Beesball - Jackets Sweep Boston College

The Jackets go on the road, play a double-header Saturday, then the the finale on Sunday, winning all three games against BC. More strong pitching performances and solid hitting. I'll try to cover the diamond-gang better than I have. Great job by the Jackets!! Other than hitting the buzz-saw in Tallahassee, the Jackets have really played well all season.

Of course if you REALLY want to keep up on GT beesball, this is the site to see - click here.

Football - Progress, one pitch at a time

So Friday the team had another practice, and Saturday was a practice / live scrimmage.

Here are some links to various re-caps, along with my summary below:

33Jacket summary
The Hive 1 (Friday)
The Hive 2 (Saturday)
Nesbit review - AJC
Johnson clearly in charge

THE FLOW
Saturday - warm-ups, stretching, some coaching by the individual units, then the horn, the officials, and game-on. Special teams work was kept to a minimum other than FG kickers. Team spent a lot of time in scrimmage situations, with various players shifting in and out.

DETAILS DETAILS DETAILS
With this coaching staff it's all about the details. Finish drills, run out plays, interesting training drills ......block, block, block...... stop and teach. Tons of coaching going on........... after every single play.

DEPTH CHART STILL FUZZY
If you want to draw conclusions by who came out first, you can. Not sure it really means much though. On offense you first had Nesbitt, Evans/Jones as A-backs, Quincy @ B-back (yes Dwyer 2nd team), Earls and Bebe @ WR, and Gardner / Hill / Voss / Smith / Brown down the O-Line.

On defense, the 1st team as Johnson / Walker / Richard / Morgan down the D-Line, Barnes / Jefferson / Jackson @ LB's, Butler / Jahi @ Corners and Burnett / Reese at Safeties.

The offense played in 3 different units, but some guys switched between units, including QB's, WR's and A-backs.

GOOD OFFENSE OR BAD DEFENSE?
Well, here's the general take on O vs D - the O had their way Saturday. Nesbitt took the offense up-and-down the field seemingly most of the time he was in the game. There were stretches where Nesbitt seemed unstoppable, either by land or by air. He had some pretty incredible improvisation plays, breaking tackles and ripping out gains in 10 yard chunks. He also connected with Bebe on a 50-yard bomb, hitting him in perfect stride (whoops Mario Butler). It's clear that Nesbitt has the means to be the guy in this offense. Dwyer also caught a few passes in the B-Back position as well. Greg Smith continues to look like a natural in the A-back spot.

The first team offense pretty much had their way with the 1st team D. It appears that the D-Line and LB's had a rough day of it, while the secondary did some good things. Calvin Booker had some good plays, but generally didn't play as well as Nesbitt. It is interesting to note that the playcalling shifted towards more passing and 3-4 WR sets when Calvin was in there - clearly tailoring the offense to what the QB does well.

Lucas Cox busted a 50-yard jaunt from his B-back position on one play - right up the middle. How about this - Austin Barrick as an A-Back. Yeah, like a 250lb guy competing against Jamaal Evans. Ok. I guess you could say "flexibile".

We can't forget that the defense is learning a completely new system as well - and what is their reward? - to practice it against an option offense. That's rough, although the defense bowed up a bit towards the end of the scrimmage and played better. In addition, the defense did a fairly good job early stringing out the pitch option and preventing big gains. Makes me wonder how they will line up against more conventional offenses, and how they sharpen their skills against those schemes.

Having said all that, the offense isn't anywhere near PJ's expectations. They made many, many mistakes. Fumbles were common, and not relegated to any one guy. All the QB's made miscues. There were many mis-reads on the dive play, where guys should have pulled the ball out and didn't. There were center / QB snap issues. There were some pitch issues. We all know that one fumble can be the difference between winning an losing, so my tendency is not to get too excited about what we're seeing yet offensively. This group has a long way to go before this thing is truly a well-oiled machine, but they are progressing nicely.

DIRECTOR OF TOUGHNESS - APPLICATIONS BEING ACCEPTED

Paul Johnson talked to reporters after practice and made the statement "we're trying to find out who wants to compete". He is personally challenging certain guys, particularly if he thinks they have more to give. Jonathan Dwyer is one of those guys - and he started out on 2nd team Saturday. There were plenty of others.

PJ had no play sheet. He called the plays right out of his head.

NESBITT - A MORNING AT THE IMPROV
Quote of the day from Paul Johnson on Josh Nesbitt:

"He doesn't push through very well mentally," Johnson said. "When he gets a little tired, he goes the wrong way and forgets the play. He's got to push through that. He's got ability. Josh has got a ton of ability.

"There's times when he didn't do exactly what he was supposed to, and he missed some reads. Right now he's going to make us big plays. We're just not sure for who."

FACES IN THE CROWD
Desmond Howard of ESPN Gameday crew. Lots of ex-players (Mansfield Wrotto, Joe Hamilton, Matt Rhodes, A.Oliver,). Lots of future recruits including guys coming in the fall (Jaybo Shaw, S.Sylvester). Lots and lots of coaches of high school teams.

