ATHENS — Georgia defensive coordinator Glenn Schumann has been at Georgia for 11 seasons.
By comparison, Kirby Smart was with Nick Saban for nine seasons before he left to become the head coach at Georgia.
Schumann knows that everything he’s doing now will prepare him for whatever comes next. If that’s a head coaching job, he’ll welcome it.
For now, though, Schumann is focused on getting the most out of this Georgia defense. One that has a lot of talent but has some questions that need to be addressed.
Schumann spoke with reporters for over 15 minutes on Wednesday. Below is a full transcript of what he had to say.
Glenn Schumann details how Georgia needs to do a better job of finishing at the quarterback
On what his message to the defense has been...
“Yeah, I think when you go through the offseason, the whole offseason, all the way up through fall camp until you get in game planning, is still about making sure that the culture and identity is right. Because that’s what pushes you through. The things that matter to playing great defense, they don’t really change, right? Obviously, you address things if there’s areas that you want to improve. But it wouldn’t matter if you led the country in a category, you want to be better the next year than you were the year prior. So there’s not a pointed message in terms of, hey, this specific category, that specific category. You’ve got to be better at everything because ultimately, to have an elite championship-level defense, you can’t have any weak spots. Especially in the format we’re in now, where you’ve got to win postseason games back to back to back. You better be well-rounded and complete and not have any weaknesses. So the goal, I guess, is to create culture and identity of what we want to be, and then make sure that we don’t have any of those weak points.”
On how well Larry Knight has meshed with the staff...
“Yeah, it was very apparent in the, you go through an interview process. You talk to people on the phone, you Zoom with people, and then you decide to bring people in. It was very apparent early on in that process, the way that he fit both in terms of viewpoints, values, and also personality-wise for what mattered to us as a teacher, as a team guy. Then his impact to be able to have with the players, and then his specialty in terms of coaching the edge position and adding value from a pass rush standpoint, and in the run game and the way he coaches. So it was very apparent that the transition was going to go really smoothly. Obviously, you’re in a place, you have new terminology. You want to get on the same page about some of those things that are non-negotiables, but then he’s also helped us in a lot of ways grow. So it’s been great. The players love him, the staff loves him. It has been an excellent transition.”
On him wearing sweats at practice and the origin story of that...
“Yeah, I make Gage Whitten and Wil Wells’ job relatively easy. As long as I have a pair I’m wearing that day, and then there’s a pair back up, we’ll keep those in rotation and don’t lose them, then we’re good. But I just put them on one day. At one point it was, I had sweats and a long sleeve. Then at some point, basically the whole time I’ve been here I’ve been in full sweats, but I just put them on and then it’s one less decision you have to make every day. Sometimes I wonder if I should have made a different decision. But at this point, I mean, at this point, it’s just what I do and I don’t change. At least I get to decide, if there’s a moment there where I don’t want to go chase the ball at practice, I have the right to decide to do that. So I mean, if I need to do, but that’s what it is. Some days it’s better than others.”
On the defense being “simplified”...
“I think the defense becomes simpler, like the older guys get, the simpler it feels. So there’s a reality there of, people always use this expression about, well, the game’s going to slow down. Well, that’s kind of an unfair statement because then guys just sit around and wait for it to slow down for them. Then they feel like if the game’s not slowing down to them, they’re like, well, there’s something wrong with me. So that statement always, it’s a coach’s job to speed the players up so that they’re playing faster. The game’s moving the same speed, they’re playing faster. So in some ways, I think when it feels simpler, they have now sped up in terms of their processing. We do evaluate, one of the things we’ve done every year since we’ve been here, when we go and do self-scout, we don’t just evaluate, hey, well, this call gave up this many yards per rush and this many yards per pass and it created this much havoc and gave up this many explosives. That’s the hard data. But we look at it from a standpoint of, hey, what about this terminology? It might be the same call and when we’re talking as a staff, there is an inconsistency in how we’re verbalizing what we’re teaching. So it’s the same call, but we’ve changed names of calls from year to year to make it more digestible for the next guy. So I think some of that happens where you try to compartmentalize the vocabulary into families so that it’s digestible. But it’s not the same, it’s not a different defense. It’s not different rules to that defense, but it’s how it’s being communicated to them. It’s always our job to teach the players and allow them to play fast while still creating problems for the opponent. So I think there’s a little bit of their experience that they’ve gained. Then with each year, we try to streamline the terminology more and more where there’s hiccups.”
On Chase Linton and his development...
