Before he even took his first class at Georgia Tech, freshman defensive lineman Scott Morgan already knew something rather elemental about his new school. Asked to name something he would make sure to bring to school, he said a pillow and blanket to help him sleep.
“You won’t get much of it,” he said. “You might as well enjoy it while it lasts.”
Apparently braced for the academic grind that awaits, Morgan sounds similarly ready for the challenge that he joins to play for the Yellow Jackets.
“It’s going to be competitive, especially in the trenches,” Morgan said. “It’s going to be competitive. That’s what they told me, but it’s just a competitive environment. And you get what you earn, that kind of thing.”
Morgan, from Woodstock and Etowah High, has enrolled at Tech along with his twin brother Brad, an offensive lineman. They are one of two sets of twins on the roster, along with defensive backs Lance and Lawrence Austin. The Morgans have grown up far more allies than rivals, which likely comes as good news to their Tech roommates, linebacker David Curry and walk-on offensive lineman Matt Pruitt.
“We’re actually pretty cool with one another,” Scott said. “We haven’t really fought that much. Pretty much a good relationship.”
On the defensive line, Morgan said he will be tried out first at tackle. In part because of the physical demands of the position, playing as a first-year freshman is unusual at the position. Shawn Green, Patrick Gamble, Francis Kallon, Euclid Cummings, Jimmie Kitchen and Darius Commissiong are among current and recent tackles who played on the scout team in their first seasons. Adam Gotsis and Izaan Cross, who played as first-year freshmen, are recent exceptions.
The two-deep depth chart at tackle includes Gotsis and Gamble with the first string and Kallon and Jabari Hunt-Days with the second unit. That said, after those four, the tackle group is fairly young. If coaches elect (or are required) to play a fifth tackle, they’d likely choose from freshmen Brentavious Glanton, Kyle Cerge-Henderson or Morgan. (The shortage of sophomores and juniors is due in part to the loss of several linemen last summer.)
“My goal is to see playing time,” Morgan said. “If that doesn’t happen, my other goal is just to prepare the team the best I can, try to make it big on scout team.”
About Morgan
1. Listed at 6-foot-5, 275 pounds on signing day, Morgan said recently that he was around 280-285 pounds, crediting the workout plan given to him by Tech's strength and conditioning staff. Compared to his numbers as a junior, his bench press (315 pounds to 350), squat (475 to 515) and power clean (335 from 285) have all improved. Having a brother as a workout partner helps.
“The last thing we do is slack off,” he said. “We don’t mess around. We say what we’re going to do and we do it.”
2. Morgan on defensive line coach Mike Pelton: "I love the guy. He's going to coach you hard, but it's all good. He's a good guy and a good coach."
3. Morgan said he plans to study business.
4. On recruiting visits, Morgan said he was won over in part by the family environment he felt among players and coaches.
“The players are awesome and the coaches are just great. They treat you like family when they haven’t even met you yet,” he said. “They’re just a great bunch of people and just a bunch of guys that love football. … That’s why Tech stood out from a bunch of other schools. Some of the other schools are just like, Whatever, here you go, here’s our facilities and what not. I didn’t feel at home at a lot of other places. Tech was not one of those.”
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