Georgia Tech Football: Everything From Brent Key's Tuesday Press Conference

Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key spoke with the media on Tuesday and talked about the transfer portal and preparing for Vanderbilt

Nov 29, 2024; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key leaves the field after Georgia Tech was defeated by the Georgia Bulldogs in eight overtimes at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Georgia Tech is gearing up for their bowl game next Friday in Birmingham against Vanderbilt. The Yellow Jackets were back on the practice field today and following practice, head coach Brent Key spoke with the media. Here is everything that he had to say.

Opening Statement

"Alright, we'll be quick up here with this, but we're still in really developmental practices with, with our team and we came out filled today I think there was a fifth practice and fifth or sixth and it was probably one of the better bowl practices that I've been around in a long time. Just the physicality, the intensity of it, the competitiveness, the communication with guys on both sides of the ball. It was good on good. We just kept a of good -on -good sequences towards the end, you know, some different situational things. So it was a good practice. We're focusing still on ourselves, improving us, improving as a football team. And this time of year, a lot of times that doesn't happen in a lot of places. You know, their minds are different, thinking about different things and thinking about the end of the season. Really proud of our team for what they've done up until this point, a similar similar type day tomorrow and then we'll get into game planning and an opponent intro on Friday and really keeping it the way we've done it. We're a week out just really keeping a normal routine maybe get an extra practice or two in before but you know energy was good, intensity was good, competition was good so I thought it's been a good good week and a half of practice up to this point so you know we've already talked about going over to Birmingham Birmingham excited to go play a really good opponent that I think is a really good matchup. When you look at bowl games, that's what you look at at the matchups and I believe they got this one right. It's gonna be a good matchup between two very similar football teams in a lot of ways and it's gonna be good for the fans and we've already sold I think it's three times the allotment of tickets. It's a short two -hour drive and expecting a lot of fans, a lot of Georgia Tech people there. I know there'll be a lot of gold in the stadium, but let's make sure that it's the Georgia Tech people wearing it. So excited to see the fans make the trek over and want to continue to prepare so we can have the best version of ourselves when we have this opportunity next week."

1. On filling the void left behind by Romello Height...

"Yeah, I mean we play a lot of guys on defense. We play a lot of guys in general on that side of the ball. So we've got guys on the team. I mean, you know, one person is not going to make a difference as far as the rotational depth and having bodies to play. I mean, you know, you see some of these teams out there. They're in dire straits right now as far as being able to play a game. That's not the case at all. We're going to continue to coach the guys that are here and prepare them not only for this game, but continue to prepare them for their career here at Georgia Tech."

2. On Ethan Mackenny and the left tackle position...

"Yeah, he's been playing really the second half of the season since he came off his injury and you know, that's the guy that started eight games last year. He's played this year and really played at a really consistent level, especially down the last four or five games. I mean, that's his spot for the future. And that's where he'll be now. So really, there's nothing there that, it's not like you're putting somebody new there or putting somebody there. You've had to move spots. I mean, we've got a consistent player there. There's played a lot of really good football for us. Played a lot of winning football and it's going to be here for a long time."

3. On bowl practices...

"I think practices just really come from these guys want to compete against each other, compete together. We've got one more opportunity to play as the 2024 version of the Georgia Tech football team. And look, I don't know guys on this team that don't want to compete. Right? The guys that compete, they want to compete all the time or anytime they give, they're given the chance and the opportunity. So I don't care if it's the middle. I mean, we compete in spring. There's no, there's no game against another team. So what's the difference? It's the same as far as our mentality when we go out on the field. We get a chance, whether it's in the weight room, whether it's on the conditioning, running. Our guys got a chance to have a chance to be together and do competitive things. That's what they're going to do and have fun while they're doing it."

4. On wide recievers Bailey Stockton and Isiah Canion...

"I mean, you should have seen practice today. It was really impressed with those guys. Really impressed with those guys. I'll tell you, Isaiah is a good football player. He's maturing. He's understanding the intricacies of playing the position. He's getting stronger. He was limited early on with some injuries that lingered little bit with him. But being back full speed and continuing to grow. What you're seeing with a lot of these young guys, they had a little with the time off, and their legs, they had the freshman dead legs, and now they've had this time off, they've come back. You know, there's several guys that have really showed out. There are two of them, two guys up front, Ben Galloway and Tana Alo-Tupuola, both have really looked impressive. You know, these last two weeks of practice, and you know, there's a lot of them. Harp, Harping has really good done some really good things there, there's a bunch of, I don't want to miss anybody but those are those are guys that have really jumped off and jumped out at us that have done some good things out there."

5. On the challenges of keeping the roster in tact while also recruiting players in the portal...

"It's challenging, but this is this is what college football is. I mean, it's not It's not a we're not the only people doing it It's not like it's just gonna happen one time. It's gonna happen. This is what college football is I know you guys have heard me say that even if you're complaining about something that takes place You're wasting time to be able to get better and we We don't look at it as, you know, this black cloud, you know, rather this is an unbelievable opportunity for us to improve as a football team from a personnel standpoint, to develop our players and get better for next season and build the roster for next year."

6. On having Aaron Philo and Haynes King back for another season...

"Yeah, if you look around the room here, I mean the four things you see around around the discipline, toughness, execution, and commitment. And commitment's one that I think people, a lot of times, glance over. They talk And commitment's one that I think people, a lot of times, glance over. They talk about the execution and the toughness and the discipline. But the commitment is the single most important thing when it comes to a team, when it comes to a player here at Georgia Tech. You've got to be committed to yourself, number one. You've got to be then committed to doing what's the best to make yourself better and improve yourself. But then you're committed to your position in your side of the ball and in the team and to show their commitment to being here their commitment for development their commitment for improvement their commitment to this football team and Their belief within their commitment of how this team is going to continue to grow and be in the future I think that's what it shows and you can have two better examples But then those two along with a lot of others and other guys continue to do that, moving forward. But it was a cool idea by those guys and let them run with it."

Additional Links:

Georgia Tech Basketball: 2026 Priority Target Jalan Wingfield Talks His Recruitment and the Yellow Jackets

Georgia Tech Lands Former South Carolina WR Debron Gatling From The Transfer Portal

Georgia Tech Football: Auburn Lands Former Yellow Jackets Safety Taye Seymore