#13 Azeez Ojulari | Redshirt Sophomore | OLBOn whether there is a discussion or sense of urgency to get things back on track…“Definitely. There are definitely a lot of things we can come in this week and work on. That’s why we call it a work week, to just improve and just continue to do what we have to do to stay at the top and keep that dominant defense that we are. We just have to come in this week, look at those things and fix it [and] just be ready for next week.”
On whether the fact that the UGA defense was “humbled” earlier this year rather than during the SEC Championship puts Georgia in a better position…“We always want to win every game, but the outcome [against Alabama] wasn’t what we wanted. So, it’s definitely good for us to just come back, make these adjustments early in the season, and just do what we need to do to improve and just make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
On what he attributes to defense’s success and productivity so far this season…“I just think it’s the way we work here at Georgia. I just think we put in the work every day. Every day, we come out here. We don’t take any days off. We just know that we can improve every day. We know how big of an impact we can make on the field, so we definitely just come out here, do what we need to do and try to just execute.”
On whether he feels he is stepping into a leadership role as one of Georgia’s top producers…“I feel like I stepped into a leadership role during the off season. It’s not production-based at all, it’s how I can influence the other people on the defense and the team. About my stats—I just try to work every day to get better. This week is definitely for us just to get better, and not really focus too much on any opponent just focus on myself and my craft.”
On how he would assess his development in his time at UGA…“I feel like I have grown tremendously, not just from a football standpoint but from a personal standpoint—just learning and going throughout life. I am 19 years old, and I am still trying to figure a lot of stuff out. Being able to continue to learn definitely during this pandemic [I have had] a lot of time to myself and just learning who I am and everything like that. I feel like I have grown tremendously.”
On whether there is a situation where confidence needs to be regained or whether it is just a matter of watching film and making corrections…“Our defense, we know we are going to look at it just like every other game and assess. We do not really pat ourselves on the back much. We are going to assess everything we did wrong and what we could have done better and everything that we could possibly get in the future. We are going to continue to just work hard in practice every day—that’s all I can possibly say about that.”