Signal-to-Buzz - Oct 15, 2008

Some noise from around the country

SEC DROP-OFF?
Is the SEC really the best. I would argue not any longer, and so would others....................... Of course Paul Johnson would tell you that maybe it's a spin-job to begin with. In his weekly press conference he said when Georgia Tech beats Mississippi State it's all about how Miss St is the weakling of the SEC, but when they go out and beat Vanderbilt and almost beat Auburn, it's all about how the SEC is so strong and beat each other up. Of course he's right.

WINNING THE COASTAL
VaTech needs to lose two remaining games and Georgia Tech needs to win out for a legit chance at the ACC Championship. VaTech has BC, FSU, Miami, Duke and Virginia left on their schedule, so it's certainly possible they could lose two

GSR - NOT A 70's ROCK'N'ROLL BAND
The latest graduation success rates are out and it's not good for Georgia Tech or Georgia. There were only 4 teams in BCS leagues with GSR (Graduation Success Rates) less than 50%, and two came from the state of Georgia. Keep in mind, it's that 1998-2001 time period which is in the range of our academic "issues". Regardless, I sure expect these numbers to keep improving. Also don't confuse GSR with APR. The GSR is a measure of graduation rates within a certain number of years of enrolling and looks further back in time. The APR is a measure of more current years and player's progress towards a degree. In case you're curious about general student body grad rates - click here.

ON PREPARING FOR GEORGIA TECH
Quote from Clemson interum head coach Dabo Swinney:

They run a bunch of formations. You talk about, you better be precise and discipline. That's one of the things I talked to the team tonight. This is a game of tremendous discipline. Guys lining up and coming off the ball, playing with a low pad level. If you have one mistake they take it to the house. They lull your corners to sleep. Then they hit you. It's going to be a big test for our defense.” – Interim head coach Dabo Swinney on facing Georgia Tech’s triple option attack.

More on Clemson's offensive line changes.

NOMAR - DONE WORN OUT?
Gregg Doyell wrote an interesting story about Garciaparra. He talks about his theories on why he has seen his output steadily decline,

D-LINE GETTING THEIR DUE
We've been saying it along, but we're all homers right? Now some of the national media are recognizing that Georgia Tech's defensive line is one of the best in the country. Every one of those guys is going to get a shot to play on Sundays. Phil Steele has moved the unit from top 20 to top 5 in the country and his mid-season All-ACC team is littered with these guys. Mel Kiper has all three seniors on the DLine on his top 5 by position draft board.

DURANT BROOKS CUT
Wow. The only kicker drafter this year has been cut. Durant Brooks has struggled mightily and his tenure with the Washington Redskins is over. He had a few good kicks, but a lot of bad ones. I'm not sure how you go from the best punter in the country to dead last in the NFL statistically in 6 games. Pressure? Mental aspects? Leg problems? A salary? Any way you cut it, let's hope he grabs onto another job. He's definitely going to be a good punter in the NFL.

TAYLOR BENNETT LOSES JOB
Taylor Bennett transferred to Louisiana Tech and has been the starting QB through half the season. Now's he's the 2nd string guy. His completion percentage is less than 40% (61-156). He has thrown for 844 yards, 2 TD's and 5 INT's. Maybe getting him close to a 50% completion percentage last year against true IA talent was true miracle-work? Who knew.

Beesball - Wieters Baseball America's POY

Matt Wieters was awarded Baseball America's Minor League Player of the Year award this week. Quite impressive to say the least. He has burned his way through the minors, leaving nothing but charred debris in his wake. Check out these two great stories:

Hall weighs in on Wieters
Taking Flight

Where are they now - Matt Wieters

Great article on Matt Wieters, who will be coming to a MLB stadium near you............ soon.

J.J. Cannon, the Keys hitting coach, has worked with him since the spring.

"Him
coming here is a blessing for us," Cannon said. "He's a knowledgeable,
positive young man. I'm surprised he adapted so quickly to pro ball. He
just came in and took off."

He called him a leader in both the clubhouse and on the field.

"You see him in the locker room and you don't think he's the big dog," Cannon said. "But on the field he is the big dog."

Beesball - MLB Draft

The final line-up of guys taken in the draft. No time for more right now:

GT (7)

Blackmon - 72
Duncan - 152
Hicks - 422
Haniger - 564
Murton - 1008
Rulon - 1040
Burns - 1191

As we hear what these guys plan to do, we'll update more.

