Mike Bobo, UGA Football Offensive Coordinator, Talks Carson Beck And More
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ATHENS - UGA Football offensive coordinator Mike Bobo spoke with the media Thursday afternoon as preseason camp continued for the Georgia football team.
On remaining innovative as a play caller…
“That's a good question. We've all got friends in this business that we talk to on a regular basis that are coaching. Trying to stay fresh and new with how you do things. Football is football. We're really running very similar plays that we ran 27 years ago when I started coaching. Might be just out of different formations and different personnels and using different guys. Then I rely on coaches that have coached me. They've had a lot of experience: Coach (Mark) Richt and Coach (Jim) Donnan. Coach Donnan, who I played for and then worked for, and then Coach Richt who I worked for for a long time. They've got a lot of experience. So, you lean on guys with experience. My own dad will be at practice today. He was a coach a long time. I ask his opinion about how things looked and what we're doing. I tell the players all the time, ‘You've never arrived, you're always learning.’ That goes for us as coaches too. We're always trying to find new ways to do things. Not necessarily new, but ways to do things better where we can be efficient on offense.”
On adapting as a coach over his career…
“Me and Coach T-Rob (Travaris Robinson) were talking about it earlier. Back in the day, the game may have been a little bit simpler. It was a little more physical, but you've got to adapt. The game is played in space nowadays. I don't want to adapt so much that we don't lose our physicality as an offense. What this program is built on and what Coach (Kirby) Smart is building on is toughness and physical and offense. You want to be innovative and play the game in space and try to be explosive. You've got to be explosive on offense nowadays. At the same time, you don't want to lose your physicality as an offensive unit. That's something we pride ourselves on. It's a staple of what Coach Smart's done here since he's been here at the University of Georgia.”
On Carson Beck’s changes from last year’s camp…
“I see a guy that's trying to have a sense of urgency every day. About everything he does and not taking anything for granted. He wrote a bunch of things on our board in our meeting room of what we need to do as a quarterback. Number one was ‘Be where your feet are.’ You hear that a lot. Here's a guy that had a good season, his first season. There's a lot of noise outside this building about the future, but he can't control that. What he can control is being where his feet are every day. In the meeting that we're going to go to here in less than an hour, it's going to be an install, but it's not going to be a new install for him. It's going to be a lot of things that he's heard over the four years, four to five years that he's been here, but he's going to be locked in, being where his feet are, paying attention. There might be one little nugget today that is a little bit different than last year. Something that's going to help him be better at whatever play we're installing. I think he's got a really, really good mindset of focusing every day and controlling what he can control and getting better, because last year's last year, tomorrow's tomorrow. The most important thing is today, and that's a hard thing to do. That's a hard thing to do for me, and I'm 50, but we've got a head coach that's going to stress that daily. The most important thing is our meeting here in a minute with the players. Then how we go out there and walk through, how we go out there and do stretch, how we do everything on a day-to-day basis, and he's doing a good job of that.”
On coaching his son Drew…
“He's hell on wheels. Jared (Wilson) has missed some things, but he's got to do as much as possible. It's always – that's a very important position in the offensive unit. They communicate really to everybody what goes on up front. Jared is still being able to do that in the large majority of what we're doing. We're just being careful with Jared, but it also gives guys more opportunities to work at center and make those calls. We lost a four-year starter in Sed Van Pran, that has made the calls 100 times and was confident making those calls and communicating. So, everything we do from walkthrough to practice is an opportunity for those centers if Jared is not getting work to make those calls and communicate with those other guys. It's probably more important this year because we've got so many young linemen that might not be able to hear the call and know what they got. And a lot of times, that center has got to pass everything down the line and make the call frontside and backside for those guys. It's a little bit uncomfortable for guys like Drew (Bobo). But the only way they're going to get comfortable is keep doing it and putting them under those pressure situations.”
On the Georgia offense in EA Sports College Football 25…
“I don't know. The only video game I ever played was Tecmo Bowl and Super Tecmo Bowl, which is a lot better. A couple times I sat down with my sons, Jake and Drew, and they were playing when we had some time off over the summer. It's amazing, you know, the plays, the concept, the defense. There's a lot of good things in there. My son is trying to play, battling for the quarterback job at Prince (Avenue Christian School)) and sitting down and seeing what the defense does and making decisions. But I'd go with Tecmo and Super Tecmo Bowl. You know, I always play with the Oilers. Warren Moon was hell, and then Cris Dishman on defense. He could pick off about anything on Tecmo Bowl.”
