Kudos to Tashard and O-Line

Interesting stat - VaTech had the longest streak in the nation without allowing a opponent to have a 100-yard rusher - 19 games. Tashard Choice rushed for 104 yards today behind an outstanding effort by the O-Line.

Game Log

Since I have time, thought I would give you some game updates

1ST QUARTER
Jackets strike quick with a huge pass down the middle on the first play of the game to James Johnson, setting up a few more plays and a TD on a fade to who else - Calvin Johnson. After replay review, the refs confirmed that CJ is the Truth. 7-0 Jackets


Jackets stop the Hokies on their first drive, force a terrible punt, and WHAMMO!!!!! 3rd down, Reggie rolls right, dumps to the Truth and he does the rest - TD. 14-0 Jackets baby!!!! Wow


Jackets stop the Hokies THEN BLOCK THE PUNT. And who blocks it? Troy Garside - A KICKER!!!!! Who's playing BeamerBall now??????????


Jackets work efficiently and get in into the endzone on a Tashard Choice carry. I have to say, the O-Line is blocking brilliantly. I am shell-shocked........... but it keep it coming....... 3-3 in the redzone with 3 TD's. That's what I'm talking about.


Oh, but there's a lot of ball left to play


VaTech is 2nd in the nation in scoring defense, only giving up 5.8 points / game. GT has scored 21 in the 1st quarter.


Hokies strike back on the back of a great catch by a Hokie WR who took the ball away from JW Daniels. The Brandon Ore made a great run to the endzone. Jackets 21-7............ and that's the end of the 1st quarter. Take a breath please.



2ND QUARTER
Well, things have slowed down a bit, then worst of worst, Reggie Ball throws in INT that leads to a Hokie FG........... 21-10 GT......


Another Reggie Ball INT that leads to a VT FG.............. 21-13


The Jackets go down the field and almost score a TD, but settle for a FG and now lead 24-13........... It's halftime folks............. Whew....


HALFTIME NOTES
- The Jackets have 255 yards of offense on only 29 plays. Wow.
- only Calvin Johnson and James Johnson have caught passes (CJ 5, JJ 1). We need to "spread" the ball around. Calvin already has 100 yards receiving at the half
- Q1 Reggie - awesome 2 TD's.............. Q2 Reggie - not so good - 2 INT's.
- Tashard Choice is averaging 5.8 yards/carry. Get him the ball some more.
- kickers's blocking kicks. That's not something you see everyday.
- Neither team has sustained a drive longer that 4:19 long. That's fine as long as the Jackets are striking quick. Otherwise not so good.


3RD QUARTER
Hokies have the ball the start the half, move it well, but then WHAM!!!! Philip Wheeler with a crushing sack that Gary Guyton picks up and runs back for a TD........ 31-13.........


Hokies 2nd possesion, K-Mike gets the sack, the tomahawk chop and ANOTHER fumble, this time recovered by Adamm Oliver. GT on the move.....


MVP of the game so far for the Jackets? CJ? Wheeler? Guyton? Ball? Nope. How about Durant Brooks. Just had his 2nd consecutive punt backing up VT inside the 5 yard line. He da man.


The bad side of that is that the Jacket's last 2 drives are:
3 plays, -13 yards
3 plays, -7 yards
Come on guys, the defense can't do everything in the 2nd half


Alright, Tashard Choice eats up yardage and takes the Jackets down the field and finishes things off with a TD run and luckily picking up his own fumble into the endzone. Still counts as 6 points.................. 38-13 Jackets....


By the way, I heard a stat the other day. When a team scores a defensive touchdown, they win around 80% of the time. That's a pretty good stat.


4TH QUARTER
Hokies do score a TD, but it takes them an awful long time to do it. They need some Beamer magic to come back from this one.


Tashard Choice over 100 yards for the day. He and Grant help run the clock down. Great punting by Brooks continues. Still 5 minutes left.


IT'S OVER FOLKS. Jackets win 38-27. The ref's tried their best to give the game to VT, but just couldn't do it.


What a great win. What a statement. Wow. How about that!!!!!!!


GO JACKETS!!!!!!

Football - Special Teams

Good article on the special teams, specifically kick-off coverage. The focus was on Michael Johnson. I was at the game and he was in on the majority of the tackles. However, something that you could only pick up on from being at the game - Johnson was the LAST guy down field on EVERY kick-off I watched. Hate to say it, but he had a bit of a slow top speed. Having said that, he did an outstanding job of eyeing the returner all the way and positioning himself to make the tackle. So you have guys that run at full tilt and others who hang backa slightly. Was Johnson running full speed? Looked like it but I'm not sure. I do know he was involved in a lot of the tackles so it was working.


Just a interesitng note.

Football Attrition

While the new graduation rate progress report from the NCAA is catching the headlines, I found this interesting from David Glenn about one of the primary reasons for UNC's problems on the football field:

Bunting basically has a hole in the middle of his program. He has lost so many players via attrition, for so many different reasons, that he finds himself playing catch-up in terms of personnel on an annual basis. There are basically two ways to build a winning program in the new ACC: (1) consistently recruit significantly better talent than everyone else, a la Florida State or Miami, and/or (2) consistently recruit "good enough" talent, then retain it, develop it and coach it up on game day, a la Boston College and Georgia Tech. (Virginia Tech and Clemson are combining #1 and #2 pretty well right now.) Under Bunting, the Tar Heels have accomplished neither goal.


According to statistics compiled by the ACC Sports Journal and ACCSports.com, only one ACC school (Duke) lost more scholarship players over a recent three-year period (spring 2003 through spring 2006) via early attrition than the Tar Heels. The "early attrition" numbers — more than 30 over those three years, in UNC's case — include anyone who left the program with eligibility remaining. On a league-wide basis, the most common reasons for premature departures are transfers, dismissals (academic and/or disciplinary), career-ending injuries, early NFL entries and sport switches, plus veteran reserves who choose to graduate with eligibility remaining rather than return for an additional season of little or no playing time.

Football - Listen to Joe Anaoi Talk Tech

Click here to listen to Joe Anaoi recently on Rivals.com Radio.

Hey Reggie, here's your bulletin board material

Check out what VaTech cornerback Victor Harris had to say about you when speaking about Calvin Johnson:

Though Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball has completed less than 50 percent of his passes in his career, Harris knows Johnson will demand the ball.


"That's the difference," said Harris, who had his first two college interceptions and first interception return for a touchdown last Saturday against Cincinnati. "(Johnson) ain't got the best quarterback, so he makes the plays. He's huge and fast. We're going to see what we're really made out of." «

The Calvin Johnson Worship Continues

After watching the replay of the UVA game the other night, I was struck by the amount of Calvin Johnson talk by the announcers. It didn't matter - offense, defense, special teams, breaks, Andre3000 - it was all about CJ. I love the kid as we all do, but it was a bit much. Now the love continues between coaches:

“Calvin Johnson is in a class by himself,” Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer said. “He’s a guy that you can have him covered, but you don’t have him covered.


“Athletically, he is tall and he is strong. He’s gifted, he can go up and get the ball so you could have your best defense in there and you still might not stop him.”


Chan Gailey agrees. He’s coached in the NFL and is now in his fifth season in Atlanta, and thinks that Johnson is a unique football player.


“I’ve never had one like him. Not in college, not in the NFL,” said Gailey, whose Jackets have won three straight over Samford, Troy and Virginia. “I’ve never had a receiver that big and that fast with that kind of hand-eye coordination.”

Where are they now - Damarius Bilbo

Check out D-Bo's latest job on the scout team with the Dallas Cowboys. This guy just can't shake the QB bug:

Cowboys practice squad wide receiver Damarius Bilbo (6-foot-2, 220 pounds) has transformed into Tennessee quarterback Vince Young this week on the scout team.


