Brad White really pleased with Jalen Geiger's recovery process
It’s been just under a year since Jalen Geiger has played in a football game. Nonetheless, Kentucky defensive coordinator Brad White expects big things from the redshirt senior defensive back this season.
“One of the things I was really pleased to see was [Geiger] came out of the post and made an unbelievable open-field tackle; a really sort of difficult tackle for a post safety,” White said on Thursday. “There was no hesitation. He came down and he struck. That was awesome to see and I think, for his confidence, [it was like], ‘OK, I’m back.'”
It was a long road back. On Sept. 10, 2022, Geiger went down with a season-ending knee injury in Kentucky’s 26-16 win over Florida. Appearing in two games in 2022, Geiger recorded seven tackles. Judging off White’s description, Kentucky fans can expect Geiger to exponentially increase those numbers this season.
“You’ve seen him fly around and make plays,” White told the press. “Just like all our guys, you’re going to have some mental mistakes before you get back into it. But, he’s at the point in his career, where as soon as it happens, he’s like, ‘Yeah, I know. I should’ve done this or that.’ So, I’m really pleased with his progress.”
Geiger’s mental game might be his strongest asset, and it’s only getting stronger. Earlier this offseason, the South Carolina native revealed how he improved despite being forced to the sideline last year.
“Since I couldn’t do nothing physical, I was really watching film and improving my football IQ,” Geiger said. “That’s all I could do was just watch and watch film. Things like that. Just learn the game more and more.”
Jalen Geiger adds to an already strong unit
If Geiger adds anything to Kentucky’s secondary, the unit could prove lethal this season. In 2022, the ‘Cats gave up just 170.8 passing yards per game, ranking seventh nationally. Further, the team only allowed 311.4 yards per contest last season, good for 12th in the country.
Despite the team’s success last season, defensive backs coach Chris Collins is putting a focus on consistency in the 2023 campaign.
“I wanna continue to see those guys be consistent every day,” Collins said on Thursday. “We got some high days, some low days. I want to be consistent. Understand the challenge of playing the ball at this level. Especially versus the guys we have in practice — ‘I got to be on my A-game’.
“They’re getting the opportunity to really develop their skillset. Just the consistency aspect, being consistent and understand, ‘Hey, sometimes they’re gonna get us.’ We wanna win more than we lose. And understanding that and not letting a good play or a bad play linger.”