[JRL]

BY DAVID HALE - dhale@ledger-enquirer.com --

ATHENS, Ga. --

Corvey Irvin was riding a bus with some of his Georgia teammates when he got his first real introduction to freshman center Ben Jones.


Somewhere along the ride, Jones spotted a dead grasshopper on the ground, Irvin said. The lineman picked it up, bit it in half and swallowed.
"I knew he was kind of crazy when he did that," Irvin said.

Crazy may not be exactly the right word, but Georgia's version of Ozzy Osbourne certainly isn't typical.

Other than his size, the 300-pound lineman from Bibb County, Ala., looks unassuming enough, but Jones' simple country appearance doesn't tell the whole story. He has a personality that could be described as anything from friendly to nasty.

Line coach Stacy Searels doesn't allow freshmen linemen to talk to the media -- a relic of Searels' days with Nick Saban at LSU -- so few people outside of his teammates have gotten to know Jones' real personality. Despite his peculiar dining habits, however, most of the Bulldogs think pretty highly of him.

"The way he talks, he's from Alabama, and he's so country," Irvin said. "He's a very good guy, a great character, and he gets along with everybody. But when it's time to go to work, he goes to work."
Jones' work will be cut out for him this week, and his wild streak might be his best asset.

After getting the first start of his career last Saturday at Arizona State, Jones will face the SEC's version of a wrecking ball this week.
Jones will match up with Alabama defensive tackle Terrence Cody, a 6-foot-5 monster who weighs in at anywhere from 360 to more than 400 pounds, depending on who you ask.

"He is a beast," head coach Mark Richt said. "Nobody has blocked him. He is a problem."

Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford said Jones' job for Saturday is akin to moving a bus.

Richt lauded Cody's combination of athleticism and size, then was reminded Georgia was matching Jones against him on the line.
"We got a true freshman on him?" Richt said. "That's not good."
In truth, no one provides a particularly good matchup against Cody, but Jones may actually be better equipped for the job than most.
"He's a tough kid," Stafford said. "I think you could put Warren Sapp in front of him, and he'd say, 'Let's go.' "

Off the field, Jones is the prototypical country boy from Alabama -- humble, sincere and polite.

At the line of scrimmage, however, opponents see the other side of him. The same tenacity he brings to the weight room shows up on the field. Jones is mean and nasty and focused on whipping the man across from him.

"It's not nasty like dirty, but he just gets after it," guard Chris Davis said, "and that's what you need to be a good lineman."

Jones' attitude and ability were impressive enough to earn the trust of the Georgia coaching staff during fall camp. In the Bulldogs' opener, he got his first taste of action with Georgia backed against its own goal line. During the next two weeks, his playing time increased, and against Arizona State last week, he earned his first start and played every snap.

"First start for that little, chubby freshman out of Alabama," Richt said. "He's just a great kid, he's tough as nails, and he did a great job."
So far, Jones has treated his whirlwind rise up the depth chart in a manner befitting his Alabama upbringing. He has taken it all in stride, the same way he's approaching the matchup with the Crimson Tide's 400-pound sack machine.

That's just his personality, Irvin said. Jones is simple, he's focused, and he's unaware of just how intimidated he's supposed to be. Or maybe he really is crazy.

"He's just one of them old country boys," Davis said. "Nothing really affects him. You're going to get his best every day, and I'm looking forward to this game to see what he can do."

[Stoney]

When he gets an old fashioned butt whipping we will see how good this freshman is. One thing for sure after the game is over he will know he has been in a SEC game not some mamby pamby PAC 10 game.

[JRL]

Originally Posted by Stoney

When he gets an old fashioned butt whipping we will see how good this freshman is. One thing for sure after the game is over he will know he has been in a SEC game not some mamby pamby PAC 10 game.

Stoney you need to really watch Jones - he is going to be a good one based on the reports I have received.

[Stoney]

Originally Posted by JRL

Stoney you need to really watch Jones - he is going to be a good one based on the reports I have received.

I don't doubt that [he is from Alabama] but I really think he is going to get schlacked on Saturday night and beaten for sacks and huge plays in the backfield. After talking with Kirk Herbstriet who thought I was just simply crazy until he called the Clemson game, he really is starting to think Terrance Cody could be the #1 defensive player picked in the NFL draft if he comes out at the end of the season.

