Monday, March 29, 2004

The Aftermath

Well, get ready to let the joy of the Final Four soak into your system. Enjoy every moment because we don't know what this weekend will bring. For only the 2nd time in school history, the Jackets head to the Final Four. San Antonio here we come.

ON TO THE MEDIA STORIES
Here's the AP story.......... Here's a look at the team without BJ and his efforts to play, even talking with Dennis Scott prior to the game.......... Here's an AP look from the Kansas point-of-view. Here's the Bark Madley article. Notice that Hewitt didn't cut down the final net - he deferred to President Clough and AD D.Braine. Wow - talk about leadership - giving credit to others. I also like the confidence of Coach Hewitt telling his team "we are still going to win - it's just going to take a little longer".......... On the Kansas side here is a look at Bill Self and how he is NOT Roy Williams.......... Did you know that GT has 9 victories against teams in the final AP top25 poll, while Kansas has not beaten one team in the final poll? This guy looks at the many reasons why Kansas lost.

THE LINE ON J.JACK
Holy crap - 29 points, 9 boards, 6 assists, 4 steals and 13-14 from the line. Are you kidding me? Expect more stories like this........... By the way, did you notice that Jack tossed the game ball in the air at the end of the game? Evidently it landed in the Jacket's section and was passed to Coach Hewitt's wife, who was in tears (per this NY Times article). Actually, it was another article that mentioned the crying part.............. Here is a great article on Jack from ESPN......

THE FINAL FOUR IS SET
The Jackets play Ok.St. and Dook will match-up against UConn (what a heavyweight match-up). Dook took care of pesky Xavier............. Speaking of Dook, yet another guy in the media deciding to tell the truth about K.

Interesting - of the 3 teams other than the Jackets in the Final Four, GT has beaten 2 of them.

GET READY FOR THE UNDERDOG ROLE
ESPNNews has a poll on who fans think will win the dance. Right now UConn is dominating and GT only has 8% of the vote. Get used to it. I am sure we just inherited the "Cinderella" title for the remainder of the dance.

SO, IS THE ACC OVERRATED???
That's a popular question, considering NCST, WF, UNC and MD bowed out earlier in the dance. It is a resounding NO. Half of the final four teams are ACC. Here is a quick look at the ACC match-ups.

GETTING LOVE FROM AROUND THE ACC
The UNC board showing some love for Hewitt and the Jackets....... This from NCST fans......
OK, it's not all love - evidently the Wake Forest fans have some sour grapes. Can you believe these guys?........ Upon further review, I did find a more positive WF thread here........ Fans of other ACC teams like FSU, Clemson and even BC came to the GT boards and expressed their congrats. Great to feel the support.

IF YOU ARE MAKING TRAVEL PLANS TO THE FINAL FOUR
... the official travel agency to call would be Anthony Travel. For the official press release see the bottom of this post

ARE THERE OTHER SPORTS GOING ON???

REGGIE BALL AND CHRIS WOODS PLAY WELL IN SCRIMAGE
Looks like Reggie and Woods played well. (story here).

JACKETS ROUTE GA SOUTHERN IN BEESBALL
Oh yeah - the beesball team won also.

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F O R I M M E D I A T E R E L E A S E: March 25, 2004

Anthony Travel, Inc. to provide official Final Four fan travel packages for
Georgia Tech Athletics Association should Yellow Jackets advance.

Atlanta, GA: The Georgia Tech Athletics Association will partner with Anthony Travel, Inc. of Dallas, Texas to provide official Final Four travel packages to San Antonio, Texas for Georgia Tech fans should the Yellow Jackets advance to the NCAA National Finals. Yellow Jacket fans can place deposits for the potential Final Four fan trips beginning Friday evening following the Georgia Tech vs. Nevada basketball game should the team advance to the Elite Eight.

Anthony Travel is offering Yellow Jacket fans several different travel options, contingent upon Georgia Tech advancing to the Final Four. Official package components include: accommodations at an official Georgia Tech hotel for four (4) nights, game ticket, ground transportation, special event party ticket and Georgia Tech Final Four souvenir. An air travel option is also available.

Anthony Travel, Inc. (ATI) is a full-service travel management company with unparalleled expertise in university services, group alumni travel, amateur athletic sports team travel, housing bureau services, and event management. In addition to serving as Georgia Tech’s Final Four fan travel partner, Anthony Travel serves as the official travel partner for the University of Notre Dame, University of North Carolina, Stanford University, Purdue University, Southern Methodist University, Valparaiso University, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), Disney's Wide World of Sport's Complex, US Youth Soccer and the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, among others.

To purchase official Georgia Tech Final Four travel packages, please visit AnthonyTravel.com or
call (800) 736-6377.