Is It Time To Be Concerned About The Spring Injuries The Yellow Jackets Are Facing?

Georgia Tech held its second spring scrimmage this past weekend, and there were a lot of players and things that stood out. One of them, mentioned by head coach Brent Key, was the Yellow Jackets being banged up with injuries.

“We're banged up. I mean, that's the nature of spring. Obviously, in the season, the work to get them back and play-ready is different from what it is in spring. Spring is about developing the depth of your roster. So anytime a guy's down, and we have a freshman in there, a new guy in there, a young guy that hadn't played many meaningful reps yet, and they get a chance to go out there and get good live scrimmage work or get really good practice work, that's a major added bonus, actually,” said Key.

“So we got a lot of guys out there in black shirts, and a couple of guys got banged up today, nothing serious, but that's football. That's also why you come out in spring, and you tackle and your physical practices because you have to callus your body for those things. Whether it be holding on to the football in traffic and getting banged around.”

Coach Key has taken full advantage to feed his young guys and give them valuable reps in practice and scrimmages thus far by moving players around and even letting some of the young players run with veteran players.

Level of concern

I would say I wouldn’t be too concerned if I am a Georgia Tech fan because you get to see young guys like Christian Speakman, Kealan Jones, Courtlin and Courtney Heard, and Braylon Outlaw all get reps and stand out among the coaches. We haven’t even mentioned the growth of guys who were freshmen last year, like Kevin Roche Jr, Christian Garrett, Andre Fuller Jr, Kevin Peay, and so many more. The coaching staff hasn’t minced any words, and are continuing to emphasize that they will play young guys this upcoming season and give them opportunities.

Like with any team at this time, you have to make sure your roster is healthy or working to get healthy, and prioritize the growth and development of players, which can pay dividends in the fall. It is something Coach Key knows far too well that can be the difference come late October/November that leads to you playing well into December.

“I said that back in January. I was gonna take guys and move them around this year. You don't know how the season's gonna play out. None of us do. We might need another running back. We might need another corner. You don't know those things; you might need another offensive lineman or defensive lineman. This is the time to do that.

My comfort level in sitting in this chair and confidence in the program have allowed those things to be easy to do now. I'm not really worried about what guys want to do; I'm worried about what's best for the football team and building the depth. People have the best depth in November and December, the ones who will continue to play the longest, too. So you never know when you're gonna need those. It might be depth position on a scout team where you're a little bit better on that scout team in November, and you're making that other guy cross from that much better, right? It all matters,” said Key.