Georgia’s special teams coordinator, Scott Cochran, is a huge fan of his fellow colleague and Bulldogs’ strength and conditioning coordinator Scott Sinclair.
Cochran held that same title at Alabama for over a decade until he decided to take his current position in Athens over the summer.
He admitted that coming in he was familiar with Sinclair’s work.
“We played them twice,” Cochran told reporters via Zoom on Friday. “He knows what he’s doing. That’s for sure. Very impressed by the way he handles top to bottom in the weight room. Really, the stuff that I’ve seen is awesome. I’m a big fan of the stuff he does for sure.”
When Smart was first hired at Georgia, he tried to bring Cochran with him, but he decided to stay at Alabama. So, that’s how Georgia ended up with Sinclair. Before coming to UGA, Sinclair spend the two previous years at Marshall and has since received a lot of praise since arriving in Athens. Now, the two are on staff together under head coach Kirby Smart, and are both helping the team prepare for Georgia’s season opener at Arkansas on Sept. 26.
It seems like things have worked out well for both parties since Smart initially arrived in Athens. Cochran helped the Crimson Tide to a fifth national championship in 2017, which the Bulldogs ended up on the wrong side of. Sinclair has since earned national praise for his work with the program, especially during the quarantine earlier this year.
The two have quite a lot in common as both bring a lot of energy to the weight room and practice field. Players and coaches alike have said similar things about both of their energy levels.
“I think Scott [Cochran] is very comfortable doing that because he was always in front of the team in his past jobs being a strength coach,” Smart said back in August. “He’s done a good job of that. The players respect him, and a lot of them know him through recruiting. He brings the energy”
Sophomore outside linebacker Nolan Smith gave praise about Sinclair’s workout videos over the quarantine.
“When coach Sinclair started his first social media workouts on Twitter, it was kind of exciting,” Smith said. “It was a lot of motivation. It was like, that’s our 45-year-old coach getting up, doing something every day. So why can’t I do something? So when I started posting my own workouts, it was really just to show the guys that everyone is still working out and that we should all challenge each other.”
Both of their roles are separate and clearly defined. It doesn’t seem like Cochran wants to disrupt what Sinclair has been doing at Georgia over the last couple of years. Cochran just wants what’s best for the team.
“Sure. I’ll help with anyway he asks, but that is definitely…I’ve got enough on my hands trying to be great at what I’m doing, trying to get Coach Smart’s stuff right, trying to make it the way he wants it.” Cochran said. “I have enough to worry about but he’s asked questions for sure. How to handle certain things and I love it. If it’s about helping players and that’s what he’s all about. I think it’s a good transition that I don’t have to worry about that side.”