Beesball - Two Jackets Drafted on Day 1

Charlie Blackmon goes to the Colorado Rockies in the 2nd round with the #72 pick in the 2008 MLB draft. Starting pitcher David Duncan was taken 152nd overall, in the 5th round by the Houston Astros.

Congrats to these guys. Blackmon's story is truly a storybook one, as he's already been drafted twice as a pitcher, but now as an outfielder. Here are some comments on various GT prospects. Here is the official draft central.

By the way, note that a Georgia high school kid went #1. Some of the commentors are right - Georgia is a serious hotbed of talent in all three major sports. There is no reason you can't be successful by only focusing on in-state talent. There's certainly enough.

Beesball - The End

The Jackets got demolished by the half-breeds at UGAg in beesball yesterday. Season over. What is there really to say? It was a depressing end to a tragic season. Truthfully, there wasn't going to be a happy ending to this year. The death of Michael Hutts made sure of that. Sure, a trip to the Super-Regional would have been nice. A single victory over our hated rivals in two tries would have been nice. Not only didn't either happen, the Jackets played the worst game of the season during the most important game of the season. It hurts. It stings. It's painful to see your guys completely fall apart in every phase of the game when it counts the most.

So what is your reaction? Do you choose to empathize with the team and their pain or do you choose to focus on the X's and O's of a pitching staff that failed or a defense that fell apart or bats that went silent? Do you choose to focus on the big picture - that Danny Hall fields a team each and every year that is competitive and in the national picture? Or do you choose to focus on a pattern of post-season collapses, with too many coming against our Rival? Are you the optimist that focuses on the youth of this team? Are you the pessimist that focuses on their shortcomings?

For me, I'm a supporter of Danny Hall. He's built a consistent regular season program that just hasn't proven to be a consistent post-season winner. His teams are seemingly always in position to do good things in the post-season. They just don't do them enough for anyone's taste - Coach Hall's included. I want more. We all want more. One College World Series game won since that great 1994 team during Hall's tenure isn't enough for me. However, I support Coach Hall's efforts 100% and want to see him continue to build the program further. Danny Hall is a successful program builder. I like the kids he brings in. I like the teams he builds. I like the consistent winning his teams do in the regular season. I'm just selfish like every other fan, and I want more trophies and titles. I hope he can find a way to build off his current success and make that happen.

To UGAg - congrats. Even without our errors, I doubt we beat them. They mashed. We got mashed.I hope with every ounce of my being they get crushed by NCST. I really do. The Pack better bring their A-game though. In the end, it's not really about them anyhow.

For the Jackets, better luck next season I guess. Congrats to the team on a successful season in light of some truly unique and trying circumstances. As much as this season will sting fans, it will pale in comparison to what each and every member of that team feels. Not only will they be dealing with two bad losses to our rival. They be dealing with fan backlash, AJC backlash, 790theZone backlash and blog backlash.

Most important, they'll still be dealing the loss of their friend and teammate Michael Hutts. My guess is that dealing with that is going to be a lot tougher now that there's no "team" to go practice with. This group is disbanding. Guys are heading their separate ways - summer leagues, Cape Cod leagues, MLB workouts, etc. They will be more alone in their contemplation of things now, and that just might be when reality starts to hit some of them.

I hope the guys stay in touch during this time. I hope their families check in on them regularly, because you know us fans mostly won't. We'll be voicing our frustrations through keyboards and radio shows. Then we'll be moving on to the next thing, preparing for Paul Johnson's opening stanza in the fall. We'll compartmentalize the baseball team somewhere and lock it away until next spring. The guys on the team will be living every day.

Have I completely depressed you? I hope not. I just wanted to share some of my perspective about different ways to view the situation. Kids playing games in college. That's what we're talking about.

Beesball - Jackets Advance in Athens

On Friday, the Jackets beat Louisville 8-5. Tonight the Jackets beat Lipscomb 6-3. Sandwiched in between the half-breeds at UGAg lost to Lipscomb Friday, then squeeked by Louisville earlier Saturday.

So here's how it sets up.

Jackets 2-0
Lipscomb 1-1
UGAg 1-1
Louisville 0-2

Sunday at about 2:00pm Lipscomb plays UGAg. Whoever wins gets a double-header and plays the Jackets at about 6:00pm Sunday. Should the UGAg/Lipscomb winner actually beat the Jackets Sunday evening, they would have to do it again on Monday to actually win the regional.

