Brent Key opens up on what it means for him to be part of the ACC

Brent Key joined the ACC for the first time when he was 17 years old, starting all four years at guard for Georgia Tech from 1997-2000.

Back at his alma mater, the second-year Yellow Jacket head coach is proud to be back in the conference that he enjoyed success in over two decades ago. Key wants his team to have a similar experience that he had as a player, and eventually put that on a national stage.

At ACC Media Days on Monday, Key spoke to the importance of the conference and how its influence shaped the values in life and in college football. He noted that seven head coaches across the league graduated from ACC schools.

“That says a lot there,” Key said of his conference. “Being able to be, like we said, not just a first-rounder, but a CEO, a president, a head football coach, to learn the lessons to do those things. … We all know what the ACC is. People talk about the ACC as an academic league, what it does from the academic standpoint. Georgia Tech, we don’t let that be the only thing that defines us. We’re not a group that wants to be defined by one thing alone.”

“At Georgia Tech, we want players that want to come in and have aspirations of being not great football players, but being great in their life after football as well. Being able to be, as we say, a first-round draft pick and a CEO. We want people to have those aspirations. Georgia Tech, the teams in this league, they allow you to do that.”

It’s important to Key for Georgia Tech to have the ablity to carve out their own identity within the conference as well.

“We take pride in that. Those are all things that we’ve learned, that I’ve learned over the years, what is important, what makes it important,” Key continued. “I’ve seen everything there is to see about this league, what’s great about it, from the transitions and rivalries and the coaches, the former players, what they’ve done in life.”

Key admitted that there is a certain narrative surrounding the ACC that the football is not on the same level as others. He said it’s on him as a coach and a leader to set an example on the field, on the recruiting trail, in the classroom, etc.

As head coach at Georgia Tech, it’s his job to win every game. It’s Key’s job to build a football team with the ability to compete to win every Saturday.

“That’s the end goal. People talk about expectations. The expectation is to win every football game,” he said. “There is no other thing, okay? That’s all part of the history of this league that’s gone for so many years. It’s up to us to put our stamp on it as coaches and make this what it is.”