The following, a weekly feature of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, allows our reporters to open their notebooks and provide even more information from our local teams that we cover daily. We think you’ll find it informative, insightful and fun.
Raheem Morris met Herm Edwards at 4:15 a.m. to get into NFL
San Francisco general manager John Lynch was a safety for the Buccaneers from 1993-2003. He spent two seasons with young assistant coach Raheem Morris in 2002 and 2003 before he went on to finish his career with the Broncos.
“I just lit up when you mentioned (the Falcons’ decision to hire Morris as coach),” Lynch, a nine-time Pro Bowler and Pro Football Hall of Famer, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There’s something about Raheem. His energy. I remember when Herman Edwards first brought him down. I remember Herm telling us that he met this kid at Hofstra.”
Morris had started a graduate assistant post after his playing days and wanted a job in the NFL.
“Herm was doing training camp there (with the Jets),” Lynch said. “Herm told him if he wanted a job to show up at the track when Herm was working out at 4:15 a.m. He said Raheem never missed.”
Lynch and Morris got to know one another in Tampa.
“Raheem sat right behind me in our old facility,” Lynch said. “We called it the woodshed. It was not too fancy. Just got to appreciate Raheem for the unbelievable spirit that he has and his real sharp football mind.”
Morris was head coach of the Bucs from 2009-11, beginning when he was 32.
“He got thrown into it at a really young age down in Tampa,” Lynch said. ‘I thought he did well. So, I’m so happy for him like so many people in the league are. He’s earned this opportunity, and I think the Falcons made a great choice. I’m real excited for Raheem Morris.”
Griese a Morris backer, too
San Francisco quarterbacks coach Brian Griese was with the Bucs in 2004, 2005 and 2008 as a player when Morris was on the staff.
“I love Raheem,” Griese told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Wednesday. “He is a great guy. I’m so happy for him. When he had his shot in Tampa, I feel like it just wasn’t the right situation for Raheem. Now that he’s gone on and established himself as a coordinator and established his relationships.
“I’m so fired up for him. I’m fired up for Atlanta, obviously. Because I know the kind of head coach he’s going to be, what kind of juice and energy that he’s going to bring. That’s probably what everybody is going to see off the jump. His charisma. His energy, but what you won’t see is the way that he connects with players and the way that he gets the most out of players. That’s something that you can’t teach.”
At least one Yellow Jacket assured a Super Bowl ring
Georgia Tech will be able to claim a Super Bowl LVIII champion Sunday when the Chiefs meet the 49ers in Las Vegas.
Harrison Butker, a Decatur native and Westminster Schools graduate, will be going for his third Super Bowl title with the Chiefs. The 6-foot-4, 200-pound kicker is 7-for-7 on field-goal attempts this postseason and has made all seven of his extra-point tries.
Butker played for Tech from 2013-16 and was drafted 233rd overall by the Panthers in the 2017 NFL draft.
For the 49ers, running back Jordan Mason will be playing in his first Super Bowl and sixth career postseason game. The 5-11, 233-pound native of Gallatin, Tennessee, played for the Yellow Jackets from 2018-21.
Mason has been on 19 special-teams plays during San Francisco’s current playoff run.
Masters conflict for G-Day
Under coach Kirby Smart, Georgia football has managed to avoid going head-to-head against The Masters golf tournament with its annual spring game. Not this year, however.
Though UGA has yet to make an official announcement, people with knowledge of the situation confirm that the G-Day game this year will be played April 13 at Sanford Stadium. Kickoff time has not been set, but is expected to be early afternoon, as per usual. Television will dictate, however, and that appears to be the holdup on an announcement.
An avid golfer, Smart has for the previous eight years managed to avoid conflict with the world’s most famous invitational golf tournament, conducted annually 100 miles southeast of Athens. It could not be avoided this year, however.
