University of Georgia Athletics
A Quick Chat With ... Jeb Blazevich
October 20, 2015 | Football
By John Frierson
UGAAA Staff Writer
Told that these questions would veer much more toward the fun and silly side than anything about Xs and Os or more serious matters, Georgia tight end Jeb Blazevich got into it right away.
The 6-foot-5, 248-pound sophomore tight end had fun with the Q&A that follows, though it's clear that he can get serious and get down to work when it's time to do so. On Monday evening Blazevich was one of 25 Georgia Bulldogs (from all sports) inducted into UGA's Student-Athlete Leadership Academy.
Blazevich, from Charlotte, N.C., made quite an impact on the field as a freshman, making the Freshman All-SEC Team after finishing with 18 receptions for 269 yards and two touchdowns. So far this season he has six catches for 62 yards and a touchdown.
During our quick chat last week Blazevich talked about (sort of) settling the Cold War, good shrimp, his golf game and much more. Here's some of what he had to say:
Frierson: What's the funniest thing you've ever seen or heard in a game or practice?
Blazevich: A lot of the smack talk's really funny. I like to have fun with it, so if somebody's yelling something back at me I usually try to keep my cool or just agree with them.
I think one of the funniest things was against (ULM). There was a player, we were huddled up, and he was staring us down and trying to intimidate us. And so me and John Theus just look over and start waving at him, and then he smiles and waves back, like "Hey!" He went from being all tough to a friendly guy. I got a kick out of that.
Frierson: If you could have played with or against anyone in history, who would it be?
Blazevich: Do they have to play football right now?
Frierson: No, it can be anybody ever. It doesn't even have to be football, if there's someone from another sport you'd love to play with or against.
Blazevich: Hmmm. I would say Ronald Reagan. I would want to play with Ronald Reagan against (Mikhail Gorbachev, former head of the Soviet Union), just because I feel like it's the right thing to do.
Frierson: (Mind pretty blown by that answer) Where the heck did that come from?
Blazevich: (Laughing) I'm a patriot. I don't know. I mean of all the questions, I'm like, let's get into this.
Frierson: I like it. You not only came from left field, you went over the fence and headed out past the stadium and into the parking lot.
Regrouping now, what do you do to get away from sports? In the quiet moments of your day, which may be few and far between, how do you spend your time?
Blazevich: I do as little as possible, that's always the goal. If I actually have a full day off, I love going to the lake or going to the river and just hanging out; hanging out in a hammock near water if it's warm enough. Just doing something simple and low-key with a small group.
Frierson: Do you remember the moment when you realized it was time to make a real commitment to the sport and began putting in the work that eventually got you to where you are today?
Blazevich: It was about halfway into winter workouts (of my freshman year) and I was playing basketball at the same time. Coach Este, my high school coach, he said, "I know you're playing basketball but you still need to get your lifts in." And I was like, this is going to stink, but oh well. I started doing it and I actually started getting stronger and I wasn't a scrawny little kid anymore.
That was the moment, once I started those little lifts. It was the simplest thing, but that was when I pretty much committed to football over everything else.
Frierson: Did you embrace the lifting or was it something you dreaded? I played a bunch of sports in high school, though not football, and I would always rather eat my vegetables or rake leaves for an hour than go lift weights.
Blazevich: I always loved lifting. Even in middle school I loved to lift. The only reason that was different is because we'd lift and then I'd have a game or practice afterward, so that was the time when I prioritized football over something else that was pretty important to me at the same time.
Frierson: Say it's the night after a game and you can pig out on anything, what are you ordering?
Blazevich: Is money involved?
Frierson: This is purely a hypothetical, so money is no object.
Blazevich: Uptown shrimp from FIVE Bar, no doubt. If it wasn't so expensive, I'd get like three orders of that and just kill it. Oh, it's so good.
Frierson: What makes it so special?
Blazevich: Have you ever had it? My girlfriend doesn't even like shrimp or seafood and she loves it. It's a game changer. Once you try it, you'll understand.
Frierson: Is there a part of the game day experience at Georgia that you connect with the most? Is there something that kind of gets you every time?
Blazevich: It's always before the game, because once the first play happens or you run in there for the first time, it's like, I have stuff to do.
It still gets me, walking into the stadium and through the Dawg Walk, seeing all the people. You're just like, wow, why are they all here? They're just here to get some entertainment but it's crazy to think about how much everybody's invested, to come down just for one day a week. It's a special time.
Frierson: If you could have played any other sport for the Bulldogs, what would it be?
Blazevich: Golf. I'm not very good, but sometimes during those hot practices you just think, if I could just be swinging a club right now. I would love to play golf. ... There's a lot of cool guys on the team, too. I'm definitely not good enough, and I wouldn't trade this for anything, but I also wouldn't mind if I could do both somehow.
Frierson: I would imagine that when you connect right, you probably hit the ball a long way.
Blazevich: I try to. I don't know, I've got a pretty bad slice with my driver.
Frierson: When you think back to your high school days, is there a moment that stands out as just one of those pure, blissful moments that you'll carry with you forever?
Blazevich: It was actually an away game. We went to this place, Franklin, N.C. (population around 4,000), which is sort of in the southwest side of the state, in the mountains. We show up and we're kind of from the city, we're not like city slickers or anything, but we show up and we end up winning the game.
But the cool part was, when we showed up the entire small town shut down. Everybody was there; all the police officers were there, the firemen, and it was the coolest atmosphere to play in front of. And then we end up winning and you get to be with your friends in such a cool spot. It was like, wow, what a blessing it is to play this game.
John Frierson is a staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. Follow him on Twitter: @FriersonFiles and @ITAHallofFame.
