[su_spacer size=”20″] The University of Georgia’s Inside Linebacker’s Coach, Mike Ekeler, addressed the media on day 5 of Fall Camp 2015 on Friday, and he talked about the talent on the Dawgs’ roster at the inside linebacker position , breaking down his young backers.
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The first thing Coach Ekeler did was emphasize the talent level of this year’s 2015 inside line backing corps compared to 2014’s.
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These guys; I think at this point than we are better right now than what we were last year, and we got a whole hell of a lot more depth, talent. Overall, I think we play better technique right now than anybody in college football. That is my opinion.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Ekeler was asked about incoming freshman linebacker Roquan Smith and also talks about number 44 Juwan Taylor:
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He’s a guy that just packs his lunch pail every day and works his tail off. He is probably ahead of schedule where’d you think he would be, but so is Juwan Taylor. He’s doing a hell of a job.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Ekeler was asked to clarify his statement about “being better now than we were last year” with senior ILBs Amarlo Herrera and Ramik Wilson gone from last year’s team, taking with them 400 plus tackles:
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Yes. That is what I’m saying. You know what they say, undersell and over deliver, and I say BS to that.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Ekeler is then asked about junior Tim Kimbrough:
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He’s done a great job. He’s physical. Hocke has got these guys in unbelievable shape. He’s done a great job with them. He’s done a phenomenal job busting his tail this summer and so has Reggie Carter. All those guys have done a great job … Jake Ganus. I mean we’ve got some guys that can play.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Ekeler is asked about junior OLB Leonard Floyd and his versatility:
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You know Jeremy has got him working all over the place. … He’s smart. His football IQ is obviously really, really high. The guy is just really instinctive. He’s pretty special.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Ekeler was asked about Natrez Patrick:
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He’s just got to learn how to work. He’s the one guy that the light is got to really click on. He had his best practice today, but everyday should be his best practice. He’s got to get better. He’s a little bit bigger, little bit heavier, and that heat is probably a little bit harder on. That’s no excuse. He’s got to learn to go and go every time.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Ekeler elaborates more on freshman Roquan Smith:
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He’s fast. He’s instinctive. He’ll put his face on you. He’s one of those guys … usually it takes time for guys to come in and understand how to take on blocks and get off blocks. Both he and Juwan have done a great job. I think that comes from watching the older guys. Older guys come in there, and you’ll see some rated R stuff. They want to be a part of it.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Ekeler talks about the similarities of Roquan and Juwan:
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They are similar type players. They are both really, really athletic. Roquan is up to about 225 right now. JT is up to about 210. They are getting to where you want them to be.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Ekeler talks about freshman linebacker Nick Moore:
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Yeah, that’s another guy. He’s done a really nice job, and he’s unbelievable smart, obviously mature. He’s instinctive. He’s a really good athlete. He’s a big body. He’s 247 lbs. He’s got a chance to develop. He played safety in high school, and he’s really, really come on at linebacker so far. It’ll be a lot of fun to see how he develops.

[su_spacer size=”40″] Ekeler is asked about possible starting line ups:
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I’m hoping we can just have a rolodex, and we can just plug guys in. That’s what you want. You want to be able to keep guys fresh. The SEC is a long grind, that competition, that schedule; so, you want to be able to roll guys in, and you want to have confidence and be able to play a lot of different guys.

[su_spacer size=”40″] So five days into fall camp and Coach Ekeler isn’t afraid to state that he believes that his inside linebackers this year are better overall than last year’s group as well as that his guys are playing great technique. The other interesting take away from this interview is it seems like, as of right now, that Roquan Smith and Juwan Taylor are ahead of Natrez Patrick as far as the freshman inside linebackers go. This is also another interview in which Coach Hocke’s S&C program is being praised by a player or a coach.
[su_spacer size=”40″] For the full interview with Coach Ekeler:
[su_spacer size=”40″] Coach Mike Ekeler breaks down his younger players