Everything From Georgia Tech Outside Linebackers Coach Kyle Pope After Thursday's Practice

Jackson Caudell | Apr 4, 2024

Nov 21, 2019; Atlanta, GA, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets helmet is seen on the sideline in the / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Spring Practice rolls on for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the annual White and Gold Spring Game is a little more than a week away.

Today, two of Georgia Tech's newest coaching arrivials met with the media for the first time since being hired. One of them is outside linebackers/edge coach Kyle Pope, who is coming over from Memphis and has a connection with Brent Key from their days at Alabama. After practice, Pope met with the media and here is everything he had to say.

1. On how he landed the job...

"Man, yeah, that was uh... the biggest key. We worked together at Bama. Had a really good relationship there. I know he came here to Georgia Tech, and coming here to coach here was a great thing and us having that relationship, it built, and everything was able to line up together and work out for us. So I was excited, beyond excited to be able to have the opportunity to come and be here at Georgia Tech with Coach Key, knowing we go way back and get that thing going again."

2. On his expectations for Kevin Harris...

"Well definitely right now just been the first time me and Kevin working together I'm excited about it. I'm definitely seeing a lot of hard work from him, athletic ability, explosive kid and right now I'm excited just to continue to work I keep chopping away with him. I think he has great, great ability, so it's on me to continue to work and get that ability out of him, but he's been very coachable, been able to lean on him, him able to lean on me and it's been good. I'm very excited about Kevin. He's done well so far in the spring, just got to finish it."

3. On his mantra/philosophy for his position...

"It's fast and violent. violent. It's fast and violent. We break every mean down with that, we finish every practice with that, and that's how we attack the field. That's how we play. When you turn the film on and see those guys coming off the edge and playing on the edge, want to say, "Hey, they play fast and they play violent," and that's our mantra."

4. On his first impression of his team...

"Man, excited. Excited. I was telling somebody the other day, man, it's a group of guys that's very willing. Willing. Willing to learn, willing to work, very coachable, and those guys can go on the field and they will strain, they'll strain for you. They want to be coached, they want to be pushed, and I'm excited, I'm excited and I'm blessed to be the guy that's able to work with them and do it, but it's a willing group who I'm into and working with so far."

5. On Jordan Boyd, the freshman and if they will move any players around...

"All right, I haven't looked at that yet. Maybe they're gonna come later. Maybe not, but right now we're just focused on the guys that's in that room. And Jordan Boyd, man, he shows a lot of flashes. I mean, it's a young kid that comes in, you look at his GPS numbers and it's like, oh my gosh. I forget sometimes he still should be in a math class in high school, but man, that kid has a lot of potential and it's a very nice future with that kid. And he comes on the field, he's still learning, of course, he still has the new guy mistakes, but the effort that he shows and the willingness that he has makes up for a lot of those things, man. So Jordan shows flashes and he shows us, and also he wants to get better every day. And that's the biggest thing with him. He wants to be on the field, he wants to get better, he wants to get better. learn right now. He's just an open book, man."

6. On the chemistry he has been able to build with Jess Simpson...

"Amazing, I can honestly say this, a lot of other jobs I've coached. The whole front. And now just Coach Simpson working with the inside and me having to ask guys, this has been the most fun I've had as a coach. The most fun. Because you're working with somebody who not just is like minded, but someone who every day I can learn from. We can collaborate and work together and we both have the same outcome that we're trying to get. Trying to get these guys to be the best they can be. And we want to see these guys win and we want to win with them. I've been to Coach Simpson every day, every day. Sometimes I come in like a player. What can I get from you today? You know? But it's great and I think that's what it's going to take for us to be dominant up front and I'm excited about it. I'm very excited about it."

7. On how many primary guys he would like to rotate...

"Right now. I think there's more. So once we get out of spring and being able to analyze how guys done in the spring then I'll definitely be able to put an answer to that but right now I'm just trying to see hey what all can be brought to the table, who does what the best, and then once we come out of this spring, we're going to the summer and we'll be able to put that plan together and take it to fall camp and take it to the season."

8. On the strong side ends, including Eddie Kelly...

"Hard physical group from that group with Eddie Kelly's I mean that group man. Those guys over there who are hungry and determined. Those guys have been just as exciting. Now I think the whole front, you can go to every position and find something out of a guy you like, dang. That was good to see. Man wasn't expecting that, but we know he got the ability to do it. So that's definitely a good group. And from the rushes on one side to the ends on the other, man, it's a group of guys who've gelled together, that's been together. I'm sorry. they understand one another and they can work off of each other so it's been great and once again, I think as we finish the spring and we continue to see what's able to be done to both sides and how these guys attack today and what we can get out of them and showing the glimpses of hey he can do this then it's gonna help us going into the summer making those decisions on how we want to play and what we wanted to look like but we're excited about it."