The Jackets, on the other hand, only need to win Sunday night to put a bow on the Athens regional. Danny Hall took a bit of a risk by starting freshman Deck McGuire tonight. However, the gamble looks to pay off, and now he has a fresh cadre of top guys to chose from on Sunday, while UGAg / Lipscomb are going to be down to their #3,4,5 guys in the rotation. McGuire went 6 & 2/3 innings, giving up 3 runs. A solid outing. Jason Haniger went deep and drove home 3 runs on the night.

So there's a chance that the Jackets could win this regional and never play UGAg. I think that would be a shame. I'd love to lay it on 'em one more time before leaving for the super regional.

Nothing's in the bag. Still work to be done, but Danny Hall's gang is in prime position to move on.

GO JACKETS!!!

Tragedy Revisited

So on day one of the Athens regional in beesball, Georgia Tech fans are informed about the autopsy results for Michael Hutts. The report showed an accidental drug overdose involving heroin. Pretty much what we all expected to hear.

What can you really say? There's really very little good that comes out of situations like this. Maybe Michael's life can be a transforming force for his family and friends. Maybe Michael's life can be a warning signal to the lives of invincible youth who run across his story.

What's the moral here? It would be presumptuous of me to There are many. Drugs are not just "illegal" and they aren't just "bad". They don't just impact lives. They don't just ruin lives. They end lives. It's not a verbal warning. Michael is a dying example.

Life is precious.

Life is fragile.

Here today.
Gone tomorrow.

Rest in peace Michael. May your life help others make the right choices before it's too late for them.

Beesball - Jackets in Athens Regional

The Jackets end up as the #2 seed in the Athens regional. No surprise. I imagine that UGAg coaches are none too happy about it. We will be matched up against Louisville to start out. Not too bad, and our chances should be as good as anyone.

Regional info.

Here's some info:
Friday, May 30Game 1: Georgia vs. TBA, 3 p.m. ET Game 2: TBA vs. TBA, 7 p.m. ET
Saturday, May 31Game 3: Loser of Game 1 vs. Loser of Game 2, 3 p.m. ET Game 4: Winner of Game 1 vs. Winner of Game 2, 7 p.m. ET
Sunday, June 1Game 5: Loser of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 3, 2 p.m. ET Game 6: Winner of Game 4 vs. Winner of Game 5, 6 p.m. ET
*Monday, June 2 (*If Necessary)Game 7: Winner of Game 6 vs. Loser of Game 6, 7 p.m. ET

Where are they now - Jason Varitek

Last week, Jon Lester pitched a no-hitter for the Red Sox. It was a feel good story. The guy battles back from cancer, clinches the World Series for the Red Sox last year, and now pitches a no-no. The media got it right by covering that story. In the sea of sports cheating, scandals and embarrassment, it was a ray of sunshine.

There was another smaller, yet important story about that game. It was covered a little by the local Boston media, but really didn't become part of the national story. What is it? It is the fact that Jason Varitek caught the game. That was significant because it was the 4th no-hitter Jason has caught in his career. That's more than anyone in major league history. There were 13 other catches with 3, but Varitek now stands alone.

2001...... Hideo Nomo
2002...... Derek Lowe
2007...... Clay Buchholz
2008...... Jon Lester

By the way, he had a couple of close calls as well:

2000..... Pedro Martinez lost a no-no in the 9th inning with Varitek
2007..... Curt Schilling shakes off Varitek with 2 outs in the 9th... and gives up a single.
2006..... Devern Hansack pitched a rain-shortened 5-inning no-hitter, but only 9-inning complete games are recognized by MLB as true no-hitters.

John Farrell, the Red Sox pitching coach says it's no coincidence:

“He’s got a photographic memory and just a true feel for what the hitter is doing in the batter’s box in a given at-bat,” he said Tuesday in a telephone interview. “Second, third, fourth time through the lineup, he’s well aware of the sequences that he’s called in the previous at-bats. If adjustments are needed with pitch selection, he has the recall to make that on the fly.”

His current mates and former mates think the world of him:

“To have that kind of desire, that kind of preparation, in really making the most of a pitcher — it’s invaluable,” Farrell said.

Yankees outfielder Johnny Damon, a teammate of Varitek’s on Boston’s 2004 championship team, said, “I always thought Varitek was amazing — the way he calls a game, the way he prepares, the way he carries around the luggage.”

His opponents also think the world of him:

"You never want to see a no-hitter go against you like that, but, unfortunately, that situation happened," KC's Jose Guillen said. "I give a lot of credit to the pitcher, but most of the credit I give to Jason Varitek."

