Volunteer assistant linebackers coach Germaine Pratt met with the media to discuss his role with the program and much more!
NOTE: Click the video above to watch the full press conference!
On his role...
I just talked to Coach D. I've been waiting on the call to go back to the NFL, but obviously that hasn't happened yet. So I just called Coach D and said I wanted to be around the guys and learn the next level of football, being a coach.
Has that always been the background that once your playing days are over, you wanted to do this?
Yes, absolutely. I just love football. I just love the game of football. I love what it helped me with; it helped create structure and discipline in my life. So I was willing to be a coach to impact the youth.
How has it changed your perspective now? I'm sure as a player, sometimes you're like, why are these coaches on us like this and now you're in that shoe. What's it like?
I mean, it's just a marriage relationship. As a coach, you're trying to instill something in him and then make sure he does it every Saturday. And, as a player, you still see how your coach sees it, the lens of a coach. As a coach, you're just pouring so much information into him, whether he's your processor or not, just finding different ways to teach him. And as a player, you're just learning why he sees it this way, why we're running this coverage, just how they're attacking us.
What's the biggest thing you've learned kind of being in this new role in football?
Right now, I'm still processing it, to be honest. I'm still more of a player than a coach. Hearing coach, coach, coach, coach, that's totally different because I'm still, like, still want to play football.
You played with Isaiah at State for a year. What's it like seeing him in that role of being the guy?
I mean, I'm extremely happy for Isaiah. He just embraced the role. He always been the guy that leads the group of men, and I'm happy for him. I serve him every day, to be honest.
You're playing days all over. How tough is that for a player to know that it's over?
I don't think it's tough. Like I said, I think coaching, it brings you happiness, it brings you joy, and it's been around the guys. You never get that anywhere else. Being in the locker room with guys, talking football, just helping them with life.
How different is Coach Isaiah from player Isaiah?
I don't think he's different because, as a middle linebacker, you always have to talk; you always have to communicate. And just seeing him taking that role, obviously, when I left, he became, like, the captain of the defense. And so, just hearing his voice today and how he demands excellence in his room, it doesn't make any difference in the way he played.
You were a leader as a linebacker, too. How does that carry over into coaching, from being a leader on the field to being a coach? How does it translate?
Just going, doing the right things every single day. They see you doing the right things. Obviously, they look at me differently because I played where they wanted to go. So they have so many questions, and then you try to lead them and show them the right way of living.
What stands out to you about the linebackers?
They're a group—a smart group, high health, high IQ. Everybody has a role in that. They are tight, connected, and they play fast, tough, and together.
Did anyone impress you when you walked down there and saw them?
I mean, that's why I said, like, all of them are unique. All of them are bringing something different to the table. They're not limited to roles in there. All of them can play, like, third down, the majority of them.
Have you had any moments where you instructed a young man, saw him take the teaching, and succeed? What did that make you feel like?
It brings you joy. The game has brought me so much. And being able to help him see a different lens, see how I see it, and apply it, it'd be like, yeah, you see what I'm talking about at the end of the day, it's make the play.
