Succeeding the long line of successful men to come before him, it seems in his fourth year with the team, senior offensive lineman Warren McClendon has finally settled into his veteran role on the team. 

This kind of stuff isn’t surprising. It’s simply bound to happen with experience. 

McClendon has had the privilege of playing behind the likes of NFL linemen like Andrew Thomas, Solomon Kindley, Jamaree Salyer, and so on and so forth. He’s been mentored by guys who have made it to the next level, and now in his senior year, McClendon has taken what he’s learned and is ready to pass it down to the next set of Bulldogs. 

Last week we spoke to sophomore offensive lineman Amarius Mims about his relationship with McClendon. The young buck spoke highly of the senior and said he was a big “brother” to him. Even mentioning that he modeled his game more so after McClendon than anyone else.

McClendon responded to these comments in an interview yesterday, saying Mims is like his “little brother” and that they sat together during film sessions and talked daily. He said that he pushes Mims, and Mims pushes him to get better. 

Since Mims has gotten more opportunities to play this year, McClendon has seen him communicate better, see things better, and predict pressures better. 

He doesn’t just favor Mims, though. The vet does his best to get his whole team better because he’s been here long enough to understand that winning is a team effort whether you’re on the field or not. 

But just because he’s the old guy in the room doesn’t mean he’s reached his learning limit. McClendon shared that he admires Tate Ratledge for the way he extends plays and stays physical throughout reps. 

Long story short: this team is constantly making itself better. Guys will learn from one guy, pass it on to another guy, and the cycle will continue. McClendon’s assumption of the veteran presence in the offensive line room further exemplifies that.