While Tennessee will start veteran Kerry Collins, the Cowboys expect to see Young. Bilbo, a former quarterback at Georgia Tech, is preparing the Cowboys first-team defense, and he said he forced a few defensive players to run into each other while running the option.


"I'm big and athletic and I have a gun," Bilbo said. "It's a lot of fun especially to give the defense the look they need and then we go out and get a win against Tennessee. You know you had something to do with it."


It's also a chance for Bilbo to impress the coaches. He drew the notice of linebacker Greg Ellis, who complimented him on his playmaking.


Bilbo knows the player he is simulating. While in college, the two worked at the Steve McNair camp in Mississippi. Bilbo will likely run scout team before the Cowboys face Atlanta's Michael Vick on Dec. 16.

Here's more:

"Bilbo was a starting quarterback in the ACC for two years," Parcells said of the rookie free agent who switched to receiver his junior season. "But this isn't rocket science running that option play. He's been doing that for two weeks."


Bilbo said he worked a football camp in Mississippi with Young three years ago, but doesn't admit to being on Young's level.


"He's a really good player and someone who can move around and make plays," Bilbo said. "Whatever they want me to do is fine. I like playing a little quarterback again. It's fun."

Where are they now - Stephon Marbury

Watch Stephon Marbury talk about his new $14 sneaks.

VOTE FOR CALVIN FOR HEISMAN

Go here and cast your vote. He is currently in 3rd place.

Where are they now - Will Bynum

Well, Will Bynum is back in the NBA Developmental League. They added a new team and Will the Thrill was selected in the expansion draft by the Bakersfield Jam. Keep up the good fight Will!!!!

Uh Oh

Georgia Tech seems to play worst when the opposing team has players suspended for one reason or another. It happened against Fresno State in a bowl a few years ago. It happened against UVA last season. Well, looks like VaTech has had a couple of key players suspended for this weekend's game. Good and not good at the same time. VaTech already has a tight game against Cincy to motivate them for this weekend, as if a key conference match-up wasn't enough. Now this.

Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer has suspended starters Chris Ellis, a Bethel High graduate, and Josh Morgan for Saturday's game against Georgia Tech due to a violation of team policy, according to a release from the school's sports information department.

Ellis is one of Tech's starting defensive ends and has 12 tackles this season, including a sack. Morgan, a native of Washington, D.C., starts at wide receiver and has 10 catches for 161 yards and two touchdowns this season. He also has blocked two punts.

Underground rumors are some type of altercation at a bar. Stay tuned.

Game Re-caps

"GTZealot" over at the Hive provided game recap links and here they are. Many of them have been linked in the left column, but I thought I would post here.


Great game last night. I do have some thoughts, but headed off for the weekend with my wife without the kids. So it will have to wait. A great night for football, a great national stage for the Jackets, and a convincing win.


AJC - By MIKE KNOBLER - C.J., Tech leave Cavs in their wake
AJC - Johnson plays with bum leg, hauls in 2 TDs - By MIKE KNOBLER
AJC - Tech takes control of trenches by hammering bigger Cavs - By MATT WINKELJOHN
AJC - Jackets live up to role as favorites - By Jeff Schultz
Gwinnett Daily Post - Injury fails to sideline Johnson - By Adam Van Brimmer
Macon Telegraph - Georgia Tech 24, Virginia 7 - PAUL NEWBERRY
Macon Telegraph - Tech throws down on 'Throwback Thursday' - By Adam Van Brimmer
Macon Telegraph - Yellow Jackets go retro for Cavaliers - By Adam Van Brimmer
Macon Telegraph - Georgia Tech gameline - Compiled by Michael A. Lough
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer - Jackets take step forward on 'Throwback Thursday' - BY TROY JOHNSON
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer - Johnson's career day, solid 'D' give Tech win in ACC opener - BY CHRISTA TURNER
Columbus Ledger-Enquirer - Johnson finishes strong - BY CHRISTA TURNER
Yahoo Sports - Can Tech wreck the ACC? - By Terry Bowden
NCAA Game Summary - Virginia at Georgia Tech
VA Daily Press - GA. TECH OVERWHELMS U.VA.
VA Daily Progress - UVa can't overcome big deficit in ACC opener - By Jay Jenkins
VA Daily Progress - Hamilton's stay on sidelines short-lived - By Jay Jenkins
VA Daily Progress - One small step for Virginia's O-line - By Ray Glier
Lynchburg News & Advance - Virginai (sic) overwhelmed on offense against Georgia Tech - By Andy Bitter
VA Times Dispatch - Groh makes changes, but Georgia Tech rolls as the Cavs' struggles continue - BY JEFF WHITE
The Virginian-Pilot - U.Va. stumbles at Ga. Tech - By ED MILLER

We are here!!

Well, it took some doing but
we only missed the Jackets first score. 7-0 baby!!

Sent via BlackBerry from Cingular Wireless

Still not moving

Well, it's now 6:45 and we still have not moved one tenth of a mile. Evidently there is a 5 car accident ahead. Looks like we will miss kick off.
Sent via BlackBerry from Cingular Wireless

Get ready men

Well, it is 5:45 and I am on I-85 south coming in to the ATL. Unfortunately traffic is completely stopped 55 miles out of town.
Sure hope this clears up. Get ready to strap it on and play.

Time for revenge against the Cav's. Take'em to the woodshed men.

ComIng to you from my crackberry.
Sent via BlackBerry from Cingular Wireless

Football Recruiting - Steven Threet

Some recent stuff on QB recruit Steven Threet

Article #1

Entering Friday's Southeastern Conference showdown at Chelsea (3-0), Adrian (3-0) had won its games by an average of 25 points. Quarterback Steve Threet , who committed to Georgia Tech, hasn't been asked to make the big play under pressure or throw many passes. Threet is averaging only 17 passes a game, but his touchdown-to-turnover ratio (7-1) has been more than satisfactory. The Maples, coached by Phil Jacobs , are averaging 400 yards.

Article #2:

4 ADRIAN (3-0) AT CHELSEA (3-0), 7 TODAY. Neither team has been tested in the first three games, which makes this an even bigger game for both. Chelsea has to find a way to control Georgia Tech-bound QB Steven Threet. SOS would suggest eight defensive backs, but then Jarrod Knorr, if he is back this week, or Undra Peterson would have a field day carrying the ball. Chelsea QB Jon Seelbach needs to hook up with Nate Schwarze a few hundred times to keep the Bulldogs close. Adrienne Pertakis 24, Chelsea Morning 20.

Article #3:

With the somewhat depleted backfield, senior quarterback Steven Threet stepped up big and completed 8 of 15 attempts for 222 yards and a pair of touchdowns.


“Our quarterback was much more accurate tonight and he made some great decisions,” Jacobs said of his 6-foot-4 future Georgia Tech player. “We executed pretty well tonight and our run game has improved, also. Our offense put it together tonight.”

Threet powers Adrian past Huron 37-6

The Maples (1-0) jumped out to a 30-0 lead after a 37-yard touchdown pass from Steven Threet. The Georgia Tech recruit would go on to complete seven of 17 passes for 82 yards.


"Steven Threet is one of the better quarterbacks I've seen in person,'' Huron coach Joel Przygodski said.

Sporting News Recruiting

Georgia Tech also did well this year, earning a commitment from Michigan quarterback Steven Threet. Threet doesn't have the mobility of Ball, but that can't be expected at 6-6 and 225 pounds. He has a strong arm and excellent accuracy and is physically ready to challenge early.

Bill Curry Receives High Honor

Bill Curry is going to receive the Amos Alonzo Stagg Award, given to one individual per year based on their contribution to the game of football:

The award, which honors those "whose services have been outstanding in the advancement of the best interests of football," will be presented to Curry at the AFCA Awards Luncheon on January 10 during the 2007 AFCA Convention in San Antonio.