"He one of the smartest guys, the smartest catcher," Guillen said. "He's the one that got that pitching staff going that way about [its] business. "

"You want to guess and you're looking for a pitch, it's like Jason is reading your mind. And the pitchers listen to him about the pitch he wants in a certain situation. You think, 'OK, I'm going to take a pitch,' and here you go, he comes with a strike there; and you want to swing, he comes with a breaking pitch."

"He's a big value to this team, and they should be proud of what they have there," Guillen said. "He's a special guy. That's a lot of work to do to be a catcher. It's not just catching the ball and throwing it back to the pitcher.

By the way, in case you didn't know, Varitek is beloved his Boston fans as well. He's the team captain, the leader in the clubhouse and fans adore him. How can you hate a guy that sits in his driveway on Halloween night giving out snickers bars and signing autographs for all the neighborhood kids.

In case you haven't gotten the point yet, read this GREAT article by Bob Ryan of the Boston Globe. For a Georgia Tech fan, it's candy for the ears. When you have guys like Varitek, Garciaparra, Payton, Teixeira, Kevin Brown (maybe) and Matt Wieters going through your program, you have something to be proud of. Varitek is right at the top of the list.

Baseball: Pitching Can't Contain Caines

In the end, it was all about pitching. The Jackets just didn't have it against maybe the best hitting team in the nation. They gave up 6 long-balls including the death-blow 3-run shot in the top of the 9th - with GT leading. That was all she wrote. You just can't keep the ball up in the strike zone and expect to win.

You have to give it to the Tech hitters. They battled and battled, just like in the NCST game. They kept getting guys on base and bringing them home, including 4 in the 6th and another 3 in the 8th. They just couldn't hold the lead.

That means we're out of the ACC championship, although a win Saturday against Clemson would ensure a solid showing overall and maybe give us a shot at a regional. Maybe.

Stay tuned.

Beesball - Great Win Today

The Jackets won an exciting, sloppy, dramatic game against the Wolfpack today. It included multiple hit batsmen, multiple errors, multiple lead changes, many runs, a collision at the plate resulting in an ejection and a bench-clearing stand-down, and a 9th inning 2 run rally to take home the win 10-9. You can read about the whole thing here, including video of the post-game. In the other bracket game, Miami downed Clemson 7-1.

In the other bracket FSU beat Wake Forest and the UVA / UNC is in-progress as I write this.

Next game - GT vs 800lb Gorilla (Miami) @ 5:00pm.

GO JACKETS!!!

Baseball: ACC Tournament Central

With late spring comes the excitement of post-season baseball. Wednesday is the start of the ACC baseball tournament, so I thought I would provide all relevant links and some thoughts on the event.


THE LAYOUT
Here are the final ACC standings:


The top 8 teams got into the tourney (#1 Miami, #2 FSU, #3 UNC, #4 NCST, #5 GT, #6 UVA, #7 WF, #8 Clemson). There are 2 brackets - #1,4,5,8 and #2,3,6,7. You play every team in your bracket in a 3-game round-robin through Saturday. Then the championship game is held Sunday at 1:00pm between the winner of each bracket. There are a whole set of tie-breaker rules in place.


THE JACKETS LANDSCAPE
GAME 1: GT will face NCST on Wednesday at 10:00am
GAME 2: GT will face Miami on Thursday at 5:00 pm
GAME 3: GT will face Clemson on Saturday at 10:00 am

Might be worth somebody checking to see how the Jackets have fared in early games.

OUR CHANCES
I like our chances against NCST and Clemson but don't like them against Miami. Clearly the Jackets can beat anyone on a given day. However, the Jackets were also clearly rocked by Miami in a 3-game beatdown right after the Michael Hutts tragedy. So was that a funk only, or an indication of the superiority of Jim Morris's Miami team? They're #1 in the country for a reason. In general the Jackets played mediocre at best against the best competition they played. Sure, they dominated the non-conference schedule, and took care of the bad and mediocre ACC teams (mostly). However, they were handled pretty well by the best teams they played this season in conference.

