Freddie Burden had no idea that he would end up as a center on Georgia Tech’s football team.
Recruited as a tight end/tackle combo, Burden moved to center almost as soon as he arrived on campus.
The decision is working.
Because of his balance, strength and intelligence, in his first season as a starter Burden leads a line that has paved the way for the Yellow Jackets to average 34.4 points and 463.3 yards per game. The team will play at Pittsburgh on Saturday in a game Tech must win to keep alive hopes of winning the ACC’s Coastal Division.
“Freddie has done some good things,” coach Paul Johnson said. “He’s getting better each week.”
As in most offenses, the center in Tech’s option attack has myriad responsibilities.
Burden’s results on Saturdays start during film sessions, where position coach Mike Sewak said he takes the initiative in learning what needs to be done, the calls that need to be made and the looks the line will see that week.
“I’m still learning it,” Burden said.
Where inexperienced players may shy away from asking questions out of fear or naivete, Burden has the gumption to raise his hand.
“He doesn’t want to do it wrong,” Sewak said. “He wants to know the answers before the questions come up.”
Burden takes what he learns and applies it during practice and in games. Here’s what Burden does on a typical triple-option play:
- Coming out of the huddle, Burden must be the first to the line of scrimmage so that he has an extra second to analyze the defense and relay what he sees to the rest of the line.
- He next must read the man in front of him, who often will line up on top of him, 1 1/2 yards away from the quarterback.
“He can reach out and slap (the quarterback), he’s that close,” he said.
Is the defensive lineman head-to-head on top of him? Or is he lined up in the gap where the B-back could run? The defensive linemen’s position, often called technique, can cause Burden to change the blocking scheme.
- As Burden is relaying this information to the rest of the line, he's also receiving information from the guards and tackles, who can overrule the blocking call Burden is making based upon what they are seeing.
- Burden has only a few seconds to process and relay what's being said, and he can't see a lot of what's going on because he's usually down in a four-point stance, which results in a limited field of vision.
- And then Burden must make the snap and burst forward to try to beat the defensive tackle or nose guard. If there is a double-team on a run play or in pass blocking, he must communicate with a teammate who is moving on to try to block someone else. A lot of that communication is non-verbal and is built through chemistry with his teammates.
Hence, all of the questions in the film study.
It’s a much different set of responsibilities than what Burden thought he would take on when he signed with Tech.
Burden was recruited as a tackle. Sewak liked that despite Burden’s 300 pounds, he plays low to the ground, moves his feet well and has good lower-body balance. Sewak said Burden is athletic enough and smart enough to play any of the positions on the line. But he moved him to center.
Sewak praised Burden, noting that the biggest thing he needs to work on is his technique as he gets off the line and blocks. Sewak doesn’t want him to lunge because doing so can cause him to lose his balance and allow the defensive lineman to move around him and disrupt the play. He wants him to maintain his fundamentals and drive through the defender.
“It took about a year going through camps and working with different defenses,” Burden said. “Teams can give you different looks. Even now I’m not perfect.”
About the Author