"I'm overwhelmed by this," Curry said. "It's such an incredible honor that I can't express how I feel. I'm very appreciative of the AFCA Board of Trustees and grateful to Grant Teaff for what he's done for our organization and the difference he made in my career. I'm naturally grateful to all my players, my assistant coaches and, most of all, Carolyn and our family for all of their support through the years. This is the highest honor I've ever been accorded."

Where are they now - Dawan Landry

In case you missed it last night during Monday Night Football, at halftime they showed the top 3 hits in the NFL from this past weekend, a segment called "Jacked up", and guess who was #1 with a helmet removing, bone-crushing hit against a Raider WR? Our own Dawan Landry. Here was a nice article from last week..................Dawan Landry draws high praise for his first NFL game from the head coach:

"Dawan Landry, in particular, did some very, very good things - beyond what you might expect from the rookie to do in that situation," Billick said. "He's playing with a great deal of fluidity."

Football - UVA Notes

Some notes for Thursday's game:



Even trying 3 quarterbacks, Cavaliers find no solution

"What I saw out of the three quarterbacks was what I see every day — not enough production," said Groh, even though the three combined to complete 24 of 32 attempts for 189 yards. "We need somebody to make a play some way offensively."


Groh did not say who would start Thursday at Georgia Tech.

Virginia offense stuck in neutral


QB troubles derail Cavaliers


Virginia left searching for answers after shut out

“It’s like being caught in quicksand,” said Groh. “When you can’t score any points, you can’t kick it through, you can’t throw it in, and you can’t run it in, it makes it pretty hard to win. Teams that we’re playing are recognizing that, playing a certain kind of game. They know that they don’t have to score a lot of points to win. We put them in position to get 14 [points] today. That’s good smart planning on their part.”

Opponents have wisely taken advantage of UVa’s weaknesses and blitzed the living daylights out of the Cavaliers.


“Whoever they put in there, we were trying to put pressure on them and make some big plays,” said Western Michigan senior linebacker Ameer Ismail.


Virginia thinks it has seen blitzing? Just wait ’til Thursday night when they hit Atlanta. Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Jon Tenuta must be licking his chops at the prospect of putting the heat on Virginia. He normally blitzes every down anyway, so goodness knows what he may throw at the Wahoos.

He didn’t expect to get the whole second half, but Virginia’s coaches were left - and still are left - with some interesting questions. Do they go with a redshirt freshman in a season that looks dismal from this point, or go with the quarterback that gives them the best chance to win week by week?


John Madden once said, “If you’ve got two starting quarterbacks, you’ve got none”


So, what if you’ve got three?

Broncos bust out at expense of Cavaliers


Hamilton's injury kept under wraps by UVa


Meanwhile, check out www.dontfirealgroh.com

Bottom line is that Virginia is a team in flux, in slight chaos, and Georgia Tech needs to capitalize and start the real season off right, going 1-0 in the ACC. However, this is Georgia Tech's first REAL test in my opinion. This is EXACTLY the type game we have struggled with in the past. For this team to develop a signature of consistency, they need to beat teams they should. UVA is one of those teams, but they put their pants on a leg at a time also. Lace 'em up and come ready to play boys.


Don't believe the hype. Just play hard and get the W.

Weather Forecast for Thursday Night

............ in case you're interested, it looks good.

Football Recruiting Update

RB recruit Roddy Jones had 19 carries and 268 yards and 4 TD's in a win for Chamblee over Southside on Friday night. I believe that's his 2nd game over 200 yards already. Outstanding.

Football - ACC Out of Conference

A quick run-down of ACC out-of-conference wins / losses so far:


WINS:
BC-- Central Michigan and BYU
Wake-- Syracuse and UCONN
Clemson-- Florida Atlantic
FSU-- Troy
Terps-- William and Mary and Middle Tennessee St.
NC State-- Appalaichian State
Va Tech-- Northeastern
Ga Tech-- Samford and Troy
Virginia-- Wyoming
UNC-- Furman
Miami-- Florida A&M


LOSSES:
Terps-- West Virginia
NC State-- Akron and Southern Mississippi
Ga Tech-- Notre Dame
Virginia-- Pittsburgh and Western Michigan
UNC-- Rutgers
Miami-- Louisville
Duke-- Richmond

Quote of the day

From Troy head coach Larry Blakeney:

"There's some differences in the two teams, certainly. If you look at Florida State, you might pick every player on their team over anyone out there on the field today for both sides, except maybe for Calvin Johnson, Ball, number 93 (Michael Johnson) and some of those guys on defense.


"I didn't make the game plan on defense, but to me, they (Georgia Tech) give us more problems and stress us more so offensively than Florida State. Defensively, Florida State's got a player at every position, and their first six backups that come in are All-America types. These guys are no different, but if you look at them (FSU) you might pick some of those guys first."

Jackets Explode in 4th Quarter, win 35-20

Well that was the closest 35-20 game I've ever listened to. In what was beginning to sound like another nail-biter after Troy tied the game 14-14 on their opening drive of the 2nd half. It wasn't until a late 3rd quarter drive resulted in what sounded like a circius one-handed catch by Mike Cox for a TD that the dam break open. It was then that back-to-back INt's by the Jackets led to two more TD's and a sigh of relief. That's 21 points in the 4th quarter by the offense, all of which came in the span of about 5 minutes.


Troy put up another great fight for 3 quarters, but just didn't have the horses for a full game. Credit the defense for staying very strong after that initial drive of the 2nd half. The late Troy score came with mostly 2nd teamers on defense.


OFFENSE
Well, the Jackets finished with 500 yards of offense. I'm not sure that has happened in the Chan Gailey era. A whopping 320 yards on the ground and 180 yards in the air. 41 rushing plays and 32 passing plays. An average of 7.8 yards per carry on the ground. Interestingly 5.6 yards for attempt through the air. Honestly many of these yards were racked up late and I am still quite concerned about the effectiveness of the offensive line.


From a scheme standpoint, I think we saw a larger playbook today. There were reverses, sets with R.Grant lined up in the slot, sets with T.Choice lined up as a receiver, and some with both those guys in the game at the same time. Not sure how effective that stuff really was, but Patrick Nix is opening up the playbook a little more each week.


DEFENSE
The defense gave up an 80 yard TD drive to open the 2nd half, but then held Troy to consecutive 2-and-outs, then back-to-back INT's to seal the win. Overall Troy had 101 rushing yards and 182 net passing yards. Throw in a couple of questionable calls to keep drives alive, or it would have been even better. Overall a good grade again for the D.


SPECIAL TEAMS
Better kick-off coverage today, particularly because we kicked more of them out of the endzone. Durant Brooks didn't have an outstanding day, but didn't do anything bad either.


REGGIE SETS A RECORD
Reggie ran for 138 yards, an all-time record for a Tech QB, beating Gary Hardie's record from 1978......... at least that's per Wes Durham. So, is it a good thing that your leading rusher is your QB? Not really in my humble opinion. As long as it doesn't become a trend.


From a passing perspective, Reggie didn't seem to have a good game, but honestly it was better than the stats would indicated. He ended 13-29, 165 yards, 2 TD's, 2 INT's. However, there were at least 3 dropped passes that should have been caught and one of those INT's came on a hail mary that ended the 1st half.


CALVIN JOHNSON HURT
Not good, but evidently CJ had a "contusion" of some sort. He was in and out of the game after that, but sat most of the 2nd half. He only ended with 2 catches for 9 yards. His stats the last couple of weeks arent' going to win him any awards, but at the end of the day, winning is all that matters and win we did.


Do WE HAVE A #2 WR NOW?
So, with CJ out, who is trying to make a statement of their own as the #2 guy. It clearly looked like James Johnson wants to be that guy, as he caught 3 for 74 yards. However, he's not the only guy. Greg Smith continues to make about 1 impressive catch per game and today he caught 2 for 38 yards. Great to see some other guys stepping up.