We also know that Danny Hall's teams have had rocky roller-coaster post-seasons. What will this year bring to a very young squad? Personally, I give put the odds of winning their 4-man bracket as follows:

60% Miami
20% GT
10% NCST
10% Clemson

FYI - in terms of the NCAA regionals, our strength of schedule should help. We are currently sitting with the #8 RPI from the NCAA, #7 RPI from Boyds Nation and #7 RPI from Warren Nolan

MORRIS RENOUNCES HIS PAST
Jim Morris, Miami's current coach and former Georgia Tech coach was just named the ACC's Coach-of-the-Year. Well deserved for sure. When asked about the award he had the requisite pat-answer - I'm focusing on our team and winning games, blah, blah, blah. When asked about the 3 COY awards he won while at Georgia Tech ('83, '87, '93), here's what he had to say:

"I don't have those plaques anymore," Morris said of the three coaching awards won with the Yellow Jackets. "I'm a Miami guy."

Maybe I'm being a little sensitive here, but it's not like he spent a year here and left. The guy was here 12 years, and did some nice things while he was here. Why on earth would you renounce it, as if it never happened? Why would you get rid of your hardware? ON second thought, maybe he's right. It's not like he ever took us to the College World Series. He won 4 ACC titles in a row, got us to a bunch of NCAA regionals, and that's about it. It wasn't until he left that Danny Hall was able to break-through and make it to the CWS finals.

So Jim Morris, I say good-riddance. You don't want to remember where you came from - fine. Take a hike........... and I hope with a passion that we take you down like the squeeling pig that you are!!

TOURNEY LINKS

ACC PRESS RELEASE
ACC TOURNEY SITE
ACC TOURNEY BRACKET (PDF)
ACC BASEBALL SITE
ACC WEEKLY RELEASE
BEESBALL.COM (THE GT site for beesball info)


TEAM INFORMATION
Atlantic Coast Conference
• ACC Release• Statistics• Home Page

#1 Miami
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#2 Florida State
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#3 North Carolina
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#4 NC State
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#5 Georgia Tech
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#6 Virginia
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#7 Wake Forest
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

#8 Clemson
• Roster• Schedule
• Statistics• Home Page

Jackets Take Season Series from Half-Breeds

Well, you scolded me for improper usage of the term "rubber match". No problem. The good news is that the Jackets take the season series 2-1 from the half-breeds in Athens. Unfortunately they couldn't make it a sweep with a close loss at the TED 3-2. Deck McGuire notched his first loss of the season and didn't make history as possibly the only pitcher in the history of the rivalry to beat the half-breeds 3 times in one season.

Oh well. Time to turn to more important matters - a weekend series with UVA. I guess beating the SEC champions 2 out of 3 ain't too bad for one season.

Beesball - Jackets Take 2-3 From Clemson

The Jackets took 2-of-3 from the Tigers, with a pretty poor showing in the finale. Tuesday night is the rubber-match with UGAg at Turner Field. Jackets need to continue winning right to the end to secure their spot. Meanwhile, the team that's 0-2 against GT this year just won the SEC title. We'll see if they can scratch out a win at all against the Jackets Tuesday.

Beesball - Jackets held that Tiger...

.... to only one run as they took the opening match against Clemson 5-1. David Duncan went 8 strong on the mound, giving up only 1 run, six hits, no free passes and struck out 6. Key ACC victory and it very well could shut the door on Clemson's chances of getting in the ACC tourney.

On a separate note, the ladies took care of business in the first round of the ACC Softball tourney, beating UVA 5-3. Way to go ladies!!

Classic!!!

Luke Murton - you are the MAN!! Not only did the #5 ACC team beat the #1 SEC for the 2nd time this year, Murton one-upped the half-breed fans. Nice.

Jackets Pound the Half-Breeds

The Jackets take out UGAg on the road by a final of 11-1. Outstanding way to remain undefeated against in-state teams. Deck McGuire pitched a gem of a game and Murton went yard. Much needed elixir in this tough couple of weeks.

Per Your Request: Beesball Time

I put the "Skribit" module in the left-hand column so you could offer up your own story ideas and then vote on them. Well, the readers have spoken, and clearly many of you want to see some better coverage of our beesball team. No doubt my coverage of Danny Hall's crew has been subpar, but let's try to deal with that right now.

