Nakobe Dean, Kirby Smart share stories from time together prior to NFL Draft
Nakobe Dean might not know where he’s going to be picked during the 2022 NFL Draft, but he feels prepared for whatever comes next thanks to the time he spent under Kirby Smart at Georgia.
“We do a little bit of everything at Georgia,” Dean said during an appearance alongside Smart on ESPN’s First Take Thursday morning. “It was a business approach every single day. That’s going to prepare me not only on the field, but off the field in life. Everything, all the connections, the people you meet, it’s helped me in life.”
Dean continued on to speak specifically about Smart and the way he’s helped along the way, sparking story time from the linebacker.
“I remember being a freshman, I came in during the spring and spring practice, I was tired, I hadn’t gotten any sleep,” Dean recalled. “He came to me and said, ‘I know you’re tired, you’re staying up all night doing homework.’ I said, ‘Yeah, coach.’ He was like, ‘I don’t care.’”
“This young man was an engineering major, and he had a 4.0 GPA in high school. He wanted to maintain that in college, and I saw it,” Smart said as he jumped in after sharing a laugh. “I saw it in his eyes.”
Dean, a native of Horn Lake, Miss., chose to come to Georgia over several other suitors. For him, playing College Football was a blessing, but academics were always going to come first. That’s why he was able to win the Arthur Ashe Sports Scholar Award.
“For me, growing up, from my mother it was never football. It was always academics. She always pushed it, so when I got to a certain age, it was just me wanting to keep it going. It was a personal feeling. I value that. I value football, academics and my business all kind of the same at a very high level.”
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Dean said that he’s talked to 20+ teams in advance of the NFL Draft, which begins with the first round on Thursday night. For a long time, Dean was projected as a first round pick. However, some have dropped him from that status with NFL scouts believing that he’s not big enough or quick enough to play at the same level he did during college. Smart encouraged them to turn on the tape and watch him play at an All-American level in the SEC. Dean believes that he’s the best linebacker, and it’s clear that Smart does too.
“I would say look at the NFL linebacker right now and all the free-release game that teams do to throw the ball out of the backfield to the Christian McCaffreys, the Dalvin Cooks and all these guys. Who’s got to cover that guy? He (Dean) does,” Smart said. “You better have a guy that can run, change the direction and cover. He faced offenses like that. He went against James Cook every day in practice. That’s the kind of backs you have to face every day in the NFL, and he’s perfect for it.”
“I believe I’m the best linebacker in this year’s draft, hands down,’ Dean added. “Besides everything I do on the field, I feel like my mentality is second to none. The way I think about things, my mindset and my leadership ability. I feel like I can lead like no other.”
Smart shared that Dean received a program-record number of votes for the team captain spot in 2021 and that his off field abilities are as strong, if not stronger, than those on the field.