CHRIS DUNLAP - CHECK THE DIGITS
Chris Dunlap, I believe, has dropped at least 1 pass in each of the first three games. He wasn't the only one today, but he's had at least 3 drops this season. Chris, time to find the tube of stick'em.


MORE ACTION FOR THE 2ND TEAMERS
Great to see the back-ups get more action. Taylor Bennet was 2-3 for 16 yards and might have taken us down for a TD had a penalty not brought back a nice connection to Wayne Riles. Jamaal Evans gets 5 carries for 40 yards and a TD. R.Grant hd 2 carries for 51 yards as well. On defense, a lot of guys got more action today as well. That bodes well for deeper into the season to know that certain guys aren't going to result in a big drop-off at their positon. Nice to have some game-speed film to review of a lot of different guys.


TIMEOUT CALLS
Some strange use of timeouts during this game. I don't have a lot of time to add more, but the timeout calls were just frustrating..... almost giving me flashbacks to Reggie's freshman season.


CHAN GAILEY'S POST-GAME COMMENTS
- It was a war in the 1st half, but as Dan Radakovish just said - "we imposed our will in the middle of the 3rd quarter".
- we're not one-dimensional offensively, trying to make sure people have to cover inside, outside, short, long, all over the field.
- On the other side, we felt that if you stop Troy's short quick passing game, you can win. That's was Jon Tenuta did today.
- good to get some of the back-ups some action. Good to see Taylor Bennet get some throws.
- 5 days to get ready - physically a concern.


Overall a good day. A little early frustration, but don't sell short a Troy team that almost beat FSU last week. Nice job team........2-1 and time for Thursday night ESPN action. I will be there!!!!.........


GO JACKETS!!!!!!!!.....

The Good Word :: Issue No. 11

The Good Word :: Issue No. 11

UH OH!!!... Time for Reggie Bush to Answer Some Questions

Evidently Yahoo Sports has uncovered a lot of interesting details about Reggie Bush's life at USC, including illegal payments and a lot more. Well, at least he got his rings..................................

Watch GT / Troy on TV !!!!!!!!!

.................... if you live in Montgomery that is..........

TROY, Ala. – The Troy Trojans football team will make its return to live television this Saturday when the Trojans face Georgia
Tech at 12:30 p.m.


The game, originally scheduled to be available only on Comcast/Charter Sports Southeast (CSS) on a tape-delay basis, will be carried live by WRJM-TV, MY 67, in Montgomery. The broadcast will re-air on CSS on Tuesday, Sept. 19, at 2 p.m. and again at 9 p.m.


The Trojans (1-1) and Yellow Jackets (1-1) will meet for the first time on the gridiron at Tech’s historic Bobby Dodd
Stadium/Grant Field.


Play-by-play for the game will be provided by George Plaster, with color commentary by former Tech quarterback, and 1999 Heisman Trophy finalist, Joe Hamilton.


In addition to the over-the-air availability of the game in the Montgomery area, including Elmore and Autauga counties, the game will be available on cable systems throughout southeast Alabama.


Cable systems that will have the game include:


Charter Cable in Montgomery, Prattville, Troy, Brundidge, Ozark, Alexander City, Kellyton, Goodwater, Camp Hill, New Site, Jackson Gap, Selma, Dallas County and Tuskeegee;


Knology Cable in Montgomery;


Bright House Cable in Coosada, Eclectic, Elmore Co., Gunter AFB, Millbrook, Tallassee, Wetumpka, Maxwell AFB, Ft. Deposit, Georgiana, Greenville, Butler County, Dothan, Daleville and Ft. Rucker;


Troy Cablevision in Troy, Goshen, Luverne, Brantley, Banks, Springhill and Brundidge;


Com-Link Inc., in Union Springs, Midway, Notasulga and Lake Martin;


Opp Cablevision in Coffee Co., parts of Covington Co., and Andalusia;


TV Cable of Andalusia in parts of Covington Co., and Andalusia;


Mallard Cablevision in Hayneville, McKenzie, Andalusia, parts of Covington Co., Red Level, Heath, Gantt, Antioch, River Falls, Dozier, Sanford, Babbie, Straughn, Burkeville, Selbrook, and west Montgomery County;


Adelphia Cable in Enterprise;


Auburn University Cable.

Here's the coverage map.

Dose of Reality

I just love it when sportswriters slant reality. Look, I know Matthew Stafford is probably going to be a great UGAg QB. I also know that Reggie Ball has had a good career, but hasn't made that "next step" that everyone talks about. But come on ESPN's Mark Schlabach, classifying Matthew Stafford as "on the mark" and Reggie Ball "off the mark" after last week's performance is a bit ridiculous. But then everyone likes the guy who has all the hype but just hasn't had his chance to shine. Everyone likes the back-up QB.

Goin' Old School

How's this for a history lesson:

Perhaps the most important pass in football history came in the University of North Carolina's victory over Georgia Tech in 1895.


The Carolina punter in desperation threw a pass to a teammate -- an illegal play at the time. But his action resulted in a 70-yard touchdown and a UNC victory because no penalty was called.


John Heisman, who later had a trophy named for him, was watching and saw the pass as a way to reduce the violence in football.


He pushed for the legalization of the pass for more than 10 years before it became legal in 1906.


There were restrictions.


The quarterback had to move at least five yards to either side of center before passing. Horizontal lines were added to the field every five yards to make officiating easier. Combined with the yard lines, the field was a grid, thus we have the gridiron.


By 1910, quarterbacks could pass, up to 20 yards, if they were five yards behind the line of scrimmage. Receivers were credited with touchdowns for passes caught in the end zone. (Previously they had been touchbacks.)


The game credited with revolutionizing the passing game was Notre Dame's 35-13 victory over Army in 1913. Notre Dame passed for 243 yards in the win.

NCAA - An Actul Good Story

We hear so much about the crappy things the NCAA does that we should shouldn't pass up the opportunity to pat them on the back for getting this one right. Ray Ray McElrathbey is a freshman Clemson football player. He also happens to be a player Coach Gailey recruited. He was just awared temporary custody of his 11 year old brother because of his mom's contuing drug problems and his father's gambling addiction. The NCAA just ruled that the Clemson staff will be able to provide some assistance to Ray Ray so he can take care of his little bro. Just outstanding. You have to tip your cap to Ray Ray for being an adult when clearly he didn't have a great role model to look to. Kudos man.....

Time for a Spit-Take

Ok, if you haven't laughed in awhile, prepare for some side-splittin' action. Seriously, this is funny stuff - the Chuck Amato parody part II.

D-Rad Hires A Coach

Well, Dan Radakovich made a hire today. We have a new ladies softball coach - Sharon Perkins. Yes, she did a stint with the Mutts, but let's see what she can do on the field.

Finding Angles

This guy thinks he's found an angle that should almost guarantee at Tech victory this weekend:

I unearthed a trend this summer that made wagering a snap last weekend. Simply put, bet against the team that started a "rookie quarterback" who covered his first game this season. I defined a "rookie" as a QB who did not throw 100 passes at the Division I-A collegiate level prior to the season. There were 12 teams to bet on last Saturday: Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Texas-El Paso, Boston College, Rice, Virginia, East Carolina, Oregon, Western Michigan, Michigan and Oklahoma State. Nine of the 12 covered, including outright wins for Ohio State, Boston College and Western Michigan as underdogs. The only three clubs that failed to bring home the dough were Michigan, Virginia and Alabama. There are many more opportunities this week to cash in again. Ten big games are in store with five underdogs and five favorites encompassing the list. The dogs are: UAB, Eastern Michigan, Army, New Mexico and Nebraska. The five faves are: Hawaii, East Carolina, Virginia, Georgia Tech and Alabama. This trend is now 22-9 in its last 31 games for a winning percentage of 71%.

Where are they now - Jarrett Jack

Outstanding article on Jarrett Jack, who becomes the heir apparent to take over as the #1 Blazers PG. Check out these comments.

