If you want to look ahead to 2019 and pick one defensive player likely to make a splash, outside linebacker Adam Anderson wouldn’t be a bad choice.
As the 2018 season has moved along, the freshman’s performance level has continued to grow.
The stats don’t lie. Against Auburn, Anderson had two of his four quarterback pressures, followed by a season-high five tackles against Georgia Tech, with a key bat-down of a pass to help secure Georgia’s win. A key third down-stop against Kentucky on the Wildcats’ first possession also stands out.
“I’m just looking to get better,” Anderson said recently. “Any way I can, I just want to get better.”
Bulldog head coach Kirby Smart said Anderson is definitely on the right track.
“Adam is rolling. He's getting better. He's taking on a role in special teams, and he's developing. He's got a lot of speed, a lot of good instincts,” Smart said. “He's become a lot more serious about learning his assignments, which has given us an opportunity to place some responsibility on him, and he continues to get better at that.”
Anderson should get plenty of opportunity next fall to show what he can do.
With the graduation of D’Andre Walker, there’s going to be an opening at outside linebacker, and Anderson would love nothing more than to replace the player he credits for instilling the proper mindset for success.
“I really look up to that dude,” Anderson said of Walker. “When I came in, that dude was the big dog. Everybody wants to be like the big dog. You see him, and he’s working all the time. He’s made me want to work harder.”
At 6-foot-5 and 224 pounds, Anderson said he feels his knowledge of the Bulldogs’ defense helped him to get on the field more as the season has worn on.
“I’m pretty much up on the playbook,” Anderson said. “Probably about 80 percent.”
Anderson isn’t the only current freshman with a bright future at outside linebacker. Brenton Cox has one, too.
At 245 pounds, Cox is a bigger version of Anderson, but Anderson feels the two compliment each other. “He’s more about taking on the heavier sets; I’m there to finish up for him,” Anderson said. “I’m his eye.”
His eye?
“Yeah, he takes on the strong side, the base side. I take on the weak side,” Anderson said. “When they’re rolling out, I’m on the other side.”
Anderson already can’t wait for next year.
“I feel like with Coach Smart, we’re coming back,” Anderson said. “The team is young and we’re going to get better. There’s no telling what can happen next year.”
