes a loss. That's everything to me is just to be a productive player so I can say I helped contribute. It really wouldn't matter if I was first team or scout team, as long as I know I contributed to this team and I got better every single day."

Deleted Scenes: Football & Family for Murray Brothers

In today's Telegraph, I have a story on the close relationship between Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray and his brother, Josh, who is a walk-on safety this season.

It's a pretty long piece, but I didn't come anywhere close to using all the material I had. So, if you're still interested in reading more about Aaron and Josh, here are a bunch of quotes that didn't make the cut for the story...

Mark Richt on what he thinks about Josh and Aaron playing together...
"It's neat that they're both here together. Josh hasn't played football in a long time, but he hasn't lost his desire to hit somebody. I think it's wonderful to have them both on the same campus, and that never would have happened if they'd done it the normal way. But here's a guy that plays pro baseball and sits out long enough that now he's on the same college football team as his brother."

Richt on Josh's impact...
"He's a mature guy. You can see him, he has a heart for people and wants to help other guys out. He knows he's young in the system and learning everything, but he's mature, much more mature than most first-year guys. I think guys like him, know he cares about Georgia, cares about them, and he's doing a good job."

Joe Cox on the relationship between Josh and Aaron...
"It's really weird because I look at how old Josh is compared to Aaron. That's like me with my brother. My brother, I mean, I wouldn't say we were competitors because he was so much older than me, but he used to beat me at every single thing we did. So I'm sure his brother made him tough too. Being the type of older brother he is I'm sure he stayed on him, played against him and made him a better player."

Cox on what kind of impact Josh can have on Aaron...
"You can tell how close they are. Some people it might get them in trouble if they had a family member close by. You can tell that family is a real tight knit family and that Aaron looks up to his older brother. And Josh cares a lot about Aaron. I think it's a good thing for him to have his brother here."

Aaron Murray on what brought Josh to Georgia...
"It didn't start until I was up here or right before I left. In December we started talking about it a little bit. The longer I was up here, he came up to visit a couple times and liked it up here. He was still looking forward to going to college and was trying to figure out if he wanted to go to USF or Florida or Florida State or something like that. He really liked it up here and he thought it would be nice for him to come up here with me since I was so far away from home, and I guess the idea popped up that if he was going to come up here, he might as well walk on."

Aaron on whether Josh has intercepted him yet...
"Not yet. He deflected one pass in the summer in a seven-on-seven session. But other than that I haven't gone up against him too many times."

Aaron on his parents' reaction to Josh being at Georgia...
"They're extremely happy. They have an excuse to come visit us now, and you never know, my sister might come up here, too. So if all three of us are up here my parents might have to move up here. I think they enjoy having the opportunity to come and hang out with both of us at the same time."

Aaron on what it's like to have Josh around...
"It's like having a friend here. We're extremely close. We hang out all the time. I'll go to his apartment and we'll play Wii golf all day or go play racquetball or basketball. We always hang out."

Josh Murray on the decision to come to Georgia...
"For me, I'm very close to my family, and that was one of the reasons I stopped playing baseball was to be close to my family, to see my brother grow up, see my sister grow up. Another thing was that I always had such a passion for football, and finally the moment came when I thought, I still have a couple of years of eligibility left, I need to do something, I really want to play football. We talked about it a little bit, and I said to Aaron, I don't want to go up there and play if it's going to be a distraction to you. He said, ‘Oh, no, definitely come up here to play.' Orson wanted me to play, Aaron wanted me to play, and it kind of came down to a family decision. It's Aaron's show now. I had my time, now it's his turn to do his thing. But the decision was definitely one of the best I've made. It's awesome up here in Athens."

