Nolan Smith turned heads last week at the NFL combine starting with a very open and honest press session with media members, and then following that up with a blistering 4.39 40 yard dash time, in addition to other very high workout marks. That combine has raised his draft as a player positioned now to be taken early in the first round.
One of the teams that' sitting in the top 10 of the draft is the hometown Atlanta Falcons. And on today's Steakhouse, Nolan got a chance to talk with Drew Butler and Mark Zinno about what it would be like to be, not only drafted in the NFL, but drafted by Atlanta.
"The Falcons would get everything that I did at Georgia", Nolan told Mark and Drew. Nolan did not a have a favorite team growing up, but knows it would be special to be able to play in his home state. "I'm a hometown kid and I would love to stay at home." Nolan said he is planning on meeting with the Falcons before the draft.
A lot has been made in recent weeks on the culture of the UGA program, especially after the tragic accident in January after the championship parade.
Kirby Smart spoke last week with ESPN's Mark Schlabach and said that there was no culture problem with the program, and Nolan echoed those sentiments. "It's a hard working culture. Coach Smart pushes us hard and holds us to a standard. Sometimes now as young kids, we slip and make mistakes, but we should be held on our mistakes. How do you we bounce back."
You can hear Nolan's comments on playing for the Falcons and the UGA culture above. You can hear the whole interview from this morning's Steakhouse below.