Georgia Tech Fall Camp Day 1 Notebook: Brent Key talks DeAndre Hopkins Hire, Injury Updates, and More

Fall camp is officially underway for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets.

They took the field on Monday afternoon for the first practice of the 2026 season and there was a sense of newness in the air with this team and a renewed energy. Georgia Tech is coming off its best season since 2016, but after losing four of their last five, they are aiming to get back in the position they were in, but finish stronger this time.

After practice, Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key spoke with the media and gave an update on a number of topics around the program.

Injury update to OT Josh Petty

During the spring, Key announced that former five-star OL prospect Josh Petty was going to miss the entire spring with an injury and be back at some point later in the season. In the update from Key on Monday evening, he said that Petty is still a ways away from being back, but a return sometime in October is possible for the talented offensive lineman:

"The guys that have been out, we've got Josh (Petty). Josh is way ahead of schedule, but with those things, we are not going to push that thing sooner than it is. Probably mid-October. The time with him, you know, early October, mid-October. I think it's four weeks from practicing, full go, and four weeks from playing, something like that. Don't quote me on it, but somewhere in that time frame. He's way ahead of schedule.

You know, you've got a really superior athlete like him. It's going to always appear to be a lot quicker than some others. So he's been able to do that, so I'm really happy with his progression."

It is good news that Petty is not going to be out for the season, but will he be able to see the field when he gets back? That is up for debate, but Petty has loads of talent and the Yellow Jackets would love to get him back.

DeAndre Hopkins Hire

It is rare that you get a splash/newsy type of hire right before fall camp begins, but Georgia Tech did just this when they hired five-time NFL All-Pro DeAndre Hopkins to their coaching staff. Key was asked about the hire of Hopkins and he talked about what he can bring to the program and how impressed he was with Hopkins the coach and the person:

"Yeah, so he wanted to coach. Longstanding relationship with George Godsey. Back in that time in Houston. Fast forward to the time in Baltimore. I had a chance to start building a relationship with him here fairly recently. And just been super, super impressive. I mean, super impressed with what he stands for. The character he has. He's done in his off-seasons, really, to his self-education, financial literacy, and investment strategies, and just a lot of things. No one can argue he is one of the best route runners in the last 30 years in the NFL.

He's a top 10 all-time NFL receiver. He knows the conference very well, and he's a guy that I think can have a huge, huge impact on our football team. Yes on our recruits. Yes on current players. But not just the receivers, all the players. I mean, for him to take a DB and talk about how to defend a certain release after practice for five minutes, I mean, that's invaluable to have a guy of his caliber and his character be able to do that. And I'm really looking forward to him."

Georgia Tech has an inexperienced wide receiver corps, but having a tandem like Hopkins and Jafar Williams to coach them should pay dividends.

Alberto Mendoza coming into his own

Alberto Mendoza is going to get his shot at becoming a power four starting quarterback this season as he takes over for Haynes King On The Flats. Mendoza seized the job in the spring and he is off to a great start this fall. Key complemented Mendoza's approach and even said that it "Georgia Tech's Alberto Mendoza" now:

"Yeah, I mean, he's developing every day. You know, I talked to him for a long time today. Yesterday and today. And honestly, it felt for the first time it was Georgia Tech's Alberto Mendoza. And we talked about it. I mean, shoot. Anytime you come from somewhere else, I mean, what are you always doing? You're always thinking about what happened this time last year. So there's always a natural comparison to whatever you did to your previous, whether you were a freshman, you were comparing it back to high school, right, transfer, or you were here comparing it back to last year at this time. That's human nature. I've been excited to see his progression."

There are a lot of changes on Georgia Tech's offense and quarterback is one of them. Mendoza has plenty to work on over the course of fall camp and into the season, but so far so good for the Indiana transfer.

Battle brewing at right guard?

Coming into fall camp, it was assumed that Malachi Carney, who was the starter at right tackle, would be the starter at right guard once he moved over there in the spring, but Key talked about how Carney and Oklahoma State transfer Markell Samuel are battling it out for the spot:

"At right guard, Markell (Samuel) and Malachi (Carney), that's going to be a battle. It really is. You talk about a welcome addition now. Markell coming in and being healthy now. He's played, towards the end of spring, played really, really good football. I don't care how many games you've started. Nothing's given when you walk back out there, guys. And then Jameson (Riggs), who had a really good spring, is also working now. Jameson is working right. We've always got Malachi who played pretty good football for us last year now. He can play right tackle."

Both of these players are going to be important to watch over the next few weeks as they battle it out up front.

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