LASTLY - THE ANIMAL
Check out super-freak Michael Johnson. Dude is buff. A 6'7" 260lb DE. I do believe he's poised for a monster year. Also note the knee braces all the DL are wearing. See more pics here.

A Taste of Today

Check this out for more pics from today:

Georgia Tech's Offensive Line Takes Cheap Shots at Knees

by Lennie Mac

You will hear this the very first time a defensive lineman goes down or if we start 2-0, whichever comes first. Check out these quotes:

"It's such a hard job on the inside, people are just nipping at you, and they're always at your feet. It's a nasty game and that's the way Navy likes it. They really try to get you distracted. They cut-block tremendously, probably the best that I've ever seen. You really have to work hard at this stuff."

- Greg Schiano, Rutgers

“It’s probably the most important thing about the game,” Thompson said. “You can’t make any tackles from the ground. They’re really good at cutting players.

“We’ve been working pretty much half of camp and about two weeks now on cut-blocking. Florida State cut a lot, but it’s still no comparison to what Navy does.”

- Jim Grobe, Wake Forest

It will not be long before someone brings up that GT chop blocks. Cut blocking is legal in the NCAA and is designed to knock the defender off his feet.

It also has a psychological effect on defensive lineman and linebackers as well. They start thinking about it all week. If you know that someone is coming at your knees you get timid, thinking about protecting yourself.

Chop blocking is illegal. Under NCAA rules, a chop block is an obviously delayed block anywhere on the field at or below the thigh of an opponent (other than the runner) who is (a) in contact with; (b) in the act of disengaging from; or (c) has just disengaged from but is still confronting a blocker’s teammate. A chop block is delayed if it occurs more than one second after a teammate contacts the opponent. Also, a high/low combination block by two nonadjacent linemen with or without a delay between contacts is a chop block. When in question, an illegal delayed block is at or below the thigh of an opponent and, as such, is a chop block (2-3-3, 9-1-2p).

The one question that I would like asked is how GT is practicing this technique in Spring Practice without getting anyone hurt.

Football - New ACC Bowl Tie-in

Per the Annapolis paper (blogger really), Navy has signed on to play in the inaugural Congressional Bowl in 2008, to be held in D.C. at either RFK stadium or the new Nationals Park. Apparantly the ACC has agreed to be the tie-in opponent and it looks to be a "Service Academy" / ACC bowl moving forward. ESPN has signed on to broadcast the game, which will be held December 20.

Interesting that Navy has already agreed to play the first one, since they're......... you know ............ not bowl eligible yet. I guess when you eat bullets for breakfast and fight wars, we can make a few exceptions. I don't have a problem with that.

Apparantly it's going to be able to payout at least the minimum $1,000,000 per team.

A few questions unanswered:

• Is the an additional bowl tie-in?
• Is one of the existing bowls going to be cut (take your earmuffs off Boise-ians)
• Is this a way to provide a more reasonable lower tier bowl for the more Northern ACC teams whose teams maybe don't travel so well (turns out Eagles don't fly)?
• Can the service academies play even if none are bowl eligible?

Inquiring minds want to know. What questions do you have?

Spring Practice - Day #2

(picture from AJC)

Here are the tidbits from around the digital-ether based on today's practice:

ROUTINES
Two hour session in shorts and helmets. Again, they started with punt drills, with T.Evans, R.Jones, T.Melton and J.Tarrant fielding punts. Coach Johnson was a little more pleased with the pace today:

"Practice was better and at a faster pace today, but we certainly have a long way to go."

Speaking out "routine" - the defense is changing more than their scheme. Seems their techniques are going more mainstream as well. Less back-pedling. More side-stepping and shuffling. Seems man-to-man coverage is making a return to the flats, which has been clearly absent the past 3 years. The defensive player quotes all seem positive about the changes. It appears that the defense will be easier to execute for the players, but still present plenty of challenges for offenses. We will see.

Offensively, there continues to be a strong focus on the passing game and the QB's looked sharper. Could this be Coach Johnson like a kid with his new Red Rider BB-Gun? As expected, they continued option drills as well. Very much a focus on the basics of the option, not the intracies.

Former players continue to comment on the higher level of intensity of practice compared to the previous regime. Listen to Adamm Oliver's radio show and learn a whole lot about what they have to say. Check out his website at http://www.meetthemachine.com/. Matt Rhodes said he has been watching the O-Line and thinks the new offense might have been perfect for a guy like him. VERY different type of O-Line play. WAY different. By the way, the D-Line has to wear mandatory knee braces during spring. Why? Well, the O-Line is all about more cut-blocking. Legal blocking mind you, but blocking that is more prone to lead to injury. So need to protect those D-Linemen.

