Geno Atkins

From NCAA College Football Information & Resource

Geno Atkins

Profile
College	University of Georgia
Position	DT
Jersey No.	56
Class	Junior
Career	2006 – present
Height	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)
Weight	290 lbs (131.5 kg)
Nationality	American
B-date	March 28, 1988
B-place
High School	St. Thomas Aquinas High School
Career Highlights
Awards
2007 AP All-SEC First Team 2007 Phil Steele All-SEC 2nd Team 2007 Rivals.com All-SEC 1st Team
Championships
none
Bowl Games
2008 Sugar Bowl 2006 Peach Bowl

Geno Atkins (born Gene Atkins Jr. on March 28, 1988) plays defensive tackle for the University of Georgia Bulldogs in the NCAA college football tournament. Atkins, one of several second-generation football players in the nation, is lauded for his motor and skills as a defensive tackle. After playing a supporting role during the majority of his rookie season, the once unheralded Atkins broke into the scene via his breakthrough performance against Vanderbilt with a record performance. Since then, Atkins has had a stronghold of the other starting DT position in tandem with the more experienced Jeff Owens. His remarkable play during his sophomore season has also paved the way for his entry into several preseason watch lists for a couple of prestigious defensive awards entering his junior year.

1 Personal Life
2 High School
3 College
4 Career Stats
5 Achievements
6 References

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Personal Life

Gene Jr., who goes by the name Geno, is a second generation football player, following the footsteps of his father Gene Atkins Sr., a Texas resident, who once played safety in the NFL for the New Orleans Saints. According to his teammate Jeff Owens, Geno was the quietest guy in the team when he was just a rookie but has grown to be one of the most outgoing persons on the roster. His attitude change earned him the nickname "180."

Following his rookie year, Geno tried out a different sport when he took part in the indoor track and field season for the first time. He finished ninth in the shot put with a throw of 50 feet, 41/2 inches in the Diet Pepsi Invitational in Gainesville, Fla. [1]

Prior to Georgia's 2008 Sugar Bowl showdown with Hawai'i, Geno and his teammates chanced upon then Warriors' quarterback Colt Brennan and his teammates on Bourbon Street. Geno even took a picture with Colt using his camcorder which his teammates wasn't too fond about upon hearing the news.

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High School

Atkins played high school football at St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida under head coach George Smith. As a junior, he helped his team post an overall record of 12-2, including a Class AAAAA state runner-up finish after contributing 50 solo tackles, 20 assists, 12 tackles for loss, one interception and four recovered fumbles while playing mostly in the linebacker position. The following year, the Raiders once again made it to the Class 5A state title game after winning its first 13 assignments, only to lose to Lakeland in the championship rematch, 10-39. By season's end, Atkins emerged as the team leader in total tackles (66), solo stops (49), tackles for loss (18.5), sacks (7.5), QB hurries (9), fumble recoveries (2), and forced fumbles (4) in 14 games as a defensive lineman for the St. Thomas Aquinas team that finished the 2005 season as the 10th ranked team in the nation according to USA Today.

Among his postseason accolades include the Florida 5-A Defensive Player of the Year award and a spot in the Sun-Sentinel's and the Miami Herald's All-County First Team. Rivals.com also named him the #24 defensive end in the nation and listed him as the #36 player in the postseason Top 100 in Florida, while Scout.com, who placed him into its First-team 5-A All-State, ranked him as the #41 DE in the nation. He also finished fourth in the Mr. Florida voting.

Aside from football, Atkins also participated in the track team, throwing the shot put during track season.

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College

Despite being one of the top defensive linemen available in the Sunshine State for the class of 2006, Atkins was not pursued by the top colleges from his home state, namely Florida, Florida State and Miami. Schools that offered him scholarships on the other hand aside from UGa. include Auburn, Michigan State, N.C. State, and Pittsburgh. He gave his commitment to play for Mark Richt and the Bulldogs in late January of 2006 then enrolled at the university that same month after early graduation from high school.

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2006

As a true freshman, Atkins got the chance to see action immediatety, making his collegiate debut against Western Kentucky where he contributed a solo tackle in the 48-12 romp. After sitting out the South Carolina game, he suited up for the UAB game and had a season high 4 tackles, with half-a-sack for a 4-yard loss in the 34-0 shut out of the Blazers. He also made appearances against Colorado, Mississippi, and Tennessee, but did not register another tackle until the Mississippi State game where he had an assist in the 27-24 win. After a three-tackle game in the loss @ Kentucky, Atkins failed to tally a stat in each of his next three appearances, including in his bowl game debut against Virginia Tech in the Chick-fil-A Bowl, won by the Dawgs.

He ended the year with nine stops, six QB-pressure, and 0.5 sacks for -4 yards in 11 games, earning the team's Defensive Newcomer of the Year.

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2007

During the team's spring awards, incoming sophomore Atkins was named as the Most Improved Defensive Tackle. In the team's season opening win over Oklahoma State, Atkins recorded 3 solo stops, all for losses (10 yards), along with a sack for a 2-yard loss. In the Dawgs' first defeat of the season, Atkins had 2 stops with a TFL in the 12-16 decision to South Carolina. He also produced identical numbers in the back-to-back wins over Western Carolina and Alabama, tallying 2 solos and a TFL. After recording 2 stops in the win over Ole Miss, he only registered a solo as UGa.'s winning streak was snapped at three by UT.

At Vanderbilt, Atkins led the team with 8 tackles (with 1.5 TFLs) in a starting role to become the first DT to led the Dawgs in tackles in a game since 1995 when Jason Ferguson tied for the team lead with 11 against Alabama, and the first lineman since David Pollack led the Dawgs with 13 against Florida in 2003. Against 9th ranked Florida, Georgia pulled a 42-30 upset with Atkins recording a tackle and half a sack. In the 44-34 win over Troy, he had 4 stops with half a sack then had 3 tackles and a sack for a 10-yard loss against 18th ranked Auburn. Against UK, Atkins posted 5 tackles (1.5 TFLs) with half a sack in the 24-13 win over the 22nd ranked Wildcats to earn for himself the SEC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors. In the regular season finale at Georgia Tech, he had 5 tackles with a season high 3 sacks for a 20 yard loss in the 31-17 victory.

He made his second straight bowl appearance against Hawaii in the Sugar Bowl, contributing 3 tackles, a sack, a pass break up, and a QB hurry in the 41-10 shutdown of the high-octane Warriors. He finished his sophomore year with 41 total tackles (#7 in the team), with a team-leading 15 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks (#2 in the team), 1 pass deflection, and 1 QB hurry in 13 appearances and 7 starts. Along with teammate Knowshon Moreno, he was named into the AP All-SEC First Team.

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2008

Entering his junior year, Atkins was listed as the starter in the defensive tackle position along with the senior Owens. He and Owens were also named into the 2008 Outland Trophy Watch list and the two, along with senior linebacker Dannell Ellerbe, were listed to the 2008 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List.

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Career Stats

	Tackles				Tackles for Loss			Sacks
Year	Solo	Asst	Total	Ttl/G	TFL	TFLYds	TFL/G	Sacks	SckYds	Sck/G
2006	5	4	9	0.82	0.5	4	0.05	0.5	4	0.05
2007	30	11	41	3.15	15.0	65	1.15	7.5	45	0.58