Georgia Tech offensive line coach Brent Key wasn’t wearing his “Positive Vibes Only” hat on Friday, but he was adhering to the dictum regardless. On that day, Tech’s second session of spring practice, Key had 11 offensive linemen available for practice, eight of them scholarship players. By comparison, he had 21 linemen on the roster last fall.
“First off, the beauty of that is you only play with five O-linemen (at a time),” Key said. “So we’re double the number of that now if you look at it from that standpoint. That’s the way you have to look at it.”
A hopeful outlook may be necessary for Key this offseason, as graduation and injuries have left his group with sub-optimal depth and inexperience. Further, the shortages arrive as Key is leading the line through a change in the leadership of the offense as new offensive coordinator Chip Long is putting in his scheme. And, lastly, despite the turnover on the line and the drop in experience, the group will be called on to improve its play from its 2021 form.
“I’m only worried about those guys, and I’m really happy about the guys we do have,” Key said.
Among the most significant losses were starters Devin Cochran (left tackle), Mikey Minihan (center) and Ryan Johnson (right guard). Center/guard Kenny Cooper was another, and Ryan Spiers and Nick Pendley were both placed on medical scholarship.
“We’ve had some unfortunate injuries the last couple years,” Key said. “Some guys that we thought at this point would have been factors ended up having to take a medical or whatnot. But that’s the place we’re in right now.”
Key also chose to bring in grad transfers to fill immediate needs in seasons past such as Cochran and Johnson. While effective, they weren’t long-term solutions. Key stood by an assertion he made upon his hire in January 2019 that recruiting at his alma mater would be “so much easier” than it had been at Alabama, where he routinely brought in four- and five-star prospects and earned a reputation as one of the nation’s top recruiters.
“We had some unfortunate breaks – literally breaks with injuries and whatnot,” Key said. “And, at the same time, we know it’s not going to be an overnight thing as far as the recruiting goes and who you’re getting. Let’s not turn a blind eye. We’re going to put a product on the field this year that’s going to allow us to recruit at a higher level. And, at the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about.”
“We're just focusing more on being more physical, just running off the ball, just dominating our opponent."
Among returnees, Key has two-year starter Jordan Williams at right tackle, who could move to the left side to protect quarterback Jeff Sims’ blind side. Paula Vaipulu started five games at left guard last season as a second-year freshman, and Weston Franklin played five games at center as a freshman. Walk-on William Lay, who has 13 career starts, elected to return and use his extra year of eligibility.
“We’re just focusing more on being more physical, just running off the ball, just dominating our opponent,” Vaipulu said.
The line has also been joined by two transfers, Pierce Quick from Alabama and Paul Tchio (a Milton High grad) from Clemson, both of whom have three years of eligibility remaining. Both have started playing the guard spots, flanking Franklin. They are candidates to move to tackle, but Key said it was important to have them start in the middle of the line.
“I want to get them understanding how to play next to each other,” Key said. “I want to have those inside guys playing next to Weston, being able to trust Weston, hearing what Weston is saying from a communication standpoint, getting them solidified in those spots.”
One benefit of having only two full lines is that players will have more chances for practice repetitions. That’s not a bad thing as the Jackets learn Long’s offense while trying to replace three starters.
“Installation-wise, we’re throwing a lot at ‘em right now,” Key said. “As Chip likes to say, it’s a pro-style offense, it goes fast and has a lot of moving parts, a lot of different protections, a lot of different schemes in the run game and passing concepts that are different for the kids.”
In the scheme of former offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude, the line used three or four different protections to coordinate the linemen in forming the pocket on pass plays, Franklin said. Key said he had taught 10 through the first two days of spring practice. While acknowledging it was a high volume, Key also said it wasn’t more than he has carried with previous teams. Still, it’s been a lot to ingest.
“You’ve really got to sit down and study them,” Franklin said. “You can’t just look at it one time and figure it out and go out there and run it.”
There is a school of thought that if Tech had trouble protecting the quarterback with fewer schemes last season – the Jackets allowed 2.75 sacks per game, tied for 104th in FBS – that giving a fairly inexperienced line more to master might not be wise. As Key explained it, the larger number of protections allows more flexibility, enabling the line to give more attention to vulnerable spots on the line.
“There’s a lot of ways to help guys out,” Key said.
Two players whom Key needs to develop this spring are offensive tackles Wing Green and Jakiah Leftwich. Green didn’t play in any games as a second-year freshman last year, and Leftwich appeared in one as a freshman. Both are candidates to start.
Through the first two days of practice, Leftwich was with the first group at left tackle and Green was taking his snaps at right tackle with the second group backing up Williams, an indication that Leftwich has the lead in that competition. In the offseason strength-and-conditioning program that preceded spring practice, both improved in lower-body strength and power as well as flexibility, Key said.
“Jakiah’s still a young kid, but we’re expecting a lot of things out of him,” Key said. “(He) is doing a good job out there, learning every day.”
Of the 13 linemen on the roster, all but two (guard Michael Maye and Lay) are players Key has brought to Tech. He has overseen the shift in body types from the linemen in former coach Paul Johnson’s offense to the larger and longer frames he preferred.
It is a young group. Of the nine scholarship linemen on the roster, eight have three or four years of eligibility remaining, including those who have COVID-19 years to use. Key will add three more freshmen this summer, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if Tech looked to the transfer portal for more depth.
“As far as the guys we have, I’m happy with the guys we have right now,” Key said. “Hopefully I’ve got this smile on my face a week or so from now, or two weeks from now. But I will. I’m really pleased with them.”
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