Last season, Jack went a long way toward earning that respect, averaging 6.7 points and 2.8 assists while playing in a team-leading 79 games. At the end of the season, coach Nate McMillan handed out a secret poll to his team, asking them to rank each position. Later, four veteran players revealed that they picked Jack as the top point guard.

"That's respect," guard Martell Webster said. "He's a hard worker, and he clearly showed in practice that he wants to get better. He never gave in to the negativity that went on in practice, so I think he just has all the tools that a great point guard possesses."

On his injury:

"Last year, it was like I couldn't feel from here on down," he said while pointing to an area two inches above the ankle. "It felt like I had two baseballs on the side of my ankle. If I took my shoe off last year, you would see it didn't look right."

From a teammate and a former mate:

"He has been really offensive-minded, pulling up and hitting that jumper, and that's a huge threat," Mason said. "I think he is going to be a good fit here. I know he was here last year, but I think his role is going to step up now that Blake is no longer here."


Blake, who is living in Portland until his wife gives birth later this month, said he can envision Jack becoming the Blazers' lead point guard.


"I think he is in a good situation for himself in his career right now, and I think he will take advantage of it," Blake said. "He's a guy who last year was solid, and a real smart player. He understands the game, loves the game and has a good work ethic . . . and I just think he is going to get better."

Rivals.com Bumps up Recruits

FYI - Rivals.com recently bumped up 2 of Georgia Tech's verbally committed recruits - DL Logan Walls, and QB Steven Threet, from 3-stars to 4-stars. Let the star crowd rejoice.


Scout.com has the Jackets with 9 4-star, 3 3-star, 2 2-star and 1 unranked.
Rivals.com has us with 6 4-star, 7 3-star and 2 2-star


Just so you know my take on stars. Stars are percentage guesses as to the success of an individual player at the collegiate level. So I see the 5-star guys as having the best chance at success, although it is far from 100%. It's probably more like 50-60% for them to be a "standout" player.............. The 4-star guys are probably more like 30-40% chance of standout collegiate performance. Below 4 star, my opinion is that the percentages are whacky. Why? Because Scout.com and Rivals.com don't have the time to do "real" evaluations on all those players. The 5 and 4 star guys are evaluated ad-nauseum by everyone. Their talent is fairly clear. While that doesn't mean they will succeed, it does mean predicting success is easier. When Scout or Rivals says a guy is 2 or 3 star, all bets are off in my opinion. In many cases they're making that call based on a couple of film clips and just physical measurables.


So what do all the 4-star guys committed to GT mean? For me, it's a future knockout blow, because we're all seeing stars now. Talent is talent. Our coaches have proven they can develop talent as close to it's max potential than anyone. So give them kids with a higher ceiling and life should get real interesting in the next few years........... "good" interesting, if you get my drift.

Rivals.com Bumps up Recruits

FYI - Rivals.com recently bumped up 2 of Georgia Tech's verbally committed recruits - DL Logan Walls, and QB Steven Threet, from 3-stars to 4-stars. Let the star crowd rejoice.


Scout.com has the Jackets with 9 4-star, 3 3-star, 2 2-star and 1 unranked.
Rivals.com has us with 6 4-star, 7 3-star and 2 2-star


Just so you know my take on stars. Stars are percentage guesses as to the success of an individual player at the collegiate level. So I see the 5-star guys as having the best chance at success, although it is far from 100%. It's probably more like 50-60% for them to be a "standout" player.............. The 4-star guys are probably more like 30-40% chance of standout collegiate performance. Below 4 star, my opinion is that the percentages are whacky. Why? Because Scout.com and Rivals.com don't have the time to do "real" evaluations on all those players. The 5 and 4 star guys are evaluated ad-nauseum by everyone. Their talent is fairly clear. While that doesn't mean they will succeed, it does mean predicting success is easier. When Scout or Rivals says a guy is 2 or 3 star, all bets are off in my opinion. In many cases they're making that call based on a couple of film clips and just physical measurables.


So what do all the 4-star guys committed to GT mean? For me, it's a future knockout blow, because we're all seeing stars now. Talent is talent. Our coaches have proven they can develop talent as close to it's max potential than anyone. So give them kids with a higher ceiling and life should get real interesting in the next few years........... "good" interesting, if you get my drift.

Props to the Secondary

Turns out that our DB's probably don't like the term "secondary". Sort of an inferiority thing. Why? Because they are more than holding their own after two games. Let's look at this for a second. The secondary was the single largest question mark on the team outside of "will Reggie make the next step". But in terms of unknowns, nothing was more questionable than our coverage team after losing 3 starters.


Well, first point is that we just faced two big passing teams. We all know about Notre Dame's high powered offense that throttled Penn State but struggled down the field in week 1 against the Jackets. We also know that Samford, albiet not as talented as Notre Dame, liked to pass a lot........... and did.


At the end of two weeks, here are some affirmations that we just might not have to worry as much as advertised:


- GT's passing efficiency defense is #10 in the nation. While pass defense is only #62 in the nation, this only takes into account total yards given up per game. Pass efficiency defense takes into consideration yards, completion percentage, attempts, INT's and TD's. So while they've giving up some yards, they're short gains, not the big plays and they're holding firm in the redzone.
- GT has yet to give up a TD through the air. It took Heisman candidate Brady Quinn to his 2nd game to get his first TD pass.
- GT's Jahi Word leads the ACC in passes defended with 5.
- GT has only given up 4.8 yards / attempt thru 2 games.
- Kenny Scott is a stud. Why? When was the last time you heard his name called? Folks, people just aren't throwing the ball his way - thus giving JW Daniels all these pass-break-up attempts. When you don't hear your corner's name called, that's good.


Non-secondary related, but a couple of other interesting stats after 2 games
- GT leads the ACC in punting at 48 yards/punt. This also happens to be #4 in the nation. We also lead the ACC in net punting average at 41.42 yards, which is #12 in the nation - way to go Durant Brooks!
- GT leads the ACC in fewest sacks allowed and is #6 in the nation. Last year the Jackets also led the ACC and finished #6 in the nation. Of course when you're rolling out your QB and letting him throw OB a lot, then you aviod a lot of sacks.


Two bad stats - 1st, kick-off return coverage - GT is 118th out of 119 I-A teams, giving up 36 yards per return. Only Florida Atlantic is worse. However, Clemson is getting closer at #114 in the nation............. Second, time-of-possesion. Coach Gailey hung his hat on this one, but this year we're 87th in the nation.


In case you're interested, some stats about Troy:
- rushing defense is #18 in the nation
- scoring defense is #24 in the nation
- total defense is #28 in the nation
- punt returns are #22 in the nation
- they are #13 in the nation in total sacks (7)
- tied for 22nd in tackles-for-a-loss
- sacks allowed #6 in the nation (tied w/GT)


Bottom-line is that they also have a fast, athletic defense that attacks and goes after the QB.

Jeremis - Not Representing

Ok, not the best idea for giving student-athletes a good rep. When asked "What do you think of classes so far" by the school newspaper, starting hoops player Jeremis Smith said "I don't know. I'm usually asleep".


Yyyyeeeaaaahhhhh. Ok, Jeremis. I slept through my share of classes too, but come on. Let's think about PR here. On the bright side, your picture looks very nice.

Football - Trojans won't be easy mark

Macon Telegraph 09/11/2006 Trojans won't be easy mark:

"'It was like a nightmare,' Bowden said following FSU's 24-17 win against Troy on Saturday. 'It was like a bad dream. I was trying to run, and my legs won't go. I was trying to scream, but my voice won't go.'"

The Jackets better be ready.

It's Just not fair

Remind me again why Calvin Johnson is the #1 wide receiver in football?







OH YEAH, NOW I REMEMBER !!!!