WHERE WE STAND
33-14 overall
12-12 in the ACC
24-7 at home
9-7 away
21-2 non-conference (Rutgers, Coastal Carolina)
1-8 versus top 3 RPI teams (Miami, FSU, UNC)
Polls: #25 Collegiate Baseball (only ranking)
RPI #9

ACC Standings (As Of May 6)

ATLANTIC DIVISION
School Conference Pct. Overall Pct.
Florida State 22-5-0 .815 40-7-0 .851
NC State 15-8-0 .652 33-14-0 .702
Clemson 10-16-1 .389 24-23-1 .510
Wake Forest 8-15-0 .348 19-27-0 .413
Maryland 8-19-0 .296 27-24-0 .529
Boston College 8-19-0 .296 24-23-0 .511

COASTAL DIVISION
School Conference Pct. Overall Pct.
Miami 20-2-0 .909 39-5-0 .886
North Carolina 18-5-0 .783 39-8-0 .830
Virginia 13-11-0 .542 33-15-0 .688
Georgia Tech 12-12-0 .500 33-14-0 .702
Duke 8-14-1 .370 34-14-1 .704
Virginia Tech 4-20-0 .167 20-27-0 .426

KEY SERIES LEFT
May 7 - UGAg - the rematch against Georgie. The Jackets are 10-0 against teams in the state of Georgia, and that includes a 9-4 victory over the Mutts April 9. This one is on the road and is a chance at a moral victory as much as anything.................. as always.

May 9,10,11 - Clemson. The Tigers are reeling and they are going to desparate for some W's to get themselves a shot at the ACC tournament (remember not everyone gets to play). We will need to take that series.

May 13 - UGAg again. Hopefully not the rubber match. Hopefully the Jackets' shot at a sweep.

May 15,16,17 - UVA. Another important series and a chance to finish strong.

May 21-25 - ACC Tourney

May 30 - June 2 - NCAA Regionals

June 6-9 Super Regionals

June 13-23 College World Series


WHAT ARE WE PLAYING FOR?
At this point, the Jackets are really playing to be one of 16 hosts for a Regional series. A strong finish could get us solidly back in the top 20 and our outstanding facilities could give us an edge to host a regional. However, at this point, we're being projected by Baseball America to play in a Regional hosted by UGAg. That would be the worst case scenario for both UGAg and GT.

OVERCOMING ADVERSITY
For the memebers of the 2008 beesball team, the death of Michael Hutts will be felt long after that last pitch is made. What is currently being written is a story of overcoming adversity, of finding that place deep down inside that allows you to go on and rise above pain, hurt and heartache.

After getting decimated by Miami, the Jackets have rebounded. They've won 6 of their last 8 games, batting .340 with 27 HR's and 20 doubles during that time. The offense has been on a tear the last 11 games, hitting .348 with 35 HR's and 34 doubles. In fact more than half of their hits in that span have gone for extra bases.

As a team, the Jackets lead the ACC in HR's with 80, while the pitching staff has limited opponents to a .271 average. This team has a bright future as freshman are playing key roles in their success (Dietrich, Nichols, Rowland, Burnette, Leonida). In addition, a quartet of juniors are playing a key role as well (Murton, Blackmon, House and Haniger). I guess they've stepped up in their "contract year".

CONCLUSION
Who knows where this team is headed. What we know is that this team has a devestating tragedy to deal with. What we know is that they are playing their best ball since that time. What we know is that they have responded. What we know is that their only real struggles this season were against the best of the best.

This story is just beginning. We all hope is has a happy ending after what this group of guys has been through.

Where are they now - Matt Wieters

Great article on Wieters. They paraphrased Wieters saying that his 3 years at Georgia Tech were the best of his life. There are great quotes about his leadership, even this early in his career:

“(Varitek) was very impressive,” Thompson (his manager) said. “I think his leadership, what he brings back there behind the plate is something special at the major league level. “I think Matt’s that same type of guy.”

“Like the point guard, the quarterback, he’s the player-coach on the field,” Thompson said. “The players listen to coaches, but some of the best teams I’ve ever played on the players coached themselves. He’s got the right answers and they respect that.”

Current and former teammate Blake Wood had this to say: “He’s one of the best players I’ve ever played with,” Wood said. “He’s going to be a big leaguer in a short time. He’s a great player — whatever he does, it’s not really a surprise to me.”


Aside from all the good in the article, I find this quote interesting: “He’s learning how to call a game,” the manager said. “In college he was programmed being told what pitch to throw and when but not really explained to why. I’m basically giving him the game, but he’s a helluva leader."

I've got to be honest with you. I see that as a bit of an indictment on the current coaching staff. Wieters came to the Jackets with all-world talent, and you sure hope he developed in his ability to call a game while at Georgia Tech - not just through experience, but through instruction and interaction.

Having said that, Georgia Tech is pretty well known as a producer of short-stops and catchers, so I guess we shouldn't worry too much. Just an interesting quote.