Countdown to Kickoff: No. 58
Gary Guyton
The countdown to kickoff is officially on as Georgia Tech‘s season-opening matchup at Colorado on Aug. 29 is less than 100 days away.
Until then JOL will be counting it down with one Jackets’ player daily that wore the corresponding number of days remaining until toe meets leather in Boulder.
With it now 58 days until kickoff in Boulder, today’s focus is on No. 58 Gary Guyton, who went from a lower-rated recruit to a multi-year starter and dynamic defensive playmaker at linebacker for Georgia Tech and eventually a six-year career in the NFL.
Guyton spent his high school days at Bradwell Institute in Hinesville, Georgia and was ranked as a two-star linebacker prospect in the recruiting class of 2004 before choosing Georgia Tech over other offers from Louisville and South Carolina.
As a freshman on The Flats in 2004, Guyton played in 12 games on special teams before getting his first real shot on defense his sophomore year in 2005 when he recorded 19 tackles (12 solo), three tackles-for-loss, one sack and one pass defended.
The 6-foot-2, 245-pound Guyton worked his way up to a starting spot at outside linebacker to begin his junior year in 2006 and went on to play in 14 games that season, recording 29 total tackles (23 solo) with eight tackles-for-loss, one sack, one interception and one fumble return for a touchdown.
Guyton’s biggest season with the Jackets came in 2007 as a senior as he racked up 78 total tackles (42 solo) to go with 14 tackles-for-loss, five sacks and five passes defended, but somehow he was snubbed for an All-ACC selection.
Despite his production in college and stellar showings at the NFL Combine and Georgia Tech Pro Day in 2008 when which he ran the fastest 40-yard dash of any linebacker that year with a 4.47, Guyton went undrafted in the 2008 NFL Draft. He signed as an undrafted free agent with the New England Patriots and spent four seasons there, playing in 60 total games with 32 of those being starts.
Guyton spent a short time with in the 2012 preseason with the Miami Dolphins and then the Dallas Cowboys before he was released and signed with the San Diego Chargers where he started one game late in the season. He signed with the Tennessee Titans during the 2013 preseason before he was released just prior to the start of the regular season.
In all for his NFL career, Guyton played in 61 games with 33 starts and racked up 229 total tackles (151 solo) with nine tackles-for-loss, 4.5 sacks, 15 QB hits, three interceptions, three fumble recoveries, one forced fumble and two defensive touchdowns.
Guyton closed out his pro football career by playing one season in the Canadian Football League (CFL) with the Montreal Alouettes in 2014.
Honorable Mention
–Calvin Tiggle (linebacker, member of the 1990 Georgia Tech National Championship team and a First-Team All-ACC pick that season, drafted by the Tampa Bay Bucs in 1991, three-time CFL All-Star, 1999 CFL Most Outstanding Defensive Player Award winner, 1999 Grey Cup Champion)
–Freddie Burden (offensive lineman from 2012-2016, All-ACC First Team in 2016 by ESPN.com, All-ACC Third Team by ACC Coaches and ACSMA in 2016 and All-ACC Honorable Mention by ACMSA in 2014, started 35 straight games at center from 2014 to 2016)
