Five With Fedora: Georgia Tech

By Jeff Greenberg, GoHeels.com

1. What was your conversation like after the game with Jace?
"Well, it was tough, as you can imagine. First, I wanted him to know how he did out there on the field. He's a kid who has worked so hard in everything we've asked of him since the minute he set foot on campus. Jace is the kind of kid every coach wants on his team. So I told him he did what I knew he was capable of doing when we sent him out onto the field. He validated why we felt he was ready to go this week. I thought he showed a tremendous amount of poise with his decision-making and his command of his guys. I liked what he was able to do with the plays we gave him. He showed that he can really throw the ball, but more importantly it was where he went with the ball. That touchdown pass was thrown into a tight window and he hit it. He came in there when we were really struggling to get anything going at all and took us right down the field. I felt like we needed a spark and Jace provided that spark for our team. The other obvious trait he showed was his toughness. He ran the ball with a purpose."

2. This has been a hectic season in the quarterbacks' room. You've had to prepare five guys, including two true freshmen, to be ready to go at any moment. How would you describe the job Coach Heckendorf has done to have those guys ready each week?
"Keith has done a tremendous job for us this season. I've never experienced this in 30 years of coaching where you're at the point now where you could be running out your fifth different quarterback in one season. Three times now we've made a change trying to find the spark we need to get over the hump. And now all three of those guys are hurt. What gets lost in all of that is the job Keith is doing to have these guys ready to deal with that adversity and answer the call when it comes. It's hard enough to get enough meaningful reps for two guys to be ready each week, but to juggle what he's had to juggle is extremely difficult. But I think he's done a great job with it all. To be able to develop two true freshmen the way he has so that when the time came to put them in they were able to show they were ready is something that needs to be recognized. He had both of those guys ready to go. But again, he's had his room ready to go every week and I know he'll do what is needed to be ready this week."

3. The defense made numerous "game-changing" plays in this game against Georgia Tech. How can they build off of that heading into the next game?
"I think those guys played their guts out. Our depth was an issue coming into this game, and when you're facing that offense, that's the last thing you want to be dealing with in that moment. A lot of the guys played a ton of snaps on defense. Guys were playing hurt and gave everything they had out there. And yes, as you mentioned, when the moments came for an opportunity to make a big play, they answered that call. Forcing five takeaways, when you include the two stops on fourth down, is all you can ask for from the defense. They put us in positions to win the game. You saw different guys break through and make those plays too. Whether it was Tyler Powell beating his guy to the quarterback on fourth down, Cole Holcomb forcing a fumble or Scoop being able to turn one of those fumbles into points, it was a complete team effort on defense. I think when they see the film and see the things they did and what it took to make those plays it is absolutely something they can build off of and try to replicate this week. They know they can change the game with those plays."

4. You mentioned Cole Holcomb as one of the guys involved in those plays this week. How would you describe the game he had and what Cole has been for this team since he joined the program?
"Wow, what can't you say? I mean, in my career I don't know if I've ever seen a guy go out there in one game and make 22 tackles and force 3 fumbles. And he didn't come off the field which, as I mentioned earlier, is a tough task to handle against that offense. The triple-option makes a linebacker have to cover from sideline to sideline and Cole did that all day long. He was one of those guys that came in banged up and it didn't matter. Cole wasn't coming off of that field. He was a warrior in this game. But that's what he has done since the first day he walked into the locker room. He's a student of the game. He's always in the right spot because he has a high football IQ and he knows what it takes to prepare for an opponent. What I think is underrated is his athleticism. Cole is a phenomenal athlete. And he was made to play linebacker. Cole, in my opinion, is one of the best senior linebackers in the country, period. He's fought for everything he has and he's become a guy that our guys look to when adversity hits. There's no greater compliment I can give than to say when things get tough, Cole is one of the leaders that keeps it all together. His teammates can count on him."

5. What did the conversation with the team sound like, in terms of what's ahead this week, when you got together with them yesterday?
"First, we put this week's game to bed. We saw what went right and what went wrong and we put in the corrections needed moving forward. We talked about fighting for each other and the fact that when it was 28-10, everybody outside of this locker room expected these guys to lie down and quit. But they didn't quit. They fought for the guy next to them and they stayed focused on the next play. There is no quit in this team and the people inside of this locker room believe in each other no matter what is said about us. Now, you ask about this week? The coaches can talk about what we're facing this week, but really, it's the seniors that are going to let the guys know what's at stake this week. One of our team goals is out there to get this week. It's a rivalry game and I know the seniors on this team want to get the bell back. You don't have to say a lot to get guys excited for a game like this. The intensity and all of the feelings behind a rivalry like this one are what will drive our guys in practice this week. Getting the bell back is what they'll be focused on this week."

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University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Cole Holcomb

Tyler Powell

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