Josh on his baseball career...
"It was frustrating to say the least. I was drafted to play with the Brewers, and there were a lot of high expectations. Unfortunately, some injuries and just a loss of passion for some reason. Being away from family was tough, but I think I kind of got burned out with baseball. I'd been playing my whole life. Once I got to the Brewers, I did real well in spring training, but once the grind of the season came in, the passion left, and you've really got to love the game to play. I just didn't love it anymore, and I was forcing myself to play for four or five years just because of what they did for me. One year they even let me go home to try to get my act together, but the passion just wasn't there. It's really hard to devote your life to something that you really don't love. So I finally had to make the decision, and I talked with them, they gave me my release, and they said whenever you want to come back, you can come back. But the passion just wasn't there. It's always been for football."

Josh on why he prefers football...
"I'm a very intense person, and my mom never let me get into football when I was younger because she didn't want me to get hurt. But she learned her lessons from her first child, and then Aaron plays football and was very successful. It's just – baseball wasn't as intense for me anymore. It just didn't have that drive and passion. Football, when it came to it, I couldn't keep saying that my mom never let me get into football. I just need to go out there and take advantage of the opportunity. It's tough throwing myself out there, especially when I haven't played in like 10 years. But I knew if I didn't, I'd regret it the rest of my life. I still have a lot of ability and if I don't put it to use, I'm really disrespecting God."

Josh on the feedback he got from coaches...
"I talked to Coach Martinez quite a bit, and I think he was excited. He saw the passion that I had. It's just very nice coming up here and playing with a team. I'm out here all the time. It was tough playing with the Brewers because it was kind of an individual thing, but it's nice with a team. I wanted to be part of a team atmosphere again, and I'm going to dedicate all my efforts to this. It's exciting, and it's nice being out here."

Josh on his impact on Aaron...
"I hope it doesn't distract him so much, but I hope it's nice for him. It's nice for me having family up here because it's always tough when you're away from family for too long. I hope it's going well for him. I'm trying to stay away and let him do his own thing. But he'll come over and we'll play a little Wii sometimes and just hang out and bond as brothers. He's my best friend, too, so it's nice for me to have him up here as well."

Deleted Scenes: Uphill Battle for Freshmen QBs

While a lot of the focus this fall has been on the battle for a starting tailback job that may not really exist, I've found the competition at quarterback to be a pretty interesting saga. I think the coaches would like to be able to give some playing time to one of the two freshmen just to give them some separation for the future, but at the same time, Logan Gray has played really well, and Mark Richt says he's not likely to play three QBs.

So... what's going to happen? I have a story in today's Telegraph on how the battle is shaping up and how quickly Aaron Murray and Zach Mettenberger have gotten acclimated to life in the SEC. Not all of the quotes I got for the story made it into the paper, however, so the rest are here...

Mark Richt on the QB competition for the No. 2 job...
"Logan is in a strong position right now, but it just takes a while to get enough reps to really get a feel for it. We've really got to get a gauge of where Zach and Aaron are as far as their knowledge and comfort level stepping in the huddle and taking charge."

Mettenberger on how the freshmen improved this summer even without coaches around...
"We pretty much have another coach out with us in Joe. He's been here five years, and he knows pretty much everything about the offense. So whenever me and Aaron had a question, we'd just go to him."

Mettenberger on what he needs to do to improve...
"For me and Aaron, we're just going to have to study our tails off to know everything about the offense. We need to know every defense out there. We're kind of a step behind with that compared to Logan, who has been here three years, but whatever happens, happens."

Michael Moore on how the freshmen QBs improved since the spring...
"Them coming in early probably helped them the most coming through spring. They both have a lot of poise and pocket presence. They stay in there and will stick a throw right on the money and be willing to take a hit."

Aaron Murray on what the learning curve is like this fall...
"We pretty much installed the playbook during the spring and then reviewed it over the summer. Joe worked with us over the summer making sure we knew it pretty well. There's some new stuff we've installed, but we've got the basics and we continue to work it every day."

Murray on the importance of having Joe Cox around...
"It was huge. Joe knows the playbook inside and out, so to bounce questions off of him and have him quiz us was very beneficial."