“I think that Chase is a really disruptive player. He has, for a guy that’s not, hey, he has length, but he’s not a ton of bulk. He’s put on good bulk and strength. But he has a lot of play strength, okay, which is really important, because you can be a big guy that doesn’t play big. Some of the edges are heavier than him, but he throws his body around with kind of reckless abandon, which you need to do out there — and especially with pulling guards, things like that. And his ability to transition rush, OK, which is a big deal. Because when you rush on third down and you’re looking at 90%-plus pass scenarios, like, when you sub in your packages, all that other stuff, that’s great. A lot of people can generate pressure in those scenarios, but the ability to transition rush and go from, hey, playing run, okay, and getting into pass rush. Like that twitch that he has and the kind of way he plays the game, it really translates in that area.
“So I think that’s what he has is a play style that matches up with how we play but also some ability to generate normal-down pass rush in addition to what he can do on third down.”
On this group of edge rushers and the confidence they can affect opposing quarterbacks...
“It’s just the natural growth and development. Like I was really pleased — we were all really pleased with how Q played last year. It was his first time taking on a full rep load. It was interesting because he went from not playing very much at all, and then he was playing every snap.
“And so when you look at that, his growth over the course of the season was immense because no matter how much — and we take a lot of pride in how we practice here, right? We always wanna say that we wanna make practice harder in the game. Players buy into that, we buy into that, but there’s nothing that replicates game experience. And the flow of a game and getting into a rhythm that way and gaining confidence when you’re under the lights, in front of the people in the stands.
“And so I just think his progression from that standpoint — and Gabe was in the same boat. Gabe had played a little bit more than Q had, but he took on a huge workload. And then so those guys going into their second year in future roles, and the rest of the room, some of those guys — like, the edge position, when you’re coming out of high school, the amount of strength it takes. We’re not talking about, hey, knowing passing scenarios, third down. Like, to do the complete job and set edges against the grown men in this league, the offensive tackles, the tight ends in this league, that requires a technique, fundamentals, mentality, and a significant amount of play strength.
“So when you look at a guy like Travon, he played only on third down for his first two years. You’re talking about the number one overall pick, and then he played 600 snaps the next year. He had become a complete player, right? And so I just think that there were some guys in that room that have ability. That’s why they’re here. Nobody gets here by accident. And then their maturation from a strength and conditioning, being with Coach Sinclair, but also playing the game. Like, you watched all those guys step up to be able to get more depth in that room too.
“And we always wanna be able to play two or three guys at every position. So if you’re talking about between defensive end and JACK, you’re looking to have five or six guys that can play at a really high level so that we’re able to play with the effort that we need and keep guys fresh. So I think there’s a lot more available in terms of players that are more ready to play winning football and then guys that did play that maybe it was their first real game experience, they’ve taken the next step too. So I’m really pleased with them.”
On the importance of the safeties and what’s stood out early on about this group...
“Yeah, well, production matters, right? And obviously production matters in the game, but production matters. Hey, when you get in live scrimmage scenarios, it matters in practice. And right now when you look at — we’ve completed six days of practice, right? And so the first six to seven days, that’s where the heavy install comes in. That’s where the most — like, every day something new is coming in on both sides of the ball. And then you’re getting it in, and you’re repping it, and you’re correcting it, and you’re fixing it, and the communication and the execution gets better — whether that’s run fits or pattern matches.
“Well, that point being said, the first six, seven days, it’s more about you’re repping people in terms of the depth chart just to make sure everybody gets enough reps. Like, every day we have a rep chart at every position, and it’s like, hey, we wanna make sure there’s nothing out of whack. And especially when you have a competition, you wanna make sure the guys that are all competing that they are very close. You’re not having one guy taking 40 reps in practice of live — not counting indy or whatever else —but 40 reps of live practice, and one guy in the same competition takes 25.
“And so you’re being really intentional about them getting enough reps so you can evaluate them and they can get better so that when it’s time, as we get into our first scrimmage, and then the week after the first scrimmage and the second scrimmage, that you’re really able to assess, okay, who needs to be playing, starting, in that rotation from there. And that’s normally production-based.
“But right now, it’s still more about making sure that everybody in that room can play at a really high level and execute at a high level. And the next two weeks is really where the separation starts. Like, I always view the first scrimmage as moving day. Like, hey, some people move up and down, and then, hey, after the second scrimmage, you kinda have to have a little bit of a pecking order because now you’re getting into game week prep. But you’re still constantly developing everybody in the room.
“So we’re not to that point yet, but there are a lot of guys vying for those spots. Then we gotta decide, hey, how many of those guys are we gonna play? Because you wanna play everybody that deserves to play. Like, that saying about being above the line, if somebody can help us win, then you wanna create a role for them. And so we gotta determine how many of those guys can do that. But there’s definitely every guy has a unique skill set, and it’s a fun room. It’s a fun competition.
