Tech’s Dwyer growing on, off the field

Jonathan Dwyer is starting to see the picture.

He is understanding the sort of effort that is being asked of him and the responsibility that comes with his talent.

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Pouya Dianat / pdianat@ajc.com

Georgia Tech running back Jonathan Dwyer’s 1,328 rushing yards were sixth most in school history, and he kept the ACC rushing title at Tech for the third year in a row.

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Blessed with an abundance of football gifts, Dwyer said that he sometimes relies on that talent “instead of using more fundamentals, being more disciplined. Talent can only take you so far.”

Dwyer’s development has hardly been disappointing. The first sophomore in ACC history to be named league player of the year, Dwyer has been the engine of Tech’s unexpected success this season from his B-back position. The Jackets are 9-3 and beat Clemson, Boston College, Florida State and Georgia. They will go for their 10th win Wednesday — something they’ve done twice in the past 52 years — against LSU in the Chick-fil-A Bowl at the Georgia Dome.

“I think at first, Jon didn’t know how to play hard all the time,” said Brian Bohannon, Dwyer’s position coach. “It was something he had to learn and is still learning, but he’s gotten a lot better at it.”

Dwyer hears it everywhere he turns, from coach Paul Johnson, from Bohannon, and from Tashard Choice, the former Tech running back whom Dwyer considers a big brother.

“You don’t get better in games, you get better in practice,” Dwyer said, echoing the advice from Choice, who is now a running back with the Dallas Cowboys. “He told me Calvin (Johnson) was the same way and he tried to be the same way when Calvin left and I’m trying to do the same thing and help everybody else out.”

Dwyer’s 1,328 rushing yards were sixth most in school history, and he kept the ACC rushing title at Tech for the third year in a row. Dwyer’s power and speed make him what Paul Johnson called the prototype for the B-back position in his option-based spread offense.

“You’ve got to do a great job tackling him because he’s a powerful back and he’s got great speed,” said LSU co-defensive coordinator Bradley Dale Peveto, who recruited Dwyer when he was at Kell High School in Cobb County. “If you let him get [through the line of scrimmage], he’s got a chance to go all the way.”

Dwyer has gone all the way 13 times, averaging 45.9 yards per score.

“I played with Garrison Hearst and Terrell Davis,” said Bohannon, naming two Georgia running backs who later achieved NFL greatness. “He’s that gifted.”

Which, perhaps, is why Bohannon and others see so much more within Dwyer.

When coaches review game film, they grade players not only for execution and technique, but effort. With a laugh, Bohannon admitted that while Dwyer has improved, his effort grades “have not been real good.”

Bohannon acknowledges Dwyer is in a catch-22 situation. Tech’s lack of depth at B-back has meant that Dwyer plays nearly every snap at a demanding position.

But, said Bohannon, “Jon’s very gifted and he’s probably relied on his God-given abilities, and we want everybody out there to work equally hard.”

Similarly, Bohannon and others on the staff constantly prod Dwyer to become more responsible with his studies.

“Jon’s always been a good kid,” Johnson said. “He’s never been a problem, discipline-wise. He’s like a lot of 18- and 19-year-olds. Sometimes they need some direction. I’m proud of him.”

The lessons are sinking in.

“Over the season, he’s matured,” said A-back Roddy Jones. “He’s become the leader of our offense next to (quarterback) Josh (Nesbitt).”

Said Bohannon, “We’ve pushed him a little harder than maybe he’d been pushed in the past. But I think he’s grown up.”

For next season, Dwyer vows to be in the best shape of his life and hopes to lead Tech to the ACC championship.

“I don’t want to be the type of guy who didn’t play his hardest and didn’t work hard and let my talents that God’s given me go to waste,” said Dwyer. “I just want to be known for working hard.”