Everything Geoff Collins Said at His Press Conference Before Matchup with Ole Miss

What did Georgia Tech's Geoff Collins have to say before game with Ole Miss?

Author:
Jackson Caudell
Publish date:
Sep 13, 2022 8:26 PM EDT

In this story:

Saturday is going to represent a huge challenge for Georgia Tech, but also a huge opportunity. No. 20 Ole Miss is coming into Bobby Dodd Stadium this weekend to face the Yellow Jackets and Georgia Tech is going to be underdogs as they try and pull the upset.

Head coach Geoff Collins spoke with the media ahead of the game vs the Rebels and here is everything that he had to say.

Opening Statement:

"It is actually good to be back to a normal week, getting back to our normal routine after the win on Saturday night. I met with the guys, put the film to bed from the previous game, a lot to clean up, a lot to work on. Proud of the guys attention to detail in doing so and yesterday was their off day and had a lot of time to get started on our next opponent. A very explosive offense, the defense flies around, they are very multiple, so we understand the challenge that we have coming up on Saturday at 3:30."

"Back to the game, some players of the week. Obviously Dontae Smith, with over 100 yards, three touchdowns, really proud of the way that he played, proud of the offensive line. Ace Eley on defense, nine tackles, two tackles for loss, a sack and a fumble recovery, he was the defensive player of the week. I saw Mike's stat about Charlie Thomas and the work that he put in just one half of football so just proud of those two. Trenilyas Tatum came in place of Charlie while he was out for the first half and played well as well. Special teams, Nate McCollum, 107 all-purpose yards and 43 yards on two returns."

"The most important part is the developmental guys in the program. We had two guys that really stood out on a short week of preparation and that was freshman wide receiver Juju Lewis and then linebacker Tyson Meiguez, who did a great job on developmental and we don't talk injuries, but it was finally good to see Tyson Meiguez finally back healthy in the program. He got some snaps on special teams on Saturday and a lot of that has to do with how well he has performed in his rehab and on the developmental team."

1. On what he has seen on film about Ole Miss...

"They are an explosive offense, both quarterbacks are very, very talented, their running backs are really really good, they have a host of receivers that can make explosive plays and stretch the field vertically and an offensive line that is big, that is physical and the pace of their offense and the multiplicity of their offense is a big challenge. It is a big challenge to replicate out at practice. We are trying our best to simulate how it is going to be on Saturday but once it starts rolling, they know what they are doing, they are fast in what they do and they execute at a high level and they've got really good players running it as well so we have a big challenge ahead of us and we are going to need every day of prep and every minute to get ready to play at a high level."

2. On what he has seen from the defensive line...

"I have been pleased with the defensive line, the way they have played, the fundamentals, the techniques, the assignments, I think we probably left four sacks on the field Saturday, just with our pass rush lanes and that includes the blitzers that we had, we had four sacks, the kid made really nice plays, cause we were going to the quarterback instead of the upfield shoulder of him and he was escaping and that has been a huge point of emphasis this week for the whole defensive staff and the whole defense in general, but have been pleased in general, other than letting an athletic quarterback escape and then we've got our hands full on Saturday because these guys can move around the pocket as well."

3. On what he has liked and disliked through the first two games...

"Right now it is just the things that we have to fix. There are some positives, but the biggest piece is the things that we have to improve on every single day so that we can be able to play at a high level in front of our fan base on Grant Field at Bobby Dodd Stadium so those are the biggest things that we are working on. Pass rush lanes, screen recognition on defense, consistency on offense and not hurting ourselves with pre-snap penalties so those things we have to continue to work on those because you can't have those flaws against a great team like we are getting ready to play."

4. On what he does to address the penalties...

"So we handle those things internally and get them corrected and make sure that everyone understands globally how these things can hurt the program and hurt the team and then individually address those things as well so that there's no culprits that do it multiple times and try to address that so there is just different things that we do to try and address those things and get them fixed."

5. On the positives from the Clemson game and how that can give them confidence vs Ole Miss...

"I think one of the biggest things is every single Saturday night or Monday night or whenever we play, has a different flavor, has a different feel s obviously there are things to build on but every single Saturday you've got to come out and bring your A game, attention to detail, have the right attitude, mindset, a whole group of guys have to be ready to be above the line and play, especially against such a team that plays at such a fast tempo. We need to have at least 26 defensive guys that are ready to roll in and play at a very high level and execute at a high level so that is the biggest thing, the critical moments of each game, making sure that we are playing our best brand of football. So every Saturday is its own game, but there are things to build on and things to work on in each game that we play."

