Former wide receiver reflects on time at Tech
Courtesy of GTAA
Greg Lester makes a play for the Jackets. The wide receiver became one of the most celebrated receivers in Tech history during his time on the Flats, playing an integral role both on and off the field.
It's been over 17 years since the Jackets were able to win the National championship, but there is one member of that 1990 team that is still a very key member of the Tech and Atlanta community at large. Former wide receiver Greg Lester amassed 1,633 yards receiving in his four years on the Flats, including his 1991 season where he led the Jackets in receiving with 676 yards and five touchdowns and was an integral part of their run to the National title in 1990 as well as a victory in the Aloha Bowl the next season.
"My first couple of years at Tech, we were in a rebuilding mode. It got to the point where head coach Bobby Ross was considering resigning...I think the turning point was probably the Duke game my freshman year.
Steve Spurrier was the head coach, and the final score 48-14. Coach Ross was so distraught that he didn't even take the team place back with us to Atlanta. We saw how hurt he was and we had a team meeting to make a point that we were going to get the team headed in the right direction," Lester said.
Like Tech's struggles early on, Lester's career saw an early roller coaster as well.
As a freshman, Lester started immediately as he played in 11 games and caught 33 passes for 593 yards. In 1988, his role dropped considerably as he only caught nine passes. The next season, Lester took a medical redshirt due to injury.
However, he came back strong over the next two seasons amassing 8 touchdowns and 912 yards receiving to become one of the best receivers to wear the white and gold.
While 1990 was one of the most successful campaigns in Tech history, it was more remarkable due to the sharp turnaround that the program had faced.
When Lester first arrived in 1987, the Jackets had just hired a new coach in Bobby Ross, after Bill Curry left for Alabama. Over the next two seasons, the Jackets had a record of just 2-8 in Lester's first season, and 3-8 the next season.
However, the Jackets did have some success even in the down years. In Tech's turnaround during the 1988 and 1989 seasons, the Jackets were able to defeat teams like No. 8 ranked South Carolina in 1988 and No. 14 ranked Clemson in 1989 proving that Tech was on its way.
They shut out the Gamecocks 34-0 and stopped the Tigers 30-14, both impressive outings on offense and ones that showed flashes of what was to come.
"Initially, [Ross] wasn't really a hands-on coach. He was more of an on the field guy, and that was it. After a year or two, the entire coaching staff started taking more of an interest in us off the field. Once they started doing that, we started playing hard for them and trusting them," Lester said.
It culminated in a national championship run which saw Tech go 11-0-1 and defeating several ranked opponents, including then-No.1 Virginia on the road, 41-38. They won the title against Nebraska in the Florida Citrus Bowl, defeating the Cornhuskers 45-21.
After Lester's playing days in college, he went on to pro ranks of the NFL with the Denver Broncos took a chance on him by signing him to a free agent contract. Unfortunately, a strained ligament in his knee suffered in the Aloha Bowl hindered Lester, forcing him into the Canadian Football League where he played for one year in Saskatchewan. While there, he made a key realization about what he needed to do with the rest of his life.
"I went up there and we had a lot of down time between games, and it just hit me that it was time to move on and do something else. One of my best friends at Tech was Steve Davenport, who was the head coach at Redan High School. He offered me a position on his staff, and ever since then I have been a coach," Lester said.
After returning home to Atlanta, Lester found success in teaching the game of football to high school athletes.
After his first four years at Redan as a position coach, Lester moved on to Morris Brown College as a wide receivers coach for one year, followed by another stint at Redan as an assistant head coach.
After that, he moved on to Decatur High School as an assistant head coach when his friend, Davenport, was hired as the new head coach after taking a year hiatus. Last year, Lester became the head coach at Lakeside High School, his alma mater.
Whether it is requiring his players to meet every morning at 6:30 a.m. or coaching fundamentals on the field, Lester's approach has been to apply the same principles to his students today that he learned in his days as a Tech student-athlete.
