University of Georgia Athletics
Kenneth Towns Likes Class, Books, and Football
September 06, 2014 | Football
By Loran Smith
Dating back to the first Georgia season in 1892, any male student with an affinity for football walked on over to the field to try out for the team. With the passing of time, the term segued into today's terminology--"walk on." You walk on and compete.
There have been many players at Georgia to show up without a scholarship, volunteer for the team, and make a name for themselves. None was more prominent than Jimmy Orr, who walked on in the mid-fifties and would later become Rookie of the Year in the National Football League in 1958. He would also win a Super Bowl ring and make All Pro, putting up Hall of Fame-worthy numbers in his career.
Nobody can project another's future, but Kenneth Towns, who found his way on the Georgia team just like Jimmy Orr did, is getting the coaches' attention with his overachieving attitude and work ethic. Confirming that he has something special in his makeup, he was named the outstanding walk on offensive player of the spring. This 6-3, 201-pound native of Albany has more than football skills, which he hopes will take him to his dream of playing in the NFL. He also performs well in the classroom.
At Westover High, he compiled a 3.8 grade point average. He likes class, and he likes books. One of the reasons for his timely progression on the field has been his due diligence with his playbook. He has applied the same studious approach to his football playbook as he does his textbooks. He has dual goals: earn a scholarship and complete degree requirements. He is very ambitious in the pursuit of the latter--his goal is to earn a degree from the Terry College of Business, which requires considerable effort. There are no easy courses in the Terry College. If there were, Kenneth wouldn't rush to sign up. He wants to learn--in the classroom and on the practice field.
Tony Ball, his position coach, took note of all this when Towns came to the Bulldog football camp in the summers while in high school. He showed marked improvement each year. "He just got better and better," Ball says. The Bulldog receivers coach has been impressed with Kenneth's intangibles. "First," Ball says, "he is very intelligent. He quickly caught on to the elements of the passing game concepts, which means he can play multiple positions. He is highly motivated to excel. He has mental toughness and nobody underscores the work ethic like Kenneth. He works on the little things."
It is natural for a receiver to concentrate on catching the football, but Towns wants to enhance his opportunity to play by becoming a complete receiver, which means that his coach doesn't have to worry about his attitude with respect to becoming a proficient blocker. Like learning the playbook and going to class with a good grade in mind, Kenneth works at blocking as much as any of the other drills that will enable him to succeed as a receiver.
With a Florida background, there are many Gator and Seminole fans in his family, but his mother, Katrina, is a graduate of the University of Georgia. Kenneth has never wanted to wear any collegiate uniform except Bulldog red and black.
The most successful athlete at Georgia named Towns was Forest "Spec" Towns, who won the Olympic high hurdles at Berlin in 1936. Spec was a football letterman, also an end, who died in 1991, two years before Kenneth was born. Has he ever heard of Spec Towns? "Yessir, I know about him."
A kid this smart and ambitious will be heard from. And I have the sense that if he becomes a frequent visitor to the opponent's end zone, he won't make a big fuss about it.