Murray on the hardest obstacle to overcome...
"The speed of the game, I'm still trying to get used to that, but I feel more comfortable and more confident."

Logan Gray on how far along the freshmen QBs are...
"They obviously have not been able to grasp every concept we've thrown at them so far, but if they could do that, they'd be inhuman. There are so many concepts and ideas and things you have to do that no matter how hard you study, there's going to be things that will take a while to get a hold of."

Gray on what the work over the summer did for the freshmen QBs...
"I think it's been a chance for them to get better, especially when you have guys that really want to get better. You can see the difference from the first day of spring practice when they first got here to the first day of camp where they actually have a good idea and know some of what they're doing."

Mike Bobo on what he needs to see from the freshmen QBs...
"They've got to be able to step in the huddle and run a good portion of our offense. Are they going to know everything that's going on? No, but they've got to have the confidence that they can get in there and play – behind the hedges, not just out at practice when I'm standing by helping them with every little thing. They've got to show the leadership even though they're young to lead those other 10 guys in the huddle, and they've got to show the ability to get it done."

Bobo on what he's seen from the freshmen since the spring...
"Both of them are very conscientious, both of them have studied extremely hard and have a better grasp of what we're doing. There's still a little bit of confusion because we've installed a whole new set of plays and we're really not repeating anything."

Deleted Scenes: Lessons Learned by the Defense

I have a story in today's Telegraph on the lessons the defense learned after last year's disappointments. There were a bunch of quotes I couldn't squeeze into the story, though, so here they are...

Jeff Owens on what the defense needs to improve on the most...
"Two things I believe need to happen -- stopping the run and turnovers. If you stop the run, you force teams to pass and make teams do something they don't want to do. When you get turnovers, the offense has more chances to put points on the board."

Owens on the lack of togetherness on last year's D...
"I can remember last year when I was hurt, it felt like I wasn't a part of the team. I wasn't at practice, I wasn't on the bus, I didn't go to the games. You felt like you were disconnected from everyone, and a lot of the guys who were injured felt the same way. This year more guys have come together, and last year the injuries did affect us."

Owens on the lessons to take from last year...
"The one thing I want to take from last year is working on our consistency. Some days we played good, some we played bad. I think to be successful both on the field and off the field, you've got to be consistent, so that's what we're working on."

Demarcus Dobbs on being motivated by last year's problems...
"It's hard not to use people talking bad about you as fuel. It's always in the back of our minds how we struggled last year, how we struggled on defense. We have a tradition, and we want to hold up our end of the deal and pull our weight."

Reshad Jones on how last year influenced this offseason...
"It was a really big motivator. We knew how many points we gave up, and we knew what we had to work toward and what we had to correct in order to be successful."

Rennie Curran on the importance of unity in the locker room...
"You want to have that camaraderie, that unity, it just helps -- especially in those tough times when things get close and adversity strikes. You want to have guys that trust each other, that know when times get hard, you've got each other's back."

Curran on what it means to have everyone stay out of trouble during the offseason...
"It's a real proud feeling to know where we came from last year and how much that affected our season and how we all responded. The leadership helped people realize why we came here -- and that was to go to school, play football and hopefully make a living for yourself one day. We just realized that and refocused and come in day in and day out and handle whatever task we were faced with."

Curran on the different feeling surrounding this year's D...
"It's been night and day with the morale of the team, the attitude of the guys. Whether it's running 10 hundreds or whatever, everybody's just focusing on doing whatever it takes. It's great to have all the guys buy in and know that when they come to Butts-Mehre, it's time to work, that they separate the work from the play."

Bryan Evans on how the seniors made a plan for the offseason...
"Our senior leaders on defense started it by having more meetings in the offseason. Our freshmen right now are way ahead of where we were when we came in. We met almost every day during the offseason, just trying to get the basics down, so now all they have to do is learn the in-depth part. We won't have to focus on things we already learned, we can just keep going smooth."

