Gerrit Choate brings walk-on grit and family-legacy toughness to SMU’s edge room
Choate is a classic blue-collar defender: a former SMU walk-on who was recognized as a Burlsworth Trophy nominee in 2019 and built his reputation on toughness, special-teams value, and reliable effort rather than flash. In the 2019 season, he played in all 13 games and recorded 10 tackles, after logging 12 tackles and a forced fumble in 2018 while contributing heavily on special teams. The biggest differentiator is his feel-good, high-intensity, team-first profile — the kind of player coaches love when they want a grinder who shows up every snap.