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On working with Arian Smith…
“Well, on a daily basis, I get to spend a lot of time with Arian. He's definitely a big special teams player for us and that's been a big role for him. But a lot of times, he's repped so many things in special teams, I get to have him during those special teams periods and really work on techniques of running certain routes. We’re not running full speed all the time, but talking about routes and body control, working on the deep ball, adjusting to the deep ball with our eyes, not necessarily running a full speed post or a full speed go. But anytime you've got a guy like Arian or anybody that's got speed, track speed when they're on the field, sometimes you might not see the impact they have on a play because we might not have gone to it. But I guarantee you that defense knows when number 11 is on the field because of the speed and the ability to make not just a 20-yard explosive, but he's a guy on your team that could have a 70-yard explosive at any time. And the thing with Arian, we're just trying to be consistent every day. Here's a track guy that played track I believe his first two years, was injured a lot before I got here. Knock on wood, and he's trying to be consistent and being an overall receiver. He's a really good kid and works extremely hard, and we're excited he's back this year.”
On challenging Beck to be exuberant on the field…
“First of all, I want Carson to be himself, okay? Carson can't be Coach Bobo. He can't be Coach Smart. But the nature of the position and what you play, you’re the leader of the offense and a lot of times the leader of the team. His actions and his body language speak volumes to guys. It could be getting on somebody's a**, or it could be encouraging somebody. I still want him to be him. He has a great trait that he has such an even temperament, you know, whether we score a touchdown or we go three-and-out or he happens to throw a pick or something. His temperament doesn't change. That allows him to stay calm in the moment, and that's one of our core DNA traits is composure, and I think he has great composure. But also, his position and his job has enhanced the play of others. You know, he's going into his second year. Last year was the first year he started. We're trying to get him off on solid ground, you know, as the season went on to gain confidence, confidence, confidence, and he has confidence. There's things he's got to work on, but he's a confident young man. He's got to instill that confidence in the players that are around him, and it could be about, you know, it could be a word to them. It could be putting an arm around them. Knowing the impact that he has on guys because, these young guys that are coming in are the first guy that walks on that field for the first time. They're looking at a guy like Carson Beck that has done it, done it in SEC games, he's done it on a big stage, and they're going to look for him to how to act and how to respond. What he says and what he does goes a long way in building belief in our football team.”
On how the tight end position has innovated…
“I think it's a little bit more how they're being used. In today's game, you see more tight ends – Orson Charles, he didn't even know how to get in a stance when he got here. Aron White was a receiver in high school. So, a lot of these kids, whether it was 20 years ago or now, these guys were big receivers in high school, and their frame is going to allow them to put on weight and be a tight end. So, and again, the game is spaced, so they're probably playing in space more, using tight ends, the last guy (Brock Bowers) we had. We were handing him the ball on jet sweeps, putting him in the backfield, throwing screens to him. And obviously, using him downfield vertically and running option routes and stuff like that, I think they become valuable because of matchups that they can create. Your running backs and your tight ends create matchups on linebackers and safeties that gives you an advantage some. Now, you know, I think football is evolving more and more where tight ends are getting more and more into the core. I mean, you look at the game at the next level, you see them playing 12, 13 personnel, tight ends and hands in the dirt. They're running counters and powers, not just cutting off on the backside. And our offense is a little bit more where we're going to ask the guy to do everything, where some offenses nowadays are just totally spread guys. I think here at a tight end position, you know, you're going to learn how to play in the core, you're going to learn how to move as to be an H-back, so to speak, and you're going to learn, when we split you out and how to run routes. So, we try to do it all and have a big volume of offense, and all positions for us offensively it takes a lot of learning. We put a lot on them. But that position in particular, because it's the run game and the pass game that they're heavily involved in, it takes the guy that's extremely bright.”
On the backup quarterbacks and new receivers…
“Well, the quarterback position, how Jaden (Rashada) came about, I mean, y’all have Coach (Smart) on record that we wanted four scholarship quarterbacks. We've been looking for four scholarship quarterbacks. Because of the portal we were able to get Jaden. You know, we'd love to have gotten Jaden or a portal quarterback in here before spring. It didn't work out that way, but he was able to get here early May and start trying to learn the playbook. And he's in the process of learning it now. All those guys are doing an outstanding job every day of coming in and controlling what they can control. Carson made a great statement in our first meeting. We tried to set the tone. He said, ‘I want to say something to you guys. I want you, you need to take this camp like you're getting ready to play Clemson the first game. I didn't do that when I was young. I wasn't taking advantage of every opportunity, you know, to get ready to be the starter.’ And that's an easy thing to say, rather than do. And I've been saying it for 27 years, coaching quarterbacks, you're getting ready to play. Your opportunity's every practice. But then for Carson to step up and say that in a meeting and stop me mid-meeting and say that to those young quarterbacks. He said, ‘Hey, guys, you're getting ready to play Clemson in that first game. That's how you should approach it.’ And those guys have done a great job of that this camp. I don't even know what practice we're on. I think seven. But they're doing a great job of preparing every day and going out there and, you know, learning from their mistakes and learning from the things that they do well. The receivers, you know, Colbie Young, London (Humphreys), and Michael Jack (Jackson III) have done a nice job. All three were here in the spring, so that helps the transition when you're able here to go through the spring, 30-plus days of a practice, and then a walkthrough of practice and a walkthrough, and then all summer. These guys are now at the place in their job where they can actually compete. In spring, they're just trying to figure out how to line up. ‘I'm running this route. They're running it like it looks on the playbook.’ Now they're able to line up faster, and they're able to coach more on technique of what we're trying to do on each particular play.”