Willie Martinez on the defense's leadership...
"This year they've done a great job since January. I like our leadership. We're trying to be flexible, figure out who are the guys, develop a two-deep, but I think our leadership is pretty solid with guys like Rennie Curran and Jeff Owens in the middle of your defense. We're just trying to develop more depth and see where we'll be Sept. 5."

Deleted Scenes: Georgia's Mentor Program

One of the biggest changes this offseason for Georgia has been a new dedication on the part of the team's veterans on teaching the younger players rather than simply letting the coaches do the coaching. I have an article in today's Macon Telegraph on how the new attitude has helped both the older guys and the new freshmen.

After you're done reading the article, check out these additional quotes from players about the emphasis on mentoring this offseason.

Fullback Shaun Chapas on the team-first mentality...
"I think this team's very united. We all love each other and we have good chemistry on the team. And I know that we all really care about each other, what we do on and off the field."

Defensive end Kiante Tripp on the different feel of this offseason...
"From the time I've been here, I'd have to say that this has been a real successful summer in that I've never seen the guys work as hard as we've been working. Everybody's out there working. It's a good environment to be around to prepare for the season."

Tripp on the team's new mantra...
"In order for us to be successful, we've got to be a team and help each other out. It's a team thing, and we've got to work together. Mark Richt said the star of the team is the team, and we took that and have run with it."

Linebacker Akeem Dent on the offseason philosophy...
"It started in the weight room. All of them came in and were really willing to work. We've had a lot of guys who when we go into the film room, they're already ready, they have pens and pencils to take notes, and we're ready to teach them."

Dent on this offseason compared to past ones...
"Now compared to when I got here, there's more guys willing to go out and teach, teach the whole playbook. When they first came in, guys like Mike Gilliard and Chase (Vasser), we started from the basics and then moved on and letting them go out and throw them into the fire to see if they're grasping everything."

Dent on handling the freshmen...
"You have those first time jitters the first time you go out on the field because you don't know what to expect, but me, Darryl Gamble, Rennie, we're out there and we critique them on everything, even if it's something minor because we want them to do it the best way."

Running back Carlton Thomas on the difference between this year and last...
"Everybody's just become more hands-on. You can just see it in every unit. Everybody has this focus, everybody's pushing each other, everybody's trying to learn more. We're getting in there to watch film, and that's something we really didn't do a lot of before. A lot of units are even coming in in the mornings to watch film. And it's not just a couple guys trying to improve each other. It's like everybody's on the focus of, if I can get my unit better, it's going to help the team."

Thomas on the attitude this year...
"Since mat drills we've been saying the thing, the star of the team is the team. It's been a team thing, and we want to be a player-driven team. That's basically been what it's been. Nobody's being forced. We're just coming out here and doing extra work."

Wide receiver Michael Moore on interacting with the youngsters...
"Everybody knew we had to step up as leaders. We all know how hard it is to come in as a freshman, and this year we're depending on everybody for success. When I knew Wooten and Marlon were coming in, even on Facebook before they got here, they were asking questions, and it's just good to see. Orson's asking me questions every day. And when you have players that want to learn, it makes it easier for us."

Moore on his experiences as a freshman...
"It was a lot different. The senior class that we had, everybody was more established. Everybody to me was more trying to get their own stuff together. This year, we're trying to take it as more of a team, because we need the younger guys. You don't want them to shy away. You want them to be able to perform and be able to compete with you."

Moore on dealing with the new freshmen...
"Sometimes it's funny because when you try to explain things to them, they're still looking at you like you're talking to a brick wall. So sometimes you need to take a step back and break it down for them from point A to point B to point C. You can't just go from A to C. The guys that we have now, they're real smart and they're picking it up real fast."

Wide receiver Kris Durham on teaching teammates...
"Sometimes you have to tell them what they did wrong and get in their face to explain it to them. Yeah, it might make them mad, but everybody realizes that you're trying to make them better."