The Bulldogs are expected to start spring practice March 12, or the Tuesday after the University of Georgia resumes classes following spring break (March 4-8). UGA’s Pro Day is set for March 13. NCAA rules limit spring practices to 15 non-consecutive dates over five weeks. That places G-Day right up against the third round of the Masters at Augusta National Golf Club.
Georgia is in its ninth season under Smart. The Bulldogs are coming off a 13-1 season in which they missed the College Football Playoff for the first time in three years. Georgia is 42-2 over the past three years and is expected to open the 2024 season ranked No. 1.
Georgia football adds another player
Signing day came and went Wednesday without Georgia signing any more players. However, they did add a preferred walk-on.
Jeremy Bell, a 6-foot, 175-pound athlete from Clinch County, is a 3-star prospect who had a scholarship offer from Indiana and several other mid-major programs. But he chose to accept a walk-on offer from the Bulldogs with the hopes of eventually earning a scholarship. He’s expected to play wide receiver, but could also play running back or defensive back, depending on how he develops.
As a senior at Clinch County this past season, Bell compiled 1,357 yards offense (943 rushing, 414 receiving) and scored 20 touchdowns. Two of his touchdowns on a kickoff and a punt return. As a two-way player, he helped the Panthers reach the quarterfinals of the Class A playoffs.
UGA’s Condon tabbed preseason All-American
A big reason for optimism for Georgia baseball in 2024 is Charlie Condon, and that sentiment was validated this week when the big first baseman/outfielder was named a preseason All-American.
Condon, a 6-foot-6, 216-pound sophomore from Marietta, is included on the first team of the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association’s (NCBWA) preseason All-American squad. That should come as no surprise after Condon captured the Bulldogs’ triple crown last season by hitting .386 with 25 home runs and 67 RBIs. That performance earned Condon national freshman-of-the-year honors.
As a redshirt freshman last season, Condon started all 56 games and led all freshmen nationally in OPS (1.284) and slugging (.800) and tied for the most home runs among freshmen. As a third-year sophomore this season, Condon is projected as a premium pick in the 2024 MLB draft.
Georgia is preparing for its first season under coach Wes Johnson. The season starts Feb. 16 with the first of three games against North Carolina-Asheville at Foley Field. The Bulldogs look to improve on last year’s 29-27 (11-19 SEC) record.
Middle school cheerleaders
A day before he scored the game-winning basket to secure one of the biggest upsets of the college basketball season, Georgia Tech point guard Naithan George was fully invested in a game of slightly less magnitude. George, along with Yellow Jackets teammates Tyzhaun Claude and Ibrahim Souare, perhaps was the most enthusiastic supporter to be found at a middle school playoff basketball game held Jan. 29 at Heritage Preparatory School in the Morningside neighborhood.
George, Claude and Souare were there to cheer for Bowen Thomas, the son of Tech associate athletic director and nutritionist Leah Thomas. Squeezing in among Heritage students and parents, the three waved signs, led chants of “De-fense!” and got students on their feet, tangibly raising the energy level in the gymnasium. The support infused Bowen and his teammates with a surge in confidence to mount a furious comeback against Torah Day School of Atlanta (which ultimately proved victorious).
“He thought it was super cool,” Thomas said of Bowen, who with sisters Mazie Ruth and Marnie have befriended several Tech athletes over the years. “Especially when his friends were like, ‘Bowen, dude, that’s so cool.’ I think the text messages that I got from several mothers after that, just, like, how it affected the Heritage community – which was completely a byproduct of these guys coming to support Bowen – that’s where my heart was just so full.”
The following night, George and his teammates were recipients of similar enthusiasm when they stunned No. 3 North Carolina at McCamish Pavilion. The crowd included one young middle school basketball player and his appreciative mom. The two made postgame smoothies for the players and shared in the celebration.
“Deebo (Coleman) picked Bowen up, they were just all chanting and cheering,” Thomas said. “They were in a good place. That was just icing on the cake.”
-Staff writers Chad Bishop, D. Orlando Ledbetter, Ken Sugiura and Chip Towers contributed to this report.
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