Smael Mondon still seeing room for growth in his game
Kirby Smart has seen some incredibly talented players in his time as a College Football coach. During Georgia’s fall camp, he called linebacker Smael Mondon ‘as good of an athlete’ as he’s seen. That’s high praise for the sophomore out of Dallas, Ga., and Mondon, even as a man of few words, will acknowledge that. However, he’s hoping to be more than just an athlete this fall as he looks to take on one of the lead linebacker spots in the Georgia defense.
“It’s a real honor to hear that from Coach Smart of course with all the linebackers he’s coached over the years,” Mondon said. “As far as what it does for me, it doesn’t really change much. It doesn’t change how I work. I just try to keep pushing myself as hard as I can.”
“I just want to keep getting better,” he continued. “I’m not satisfied with where I’m at right now. Keep pushing, keep getting better and better.”
After seeing action in all 15 games last season for Georgia, totaling 12 tackles, Mondon missed the spring as he recovered from surgery to repair a torn labrum. Despite being sidelined for that important time in establishing who the next generation of great Georgia linebackers would be – after all, the last three to suit up for Glenn Schumann were all drafted in the first three rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft – Mondon believes he has still managed to grow as a player. Most of that has come this fall in what he called a “good fall camp.”
“Where I grew the most, I feel like I’ve got a better understanding of the defense now,” Mondon said. “I feel like I’ve really stepped up vocally.”
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“The weight I’ve added on has really been helping me a lot,” he continued. “Most of it is understanding the game better though. When you really understand the game better, I feel like it slows down a bit and you’re able to process everything better.”
As for his next step, it’ll likely be playing a big role in Georgia’s season-opener next Saturday against the No. 11/12 Oregon Ducks. Mondon may start. He may not. Either way, he’s expected to play a lot, both in that game and as the season goes along. But even with all the praise and potential for what this season could look like going into it, Mondon still thinks there are areas he could be better.
“Where I need to make the biggest leap at, that’s a tough question,” Mondon said as he thought over his answer. “Probably just our DNA traits: composure, toughness, resiliency.”
“You can always be better,” he continued. “I’m just trying to work on the ins and outs of it (Georgia’s defensive scheme).”