Durham on learning lessons from last season...
"We've discussed what happened last year, and we're trying to move on and learn from it. Everyone's just trying to build off of what works."

Deleted Scenes: Potpouri Edition

When I went down to Destin, Fla. after Memorial Day, I opened a new Microsoft Word document for transcribing interviews. Since then, I've used the same file for pretty much every interview I've done, but I think we've reached a point -- some 17,000 words later -- in which it's time to move on to a new document.

But when that happens, I like to go back through the quotes I didn't use for whatever reason -- either they didn't fit in the stories I wrote or they just didn't warrant a full story -- and put them into one blog post for you to review. So, here's all the extras from the past six weeks or so, starting with the SEC meetings and ending with last week's player interviews...

Auburn coach Gene Chizik on the fighting between coaches this offseason...
"I can only comment from me. When things need to be said, I say them. When they don't need to be said, I keep quiet. I just call it like it is when I need to call it. I don't feel like things always need to be said on my behalf so I choose my words. That's the way I've always been. I've got so much more to worry about on my plate, I can't worry about what anybody else is saying. I don't pay attention to what's going on out there. I don't get validated by other people, outside resources. I can't speak intelligently about anybody except for Auburn."

Running back Richard Samuel on how he's improved since last season...
"I feel like I've learned a lot from last year, going out there playing and getting some experience, learning the schemes and playing against bigger and faster guys."

Tennessee basketball coach Bruce Pearl on coaches like Georgia's Dennis Felton getting fired midseason...
"If I'm on the hot seat and I'm trying to keep that team together – you've got to win your team over every single year at every level. The more you're losing, the harder it is, and if you add on top of that the fact that you can lose your job in the middle of the year – which now has become a popular option – I think it sets a terrible standard that fans and student athletes have a lot more influence over a decision."

Wide receiver Michael Moore on taking on a leadership role....
"Me and Mo, we felt that was something that needed to change with the young guys being taken care of by the older guys, and it started last year with T.K. and A.J. You saw what happened last year with A.J., coming out of high school and he basically tore the SEC apart. And you kind of feel good about yourself when you look and say you taught him this or that, and now he's out there doing it. It's going to be the same thing with Wooten and Marlon."

Moore on how the receivers need to prepare this offseason...
"We've got to be conditioned. We're going to have to run all game, and we need to make sure our bodies don't wear down."

Linebacker Rennie Curran on how the middle linebacker position might shake out...
"(Akeem) Dent is still playing some Sam, too. Coach (John) Jancek is trying to make sure we get as much crossover training as possible, so he spreads it out a little bit. But thankfully we've got a good amount of depth there."

Linebacker Akeem Dent on his approach to playing linebacker...
"I just basically go out and try to give it my all. Sometimes other guys might make the plays, but it's just like playing D line where the D lineman gets the pressure and the guy who gets the interception gets all the credit for it. So I'm just trying to go out there and help the team."

Offensive lineman Vince Vance on last year's loss to Georgia Tech...
"It was just disappointment. They're all hard to swallow. In the SEC, nobody likes losing, and the losses aren't any good no matter how you look at it."

Linebacker Marcus Dowtin on the depth at linebacker this year...
"We've got a really athletic group of linebackers that can contribute in all different types of ways, so Coach Jancek, I hope he'll have a good time using us."

Wide receiver Tavarres King on injured receiver Kris Durham...
"We watch film a couple days a week and he's in there with the young guys coaching them up. He's a smart kid, and he's getting those guys ready."

Quarterback Joe Cox on what he's seen from freshmen receivers Marlon Brown and Rantavious Wooten...
"They both look good and all the freshmen that have come in that I've seen so far have the ability to help this year. It's just going to depend on who's ready by the time the season rolls around to contribute."

