Choice, Bennett lead football offense

With Calvin Johnson and Reggie Ball moving on from the college ranks, Tech's offense looks to two new captains to lead their offense. Taylor Bennett and Tashard Choice are the new leaders of the offense and have shown they are more than capable of leading the team.

Choice, who was one of the more vocal members of the team, already establishing himself as a leader last season in the huddle and in the locker room. Bennett, who has not had as much playing time, has shown his ability to lead the team by example. Bennett has spent much of his time at Tech watching film.

"I think our guys understand what Taylor's about, Taylor's about being a team player, being successful, working hard, getting better. Our players respect that about him," said Head Coach Chan Gailey.

Bennett did not play organized football until High School and was not a starter until his senior year. His performance senior year was enough to earn him a spot on Rivals.com's Missouri top 20.

Bennett's first season on The Flats saw him backing up Reggie Ball, but because Bennett did not take a snap, he was able to preserve his redshirt season. It was not until his second year that he gained some in-game experience. His first collegiate snap was also his first touchdown pass. Bennett hit Calvin Johnson on a 42-yard pass and became just the second quarterback in NCAA history to throw a touchdown on his first collegiate snap. The other was USC's Matt Leinart.

Bennett's sophomore year had him getting a little more game experience. He had playing time against Troy, Samford and Duke. He also had his second start against West Virginia in the Gator Bowl when Ball was declared academically ineligible. Bennett set a Tech bowl record by passing for 326 yards.

His performance in the game was put on the back burner as Tech lost the game, but it gave them hope that they might not have quarterback questions come spring practice.

"[H]e gave us a chance to win the ballgame, that's all you can ask for someone in their first start of the season. Everyone in the locker room understood he was going to play a great game," Choice said.

This season will be a different story for Bennett as he becomes the starter.

"We have to be careful of letting one game crown somebody with some identity and certain abilities. He's played well when he's had the opportunities, I think he's going to be a very good quarterback, but time tells those things," Gailey said.

Bennett inherits four of five returning starters on the offensive line, one of the nation's best fullbacks, a returning wide receiver who has had a season of experience and three talented young wide receivers vying for a spot opposite James Johnson.

Another player returning on this year's offense is last year's ACC rushing leader and preseason-All ACC running back, Tashard Choice. Last year, Choice had nine games where he rushed for over 100 yards and averaged just under 100 yards per game for the season.

Choice transferred from Oklahoma to Tech before his sophomore season. Choice helped the Jackets out of many tight situations last season including scoring two touchdowns against Maryland in a come-from-behind win.

This season Choice hopes to make a similar impact, but will play a varied role. With the new offensive coordinator, John Bond, introducing a spread-style offense, Choice could be the target of several swing or short passes from Bennett.

"Going through workouts, the offensive line told me 1800 yards [as a target] or better....The offensive line is trusting me to do those types of things, and I trust them to do certain things for me. I give all the credit to them and [Mike Cox] for doing all the hard work," Choice said.

Choice and Bennett have experience together playing in the Gator Bowl and Choice always refers to Bennett as a student of the game.

"Taylor's a guy who is going to come around, slap everybody's hand before the game," Choice said.

Bennett may not pass for 300 yards every game this season, but the Gator Bowl provided us with a glimpse of what this offense may look like without Calvin Johnson this season.

The first three games will provide an indication of how well this team can do. Traveling to Notre Dame will not be easy, and week three brings Boston College to the flats. But how will the national media react to a team that lost "the best receiver made to man kind?"

"We have to go out there and earn our respect. The only way you're going to do that is to get victories," Choice said.