Beyond contributing significant playing time at key roles, Georgia Tech’s freshmen football players had a pretty good fall in the classroom also. The members of the class – first-year students who arrived on campus either in January or before the fall semester – averaged a 3.0 GPA.
“A 3.0 for any student-athlete at any time, to navigate Georgia Tech, is great,” said Brandon Pottebaum, Tech’s director of football academic services. “For this class to do it under these circumstances in their first semester, it’s rare.”
The semester has been trying. On top of most classes being conducted virtually, team members slogged through a semester in which uncertainty clouded their first season. Further, because of two games being postponed (one ultimately canceled), the season extended two weeks later than normal and into final exams. Beyond that, three of the freshmen, quarterback Jeff Sims, running back Jahmyr Gibbs and offensive tackle Jordan Williams, were full-time starters, with many more playing regularly.
Most freshmen were handling a load of 15 or 16 hours, which is five classes, Pottebaum said. Common classes included precalculus, introductory English and general core requirements in history, political science and economics. He said that freshmen across the board showed responsibility in being on time for study hall, turning in assignments on time and being proactive in getting extra help when needed.
“We knew in September that the freshman class was going to do well,” Pottebaum said. “They didn’t slip this out in the end. They’ve been working their tails off since Day 1.”
Pottebaum did not have the entire team’s GPA. The team earned a 3.0 in the spring semester, its highest on record. A 3.0 average for the freshmen means that a number of them made dean’s list, which requires a 3.0 GPA or higher.
“This isn’t just the walk-ons carrying the scholarship kids,” Pottebaum said. “You’ll see that at times. That was not the case.”
