Tyler Kidney showed up at Georgia Tech to play football as a freshman walk-on, tags that come with their own set of anxieties.
Kidney acknowledges he was intimidated. His teammates noticed and gave him a hard time. On top of that Kidney was trying to make the field as an offensive lineman, a demanding position to play in coach Paul Johnson’s triple-option offense.
It took only a few practices for Kidney to realize he belonged.
“I realized, ‘Hey, I can do that, too,’” Kidney said. “So it was exciting to know if I worked hard enough I can get to that level. Ever since then I thought, ‘I want to get to where I can play and I want to earn a scholarship.’
“That’s been my goal since I got here, and everything is going according to plan.”
After a redshirt season, Kidney played in six games last season as a reserve. Last month Johnson gave Kidney a scholarship, and last week he plugged him in as the starting right tackle for the season opener against Western Carolina.
Now there’s little hint of the player who once wondered if he could play at this level.
“It takes a while to develop and there’s always more stuff to learn, but I think I’ve pretty much got it down,” Kidney said.
There also isn’t any sign of the guy teammates considered sort of a pushover as a freshman.
“When he came in he was kind of a timid kid and always kind of second-guessing himself,” junior right guard Omoregie Uzzi said. “Hard work can change a lot of stuff, you know? And he’s a lot more confident than he used to be. He knows he can compete, so it’s not a problem for him anymore.”
If not for circumstances, Kidney might be on his way to flying aircraft in the U.S. Navy like his father, Mike.
Navy was among the schools interested in Kidney before his senior year at Northview High School, but he suffered a torn ACL on the second series of the first preseason game.
“The letters stopped coming,” Kidney said.
Annapolis was out, and scholarships from other schools weren’t forthcoming. There was very little video of Kidney in action because he didn’t play much as a junior.
But Kidney still wanted to play football. He found another way through Pat “Doc” Spurgeon, a former assistant coach at Georgia Southern.
Spurgeon runs a camp for linemen in metro Atlanta and is well-connected in college coaching circles. Kidney had caught Spurgeon’s eye during a camp, so the coach put in a call to Johnson on Kidney’s behalf.
“It was really a blessing to have that connection,” Kidney said.
Johnson didn’t have much video of Kidney but said: “I know Spurgeon well enough to take a walk-on if he recommends one.”
Just as important was that Kidney could meet Tech’s academic requirements. Johnson said that’s often a difficult task for walk-on players.
Kidney said his walk-on status was “kind of a barrier you have to break through” because of the potential for self-doubt. Coaches and teammates are encouraging, Kidney said, and walk-on players get real opportunities to earn playing time.
“It’s not quite like ‘Rudy,’” Kidney joked, referring to the film about the famous walk-on player at Notre Dame.
Kidney said learning to play “low and fast” has been the key to his development. Co-offensive line coach Mike Sewak cited Kidney’s work ethic. Sewak said Kidney also had to mature because “in the beginning the game was too fast for him and he was hyper.”
“Some people take a situation and calmly go through it,” Sewak said. “Other people see ghosts and spiders in every scenario. He’s hyper, but he’s overcome that. He’s a lot better than he used to be about that.”
Kidney still hopes to test his cool under pressure as a U.S. Navy aviator — he plans to attend Officer Candidate School after college. Kidney said his father flew missions during Operation Desert Storm in 1990.
“I want to follow in his footsteps and do what he did,” Kidney said. “That’s always something I wanted to do rather than working a day job.”
Kidney is looking to join an elite group, but Sewak said he wouldn’t be surprised if he makes it.
“If that’s what he wants to do, I could absolutely see him working towards that and not backing down,” Sewak said.
