DEL.ICIO.USUGA’s replacement DT to wear Owens’ number
Boisterous Irvin steps right in as leader of Dogs’ defensive line
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Athens — Corvey Irvin will wear Jeff Owens’ No. 95 jersey this Saturday against Central Michigan. In the meantime, he plans to play — and lead — like the Bulldogs’ fallen star.
Irvin, a senior from Augusta, will move into Owens’ spot at defensive tackle following Owens’ season-ending knee injury in last week’s win against Georgia Southern. As a gesture to honor his teammate, Irvin asked coach Mark Richt if he could wear the jersey.
Jason Getz / jgetz@ajc.com
Corvey Irvin hopes to fill the void left behind by defensive tackle Jeff Owens, who is out for the season.
Permission was granted. The same number isn’t all Owens and Irvin have in common.
Like Owens, Irvin is outgoing. And, like Owens, who was on watchlists for several national awards, Irvin can play a little ball, too.
“I’m not a quiet guy either,” said Irvin, who transferred to Georgia from Georgia Military College in January of 2007. “I like to talk myself. Me and Jeff were always doing that, trying to out-talk each other, trying to out-do each other.”
We’ll never know how that competition would have turned out this season, but Irvin would have been tough to “out-do” in Game One. He had six tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack, three pressures and batted down a pass against the Eagles. The coaching staff named Irvin a team captain as a result.
“He earned it,” Richt said. “He was defensive player of the game for us. We [give out] production points and there’s a formula for it, and he won that. He played well.”
Production is not the only thing the Bulldogs will miss in Owens’ absence, however. Teammates say his leadership is what they will miss most.
Irvin hopes to pick up some slack there, too.
“I do feel the responsibility to step up and take on the leadership of the front four of the defense,” Irvin said. “Jeff was the man. I’m not gonna lie. He was the number one guy, and everybody knows that. Now he’s hurt now and, you know, I hate that. It bothers me to my heart that he’s gone.
“But I believe that will motivate me. Now the pressure’s a little more on me because I’m the next man. But I’m ready for it.”
Actually, Irvin was coming on both as a player and a leader well before Owens went down.
Irvin was named “most improved defensive tackle” at the end of spring practice and took that momentum into mat drills, summer conditioning and voluntary workouts.
“Corvey has been coming along,” defensive line coach Rodney Garner said. “From everything we were hearing this summer, he was trying to take ownership of the D-line then and showing a lot of tremendous leadership skills. He was always out front when they were running, trying to be a leader. He had demonstrated some of those qualities already.”
In fact, Garner said Irvin actually had beaten out Geno Atkins and was going to start alongside Owens in the opener. But a poor practice the first day of game week forced Garner to re-think it.
“He might be the first guy to lose his starting job before he ever played a game,” Garner said.
Irvin originally proposed that all the defensive linemen get a chance to wear Owens’ number 95. His thinking was that they would rotate the number between them, with a different player wearing it each week.
That idea was shot down.
“Logistically impossible,” equipment manager John Meshad said. “I don’t have enough jerseys.”
Owens said he appreciates the gesture, and he thinks the Bulldogs are going to be just fine.
“No doubt in my mind,” he said. “They’ll do great. They’ll do awesome. I was just a small piece of the pie.”
As for Irvin, Owens said: “I look up to Corvey. He pushes me. He’s going to take over my role and be a leader on this defense.”
For one week at least, number 95 leading the way.
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