Left tackle Trinton Sturdivant on how the line will handle the lack of pass blocking tight ends on Georgia's roster...
"I don't think that we are looking for the pressure. I know it's going to come, but we're hoping that Arthur Lynch or Orson Charles or Aron can come in and be able to block with the best, and if not you can always put a backup offensive lineman over there. But I don't feel the tight end spot is going to be that big of a drop off, but we won't really find out until camp starts."

Sturdivant on the Bulldogs' team-first approach...
"From looking at the team them and now, I feel like now we are placed with pressure on ourselves. We're not dependent on Stafford or Knowshon or Massaquoi to just score us 100 points. We're putting it on ourselves to do what we have to do to win."

Samuel on the running back competition right now...
"We don't even really pay attention to it or talk about it or anything. We just go out there and try to help each other out. If we see someone doing something wrong, we try to help them. We know it's competition in the back of our heads, but we don't see it like that. We're just trying to do the best we can."

Defensive tackle Jeff Owens on the mental side of recovering from a serious injury...
"That's with any injury. If you had a car accident, you'd be afraid to get into a car again. Everyone has that mental block, so you just have to fight through it and just prepare because you know what's going to happen. Just go out and play, and try not to focus on it."

Linebacker Marcus Washington on Joe Cox's ability to motivate the team...
"You've got to be able to talk to be a coach and mean what you say and say what you mean. He's a commanding guy, and when he says something, you know Joe means it."

Defensive end Demarcus Dobbs on Cox's attitude...
(on Joe Cox) "He's always positive. No matter what, he's a positive guy. On the field or off the field, he's the kind of person you want to be around. We've been friends for a while and he just brings the best out of people and that's what you want in a leader."

Dobbs on players without starting experience, like Cox, taking leadership roles...
"No, not at all, There are plenty of people behind the scenes that lead the team that nobody ever hears about because they aren't on the field making plays. Even though he's been behind people, Joe's been playing a leadership role. This is just another opportunity for Joe. Everyone talked the same way when David Greene left, and look what D.J. (Shockley) did."

Cornerback Branden Smith on working with A.J. Green....
"It's going to work out good because he's going to be giving me tips because I'm his teammate. We both want to win, and to make me better, I'm going to be learning from him. Looking at him, following what he does, it's going to make me better on both sides of the ball."

Smith on playing on both sides of the ball this season...
"Wherever Coach Richt wants me to play, that's where I'll play. He knows what it's going to take to win, and that's what I'm all about. I want to win, and it doesn't matter how many interceptions I have or any touchdowns, it's all about winning and having fun. All I'm thinking about is putting a 'W' on the board."

Moore on the focus on fundamentals from new receivers coach Tony Ball...
"I think it's going to help out everybody. Without your technique, you can't do too much. If you can't separate from the DB, you're not going to be able to catch the ball. Especially with a new quarterback behind center, everybody has to work on their technique to be that much better and get open for him."

Defensive end Kiante Tripp on the recovery of lineman Trinton Sturdivant...
"Trinton looks good out there conditioning-wise and stuff like that. He's running better and it seems like his knee's not bothering him as much as it was at first, so he looks pretty good."

Dent on the competition for playing time at middle linebacker...
"All of us, we're real curious about how things are going to play out, but it's going to come down to who's going to have a good camp, and who's willing to go out on a limb and be the toughest guy out there. And I know all of us are going to go out there and compete for that job."

Tailback Carlton Thomas on what he accomplished this spring...
"I think I put myself in a very good spot to open some coaches' eyes and let them know I can do some things, that I am a tough runner, that I can get the yards that they need and I can make plays."

Wide receiver Israel Troupe on the lack of depth at receiver this season...
"We look at it as an opportunity, but the only thing that would put a damper on it would be if someone gets hurt and we don't have anyone else to step in."

Tavarres King on having Orson Charles and Branden Smith playing part-time at receiver...
"It's really not odd at all. They're tremendous athletes and I feel like they can play anywhere. Orson's awesome, Branden can run like a gazelle, so I feel like it's nothing for them."