6. On finding a second go-to receiver alongside Nate McCollum...

"Absolutely. Trying to spread the ball around and obviously, Nate has shown up on game days and made some explosive plays for us but there are other guys within the program that are doing the things they need to do but we need in these kind of environments to make some big-time plays and the guys understand that and the playmakers need to make plays and thankfully we have them and excited to see them play at a high level on Saturday."

7. On defensive back KJ Wallace...

"The slot receiver #2 that we played last Saturday I think averages, had averaged ten catches, we thought he was an elite player and KJ held him to two catches for 28 yards. I am really pleased with how KJ has played, he knows how to make all the adjustments, all the checks and knows how to communicate with the guys that are on his side of the field, I think Jaylon King has done the same thing opposite of him into the boundary, making all the calls, all the checks and everybody being on the same page on the back end and I contributed that to those two guys. Really glad that we have KJ and excited to continue to see him move forward."

"I think there's two other guys, Kaleb Edwards and Kenny Bennett that play at the nickel spot, both really good players. Kaleb Edwards was a core four special teams guy Saturday night and I think the previous game as well, he played in every single special teams play in the game, made two key tackles in the game as well so Kaleb Edwards and Kenny Bennett, excited about them in this program as well."

8. On what he has seen from Jeff Sims so far this season and what he wants him to focus on this Saturday...

"The first game I thought Jeff played well, just his poise, his command of the offense, progressions, taking the ball to the proper receiver. Saturday night, the big focus of the game was establishing the run game because I don't think we did that in our opening game against Clemson, we wanted to establish the run game, Jeff did a good job of getting us into the proper run plays and we had some success running the ball and now there's going to be times where he is going to have to throw for us to win so just excited for his development, his attitude, his mindset, his selflessness as a teammate as we are running the ball really well and taking the shots when we can get them."

9. On the challenges of facing a playcaller like Lane Kiffin...

"I think he has established himself as one of the elite playcallers in college football. The scheme is very multiple, very fast and they execute at a high level and they have tremendous players all over the field so we have a challenge ahead of us and we are going to use every minute that we are allowed to get ready and prepare to try and match that challenge on Saturday."

10. On defensive back Rod Shelley...

"Rodney Shelley is a true freshman defensive back in the program, one of the fastest kids on the team and then just every time there is a developmental period or we would have a scout team period during the preseason or a special teams period during the preseason, he was always showing up. We wear the catapult system that tracks the speed, tracks sprint distance, tracks accelerations, his metrics and numbers were off the chart almost every day, with a bunch of other fast guys on the roster and then we put him in some situations in the preseason that he just showed out and so he has had his chance to be a gunner on kickoff, a gunner on punt and has done very admirably and the guys on the team love him and just for his effort, his speed and just going down there and making plays so just continue to develop in all phases of his game. I have been really pleased with him so far."

11. On his level of concern with the placekicking...

"He has made two. I have been really pleased with Gavin Stewart as a kickoff guy, Jude has hit some good ones and we are just going to continue to build on that and the consistency with the snaps and the holds and ball placement and all of those things, there is all kinds of factors that work into it. We have tremendous confidence in Jude and and tremendous confidence in Gavin as well."

Facebook: All Yellow Jackets

Twitter: @AllYellowJacket

Follow Jackson on Twitter: @jacksoncaudell

See all of the latest Georgia Tech News at AllYellowJackets.com

Check out the Georgia Tech Homepage

Listen to the Goal Line Stand Podcast for the best Georgia Tech and national college football coverage!

Georgia Tech Football: Betting Odds vs Ole Miss

Georgia Tech Basketball: Yellow Jackets release 2022-2023 basketball schedule

Jared Ivey is excited to come back to Atlanta to play this weekend

Georgia Tech Volleyball: Yellow Jackets fall to 7th in AVCA Poll

Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin says that Georgia Tech is going to be a huge test

Georgia Tech Football: First look at matchup with Ole Miss in week three