MORE BALANCED YELLING
Per various reports, since Jon Tenuta's departure, he no longer corners the market on raising his voice. Encumbant coaches and new ones alike are voicing themselves in much more auditory fashion. Evidently the message is still harsh when it needs to be, but the level of profanity seems to be down signficinatly. So, moms, you can now brings your babies to watch the defense practice.

POSITION CHANGES
Mike Knobler tells us that PJ's policy is to let a guy start the spring where he wants to play, then move them later if it looks like it will work out better somewhere else. Guys are trying new things out everywhere................ Greg Smith seems to be embracing the A-Back role............... Lots of experimentation in the secondary. Reese, Word-Daniels, Butler and Tarrant are battling at CB. Tony Clark is back at safety as the experiment at LB is apparently over. Just too many needs back there, as he lines up with Burnett, Reese and Blackwood................ Willie White continues to practice at safety and is happy about the change:

"I've always loved defense," White said. "I've kind of been hinting all along, so I welcome the move. Now, I'm just ready to play."

STANDOUTS
Paul Johnson specifically mentioned Jamaal Evans as having a good practice today, as "he did some good things". If you'll remember, Evans stood out his first spring as a freshman. Not that rankings mean anything, but don't forgot that one site listed him as the 6th best all-purpose back in the nation coming out of high school.

PJ told Mike Knobler that Josh Nesbitt showed improvement today but it will be weeks before there's a semblance of a depth chart at QB.

Tyler Melton and BeBe have looked good at WR.

INJURIES / ABSENTEES
Vance Walker was there but did not participate. He has a minor injury per AJC.. Daryl Richard wasn't there - had a class conflict.

FACES IN THE CROWD
Standard media group. Handful of former players - Rhodes, Oliver, J.Lewis............... Also, more local coaches and their staffs attending to watch.

THE REALITY OF STUDENT-ATHLETES
The AJC did a nice story about Jacob Lonowski, who has decided to end his career and save his shoulders. I guess he's decided that picking up his own fork ws important when he's like.... 40. The reality is that stories like this are all too common, and they are the reality in why kids need to really take their collegiate decision seriously - not just for the sport they play. Nice story though.

Turns out Friday will be the first practice in pads and there's a scrimmage Saturday at 9:00am. The Spring Game is set for April 19th at 1 p.m. in Bobby Dodd Stadium.

Shameless Self Promotion

Time for my once every two year post about how you can support this site. I can't even remember the last time I reminded readers that you can show your support without it even hitting your wallets (or you can do it that way too). Obviously there is a financial commitment to maintain this site, although admittedly most of my committment is time, which of course = money too.

So do nothing with what's below, or do something with it. Your choice. I'll continue to bring you the wonderful world of GT Sports either way.

Now, here's something amazing - this site has been active since September 2003. That means we'll hit the 5-year mark this year. The world has changed a lot in that time, and we've seen many GT sites come and go, yet I'm the only one who is apparently a glutton for punishment.

So here's how you can show your support:

AMAZON LINKS

On either column you'll find links to stuff at Amazon.com. If you buy stuff at Amazon, you can show your support by getting to the Amazon website through the links on this page. You don't have to buy the stuff shown. Doesn't matter what you end up buying, as long as you got to the site from here, and don't close your browser. Magically, Amazon charges you the same amount for the stuff you buy, but gives me a cut of the profits. So if you buy that $50,000 stereo system you've always been wanting, and get to amazon.com through this site, I suppose I get a nice little payday. Books, videos, whatever. Not much for me, but it's enough to buy my wife dinner every once in awhile when she gets ticked at me because I've been spending too much time here......... you get my drift......... Just know that when you buy from Amazon.com this way, you are chosing to take some profits directly from Amazon and share them with your favorite GT Blogger. :-)

GOOGLE AD LINKS

Don't, and I repeat don't, click on the google ad links in the left column unless you are genuinely interested in what they might offer. Google employs literally millions of kids in China who have fancy adding machines that can tell if I'm creating "click fraud". And let me tell you, with the time zone thing, they're up all night while I'm sleeping. Add to that the millions of kids fired from the lead paint factories, and the employment pool is bigger than ever. I don't need that kind of stress. So, check the ads out, and if there's something you're interested in - click on it. If not, keep walking. Heck, even writing this paragraph treads on Google's policies, which basically call for no undue attention to their ad boxes.

DONATION

If you're just interested in showing support through a good old fashioned donation, you can do that too. There's a "TIP JAR" link and a "Donate" button halfway down the right column. Feel free to toss a small bit of your hard-earned cash to support this site.

Again, it's weird even putting up a post like this. Don't feel obligated. I built this site out of my passion for Georgia Tech sports and that hasn't changed. It will always be a hobby and not about the money............... but a little extra to keep things going never hurts.

In the immortal words of Stephen Wright - "Why is it that it's only a 'penny for your thoughts', but you have to 'put your two cents in'? Somebody's making a penny"............