On Ben Yurosek…
“You saw Ben make plays on the perimeter. You saw Ben make plays downfield. You know, what I've seen of him now, I've seen those things. I saw him - another guy that didn't go through spring practice. They got here in May, but he didn't go through spring practice. So, he's a little bit behind, but he's very intelligent. He's done a great job of continuing to get in the playbook, and we're asking him to do things that maybe he didn't do at Stanford. I've seen him accept that, accept that challenge. He's not worried about getting uncomfortable, meaning if he doesn't do something well, he's going to work at it. You don't see him making the same mistake twice, which is a good thing. Anytime you add depth to your program is a good thing. Here's a guy that's played a lot of football. He's here trying to figure out how we do it the Georgia way. He's playing out and done a nice job so far.”
On the running back room…
“We have more depth than we had last year at this time. We were dealing with a couple injuries in camp. We've got more depth at that position, which allows one, we're not wearing down our guys. We're able to space out the reps, which you've got to always be careful of. But you see a group of guys that pay attention to Coach (Josh) Crawford. They don't mind being coached hard, and they're picking it up day by day. But you see guys that do a good job in the run game but have traits in the passing game, which is what you look for in a running back. So, all those guys have done a nice job and continue to work, and I’m pleased with that group.”
On Dillon Bell…
“You don't really get into your personnel and moving guys around until really you're through camp mode. You know, right now we're still installing. We're on day seven of our install. And in human nature, you want to start moving guys around to try to maybe win the drill or put your guys. But at the end of the day, we're trying to teach offense, and Dillon is nearly almost 100 percent and has been working at the receiver position. And Coach (James) Coley has really done a nice job teaching him the finer points of route running and execution, and it’s a little thing playing with pad level, working your releases off press and just becoming a complete receiver. Dillon did a great job for us last year making contested catches, which is awesome, but we're now working on trying to create more space. And how do I create more space? Because a lot of times he is our X-receiver and he's in the boundary. If you're in the boundary in this league, you're not going to get any off coverage. You're going to get press. And how do you handle press? How do I beat press? Really working on the finer points of winning one-on-one battles.”
On the offenses’ strengths and weaknesses…
“Well, not necessarily scheme or identity yet. I think we're still forming our identity as an offense, but one thing I feel really good about us as an offense, I think we have connection as an offense. I think that's important. We've been connected when practices or drills have gone good or gone bad. We've addressed it. And nobody's flinched in that room when they've been challenged to respond, whether it's during a practice or in the meeting the next day. There hasn’t been any pointing fingers, and I think that's always good because you want connection in that room. It's going to take everybody in that room. So, that's something obviously another DNA of ours, of Coach Smart's connection, but it's one thing to say it. It's another thing to live it, and the leadership in that room has done that. I think our offensive line, we've got so many guys coming back that have played so much ball and have been through so many camps. They're leading the way of showing these guys, not necessarily linemen, but the whole team, how to come to practice every day ready to go. There's a ton of things that we've got to continue to improve on. We're not near ready to play it. That's okay. That's part of camp. We're still trying to form our identity, and that will shape out even more after we have the first scrimmage. Coaches are kind of back, and guys are out playing ball. Then we'll go through the second scrimmage. We're going to have a big volume of offense, and we're going to install it. Then we're going to shrink it down and figure out what we do best. And maybe we're not as good at this as we were last year, so not meaning we take it out. We're going to put it to the side, continue to work on that. But we're still trying to figure that out as an offense, that's what we do really well and what we've got to work on. Right now, in my mind and those players' minds, we've got a lot to work on every day. There's nothing we do well.”
On what Beck can improve upon…
“One, he does a great job of processing, getting the ball out quickly, and I don't remember what his completion percentage was. It was extremely high last year. The one area that we addressed in the spring and at the beginning of the fall camp is the deep ball. The deep ball doesn't necessarily always need to be the perfectly thrown ball when you hit the guy in stride. Sometimes we want it to be that way as a quarterback. But it's a lot just giving the guy a chance. Not throwing the ball so far, we don't have a chance or throwing it out of bounds. Giving the guy a chance to make a play, and he's done a better job of that. Every time we complete a deep ball, it's, you know, he's looking at me or looking at Coach Gummy (Montgomery VanGorder) because he knows that's what he's focused on giving those guys a chance. Then sometimes when you struggle hitting something or doing something as a quarterback, you start to aim and thinking about it too much. Take your drop, read your progression, throw the ball and play football and not get in your head of, ‘Oh, I can't hit it, I'm trying to aim it or throw the perfect ball.’ You know, throw it and give the guy a chance.”