For this UGA coordinator, drill with tight ends is not about pass catching
Georgia offensive coordinator Jim Chaney devotes an entire practice period to his tight ends. It’s an energetic, intense and sometimes-profane session that isn’t finished until done completely.
Whether it’s junior Isaac Nauta — the supposed leader of the group — or the two freshmen Luke Ford and John FitzPatrick, Chaney is specific on what he wants in the drill. Sometimes, he becomes passionate about the smallest technicality.
But none of it is about pass-catching. It’s about blocking, being fundamentally correct in pass protection and playing the integral role in the offense that goes unnoticed.
“A lot of it has to do with our ability to protect the passer and ability to run the ball in play action,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “There are a lot of factors that I don’t think some people acknowledge.”
Georgia isn’t a team to predicate its offensive production around tight ends, not in the final box score at least. The primary use of the position is to set up its playmakers, and the players have bought into it and understand its importance.
Nauta’s improbable fumble recovery touchdown illustrates the Bulldogs’ approach. Even though he scored on the play, his first thought was his missed pass protection and that was the focus of the next day’s film study. Smart wasn’t too happy with the play against Tennessee either as he said it was “luck.”
“You do have to be that all-around player,” Nauta said. “We have to know protections, coverages and every route structure. We must know pass protections and where the running back is always going to be. At the tight end position, you have to know how to do everything. In certain games, we have to do more things than others.”
As the role changed in Georgia’s 41-13 win over Vanderbilt, the rewards came for the tight ends as they had the chance to show out more. It was a rare opportunity to haul in some passes, and the group of Nauta, Charlie Woerner and Jackson Harris, who had recently returned from a foot injury, made the most of it.
The trio combined for five catches, which is tied for a season-high through six games. But the yardage total of 93 yards was the highest by a large margin as it surpassed 53 against Middle Tennessee on Sept. 22.
When asked about the tight end production against the Commodores, Smart smiled and referenced a narrative that the group was lacking production.
“It makes all of (the media) happy, so I’m good with it,” Smart said. “If it gets yards, it gets me fired up. I don’t care whether its a running back, tight end or wide receiver.”
For Nauta, it felt good as well. His two receptions (for 40 yards) of the five were a part of Georgia’s crucial drive in the last drive of the first half.
When Georgia opens up its passing game, those chances will come. But when it sticks to the run-first identity, those practice drills with Chaney remain ever-important.
“We got some good work,” Nauta said on Saturday. “We keep our head down, keep working and get better. That’s all you can ask for, then we can make a play with the opportunity.