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7 things you may not know about Georgia Tech’s Nate Woody

Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Nate Woody was born Dec. 30, 1960 in Burlington, N.C., and graduated from T.L. Hanna High in Anderson, S.C. T.L. Hanna was the setting for the motion picture "Radio" that starred Cuba Gooding Jr. Nate Woody played at Wofford and later was defensive coordinator there (2000-12) and at Appalachian State (2013-17). App State defenses ranked in the top 30 in the FBS in each of Woody's final four seasons as coordinator. Woody played two seasons at defensive back and two at lin
By
April 6, 2018

Georgia Tech hired Nate Woody as defensive coordinator Jan. 6, replacing Ted Roof.

Woody comes from Appalachian State, where his defenses were known for smaller, quicker players and an attacking style. Tech coach Paul Johnson said that he likes that Woody's defense, which features a 3-4 alignment, is simpler and moves more quickly.

Woody also has brought with him two assistants, defensive line coach Jerome Riase and safeties coach Shiel Wood.

The first look at the defense will come Friday, April 20 when the Yellow Jackets conduct their annual spring game, though usually those games don’t reveal a whole lot about a team’s strategies.

To read about seven things you may not know about Woody, including his high school’s connection with a famous actor, check out the video above.

About the Author

David Wellham has worked as an editor and content producer at the AJC since 2006, but his knowledge of sports in metro Atlanta and Georgia dates to much earlier. He uses his institutional knowledge to help the AJC provide in-depth coverage of area sports and sports teams. David can be reached at 404-526-5424 and dwellham@ajc.com.

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