By the way, Calvin Johnson, along with Reggie Ball and Joe Anaoi were elected team captains by the players and coaches. It's not often that a junior is elected team captain.

Football Recruiting - tough night for Nesbitt

On the same day he committed to Georgia Tech, Josh Nesbitt did not have a memorable night on the field. Details here.

Hoops Recruiting

A native Memphian sounds off about the best high school hoopsters leaving the city of Memphis to play elsewhere. He specifically mentions Thaddeus Young and Maurice Miller.

Leave it to KY to create a rumor

Funny, I tend to keep up with this stuff, and never saw this one. Evidently some recent rumors of Gani Lawal waivering on his commit to GT were not true. Duh.

There had been speculation that Gani Lawal, a 6-8 forward and top 25 prospect, was wavering on his commitment to Georgia Tech. Supposedly Lawal, who played with UK freshman Jodie Meeks at Norcross (Ga.) High last season, might be entertaining the idea of re-joining his former teammate at UK in 2007-08.


Not true.


The player and his mother, Michelle Lawal, attended last weekend's Notre Dame-Georgia Tech game as guests of Tech basketball coach Paul Hewitt.

Calvin Johnson moves up the all-time TD list

Calvin Johnson now has sole possesion of 3rd place on Georgia Tech's all-time TD list. He has 16 now, while Kelly Campbell leads with 24 and Kerry Watkins has 22. At his pace this season he just might break it, and with a senior season there would be no doubt. Are you hearing what I am saying CJ? Can you hear me now?

Another "trap" game coming to a stadium near you

Nice little editorial about Troy and their 4-game stretch that includes FSU, Georgia Tech, Nebraska and UAB. They almost pulled off the improbably against FSU and now they set their sights on the YellowJackets. Better be prepared. These guys are no Samford................ or Duke for that matter. Of course, I don't really believe they are an FSU either, but we better come to play.

Jackets Get Win #1................. and start a trend

The Jackets did what they were supposed to do against clearly over-matched Samford and win 38-6. Unfortunately it was against probably the easiest game on the schedule, so trying to draw conclusions from the game is tough.


GAME FLOW
After a quick GT 3-and-out, DJay Jones ran an INT 29 yards back to the house. On their next possesion, Reggie Ball took the Jackets 80 yards with Tashard Choice capping off the drive with a 6 yard run. Reggie was 6-6 on that drive from the air. After 2 straight drives with excellent field position, Samford only managed 2 field goals to make the score 14-6. One of those drives started after a 55 yard kick return. The other after a Reggie Ball INT. The Jackets broke things open in the 2nd quarter with 21 points. Calvin Johnson only caught 4 passes on the day for 26 yards, but 2 of those catches were for TD's, so the important stats got padded. The last TD came on a Jamal Lewis INT return 97 yards for a TD. Talk about a momentum changer.



The 2nd half brought nothing but a Travis Bell FG, but the 2nd, 3rd and 4th teamers got snaps the rest of the day. In the end, the game was never in question, and provided valuable rest for the 1st teamers and valuable snaps for the 2nd teamers.


DEFENSE STRONG
The good news is that the 1st string, 2nd string and even some of the 3rd stringers held Samford to only 2 FG's. In fact, in the 2nd half with most of the 1st teamers on the sidelines, Samford did not actually have a 1st down. That's right..... 6 3-and-outs in the 2nd half for Samford, and that was it. Strong. Very strong. Jamal Lewis and DJay Jones get to take balls to the house. Lewis gets the 4th longest TD return in GT history (97 yards). After the game, Coach Gailey said - "Jamal really showed some speed too. But of course he was outrunning offensive linemen, so I am not so sure".


For the game, Samford only had 163 yards of offense, including only 11 yards rushing. Just an outstanding effort by the ENTIRE defense.


OFFENSE BETTER......... I THINK
I mean, how can you really judge an offense against a weak opponent? Well, at least we put points on the board, we moved the ball and we spread it around to a lot of guys. Most importantly we put it in the endzone. All in all, they did what they needed to do. Not going to criticize. One area of focus was 3rd down conversions, and the Jackets finish 8-16.


Reggie Ball gets to rest after about a half of work but finishes 10/16 (63%) for 83 yards, 2 TD's and 1 INT. Again, hard to really make any judgements since the game wasn't on TV and it was Samford. After Reggie, 3 other QB's got snaps, including Taylor Bennett, who was 7-13 for 48 yards, Kyle Manley, who was 2-2 for 8 yards, and J.Garner, who was 0-1. Nice to see those other guys get valuable snaps.


The running game was really spread around, with Choice, Grant and Evans each ending with 44 yards, and T.Evans finishing with 35. In total, the Jackets had 177 yards on the ground to go with 138 yards in the air.


SPECIAL TEAMS MIXED
Well, it seems that the one area that continues to kill us is kick-off coverage. Another 55 yard return by an opponent. We've got to learn how to plug lanes. This cannot be that complicated. That was the only real negative Coach Gailey mentioned specifically after the game.


On the other hand, most of the other elements of specials teams looked good. Travis Bell hit a 41-yarder and missed a 50+ yard attempt. Durant Brooks looks just outstanding at punter. He had 5 punts, had 3 over 50 yards, averaged about 48 yards, and 4 of them were stopped inside the 20. The 5th one was almost downed at the 1, but was ruled a touchback at the end. Chan Gailey even challenged the call, but it wasn't over-ruled. Yes, with the Jackets up 38-6 and about a minute left in the game, Coach Gailey challenged a call. Obviously trying to help his punter's stats. M.Yahiaoui had 7 kick-offs, 2 of them touchbacks.


On Jacket returns, Andrew Smith showed something good bringing back punts, with 5 of them for a total of 69 yards, including a 22-yarder. In fact, in the post-game show, Coach Gailey singled him out as showing him something. Coach said that having Smith returning punts could turn out to be a good move for the team. He also said "Andrew look a bit like little ole Kelly Rhino out there".


Chris Dunlap was strong returning kick-offs, with 2 for 60 yards.


JAMAAL EVANS MAKES HIS DEBUT
Jacket fans will be excited to watch the debut of Jamaal Evans, who carried 12 times for 37 yards in the 2nd. Coach Gailey had nothing but positive things to say about Evans before the game. It will be fun to see him on the CSS Replay Tuesday night. After the game, Coach Gailey had nice things to say, but did say that he still has a lot to learn and still thinks he can outrun everybody. Said he still needs to learn when to stop stretching the play and go for up-field and fight for shorter yardage.


INJURIES
You always want to get out of games like this with mininal casualties. Coach Gailey said we only had 3 guys nicked up, who might miss a little time. One of them was Andrew Smith and I believe another was DJay Jones. Not sure of the 3rd.


FIRST TIMERS
Lots of guys played today. In fact, 69 total players played today, which has to be some kind of Chain Gailey era record. In the post-game show, Jamal Lewis said it was always good when everybody gets to play, because it makes everybody "crunk". I must admit, I was feeling rather crunk myself.


Jamaal Evans gets his first carries. So does Tyler Evans. Kyle Manley and J.Garner both take their first snaps. Martin Frierson catches his first collegiate ball. Guys like Sedric Griffin get their first strong taste of game-action.


At the end of the day, Coach Gailey said he accomplished what they had scripted. He said they "hit the punchlist pretty good". The offense clicked, the defense was strong, a lot of guys got snaps and they left with no serious injuries. On to next week.


CONGRATS AND GO JACKETS!!!!!!

Around the ACC

Looks like it's going to be the same old story in the ACC - strong defenses or just terrible offenses? NCST just lost to Akron - yes the Zips. Clown-face is probably looking at his last season.................... UNC, who lost to Rutgers last week, looked better against VaTech, but just made too many stupid plays. VaTech's offense was NOT impressive at all. The defense looked strong and special teams was strong as usual.....................