SPEAKING OF MONEY WHERE MY MOUTH IS..........

Some of you may remember my "bare my soul" post last fall about the fact that I hadn't ever bought football season tickets or given to the school financially. While I certainly plead a certain level of financial conversatism with three girls under 5 (I see future weddings, college, etc, etc, etc in triplicate), and my jobs have kept me on the road a lot, I finally turned a corner. I sprung for 4 tickets in the "Jackets Nest", which is basically the west end zone. I ended up with section 218, which is the "overhang" (see my view below). So I bought some cheapies - but that's what the GTAA was after in offering those $150 seats - new blood. They got some of mine for the 2008 season. I hope to see you there. I'll be the big guy with the beard.

(my view for the 2008 football season)

Spring Practice - Day #1

Here are some notes from around the interweb on day 1 practice. This includes ramblinwreck.com, the AJC, Scout.com discussion boards, and other secret saucy sources:

• Practiced in shorts and helmets. It appears they'll be in pads by Saturday.
• Focus was fundamentals and basics of the new offensive and defensive schemes
• Coach Johnson described the practice as "ragged", but "about what you'd expect".
• Practice began with punt coverage drills.
• Fast-paced practice, which was designed to keep participation at a high level. Not a lot of chances to stand around. Players had "extra" work to do when mistakes were made (drills, pushups, etc)
• Coach PJ worked with offense almost exclusively. Focused on QB's , B-Backs and WR's. Very active in terms of teaching. Very hands-on.
• Coach B.Bohannon said it will likely be 3-4 weeks into spring practice before the leaders in the QB race take shape.
• Lots of passing today, although fairly ragged with the wind.
• QB's worked on all the pitch drills, hand-offs, etc. Per AJC, Josh Nesbitt hasn't taken a snap under center since 10th grade. QB's getting a lot thrown at them, and trying to absorb it all.
• Coach Charles Kelly worked with the CB's.
• Coach Wommack worked with the safeties
• Position changes.......... Dominique Reese practiced at safety, OT AJ Smith practiced at Guard (although partially because of being short on personnel), Greg Smith practiced at A-Back, Willie White practiced at safety, Dan Voss got time at Center (with Dunmon out today).
• Injuries - Shane Bowen (shoulder), Cord Howard(foot), Jason Davis (foot), Brad Sellars(knee) will likely miss all of spring practice............. Andrew Smith (flu) and Trey Dunmon (flu) missed today.
• Faces in the crowd...... KaMichael Hall, Gary Guyton, PJ Daniels, Joe Hamilton, Dan Radakovich, misc reporters, a signed recruit or two, and a good number of other coaches trying to learn a thing or two (Mark Richt was not one of them)

Football- Spring Practice Questions

Georgia Tech spring practice officially starts today. It's an exciting time, and the new coaching staff brings a fresh hope in the air. With it come a long list of questions begging debate. Here are the top 10 things I'm going to be looking closely at during the next few weeks.

• How will the depth chart shake out? Paul Johnson and staff have made it clear that the decks are cleared and that everyone starts with a clean slate. Everyone has a chance to earn their spot. DC Dave Wommack has said that he doesn't have a depth chart going into the spring - he has an "organizational chart", which basically means groups of players for each position fighting with no pecking order..... yet. There are position battles ready to begin all over the place. QB, OL, DE, LB, DB, WR, ABack, kicker, punter. Honestly the most solid 1st string jobs are probably are DT's - Vance Walker and Daryl Richard. But start going to the 2-deep in all these positions and things continue to get murky. Last year's redshirts are primed to make their mark all over the 2-deep. The secondary only returns two guys with game-experience. That's wide open. There are spots to be had on the O-Line, losing three starters. LB is open, and considering Shane Bowen won't be practicing this spring - things are really open. I'll be watching closesly for signs of the depth chart forming. This is where it starts.
  
• What position changes will we see? Spring is always a time to be on the lookout for guys switching positions. This year, my guess is that we'll see a good bit of it. Not only do we have a new coaching staff, but we also new offensive and defensive schemes. Throw in the fact that we lose a lot of starters on both sides of the ball, and you have many, many possibilities. Personally, I would be on the lookout for WR / DB switches as the most obvious. Also, look closely for WR's who will get time at the "A-Back" or "Slot" position, like Greg Smith and C.Earls. Look for a guy like Tony Clark, a "tweener", to find his spot on the defense.


• Will someone emerge in the spring to take the QB job? We all know Josh Nesbitt has the physical tools. So the story-line appears to be the young hot-shot physical standout versus Calvin Booker, the slower but crafty, wily veteran. Can Nesbitt make good decisions? Can Booker run good enough? The fall will see the arrival of both Jaybo Shaw and Tevin Washington, who will get their looks. Can either pull a "Reggie Ball" and take the starting job in mere weeks of work? Hard to imagine, but we've seen it before. In the meantime, it seems to be a 2-person battle in the spring. If Booker actually has a better spring, then what are the implications on PJ's Triple-Option offense? Could be interesting.


