On Monday, Georgia Tech star offensive lineman Ethan MacKenny talked to the media. Here are four interesting things he said in his press conference.
The Yellow Jackets will face a new challenge going against the Colorado defense who had an influx of transfers. MacKenny provided insight on how Georgia has to prepare against the Buffaloes.
"We gotta be ready for the 4-2 defense, gotta be ready for perimeter blitzes. We gotta be ready for zero blitzes, and we gotta look around and be ready for movement." They're not gonna just stay in one place. We gotta figure out and see the keys and kind of see in advance where we think the blitzes are gonna come from, where the movement's gonna be. But yeah, I feel like the focus that we need to have is just to understand when and where we're gonna be getting these different movements," said MacKenny.
One of the most interesting things he said in the presser was the difference in the George Godsey scheme and how the Yellow Jackets have more answers to issues that arose in 2025. They will know what to do and can get over some of the qualms that derailed what looked like a playoff season for Georgia Tech.
"With Coach Godsey's offense, we've got more of an insight into what an NFL offense could be. I feel like we've got a lot more tools that we're gonna be using. We've got a better ability to answer a lot of the things that we couldn't answer last season... at the goal line or when we need literally just a couple of yards and we can't get it because we can't put a hat on a hat." We've got a lot more tools in our bag. It's going to prepare us better for the season and for our futures if we're going to go pro," said MacKenny.
Georgia Tech has set the standard since head coach Brent Key arrived. Discipline. Attitude. Toughness. These are the pillars of the Yellow Jackets and standards you have to uphold. MacKenny is a key piece in that. With so many new additions to the offensive line via the portal and recruiting, he has leaned on MacKenny more to set and raise the standard for the offensive line as one of the best players.
"Coach Key holds us to a very high standard... We got to lead as a group because, I mean, it starts with us. If we can't get it right, then no one else can.I feel like something that happened in camp: there was one point where we weren't running back to the huddle and Coach Key walked up to us. He was talking to me really, but he was talking to like everyone in the group. was like, if y'all don't run back to the huddle, like run to the ball and then come and run back to the huddle. I'm going to make Ethan run. I'm going to make Ethan run till he dies. From that moment on, everyone was running the huddle, doing what they're supposed to do, you know, and that shows the camaraderie and loyalty we have to each other, and our ability to come together as a group and figure out where we need to be. What's the, you know, tempo of what we're doing, what are the expectations, which is to run to the ball, to run to the line of scrimmage, and to run back to the huddle. So that's kind of like an example of what happened during camp," said MacKenny.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/georgiatech as Three Most Interesting Things From Georgia Tech OL Ethan MacKenny In His Monday Availability .
