On Coach Pittman starting the “Yes Sirrrr!” celebration with his commitment to Georgia…

 “Oh man! It was funny. That was a fun day for me just to see that guy and his face light up. [Coach Pittman] has a smile you really can’t hate on. He’s got good energy. He has always been that way. It made me really happy. It made my mom really happy. He good at building relationships—that’s what he was best at. He just made me feel happy—to see him light up and how happy that made him.”

On the anticipation of potentially making his first career start at left tackle…

“I am excited to go out there and compete. I am a competition guy. I like going out there and competing. I know they have good edge rushers, and I am excited to see what they got. I worked really hard for this moment. I worked every day during quarantine to keep my weight down and working on my technique. I am really excited to go out there and compete—just to be able to compete against somebody else instead of having our defense every day—it’s exciting.”

On his continual support of Coach Pittman…

“Of course [I support] Coach Pitt[man]. He has always been great to me. He’s been great to my family. He always treated me with the upmost respect here. I got a lot of love for Coach Pitt—I would tell him that right now if I could talk to him. I love to compete against him. He’s always been special to me—always will have a special place in my heart because he poured a lot into me when he was here. I got better. We had a great relationship. I would love for his team to have success. I am not upset with his decision. He did what was best for him and all I can do is wish him the best. I hope they have a great season. I am excited to compete against him.”

On the advice Andrew Thomas has given him…

“Of course! We worked out a lot during quarantine. He had a big matchup this weekend himself—he played against Khalil Mack. He had some good reps too. I was excited to see him go out there and compete. It got me really fired up because we worked out together. Just to see him go out there and play two pretty good games. Last game he kind of had a little rough patch, but pretty well for a rookie. Just to see him go out there and compete was really fun. It’s fun to see him progress. I’ve seen him go from middle school to high school, high school to college, and college to the NFL—the highest level. It’s fun to watch him compete. We talk all the time—probably once or twice a week. We just check in on each other. As far as advice, he pretty much gave me everything he had as far as over quarantine and working out. I am excited to see where he goes.”

On his spot on the line and how team depth has raised his anticipation level week-by-week…

“Week-by-week I want to be ready to go, COVID-19 adds an extra factor, as well as injuries. I’ve been working at all three interior positions and I’ve been getting ready for this game.”

On Coach Sam Pittman & Matt Luke and the relationships he has with them…

“They are both great men. Coach [Sam] Pittman recruited me here, now he’s at Arkansas, and we respect him. Same thing with Coach [Matt] Luke—he’s done a great job getting to know us and applying his enthusiasm into the offense. Coach Luke is huge on making sure we have a good life. He’s very involved in our lives and any mental health related things that we’re going through. He wants to be aware of it so he can help us get through it.”

On what freshmen are catching his eye…

“All of the freshmen have done a great job at competing. It’s a grind for everyone, especially the freshman. There isn’t one in particular that has caught my eye, but I know that for years to come Georgia’s offensive line will stand firm.”

On if he is curious to see how Coach Pittman does in his first game as a head coach…

“I’m very curious, he will always have a special place with me. Every player, staff and faculty love Coach Pittman. I am interested to see how he does and I wish him the best of luck as he goes on. I know he is going to do well.”