Georgia Tech is nowhere near the beginning of the preseason, but still a few more days away from the end of camp. The toll, both physical and mental, is beginning to show on the Yellow Jackets.
Several players were seen returning to the locker room from Tuesday’s afternoon practice, the 14th in 13 days, in red jerseys, the identifier for a player held out with injury. A-backs Deon Hill and Tony Zenon, nose tackle Shawn Green, wide receiver Corey Dennis and linebacker Tyler Marcordes were among them. All five were listed in the team’s two-deep depth chart updated on Monday. None of the injuries are believed to be serious.
“We’re starting to see a few guys banged up, like you always do in camp,” coach Paul Johnson said. “You hope to get out of Saturday (scrimmage) with everybody relatively intact.”
B-back Zach Laskey, who had been out with an unspecified injury, returned. Backup B-back C.J. Leggett, who like Laskey missed the team’s first scrimmage on Saturday, is expected to be back at practice Wednesday or Thursday. Johnson was typically reticent, jokingly saying of Marcordes’ injury, “I could tell you, but then I’d have to kill you.”
Healthy players have their own challenges, pushing through heat and full-pads practices like Tuesday’s.
“Guys, their bodies are tired, they’re thinking about how sore they are rather than what they need to do,” defensive tackle Adam Gotsis said. “I mean, we’re all guilty of that now and then. … That’s the toughest part about camp. When you get to, like, day 12, day 13, it’s all just mental now.”
Johnson has largely been pleased with the effort he has seen from his team.
“It was good,” he said of Tuesday’s practice. “It was warm. I thought most guys tried to push through.”
The camp portion of the preseason will end with the Saturday scrimmage. Players will check out of the team hotel and return to their dormitories and apartments. Classes begin Monday, and practice intensity will dial back as the team begins to prepare for the season opener against Wofford Aug. 30.
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