King on the attitude Charles brings...
"He's always ready to go. You can tell he's got his head on his shoulders. He's focused, he's excited, and he's a smooth cat."

Deleted Scenes: Marcus Washington

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. I hope you've gotten a chance to enjoy your weekend, and ideally a few of you made it out to the All Pro Dad event in Athens yesterday. Bernie's Dawg Blawg has some pictures from his trip with the fam.

If you haven't perused the newspaper today, I urge you to check out my story on Georgia's family man, Marcus Washington.

Marcus' first son came along when he was still a senior in high school. Both he and his wife, Selecia, had bigger plans for their lives. A kid wasn't supposed to be in the cards. In so many situations like that, the story ends badly. Marcus and Selecia defied the odds.

For any of you who are fathers, I have no doubt you'll have a profound appreciation for all Marcus has done to be a good dad while keeping the rest of his life in order, too. For those of you who aren't, it should give you a good reason to give your dad a call and thank him for all he's done for you.

And while we're on the subject of thank yous, I owe some big ones to Marcus and Selecia for giving up so much of their time for this story. I also want to thank John Jancek, who was on vacation last week but still took the time to talk to me for the story. (Of course, technically I was on vacation, too.)

Anyway, you can read the piece HERE, and after that, here are a bunch of quotes that I got from the principles involved but wasn't able to squeeze into the story...

Marcus Washington on balancing football and family life...
"It gets rough sometimes because it's always a clash with time. Going to school, going to football practice and I've got a part time job – taking all those things into perspective and then coming home and spending time with your family, it's a lot to balance. It's rough, but you just have to keep your priorities straight."

Marcus on why he decided to get married...
"We had been dating since sophomore year in high school. We'd been together for forever it seems. We had our first child when we were in high school. We had been through a lot of stuff together – a lot of ups, a lot of downs – and I just knew she was the one. And if not now, then when? So we went ahead and tied the not, and I'm just trying to do things the right way by my son and by her."

Marcus on his first reactions to learning he was going to have a child...
"I didn't know what was going to go on with my future at that point. When I found out she was pregnant, it was before I had committed to play here. I wasn't sure whether that was going to cost me my scholarship or what. But I told the coaches about it and they said as long as you and her are on good terms and you do right by your son, because for a child, especially a little boy, there's nothing like a father. They supported me, my parents supported me. It was a tough time, especially financially because kids aren't cheap. I really relied a lot on my mom and dad and her parents when we were in high school. Whenever we needed something like diapers or clothes for them, they really kicked in a lot. Now that I'm in college, I've really wanted to take that into my own hands because it's my child, not theirs. So I got my job so whenever he needs something, his dad can get it for him. We don't have to call grandma or granddad."

Marcus on the family environment at Georgia...
"The kids get along great with all the guys. Marcus Jr. calls all the guys on the team 'Uncle.' It's Uncle Rennie or Uncle Knowshon or Uncle Byrd. The coaches' sons, he runs around and plays with them all the time. It's really his own little circle of friends. Just seeing the other coaches with their kids, I was like, OK, this is how I want to do it. I want to take care of my kids like this."

Marcus on living the life of a family man on a college campus...
"Sometimes they say, 'Come on and hang out with the boys.' And I say, 'I can't. I've got to go home and hang out with little Marcus and Samira and the family.' And they understand. They know what I go through. And sometimes they'll come over to the house and I'll put some food on the grill and we'll all chill out with the kids. And if their family's around, they'll bring their family over to the house, too, and we'll have a good time. We just have to find some nice family fun instead of going downtown or things like that."

Marcus on how family has helped him as a football player...
"It makes you realize that you have to be responsible for your actions. Everybody has an assignment, and that's your responsibility. You either did it or you didn't, and there's no excuse. That's the way it is with your kids. You either fed him or you didn't. He's either got clothes or he doesn't. There's no excuses, and that's the way it is on the field and off it. There's no excuses for how you live your life."