On how his time at Alabama and Georgia has prepared him to be a head coach...
“I think every day of your life is significant, no matter where you are. You’re not to be like cliche or something, but think about this. Nobody on Earth, you, me, anybody in this room, every day in some form or fashion shapes you into the person that you become. And so I just think I’ve had the privilege of being around some of the best in the game, not just from a coaching standpoint, but from a leadership standpoint, from how people run a meeting room, how they handle tough situations, how they handle the staff. And there’s an attention to detail every single day, whether it’s here or whether it was there, that set the tone for everybody in the organization. And there’s a level of urgency to that approach. Your personality has to be your personality. And so I just think when you’re around people that are really good at what they do, whether that’s head coaches or assistant coaches or players, you learn from everybody you’re around. And I think everybody gets prepared for their next step in life. I think I’m more prepared today than I was yesterday for my job that I’m doing today. Heck, tomorrow, hopefully when I go to the practice field, I’m a better coach. Tomorrow, maybe from the, hey, thinking about this question with you. I don’t know, hey, every day has to matter, right? If every day is significant in your growth and maturation, and you’re not wasting a day, then heck, it wouldn’t have mattered if I was in Alaska. They just don’t have football there. I mean, they might have football, but don’t cut that. Hey, to my knowledge, there’s not an FBS team up there. They may.
On Khalil Barnes...
“Yeah, the recruiting process is always interesting, because it happens. You evaluate your final list of signees and the guys that you sign, and they come to the building, but there’s a timeline in all of this, right? So sometimes dominoes just fall as they fall, and he was always a guy that we acknowledged was a good football player. There was never any doubt about that, but hey, we made a decision, okay, to kind of pursue some guys more heavily. Guys decided to come to Georgia, and that was our DB class that year. That just is what it is, and so fortunately, he’s here now. And that’s one of the beauties to how college football works now. Everybody sometimes always focuses on, hey, negatives here or there, but there’s always good with bad, and there’s always bad with good. And it’s awesome that we’re able to get him here at Georgia, and we’re very fortunate that he’s here with us. I mean, he’s an instinctive playmaker, he’s smart. You can tell that he’s played a lot of football. He had on-ball production at Clemson. He had on-ball production in high school. And he’s a guy that we think can do that for us here. I always think about this, like you had Dominick Sanders. Dom Sanders picked off a lot of passes in high school. Well, then what did Dom Sanders do in college? Picked off a lot of passes. A guy that doesn’t intercept the ball very often, then all of a sudden, you expect him to intercept a bunch of passes. Your job is to help them grow, but people that naturally, like Tykee (Smith). Tykee was great at punching the ball out. Hey, he punched out the ball some here. What does he do for the Tampa Bay Bucs? Punch the ball out. Now, you’re gonna drill things to hone in on technique and fundamentals, and maybe help somebody who isn’t proficient at doing it yet get better at it. But certain guys have a knack for being around the ball, and he’s shown that. And that’s definitely shown up, and he’s really fun to coach. He’s eager to learn, and he’s taking on the challenge of a new system in stride. And the guys, he’s become, he’s acclimated to being part of this team and our culture really well.”
On Zayden Walker...
“Yeah, it’s immense progress in terms of, you know, there’s an element too for anybody that comes out of high school, okay? There’s the change from being on the field where, hey, you’re the best player, okay, to now being in a place where, hey, there’s lots of good players and everything matters. Like your stance matters, your alignment matters, where your eyes are matters, how you do things, like the details of each piece of your job are really important. And I’ve just been really proud of how much that he wasn’t able to go through spring, okay? So he had to be really intentional in how he went through the meeting time and his prep without being able to do it live. Everybody’s gonna grow the most by getting to do it and practice it. And then, so how he approached this summer in terms of both mentally and technically, and then how he’s approached camp. He’s been really diligent in the way that he’s worked, and he’s making progress. Obviously, we saw that he could help in terms of some things last year down the stretch, third-down wise, he was able to go play Jack some. When he went to Jack, then we moved Chris (Cole) around a little bit, because Chris was playing Jack on third down. And then to get Zayden in the game, to get our best 11 on the field, which is what you wanna do, we started moving Chris around some. And then, but the more Zayden can grow as a complete backer, okay? Because we blitz those guys we cover with, and they line up all over the place, which he has, and he needs to keep doing. The more he can do, the more he can help us, okay? And so, we look forward to seeing where that goes.”
