Georgia Tech Football: Defensive Line Depth Chart Projections
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Georgia Tech is hoping that some reserves and backups from last year's team are ready to step up into bigger roles on the defensive line this season. After having one of the worst pass rushes in the ACC last season, Georgia Tech tried to revamp their defensive line with some transfers, but a couple of late flips took away some potential impactful players.
Georgia Tech Defensive End Keion White is a breakout candidate this year
One thing that is for certain is that Georgia Tech is going to be excited to have Keion White back from injury. White was a highly rated transfer from Old Dominion heading into last season, but an injury forced him to miss the first eight games. He had 19 tackles for loss in his last season at Old Dominion and he is a potential breakout candidate this season.
There are young guys that Georgia Tech has recruited over the past few years that are going to need to step up in a big way this season. Kyle Kennard is one of those guys and he has seen his playing time increase in each of the past two seasons. Both of his sacks last season came against North Carolina in the upset win and consistency is going to have to improve from game to game from Kennard.
The interior looks like it will be manned by T.K. Chimedza and Zeek Biggers. At 6-6 341 LBS, Biggers should be an effective force against the run and Tech needs him to be. He played in nine games as a freshman and his position is not going to require him to put up a large number of stats, but be effective in controlling his gap and freeing the linebackers up to make plays.
Georgia Tech Defensive tackle T.K. Chimedza hopes to become a force on the interior
Chimedza played in eight games last season and started in three of them. He still looked like he was working his way back from an injury that caused him to miss the 2020 season, but he is hoping that he can get back to playing like he did in 2019.
Incoming transfer Daniel Carson will bring depth to Georgia Tech
This is going to be a unit that sees plenty of competition throughout fall camp and there are guys that are going to push for playing time. Former South Carolina transfer Makius Scott played in 11 games last year but was not very effective. Western Illinois transfer Daniel Carson hopes to make an impact on the interior as well.
Kevin Harris was a highly-rated recruit and transferred to Georgia Tech from Alabama, but has not made a huge impact yet on the field, despite being a freak athlete. He has the tools to be a good player but has not put it together yet.
Josh Robinson, Sylvain Yondjouen, Noah Collins, Akelo Stone, and D'Quan Douse are guys that have seen action and will be competing in fall camp. I think all of these guys will see action early in the season as Georgia Tech tries to figure out its rotation, but things will thin out as the year goes on.
Georgia Tech defensive end Christian Burkhalter
UCLA transfer Christian Burkhalter is the other transfer that was brought in and he had injury trouble at UCLA and has not seen any action.
Georgia Tech brought in two linemen in the 2022 recruiting class, KJ Miles and Horace Lockett, and because the defensive line was not very good last year, I could see them pushing for spots in fall camp. Ultimately, I think it will be a developmental year for both of them.
2022 Defensive Line Two-Deep Depth Chart Projection:
Starting Defensive Ends: Keion White and Kyle Kennard
Backups: Kevin Harris and Noah Collins
Starting Defensive Tackle: T.K. Chimedza and Zeek Biggers
Backups: Daniel Carson and Makius Scott
Overview:
I think this is the position group that worries me the most heading into the year. Tech is going to be counting on guys that have failed to produce up to this point in their careers and the one guy that has is coming off of an injury that kept him out the majority of the year.
There is a chance some of the young players like Miles, Lockett, or Burkhalter come in and make a big impact or guys like Harris and Collins take a leap forward, but this group right now does not give me a lot of confidence heading into the season.
Georgia Tech opens fall camp on Friday.
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