ATLANTA (April 2) – Young players on both sides of the ball are making their presence known as Georgia Tech’s spring football practice continues.
Redshirt freshman Jimmy Dixon (Arlington, Texas) has gotten plenty of work at tailback. He was the leading ground gainer in last Saturday’s scrimmage, rushing for 123 yards and one touchdown on 33 carries. Another redshirt freshman, Johnathan Jackson (Jacksonville, Fla.) is in the mix at fullback.
“Offensively, Jimmy Dixon has had some moments where he has showed the things that we recruited,” said Tech head coach George O’Leary. “Johnathan Jackson has played well.”
On offense, O’Leary also mentioned the play sophomore tight end John Paul Foschi and sophomore wide receiver Jonathan Smith (Argyle, Ga.). Both players are expected to be key contributors this season after seeing limited action last fall as true freshmen. Foschi caught four passes for 58 yards in 2000, while Smith had seven receptions for 80 yards.
“Defensively, Alfred Malone (Frisco City, Ala.) at defensive tackle and Sterling Green (Hyattsville, Md.) at linebacker have shown some good things out there,” continued O’Leary. “And transfer Albert Poree (New Orleans, La.) has made his presence known at cornerback.
“We’re getting better, and we just need to continue to work and keep the competition going.”
The Yellow Jackets have one week of drills remaining, including a final scrimmage this Saturday.
“This was our 10th practice, and now we’re into some of the specialty areas that we need to work on, like two-minute, short yardage, goal line and red zone,” said O’Leary. “Those are areas where you need to be good if you’re going to be a good football team.”
O’Leary said he is continuing to evaluate the quarterback battle between sophomore Andy Hall (Cheraw, S.C.) and redshirt freshman Mark Logan (Greenwood, S.C.) for the backup position behind starter George Godsey (Tampa, Fla.)
“They’re getting better each scrimmage, and it’s a matter of who makes fewer mistakes,” said O’Leary. “I’m looking to see who can get us out of a bad play and into a good play. I expect to be able to name a number two and number three after the 15th practice.”