• How much of the new offense will Paul Johnson end up putting in place in the spring? He has said he's going to put in as much as he can, but has no strict regimine. I'll be looking for comments about player understanding of the new offense, comments from PJ about the offensive progress.


• What is the defense going to look like? We will miss J.Tenuta, but sometimes new blood is a good thing. We think we're going to see more 4-2-5 defenses. We think we're going to see tighter coverage by the corners. We think we'll see aggressive blitzing, just not 85% of the time. We think a lot of things, but spring should provide some clues as to where the defense is headed. This bears watching, as DC Dave Wommack is an experienced guy with maybe a little something to prove


• Who will emerge as the true team leaders? There are vocal leaders like Tashard Choice. There are quiet guys who lead by their play - like Calvin Johnson. Which guys are going to step up and be the ones the other players look to for leadership, inspiration and motivation when times are hard? Who will be team captains? Should be interesting to see.


• Who will stay and who will go? DJ Donley is staying. DJ is going. DJ is staying. DJ is going. DJ and mom met with PJ and now they might stay. Obviously DJ is the headliner on the watch list of possible transfers. However, he's not likely to be the only one. So this bares watching through the spring and of course through the summer as well.


• What is the difference in tone, demeanor and attitude? Clearly PJ wants to instill physical and mental toughness. He has started with challenging early morning workouts the last few weeks. Now, I was at GT during the start of the Bill Lewis era. Bill Lewis wanted to instill toughness and tried to do it through puke-inducing 2-a-days. I remember players coming back to the dorm worn out, aching and tense. It all backfired of course. There's a fine-line between running player's backside's off and having it translate into success. With Lewis it didn't translate. He tried to establish a toughness but did not establish a vision that players bought into. So instead of a 5-star General that players would go to war with, he just became just a jerk trying to show who was the boss. Paul Johnson so far appears to have laid the groundwork for a compelling vision of this program. So far the players seem to be drinking the Kool-Aid. That's important, and I am very interested to see how this attitude and demeanor translate onto the field in spring practice.


• What is the difference in physicality of spring ball? No green jerseys for QB's. No "light tackling" drills. That's what we hear. PJ seems all about the hitting; all about the full-speed; all about the close-as-reality-as-possible game simulation. He wants to teach Josh Nesbitt and Calvin Booker how to be option QB's by letting them get their bell rung. I am going to be closely watching and listening for how this impacts the players. I am also going to be watching how this impacts our injury situation. Intuition would tell you the possibilities for injuries will go up.


• How will future recruits perceive spring practice? There will be a LOT of future recruits attending spring practices, so it is worth looking out for comments by possible future Jackets on their perceptions.

Here's the schedule for the next few weeks, per RamblinWreck.com. Practices are open to the public:

Georgia Tech Spring Practice Schedule
(All practices at Rose Bowl Fields @ 4 p.m.)
Monday, March 24
Wednesday, March 26
Friday, March 28
Saturday, March 29
Monday, March 31
Wednesday, April 2
Friday, April 4
Saturday, April 5
Monday, April 7
Wednesday, April 9
Friday, April 11
Saturday, April 12
Monday, April 14
Wednesday, April 16 (possible move to Bobby Dodd Stadium)
Saturday, April 19 (SPRING GAME @ 1 p.m.)

Anyone attending practice who wants to send me practice reports will get their notes posted online (send to: gtsports -at- blogspot -dot- com). I'd love to share with everyone.

Football - Spring Practice Schedule

Here's the schedule for the next few weeks, per RamblinWreck.com. Practices are open to the public:

Georgia Tech Spring Practice Schedule
(All practices at Rose Bowl Fields @ 4 p.m.)
Monday, March 24
Wednesday, March 26
Friday, March 28
Saturday, March 29
Monday, March 31
Wednesday, April 2
Friday, April 4
Saturday, April 5
Monday, April 7
Wednesday, April 9
Friday, April 11
Saturday, April 12
Monday, April 14
Wednesday, April 16 (possible move to Bobby Dodd Stadium)
Saturday, April 19 (SPRING GAME @ 1 p.m.)

Anyone attending practice who wants to send me practice reports will get their notes posted online (send to: gtsports -at- blogspot -dot- com). I'd love to share with everyone.

Football - No Pain No Gain

The AJC tells us that many players are experiencing workouts like they've never experienced before in spring conditioning. They go into some detail on the workout regimine, which I suspect came from the same Navy discussion board that I found this:

Stretching starts at 0545, standard Coach Brass pre-practice/game routine

The football players all wear practice jerseys, other mids are allowed to come out as well.

There are 7 stations spread all over the whole field. Each station is split up into two lines. There is one coach per line, so two coaches per station

Station 1: Hoops, there are two large hoops (6 or 7' in diameter) laid next to each other, forming a figure 8 shape. Players basically run a figure 8 around the two hoops. The emphasis is on speed while constantly changing direction and staying low.