[JRL]

Originally Posted by Stoney

I don't doubt that [he is from Alabama] but I really think he is going to get schlacked on Saturday night and beaten for sacks and huge plays in the backfield. After talking with Kirk Herbstriet who thought I was just simply crazy until he called the Clemson game, he really is starting to think Terrance Cody could be the #1 defensive player picked in the NFL draft if he comes out at the end of the season.

Kirk is a nitwit Ohio St. lackey so I wouldn't put too much stock in that comment.

[Stoney]

I don't know of anybody who actually wants to spend an entire game blocking Cody. I have been talking to Frank Garcia [Former Carolina Panther] and he agrees that Cody has what it takes to be a force on Sundays much less Saturdays. He says in a lot of ways that Cody reminds him of Warren Sapp. That can only bode well for Alabama.

[JRL]

Garcia is he the one that was busted for using Chinese Speed (ephedra)?

[Stoney]

Originally Posted by JRL

Garcia is he the one that was busted for using Chinese Speed (ephedra)?

No you are thinking about Jason Peter [a 1st rounder from Nebraska] who turned out to be a bust. He had multiple infractions. No Frank spent 12 years in the NFL and was a solid defensive lineman.

[JRL]

No I thought I was right - after checking I am right.

Frank Garcia (born January 28, 1972 in Phoenix, Arizona) is currently an American football free agent in the National Football League. He was drafted by the Carolina Panthers as the 132nd pick of the 1995 NFL Draft. He has also played for the St. Louis Rams and the Arizona Cardinals. Frank Garcia was banned from the NFL for the first 4 games of the 2003 season after testing positive for the banned substance, ephedra. Mr. Garcia played college football at the University of Washington. Although he did not play on the 1991 National Title team, he did have the privilege of playing a key role in the Huskies 1993 upset of the University of Miami.
Frank Garcia is now an offensive and defensive line coach underneath nation renowned coach James Oddo , wrestling coach, as well as the shot put and discus coach, and substitute teacher at Charlotte Catholic High School in Charlotte, North Carolina. He also is a co-host on the Primetime with the Packman show, a Charlotte, NC sports radio show.

[Stoney]

Gee.... Carolina has had so many damaged linemen over the years it is hard to keep count of. By the way WFNZ.COM show he is on is great you should give it a listen it is on from 3-7pm EST.

[Stoney]

ATHENS, Ga. -- Before Alabama nose guard Terrence Cody could become "Mount Cody," he first had to reach the top of a West Virginia mountain.


During Cody's senior season at Riverdale High School in Fort Myers, Fla., Cody was required to complete a 2½-mile run up a mountain on property owned by his high school coach's family. The endurance test was part of his team's preseason camp, which took place more than 1,100 miles from home.
[+] Enlarge

Nelson Chenault/US Presswire
Terrence Cody has anchored what has been a dominating Alabama defense so far this year.


"When he got up the mountain, the kids went crazy because they didn't think he could make it," said Scott Jones, who coached Cody in high school.



Then again, Jones wasn't sure Cody would ever become the player his coach believed he might be one day be. When Cody was only a freshman -- a 6-foot-2, 275-pound ninth-grader -- Jones called Linnea Alexander, the player's mother, and told her Cody was a future football star.


"I told his mom in eight years he could be making $2 million playing in the NFL," Jones said. "I'd never seen anything like him."


Alabama football fans haven't seen anything like Cody, either. It is believed the junior transfer from Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College is the largest player ever to wear a Crimson Tide uniform. And it's certainly not hard to notice Cody's 6-5, 365-pound frame anchoring Alabama's 3-4 defense. Cody has 12 tackles and three tackles for loss in the Tide's first four games.


"He's a beast," said Georgia coach Mark Richt, whose No. 3 Bulldogs host the No. 8 Crimson Tide at Sanford Stadium on Saturday night. "No one's blocked him. No one man has blocked him, and I haven't seen many double-teams block him, either. He's a problem, and probably the reason they are so outstanding against the rush. When you talk about guys who can push a pocket back in front of a quarterback, he can do it."


In the early 1980s, Clemson had defensive tackle William Perry, who earned the moniker "The Refrigerator" because of his enormous frame. Former Michigan State offensive tackle Tony Mandarich was dubbed the "Incredible Bulk" because of his bulging muscles. Offensive tackle Aaron Gibson was the largest player in Wisconsin history at 6-feet-6 and 380 pounds, and he became the NFL's first 400-pound player when he signed with the Dallas Cowboys in 2002.