Where are they now - Will Bynum / Travis Best

Well, Travis Best signs with a team in Italy, in what he expects to be his final professional season. He played in Russia last season. As a trivia note, if you ever see the movie Hoop Dreams again, Travis gets a mention in that documentary in the part where they are at the summer shoe camps...........................................


One of our other stellar PG's, Will Bynum has signed with a team in Israel, and looks to replace former Clemson guard Will Solomon in the starting line-up. Will the Thrill - taking it to the promised-land.

D-Rad Found Gameday............. Rad

Straight from D-Rad here:

Well, for the last five months I have been writing in this space that I could hardly wait for my first football game at Bobby Dodd Stadium as Georgia Tech's Director of Athletics. I got my chance last Saturday night and all I can say is: WOW! I am so proud of the way you created an electric atmosphere that ranks with the best I have ever witnessed in my more than 20 years in college athletics.

Although we came up short on the scoreboard, the positives for Georgia Tech were monumental. Our campus, its students and indeed our athletic program received rave reviews on a national stage. The enthusiasm, support and loyalty permeated not only the Atlanta area, but resonated from coast to coast as ESPN and ABC told our story. From the television commentators to sports journalists from every part of America, there was agreement that Georgia Tech has a place among the nation's elite collegiate programs.

Heisman Trophy Voting

Here's the poll of Heisman trophy voters after week #1. Calvin Johnson is wwwwaaaayyyyy down the list. Not surprising, but they're not going to give the thing to a WR. He's the #2 WR on the list, behind Ted Ginn.

Scout.com: With No Hoopla, Nesbitt Commits

Nesbitt Commits

Great news. Josh Nesbitt is a YellowJacket. Congrats to him and the staff. That's 2 excellent QB's coming into the program. I might have more later.

Breaking it down

So, a buddy of a buddy of mine is named Lennie, he's a tech grad and sports oracle of sorts, and he likes to break down Georgia Tech game film. Here are some interesting facts from Lennie:

Of the 52 plays that were run against ND, 37 were run in the shotgun. GT ran only 5 plays under center in the second half. Our only TD drive came on a drive where we ran 5 of 7 plays under center.


One thing Nix should get credit for is designed draws for Ball in the second half. ND had 5 DB's for all but 3 plays in the second half, so the middle of the field was open for draws. Out of our 4 best offensive plays in the second half, all of them were designed QB draws. One thing I want to check is how many times we had 2 TE's in the game, definitely should have been done if they had 5 DB's.


Out of the 25 designed pass plays we threw to #21 11 times. Also, only 2 passes were in the middle of the field, both incomplete. All other passes were outside the hash marks. GT believes that Ball needs that sideline to prevent interceptions, (and see passing lanes - my addition), but it also prevents big plays.

Thanks Lennie for those facts. Jacket fans would love to have more insightful analysis like that.


My question - if the middle of the field was open, where were the runs to T.Choice? It's very tough to move the ball when you cannot exploit the middle of the field, particularly from the air.


--------------------------------------------------------


Now, at risk of throwing this into a negative rant from the fans, I wanted to include some other stats from the Hive. None of them are pretty, but they highlight the conservative nature of the offense in the 2nd half..............


- Georgia Tech has been shut out in the 4th quarter of their last 5 games (including the bowl game).
- Georgia Tech has been shut out in the 2nd half of their last 3 games.
- GT has scored a total of 14 points in the 2nd half of their last 5 games
- GT has scored a total of 30 points in the 2nd hlaf of their last 13 games
- After GT got the score to 10-0 against ND, they had less than 70 yards of total offense the rest of the 1st half and entire 2nd half.
- Against ND, our RB's had 0 carries in the 4th quarter (only 4/17 in the entire half)
- A Chan Gailey Georgia Tech team has never won a game when an opponent scores at least 25 points.


Believe me, my goal in posting this stuff is not negativity. Just interesting facts. There is no doubt that we have a ball-control philosophy that down-shifts in the 2nd half with a lead. The offense goes from "playing to win" to "playing not to lose". What is interesting is that our defense plays the entire game "to win". They never stop blitzing and attacking.

Winning Big, Losing Big

So there's been tons of talk about Georgia Tech football in the Chan Gailey era winning AND losing games they weren't supposed. I thought I would throw together a little chart of our wins / losses year-by-year. However, I have ranked the games in terms of "easist" to "toughest". In other words, games at the top of the list, we were supposed to win and they get tougher as you go down. Wins are in green and losses are in red. The rankings of games is a bit subjective and a bit more fuzzy in the earlier years.


What you see is our ability to lose games we shouldn't, BUT our "bad" games are getting "better" each season since 2003. In 2003 we lose to ACC-record losing-streak Duke - low of lows. The next year we lose to UNC - bad for sure - but not as bad as Duke the previous year. Last year you can argue that our worst loss was to NCST (maybe Utah if I were counting bowl games in the list). But we beat the 4 teams we were supposed to in the regular season. So the "bad" is getting better in my eyes and the ability to knock off a tough team has always been there.


I also highlighted another area - "blowout losses". That's another thing that drives coaches and fans crazy. Losing is bad enough, but when you don't even show up people get ticked. I defined a "blowout" as a loss by more than 17 points. Coach Gailey's teams have been good for 2 of them each season. Beat the teams you are supposed to beat, pull an upset or two, win most of the middle of the road games and be competitive in all of them, and you have the makings of an 8-4 or 9-3 season............ or maybe better............. and happier fans.


UPDATED: The chart has been updated - 2005 UVA blowout loss was moved to 2004 (error), and the order of easy games was changed (Duke, Samford, Troy).



(click chart for larger version)


Thoughts?????

What's Buzzin'

Colin Peek and Travis Chambers will be taking a redshirt this season to fully recover from injuries. That doesn't help in the linebacker spot for sure. Is it just me, or does it seem like Travis has been in the program for a long time already? For some reason, I thought he had already taken a redshirt, but he is technically a junior this season...................... While the Jackets should win Saturday in convincing fashion against Samford, they are an interesting team. They love to the throw the ball. Three and sometimes four receiver sets are the norm. Should be very interesting for the young secondary. They held up well against the talented QB/2 WR tandem of Notre Dame. Question is - how good is Samford at getting rid of the ball quickly? Can they execute before the fast Tech D gets to the QB................... Depth - very important, and clearly lacking as Tech wore down in the 2nd half of the Notre Dame game. As it turns out the 1st string O-Line and the LB core played the entire game. That's a problem. Of course the offense was on the field so little in the 2nd half, but it still takes its toll..................... Calvin Johnson was named co-ACC Offensive Back of the week, along with BC QB Matt Ryan............. The broadcast of the GT / Notre Dame game out-drew last year's opening game by 61% for ABC. ABC Primetime Saturday night was a hit..................


On the recruiting front, word is that Josh Nesbitt is going to announce the school of his choice prior to his high school game this Friday - stay tuned..........

Hoops recruiting

Turns out that gameday weekend was the perfect atmosphere for Mo Miller because he has cancelled his future visits and pledged to the Jackets. Miller is a point guard out of Memphis that appeared to be Coach Hewitt's #1 target. That should complete the recruiting class of 2007 that also includes Gani Lawal and Lance Storrs.

Miller is a top 100 kid and should provide excellent insurance should Javaris Crittendon leave after 1 season.

Congrats Mo and congrats Coach Hewitt. The future looks bright.
Sent via BlackBerry from Cingular Wireless

Game #1 - Jackets Valiant Effort falls short

Wow - if I didn't know better, this game looked an awful lot like some of our games last year. Offense clicking early, defense stiflying, score some points, hold the opposition, but then start to bend and finally break in the 2nd half. The Jackets fight a tough battle but lose to "mighty" Notre Dame 14-10.