Station 2: Towels, the configuration of the towels varies, but the idea stays the same. Players put one hand down on the towel and run one full circle around it, then move to the next towel, alternating hands and direction each time. The emphasis is on exploding out of the turn and accelerating to the next towel.

Station 3: M-Drill, 5 cones are arranged like the dots on the mat drill. Players face forward at a top corner and backpedal first to the bottom corner, run forward to the middle cone, backpedal to the bottom corner opposite the starting side, and finally run forward through the final top corner cone (all the way through...or else up downs). The emphasis is changing direction and the all important finish through the line.

Station 4: Pro-shuttle, two players face eachother and essentially race the pro-shuttle drill. Start in the middle- five yards to the right, ten yards back to the left, finish five yards back to the right through the starting line. This is the same drill done by most combines. The emphasis is on change of direction/quickness.

Station 5: Bags, 6 big blocking bags are laid out in a

I I I I I I

shape. Coaches have players run through, weave around, jump over in any number of combinations. This emphasizes speed, agility, quickness.

Station 6: Ladders, rope ladders are put down and players run straight through, sideways, hop-skotch, and any other weird step that the coach decides to do.

Station 7: Wave drill (aka Coach Green's drill), three players line up in single file facing the coach, knees chopping. The coach points right or left and the players shuffle that direction to a cone on either side of them then back to the middle. When the coach is satisfied with the trio, he waves them on and they sprint past him. The finish here is half the battle. Bad finish = up downs. The emphasis here is on changing direction/agility, and the finish.

The 7 different groups are organized by position. Other midshipmen are scattered into the various groups. I dont know why anyone would want to come out, but the extra bodies make the lines a little bit longer, and you get a few more seconds to rest. The whole cycle is done through once the first time, generally spending 2.5-3 minutes on each station. Then everyone sprints to the next station (lack of effort leads to everyone going back and repeating the previous station). There is a 4-5 minute break after the first go-through. The second time through is much like the
first, only there is no break, and everyone goes right into the third cycle.

During the third cycle, after each station ends, KN gets a thumbs up or down
from each coach. If all coaches give a thumbs up, 4th quarters are done for the day. If a single coach gives a thumb down, everyone rotates to the next station,
and this process continues until every coach gives a thumbs up. Generally the whole thing is done around 0700, just enough time to shower, grab some breakfast, and go to class.

Finishing my last 4th quarters was the happiest moment of my life...until beating ND, which was pretty cool. "

So we don't know exactly what they're running, but it's safe to say it's some variation of that routine. I was saving that post until the end of the weekend, but the AJC beat me too it. They wrote a good article and it was certainly encouraging if you're a Tech fan. It's all part of the process of building that mental toughness.

Also, the Sporting News tells us about spring by leading with the fact that Paul Johnson ain't gonna give much info at this point.

Football - Depth Chart By Class

Taking a cue from a Tennesse Blog (RockyTopTalk), I thought I would put together a spring football depth chart by class. I slapped it together pretty quickly, but it gives you a pretty clear idea where our depth is hurting and where we are solid for 2008. I took the idea and expanded it a bit, adding a column for "Notable losses", which clearly shows the massive number of starters we lose, and I added a column for current verbal commitments. Let me know if you see any errors. I'm sure there are a few.


As always, click on the picture for the gigantor version:

Where are they now? - Taylor Bennett

by Lennie Mac

The Shreveport Times reported that Taylor Bennett has visited Louisiana Tech to study their master programs. As we all know, he has one year of eligibility left. Although he wasn't too good here (Gator Bowl and Maryland game aside), we wish him the best in his future endeavors.

Where are they now - Jarrett Jack

From last night's game (link from a Hiver). What caption would you put with this one?

Paul Johnson - 790thePWN

Wow, what a contrast. Chan Gailey was just a super nice guy. He never wanted to say a cross word about one of his players. He never wanted to get into arguments with the media, but he also didn't want to really give the media any insight into the program. He gave a lot of coach-speak. Now the media is often guilty of on one hand using baiting tactics to try and create a "moment" and on the other hand being lazy and not doing their homework. They did it with Coach Gailey last year with some Reggie Ball baiting, but he fell into their trap.


Now, are you interested in hearing a contrast? Are you ready for a guy that is going to force the media to do their homework or look like the boneheads that we all like to say they are? Take a listen to Paul Johnson's interview with 790thezone and decide who is going to be the aggressor when it comes to interviews. He comes across as pretty easy-going, very real, confident, and pretty darn open about things. When asked the inevitable question about the Triple-Option and running a scheme that people question, after basically saying he is confident it will work, he threw this out.



PJ: "What offense does Georgia run? What do they run? Does anybody know?



Nick Cellini: "Uhh... I guess they would call it a pro-style offense, for a lack of a better term."



PJ: "Well, it's certainly not a pro-style offense. It's not what the NFL runs. "

It went on, and PJ let up on them. The message - don't mess around too much with PJ. Show some respect. He'll do the unthinkable - ask the questioner a question. uhhh........dddduuuhhh....

To me, the key question was what he wants to see out of his team as the top priority:

PJ: "I'd like to see us get a little tougher, mentally. I want to see guys compete. I've been pleased with our guys so far with morning conditioning - at least some aspects of that. I think when I watch the tape and when I assess the program, that's the one area I really think we need to improve in.......................... I think we need to understand what it takes to get to that next level, and it's not always physical toughness. I think our guys are physically tough. That's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about being able to mentally fight through when things go bad and those kind of things".

Lastly, every coach has to have some coachspeak, and this was his classic:

PJ: "Football is a pretty simple game. The team that blocks and tackles the best usually wins".

Oh yeah, one more key comment................... spring practice starts Monday!!!!

Timeline for a new GT President

As you probably know, Wayne Clough announced his departure as President of Georgia Tech, as he takes over the troubled Smithsonian. Here's a good New York Times article on his background and what he's stepping into. Here is an email sent to students today about his successor:

BOARD OF REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF GEORGIA

Chancellor Erroll B. Davis, Jr.
270 Washington Street, S.W.
Atlanta, Georgia 30334


March 18, 2008

Dear Faculty, Staff, Students, Alumni and Friends of Georgia Tech:

By now you have learned of President Clough's new role as Secretary of the Smithsonian, a position of tremendous international importance. We are thrilled that he was chosen for this post, and while we will miss him immensely, we know that this is a well- deserved honor and fitting recognition of his accomplishments.

Over the last thirteen years, President Clough has helped bring Georgia Tech to a new level of national and international prominence. We shall celebrate his numerous outstanding contributions to higher education over the coming months, as we say
farewell.

The greatest asset -- the sole asset -- of any college or university is its people. And while the president sets the focus and agenda for the institution, it is those who have chosen Tech as a place in which to exercise their individual talents that perform the work of the university and establish its reputation. Many of you have chosen Georgia Tech because of its growing reputation and in turn, each of
you makes invaluable contributions to that reputation.

Therefore, as the leadership transition moves forward, I just want to assure you that it will be done in ways that affirm and strengthen the importance of Georgia Tech's faculty and staff to the university's continued excellence.

A plan for transition is well underway, and our goal is to choose an Interim President for Georgia Tech within the next several weeks. This process will guarantee a smooth transition for all operations at the university.

In the short term, I will be reaching out to consult with a variety of people to help me decide who shall lead the university during this interim period. But, I would very much like to hear from you as well. Please send confidential nominations for candidates who might serve as Interim President directly to our Chief Academic Officer, Susan Herbst (susan.herbst@usg.edu), before noon on March 24th.

After we have gathered nominations and evaluated the candidates, the name of the Interim President will be announced as soon as possible.

As far as a national search for the 11th President of Georgia Tech, the details will be shared with you over the coming months. Generally, we will begin preparation for the search in the spring and commence formal solicitations for applications early in the fall, so that we have a new President in place as soon as practicable.

Please join me in congratulating Dr. Clough on an outstanding career as a scholar, institutional president, policy expert, and a leader in international higher education. We could not be more proud of him and the Georgia Tech community at this moment: A bright future for the University is a certainty.

With warmest regards,
Erroll B. Davis Jr.
Chancellor

ACC Short-changing - an annual spring tradition

Ran across this tidbit that Tech fans probably remember pretty well. This from the former committee chairman Bob Frederick:

Asked to name the source of the toughest grilling he received as chairman of the selection committee, Frederick said, “I don’t remember, probably about the ACC with Billy (Packer, or as Al McGuire used to spell his name: P-A-C-C-K-E-R).”

Then Frederick remembered, and the grilling was inspired by an ACC team being left out: “Georgia Tech. I remember calling Bobby Cremins and talking to him about it. He was great. He didn’t agree, and he still doesn’t, but he was great about it.”

ACC Jobbed Again?

Well, the #1 RPI conference in the country ends up yet again getting only 4 teams into the NCAA tournament. The Big East, on the other hand, with the 5th best RPI gets 8 teams in. The key team that got left out was of course Virginia Tech. So did they deserve it? You could argue it both ways:

• Pro - #1 RPI conference
• Pro - 9-7 record in the ACC
• Pro - #32 Strength of Schedule
• Con - they only played UNC, Duke and Clemson once each - and lost every one
• Con - RPI ~53
• Con - 1-7 record against top 50 (vs 4-7 Villinova, S.Bama 3-2)
• Con - 0-6 record against top 25

I'm as ticked as any ACC fan should be. However, the only thing they really had going for them was a strong ACC record - and the Selection committee chairman made it clear that the conference a team played in had no role in their decision. Seth Davis made it clear - mid-majors get a break in this process over the big conference middle teams. It's a fact but the committee would never admit it. Either way, it's a rarity for an ACC team with a winning record to get left out, but here we are.