Marcus on overcoming the obstacles of being a teenaged parent...
"I never have been the guy to say I told you so. I never really asked to be a role model. I was kind of thrust into that position. But regardless, I try to do the right thing by my family and by my kids. When I hear guys saying they look up to me in a positive fashion, it does make me feel good, but it just solidifies that I'm doing things in the proper manner."

Marcus on how the other players respond to his kids...
"They always come up to me and say if I ever want to go out and do anything, they'll babysit the kids. I get that from just about every guy on the team. It's real nice knowing that I have that support system with all my teammates and that they really do enjoy being around the kids. Every time I come over they always ask where the kids are or where's the wife. They really enjoy hanging out with them and my kids enjoy hanging out with the fellas as well. It's a big old playground over there for them. They go over there and get to run around and there's so many people to play with and so many things to do."

Selecia Washington on her feelings upon learning she was pregnant in high school...
"We both had the same worry because we were both going to college. We were thinking that having a kid at this point in our lives was not the right time. Once we told our parents and we got their support from them, we kind of figured out then that it wasn't going to get in the way of our dreams and what we wanted to do, we got a little more confident about it."

Selecia on handling the criticisms of people at her high school...
"Our teachers didn't agree with it and thought we were being bad role models for our classmates. They actually wrote in the school newspaper about us being bad role models. We felt we were doing the right thing. Whether or not they agreed, that was their problem. We knew we were going to make it."

Selecia on what makes Marcus able to handle so many responsibilities...
"Marcus is very grounded. He doesn't let things get to him. He has a strong value about things and when he sets his mind to do something, he's going to do it. Marcus hates to fail, and he feels like if he doesn't keep things centered, then he's failing. He wants to make sure that we have what we need."

Selecia on having her second child, Samira...
"We were a whole lot better prepared. We were more grounded and had our minds set right. We weren't as young, we weren't in high school and we weren't depending on our parents anymore."

Selecia on the help their family has gotten from Marcus' teammates...
"It made it a whole lot easier. When we first moved here and we were both in school, most of the football players were offering to keep our son around our schedule, making sure someone was available to keep him."

Selecia on whether she is surprised that Marcus has accomplished so much...
"I've always thought that Marcus could excel at whatever he wanted. We've known each other since the fifth grade, so I know him like the back of my hand. Sometimes he surprises me, but I pretty much know what he's capable of doing."

Selecia on what she's learned from raising a family at such a young age...
"I learned that people are going to talk, but you can't let that get to you. Keep the goals in sight that you had before. You don't have to stop your life when you have kids. You can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it as long as you support each other."

Jeff Owens on Marcus' family involvement...
"He always brings his family to practice and workouts. His family is always around here with us. Just like the coaches have their families around, he has his family here."

Owens on Marcus' personality...
"The way he handles his business, he's a quiet guy, but he handles his responsibilities and his family is his No. 1 priority. He's very mature. I think he has his family to support him and he knows that we're here to support him."

Rennie Curran on Marcus' leadership...
"Since I came in, he's not only helped me with football, but off the field with family issues and things like that, I've been able to relate to him and look to him whenever I've had concerns."

Curran on having Marcus' kids around...
"It's cool. We all love his son and his daughter. They're like our kids when they come around. It's an awesome sight to see everything he's accomplished here and what he's going to be able to accomplish and how he can affect his family by what he does here."

John Jancek on what allows Marcus to balance family and football...
"I just think that he has a tremendous amount of respect for his responsibilities as a father and a husband, and I think he takes it seriously. It's not something he views as a burden. He's really passionate, he loves his family. And when you're passionate and you have those types of qualities, it makes it possible for you to balance the two."

Jancek on his feelings toward Marcus...
"Marcus has a responsibility to his family and he also has a responsibility to football. He's done a great job of balancing those two and keeping a great perspective on both, and I'm real proud of him and the direction he's taken. It's been extremely rewarding to me to see him do such a great job as a father and a husband and also as a football player."