My take is this - the Jackets didn't "lose" the game - they just didn't "win" it. Patrick Nix talked a lot about not worry about stats, and just doing what it takes to win. We just didn't get that done tonight. However, I have to give the team a ton of credit. They played tough. They played hard. Jon Tenuta did what it took to keep us in the game. But at the end of the day, it was another game with an offense that scored very few points. Ten just ain't going to win many.


Here are some thoughts:


AT BATS
Interesting - we only had the ball 4 times on offense in the entire second half. Four times. In fact, here's our drive log for the game:


1st Quarter (Plays - Yards - Result)
6-17-Punt
6-26-Punt
7-74-TD


2nd Quarter
5-16-Punt
8-50-FG


3rd Quarter
5-14-Punt
7-30-Punt


4th Quarter
3-5-Punt
6-16-Punt


So you have very few cracks at the ball, particularly in the 2nd half, and we could only muster 64 yards total and 0 points.


Worse, look at time-of-possesion:


Possession Time............... 35:25 24:35
1st Quarter................. 8:02 6:58
2nd Quarter................. 8:48 6:12
3rd Quarter................. 8:25 6:35
4th Quarter................. 10:10 4:50



OFFENSE (C)
Sharp early. Exciting to watch. The O-Line was controlling things. Tashard Choice looked sharp. Reggie looked good. But as the game went on, the O-Line seemed to get tired. Choice was an absolute non-factor in the 2nd half, and the running game was practically non-existant.


Calvin Johnson has a monster 1st half, almost reaching the 100 yard mark, but then Weis decided to double cover him EVERY single play except on blitzes. CJ was a non-factor in the 2nd half. Ok, basically the offense was a non-factor in the 2nd half.


So how about Patrick Nix's first experience calling plays? Not great, only 10 points and being shutdown in the 2nd half ain't gonna get it. The offense looked a lot like last season. I thought he got off to a great start, but then he took the foot off the accelerator. Down at the goal-line instead of taking another fade shot to CJ, he goes run to the middle of the field, setting up the FG. We never got our aggressiveness back after that.


DEFENSE (B+)
Bend but don't break. That's the motto. Well, if you hold the offense everyone has deemed #1 in the nation to only 14 points, then I have to say that you've done your job. There were a few key plays given up, but overall, it was the defense that kept us in the game and gave us a shot to win.


I have to give some decent credit to the secondary. They played above expectations for sure. Nice job there.


SPECIAL TEAMS (D)
Shaky. Kick-off coverage terrible. So much for all that off-season work. Travis Bell was perfect on the night and Durant did a pretty decent job punting the ball. But boys, back to the chalk-board on the kick-off coverage.


HIGH POINTS
No turnovers........ by either team. That's a big positive for sure................. Philip Wheeler was a monster. Is it just me, or was he everywhere. He led the Jackets with 13 tackles, including 2 for a loss. The trenches - our O and D-Lines looked good and that bodes well for the season. We all know how games are won and lost in the trenches. However, it appeared that both lines got tired late in the game. Pressure on Quinn was minimal and pressure on Ball increased.


Here are the game stats.


I'm tired and headed to bed, but overall it was electric atmosphere, a very competitive game and well worth playing, even with the loss. This is the type of game that will benefit our program. I am sure the recruits who attended had a great time and saw Tech at its best. As far as the ACC goes, this game doesn't count for a thing. The talent is there. We still need to find more offensive consistency and continue to hammer special teams, but the defense looks again to be strong enough to keep us in every game.


Night all and GO JACKETS!!!!!

Football Recruiting

Hear and watch Nick Claytor make his commitment to Georgia Tech on ESPNU - click here. All I have to say is wow - this young man is very charming, very well spoken, and very big. An outstanding combination........

Where are they now - Bill Lewis

Well, Bill Lewis wants to 100% avoid any discussion of his short tenure at the head coach at Georgia Tech. As you probably know, he makes his return to the flats as an assistant coach with Notre Dame.

Lewis didn’t want to discuss it Wednesday. He didn’t want to talk about his tenure at Georgia Tech, a sour point in the university’s history and one he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution last week was “easily the most disappointing period of my career, because I felt the Tech people were so good to me. It was a dream job, and I let them down.”


Lewis went 11-19 in his time at Georgia Tech, the worst winning percentage for a coach in the school’s history.

I had the pleasure of enjoying the Bobby Ross years, but I also had a taste of the Bill Lewis years. By all accounts. Lewis was an extremely nice person - but he never got buy-in from the players when he came in. They just never "accepted" him. I'm sure there were many reasons.


Just another subplot to Saturday's game.

ESPN GameDay

Here are details for Gameday:

From D-Rad:

As you know, ESPN College Gameday with Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and Chris Fowler will be originating from the Tech campus Friday and Saturday. We have a unique setup that the ESPN folks are very excited about. For the Gameday program Saturday morning, they will be set up at Yellow Jacket Park, with the Tech Student Center and Campanile in the background, but their pregame, halftime and postgame programming will originate from a set inside Bobby Dodd Stadium on the Wardlaw Terrace.

WHAT: Georgia Tech will be the center of the college football world as the popular ESPN College Gameday program, featuring Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and Chris Fowler, airs live from the Tech campus when the Yellow Jackets host second-ranked Notre Dame.


WHEN: Saturday, Sept. 2. Students and fans are asked to arrive by 8:30 a.m. The Gameday crew will shoot live segments for ESPN Sportscenter from 9-10 a.m. Then ESPN
College Gameday airs live from 10 a.m. until 12 noon.


WHERE: Yellow Jacket Park, adjacent to the Georgia Tech Campanile


WHY: Attendance is a must to show the nation that Georgia Tech fans are the loudest and most loyal!


WHAT ELSE:


• Students are asked to arrive by 8:30 a.m. The Home Depot will be passing out giveaway items to the crowd, including Home Depot Hard Hats, before the show.


• E-Shots - Students can have their photo taken with the ESPN College Gameday stage in the background. Then go on-line to view your photo and receive a mystery Home Depot gift card, worth anywhere from $1 up to $1000


• The Home Depot Team Colors Sign Painting Station - Students can have their banners judged, with prizes for the most creative signs. Win Yellow Jacket gear, tickets to a Tech game and a gift card for books at the Georgia Tech Bookstore


OTHER ACTIVITIES:


. ESPN College Gameday Taping Friday


Be at Yellow Jacket Park on Friday, Sept. 1, between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. as the Gameday crew tapes segments for Friday night Sportscenter


GEORGIA TECH VOLLEYBALL VS. GEORGIA


Friday, Sept. 1, 6 p.m.
O'Keefe Gymnasium
YELLOW JACKET PEP RALLY AT ATLANTIC STATION


Friday, Sept. 1, 7-9 p.m.
in the Central Park Area of Atlantic Station
Sponsored by Tailgaters Alley, Verizon Wireless and Publix


7-8 p.m.
Rides, interactive games and fun for the whole family.
Entertainment provided by Burgess Amusements and Special Events.
Live music from Moriah Martin, Top Teen Country Artist of Georgia
Free food provided by Publix


8-9 p.m.
Pep Rally begins with Tech Cheerleaders, Buzz and the Georgia Tech Marching Band


GREET THE TEAM


Be at Yellow Jacket Walk (Brittain Drive on the east side of Peter's Parking Deck) at 5:30 p.m. to greet the Georgia Tech football team as they arrive on campus for the big game. Led by Tech cheerleaders, the Georgia Tech Marching Band and the Rambling Wreck, Tech players and coaches will make their way down Yellow Jacket Walk and into the locker room.


GEORGIA TECH WRECKFEST


Pregame activities and fun for the whole family, beginning 2-1/2 before kickoff on top of the south end of Peter's Parking Deck (access via Fowler Street). Inflatables and interactive games, provided by Burgess Amusements and Special events, and free face painting. Food vendors. Autograph sessions with current Tech student-athletes and former stars.


......and from someone at the Hive, a picture from today's work setting up for the Gameday crew: