In The Tren-ches: Trenilyas Tatum, Georgia Tech’s homegrown linebacker, stuck with it and chose the hard way. His perseverance has been on full display during his senior season.
Inside The Chart | By Andy Demetra (The Voice of the Yellow Jackets)
Had his father gotten his wish, Trenilyas Tatum wouldn’t just be a kid from Atlanta.
He’d be a kid named Atlanta.
As Trenilyas tells it, his dad lobbied hard to give his son that name, but his mom ultimately won out.
“From what I know, it was really close. But Trenilyas popped up, and that’s what they decided to rock with,” Tatum said.
The homegrown linebacker – technically he hails from Riverdale, just outside Atlanta – Tatum will hear his name called out Thursday as one of 23 players participating in Georgia Tech’s Senior Night festivities at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (7:30 p.m. ET, Georgia Tech Sports Network). One of eight siblings from a large, blended family, Tatum says he expects an overflow crowd of family members to join him on the field in pregame.
“I take a moment every night before I go to sleep to thank God first. I feel like I’m supposed to be in this position,” the 6-foot-2, 225-pounder said.
For someone almost named Atlanta, it’d be easy to assume that fate led Tatum to this moment – a four-star, hometown talent, starring for hometown Georgia Tech, putting together the finest season of his career. Reality is rarely that straightforward. Tatum’s journey has been defined far more by perseverance – through the lulls in playing time, and the times the academic load felt overwhelming, and the times his maturity threatened to hold him back, and the time he dipped into the transfer portal, and all the other inflection points where his Georgia Tech career could have gotten sidetracked.
Sticking with it allowed him to transform his future instead. And to those around him, it only makes his Senior Night more special.
“You take a lot of pride in people you put a lot of time into. ‘Tren’ is one that we have collectively all put a lot of time in with. But that’s what makes coaching so special, is the ability to affect and change young these people’s lives,” said head coach Brent Key.
“He’s changed how people view him. He’s been able to do that. That’s been his work – no one else’s. I think he should be proud, and he should have a ton of confidence because of that,” added defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci.
He’s played with confidence this…
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