Georgia Tech QB Coach Chris Weinke Details How He Evaluates and Recruits The Most Important Position on The Field

Weinke is going into his fourth season as the Yellow Jackets quarterback coach

Nov 11, 2023; Clemson, South Carolina, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key and quarterback Haynes King (10) look on during the fourth quarter against the Clemson Tigers at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images / Ken Ruinard-Imagn Images

Former Heisman Trophy winner Chris Weinke is going into his fourth season as the quarterbacks coach for Georgia Tech and most coaches in the ACC and around the country are probably jealous of the kind of depth, talent and experience that he has been able to amass since his time there. Georgia Tech has one of the most accomplished quarterbacks in the country in Haynes King, a young star in the making with Aaron Philo, and two talented, but inexperienced players in redshirt freshmen Graham Knowles and incoming freshmen Grady Adamson. In the era of the transfer portal, it is hard to build and keep depth, but Weinke, OC Buster Faulkner, and head coach Brent Key have managed to do that at Georgia Tech.

But how does Weinke go about evaluating the guys he wants to bring into the program? When asked a question about Adamson yesterday after practice, Weinke gave some insight into how he goes about recruiting the most important position on the field:

"Yeah so my process in terms of evaluating the quarterbacks a little bit different than maybe some guys around the country, and I'm going to spend a lot more time peeling back the onion and finding out what they're like inside. And to me, I usually typically evaluate between 100 and 150 guys in each class. And that gets shrunk down to probably 50, and then I'll continue to evaluate those guys. And I know the landscape of college football doesn't necessarily lend itself to relationships these days. I'm still a relationship guy I want to build a good relationship I want those guys to understand I care about them that I'm here for them and I truly believe if they know that they care about you That they're gonna work harder for you and Grady is one of those guys very athletic really smart But it starts with toughness And every time I turned on his film or I went down to see him you could those things he's really excited to to get here in the next couple months and be a part of this he stays in touch with all of our guys I talked to him every single week you know he probably wishes he was here right now he's missing out on some development right now but very excited about the future of of Grady."

Recruiting the position like has has payed off for Georgia Tech. The quarterback position is one of the best in the ACC and in Key's opinion, one of the best in the country:

"Well, I mean, I've said this and I'm not afraid to say this publicly. I mean, I do believe we have the best quarterback room in the country. I mean, with all guys returning, the competition that they have day to day. I mean, it's great from the quarterback room to the offensive meetings, the offensive unit rooms, all of the, really across the board. I mean, look, you don't do some of the things Haynes did last year. You don't have Aaron Philo in there competing. And you're not able to come in if you're Aaron Philo and compete the way he did last year if it wasn't for the other guys and for Haynes and for Graham Knowles. And when you talk to somebody, it's changed the way they look and the way they throw the ball. I mean, you know, Graham's got as much upside as anybody. So we've got a really good room there. Uh, fully expect these guys to compete every single day from now until the last snap of the last game of the season."

Does Georgia Tech have the best QB room in the country with Haynes King and Aaron Philo back? Brent Key thinks so … pic.twitter.com/Ld37WRLUDr

— Andrea Adelson (@aadelsonESPN) March 4, 2025

Weinke's ability to recruit, coach, and develop quarterbacks has Georgia Tech in position to be a contender in the ACC not just this season, but for years to come.

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