Now Alabama has Mount Cody.


"He's a little bit of a man mountain," Alabama coach Nick Saban told reporters this week.


In Alabama's 34-10 win over Clemson in the Aug. 30 opener, Cody helped the Crimson Tide hold the Tigers to zero rushing yards. In last week's 49-14 victory at Arkansas, Cody repeatedly beat double-team blocks, many of which were led by Jonathan Luigs, the 2007 Rimington Award winner as college football's best center.


"I haven't seen anybody who's a match for this guy one-on-one," Richt said. "Nobody playing on Saturdays, or Sundays probably."


Jones didn't see Cody's rare combination of size and athleticism until his senior season at Riverdale High School in 2005. By then, it was nearly too late for Cody to pursue a pro football career. Jones said Cody fell behind in classes after his freshman season and was academically ineligible for all but his senior season.


According to Jones, Cody's father was killed in a car accident when the player was 12. His mother was pregnant at the time, and Cody was left to care for his younger siblings while his mother worked as a school bus driver. Jones said Cody grew up in a drug-infested area of Fort Myers, but mostly managed to stay out of trouble.


"I think the drug dealers were afraid of him," Jones said.


Gulf Coast Community College coach Steve Campbell found Cody by luck more than anything else. Campbell said he called Riverdale High School to inquire about running back Chavon Walker's availability. Jones told Campbell that Walker, who has since transferred to Eastern Illinois, was academically qualified and headed to Florida. But Jones also mentioned he had a 400-pound defensive lineman who could dunk a basketball.


I haven't seen anybody who's a match for this guy one-on-one. Nobody playing on Saturdays, or Sundays probably.

--Mark Richt



Campbell watched film of Cody's high school games and couldn't believe what he saw. Against North Fort Myers High School during his senior season, Cody grabbed tailback Noel Devine in the backfield.


"Terrence got ahold of his jersey, spun him around like a top and fell down on him," Jones said. "He came to the sideline and said, 'Coach, I made Devine throw up.' I said, 'Good for you, Terrence.'"


Cody overmatched his high school teammates so often that Jones was forced to institute a "Terrence rule" during practices. The team's biggest player wasn't allowed to tackle his teammates to the ground.


"He tackled one of our freshman running backs and the only thing you could see was two feet and two hands laying under him," Jones said. "I was just thankful the hands and feet were still moving."


Campbell was amazed by Cody's athleticism once he arrived in Perkinston, Miss., to begin junior college. During the Bulldogs' training camp before the 2006 season, Cody completed agility drills better than most of the team's linemen.


"We had to work with him, but he was in great shape for a 400-pounder," Campbell said. "The first time we did boxes and jumped rope, you could tell he was pretty special. Most 400-pound guys can't jump on those boxes, but he was doing it like a skill guy."


Campbell was so impressed with Cody's athleticism he used him as a tailback in goal-line situations. Against Northwest Mississippi Community College last season, Campbell said Jones carried five or six would-be tacklers into the end zone on a short touchdown run.


"It was like a big rugby scrum," Campbell said. "It took about four or five minutes, but he slowly made his way to the end zone. Three guys hit him, and four or five guys piled on him. Then everybody just fell down. It was unbelievable."


Against Georgia, Cody will line up against freshman center Ben Jones. Jones, a 304-pound native of Alabama, will be making his second career start. He will undoubtedly get plenty of help.


"We've got a freshman [on Cody]?" Richt asked. "That's not good."

Not when you're trying to move a mountain.

[Stoney]

I don't want to block Cody anymore Matt!

[Stoney]

I have to say Jones is going to be a good one.. he has intestinal fortitude and enjoys a good scrap [even though he could have been called for holding on several plays]. Not bad for a freshman.

[JRL]

Originally Posted by Stoney

I have to say Jones is going to be a good one.. he has intestinal fortitude and enjoys a good scrap [even though he could have been called for holding on several plays]. Not bad for a freshman.

They all hold on every play - the really good ones don't get caught He is going to become the anchor imho.

[Stoney]

Originally Posted by JRL

They all hold on every play - the really good ones don't get caught He is going to become the anchor imho.

His future appears to be bright... he may even be up for an award. Matthew Stafford ought to buy his lunch this week for keeping Cody off of him.