Fox off to fast start as leader of Georgia Tech's defense

ATLANTA - Georgia Tech&#39;s Keyaron Fox is hard to miss on or off the field. <br> <br> The 6-foot-3, 220-pound linebacker leads the Atlantic Coast Conference with 43 tackles through three games. But away from the field, he&#39;s just as noticeable, thanks to an untamed, flamboyant afro. <br> <br> Either way, he&#39;s been good enough to help the undersized, undermanned Yellow Jackets (1-2) lead the conference in rushing defense. <br> <br> ``He&#39;s off to a good start, but then again, we expected a lot from him,&#39;&#39; linebackers coach Brick Haley said. ``We&#39;re not surprised at all.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Fox and the rest of the defense will be tested Saturday against Clemson, which used a no-huddle offense extensively during last week&#39;s victory over Middle Tennessee. The Yellow Jackets have six freshmen on their two-deep defensive roster, including starting tackle Mansfield Wrotto, and Wrotto is the only one of the linemen close to 300 pounds. <br> <br> That includes end Gerris Wilkinson, a converted linebacker who weights only 230 pounds. <br> <br> ``We&#39;ve got our measure of players on this football team that don&#39;t fit the size and speed mold, but they&#39;re going out there and playing hard and believing in themselves, and playing good football,&#39;&#39; coach Chan Gailey said. ``Good football, but not great football.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> In the past two games, Fox has been at his best, totaling 31 tackles, including three for a loss, and underdog Georgia Tech went 1-1 against top-20 opponents Auburn and Florida State. The Yellow Jackets beat the Tigers 17-3, then gave up two touchdowns in the final seven minutes in a 14-13 loss to the Seminoles. <br> <br> ``Auburn was a big confidence booster for us, shutting down that offense,&#39;&#39; Fox said. ``Against Florida State, we knew we had the potential, and we came out and stunned them in the first three quarters. <br> <br> ``We played two of the top teams in the country close and hard. If we can correct our mistakes, I don&#39;t think there&#39;s too many other teams that can compete with us.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Fox teams with teammate Daryl Smith to give Georgia Tech the top tackling duo in the ACC. Smith, the middle linebacker, has 33 tackles and a sack. They, along with fourth-year junior Ather Brown, have a combined 78 starts in their careers, a welcome factor for the young defense. <br> <br> ``I had a great deal of confidence in them coming into the season, so I can&#39;t say they&#39;ve exceeded expectations,&#39;&#39; Gailey said. ``But they are certainly playing very well right now.&#39;&#39; <br> <br> Before the start of preseason practice, the linebackers were part of a group of players who went to Gailey to voice their support for him. <br> <br> The program was rocked by the loss of 10 players to academic suspensions over the summer, and after two embarrassing losses to finish 2002, the players wanted Gailey to know where they stood. <br> <br> ``A lot of guys weren&#39;t sure how he felt about the team, and thought he wasn&#39;t sure how the team felt about him,&#39;&#39; Fox said. ``We just wanted to let him know that we had confidence in him, and we hoped he still had confidence in us. <br> <br> ``I think it helped us trust each other.&#39;&#39;