Quarterbacks Coach Chris Weinke Praises Jeff Sims Growth and Leadership in Friday's Media Session

Georgia Tech quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke spoke to the media on Friday

Author:
Jackson Caudell
Updated:
Aug 19, 2022 7:38 PM EDT
Original:
Aug 19, 2022

In this story:

For the final day of fall camp media availability, Georgia Tech had quarterbacks coach Chris Weinke speak following practice today, followed by two of his quarterbacks, Jeff Sims and Zach Gibson.

Here is everything that Weinke had to say today.

1. On the progression of his quarterbacks since he coached them in the spring...

"I think you can see a noticeable difference from spring until now. A lot of learning in the spring, trying to get comfortable with the offense. Any time that happens, typically with a quarterback, you physically slow down because you are thinking so much. I think what has happened over the course of the spring and through the summer, Jeff did an unbelievable job of showing leadership, running the summer program, all of those things are paying dividends now that we are going into camp."

"The hay is never in the barn. We are always working, we obviously still have a lot of work to do, but I am really excited about the progress the quarterbacks have made, specifically Jeff, just in having a better understanding of what we are trying to do, which allows him to play faster, he is processing information faster and throwing the ball as good as I have seen him throw it. I feel good about where he is at and he knows he needs to continue to work. We are moving in the right direction."

2. On if he is comfortable with his backups in case of injury...

"It is always a work in progress. We have guys that are working hard every day. As you go through camp, you rotate these guys, we are always evaluating them on every throw they make and on every decision they make and the guys have done a good job. As we move forward and get closer to preparation for the game, you have got to try and solidify the backup guy."

"Clearly Jeff is our guy, we are rallying around him. Zach Gibson has done a nice job in terms of going to the spring, now into fall camp, and a better understanding. A very accurate passer, so I think he has done a good job being productive, throughout the course of camp. Again, he still needs a lot of improvement in some areas and then you have Zach Pyron and Taisun (Phommachanh), who came from Clemson, who is still learning the system and getting opportunities and we will continue to evaluate them on a daily basis, but we feel really good about where we are right now with Jeff and Zach."

3. On if he has targets for Jeff to hit in terms of yards, completion percentage, etc.

"On paper, it always sounds great right, we have landmarks that we want to hit. In terms of our offense, there are some numbers that I would like to see from him, but to me, that is just not as important to share with the public to be honest with you, but there are parameters that we look for. I chart every throw in fall camp. So I have a running tally of the completion percentage, of the catches, obviously, drops are incorporated into those percentages, but more importantly, I have a column that says "danger". We are always preaching, do not put the ball in danger, protect the football, and a lot of times, we can put the ball in danger and we can make a great play, that is not a plus for the quarterback."

"Make good decisions, protect the football and they have done a good job of that through the course of fall."

4. On if Taisun has any rust from his injury and the learning curve of the offense...

"It is always hard and that is for any quarterback, not just Taisun. When you have been away from the game for a little bit, you are trying to learn a new language, trying to incorporate into a new team. He works hard, he is a great kid, he does everything that we ask him to do. It is a process for him. He has gotten better throughout the course of fall camp and that is what we are looking for, progress, and I think he would also agree that he needs lots of improvement. Again, he falls in the category of "hey, I am just learning a new offense", I might be playing a little slower physically because of that. Great in the room, he cares, wants to be coached, and he has done a really good job for us."

5. On what he has seen from the offensive line and the running backs in pass protection...

"So Coach Key has done an outstanding job. You'll see throughout the course of camp, that we are rotating linemen, trying to find the best guys that can come in and spell the other guys, or guys that can play multiple positions. The number one key on the offensive line is to stay healthy and find those first five guys and then find capable backups and Coach Key has done an outstanding job with those guys. I think as we have gone through camp, typically you have seen those guys slow off or fall off and they haven't. I think they are more comfortable in our offense, the communication is much better, and they transformed their bodies over the summer. If you look at us in the spring and now, I feel very good about the offensive line."

"The backs have done an outstanding job, I mean we've got a number of backs that we feel comfortable with and the good thing is, they are different. You may have a guy that is more dynamic, you may have a guy that is a better pass catcher, you may have a guy that is better in protection. Because of the guys that we feel comfortable with, we will be able to utilize those guys, but we have been very pleased at what the running backs are doing."

6. On how he envisions Jim Chaney helping him out the most...

"Coach Chaney is an eye in the sky. He kinda oversees it all. Obviously, many years of experience, very smart, he understands the game, has coached it at a very high level. He is a sounding board for us. Initially, it starts with Coach (Chip) Long, is there another way we can do something? Maybe a suggestion here or there as it relates to protection, maybe we should do this. He is in there every day grinding and really just overseeing us, but he has been a huge addition to our offensive staff, there is not question."

7. On what he attributes Jeff (Sims) growth this summer too...

"I think that success breeds confidence. I think he feels as if he is moving in the right direction, he feels comfortable. It is hard to be confident when you are not comfortable. Jeff is never going to be complacent, but he is going to be more comfortable in our offense, I think he is more comfortable being in a leadership role. I don't think he has been that way in the past and I think that is a testament to him to focus on in the offseason."

"He has been an outstanding leader for us, he is comfortable, he is confident and you can see that in terms of the way he is operating every day at practice. I couldn't be more excited to continue to see how he does progress and then be able to sustain, that is the question. We can feel really good after a good practice, but how are we going to respond when things aren't going so well? That has been a lot of our conversations between me and him. Can we stay right here regardless of what happened? Whatever the result is, can we stay even-keeled and continue to move forward and he has done an outstanding job."

8. On Jeff Sims fit in Chip Long's offense and his ability to use his legs in his offense...

"Coach Long has obviously been around and he has worked with a number of different quarterbacks in terms of leading his offense. The best part about our offense is that we are going to cater it to what he is capable of, its not what we know, its what the players know and more specifically the quarterback. I think Jeff is now understanding that we are going to put him in a position to be successful. Coach is not going to call plays that Jeff is not comfortable with, nor should he. I think that relationship collectively, between Jeff and the offensive staff and Jeff and feeling comfortable, is probably the main reason that you have seen the growth in Jeff."

"I think when you look at the offense in terms of his skill set, he is a perfect fit. Number one priority is to protect him, so we have to be smart there and we will continue to do that but will utilize his skill set and what he likes to do, that is also going to give him confidence."

9. On playing a game in Tallahassee, where he played for Florida State...

"It'll be different. I have never been on the visiting sidelines. That game is a long time down the road and a lot of things are going to take place before that, but it is my alma mater, I played there and enjoyed my time there, but I am wearing different colors now. The goal will be to go down there, it is interesting, when I played there, we never lost a home game and so it is interesting going back down there now and hope to be on the other side and have some success down there."

"Obviously I loved Tallahassee, it is where I went to school, a lot of friends there, it is a special place to me and hopefully it will be special for us when we go down there."

10. On Zach Gibson...

"I think all quarterbacks are a little bit different, their approach is different, how they operate on the field is different. He has that little moxy about him, I am trying to reign him in. I want to get him locked in and understand the details, the discipline and what it takes to be successful in this offense. You don't want to take the flavor of the player away and that is what has helped him be successful. Very accurate passer, he is well respected by his teammates because of what he has been able to show throughout the course of fall camp. I always let the player be the player, but there are certain rules and regulations that I put in place to make sure that we understand that we are going to do this the right way."

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