What role did the make-up of the ACC play in this? A lot in my opinion. Facts are this conference needs more bad teams. Why does the Big East get 8 teams in? There are plenty of patsies. The ACC just doesn't have them. There are two great teams (UNC, Duke), one really good team (Clemson), one good team (Miami), then all the rest are a solid soup of interchangeability. Really, there's not one ACC team that would be a major shocker to upset UNC during the season.

For the ACC to consistently get 5-6 teams in the dance, we need at least three, but preferably four teams every year to lose about 12-14 conference games. We don't necessarily need another dominant team. We just need more crappy teams. I don't know if it's any more complicated.

Oh, I don't know. We dominate the ACC/Big 10 Challenge every year and they get the same number of teams in the dance as the ACC. Go figure.

Here's something I do know. This time of the year really, really, really stinks when GT is not in the field. It's not bittersweet. It's just plain bitter. Adding insult to injury, our arch-rivals win only 4 conference games all year, and manage to win 4 in-a-row to win the SEC and get a bid to the dance (on our own floor no less). At least there is justice in the world though. First, they get shipped out west as a 14-seed. Second, it ensures that Dennis Felton is going to hang around a few more years. Good guy, but I don't see him taking them consistently to the next level in hoops.

It's just the end to one very frustrating season.

So what should we move on to next? Want to talk beesball? Well, GT got swept by FSU this weekend. I'm not up for that either. I think I'm going to bed early. I cannot even get motivated to fill out a bracket.

Don't Blink & Miss Life Pass You By

Thank you David Glenn for this small but oh so important little follow-up after Tech's loss to Duke:

In the final moments of the Yellow Jackets' quarterfinal loss to Duke, senior forward Jeremis Smith and senior guard Anthony Morrow had tears in their eyes as they came off the court for the last time as collegians. They briefly hugged Tech coach Paul Hewitt, then went down the line and embraced each of their assistant coaches, teammates and members of the support staff. At the end, Smith and Morrow turned to each other and came together in a tight, both-arms, full-bodied, tears-flowing bear-hug, holding it for maybe 20 seconds as the game's buzzer sounded.

Smith, a powerful 6-8, 236-pounder with spider-web shoulder tattoos and a gregarious personality, must have left quite an impression — beyond basketball — during his four-year career. As the game ended, ACC officials Mike Eades and Ray Natili approached Smith with smiles on their faces, offered him a few words, and hugged him. (Imagine the reaction if that had occurred with a Duke or UNC player!) In the two teams' postgame handshake line, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski took extra time to speak with Smith.

On an otherwise sad day for Smith, did the details of the final moments of his college career offer him a silver lining?

"I'm glad you asked me that question, because it meant a lot to me," Smith said. "I know most people just see us as basketball players, but we're people first, and that's something I've always tried to keep in mind when I deal with other people, in every area of life. What you saw out there was four years of relationships, four years of fighting through adversity, four years of success and failure and everything in between. That's what life is all about, right? That's what was so emotional about it.

"I'm the type of guy who builds relationships. I love my coaches and teammates, and it's about more than basketball. I don't like every call the refs make, but I always try to remember that they're people, and they have a hard job to do, and I've built good relationships with them. I'm trying to beat those guys on the other team, but they're people, too. You can play hard and try to win and try to beat them and still remember that they're people.

"This is a hard day for me, sort of the end of a difficult but great chapter of my life. That's why you see my eyes are so red right now. But that stuff? The hugs? My teammates? Coach Hewitt? Coach K? The refs? That kind of stuff brings a smile to my face, even though it's a sad day, too."

The message for me - success is not strictly defined by wins and losses. I can't forget the student-athletes and their sacrifice. I shouldn't lament why we "missed" on some kids. Embrace the ones who chose to hook up their wagons to the Ramblin Wreck for four years. Appreciate the effort, the sacrifice, the relationships and don't define the era strictly by the record. This team lost 3 guys to the NBA. This team lost 2 others to transfers. This team lost their best inside player to a medical redshirt. Yet this team was a few key baskets away from an 18-20 wins season. They did well with tremendous adversity, finding within themselves how to translate effort into more consistent winning at the most important part of the season.

So kudos to the seniors, and we look forward to seeing those who remain. While we won't know what next year brings, there are plenty of reasons to be hopeful. It will also be extremely easy to sit back and take pot-shots. It always is for us arm-chair generals.

Anyhow, thanks David Glenn, for reporting about the human side of the game, which most reporters have gotten too lazy to even care about.

Hoops - Jackets Fall to Duke

So the 2007/2008 season comes to an end. And in the end, things had a familiar ring. Lose to Duke 82-70. Look marginally competitive. Season over. No post-season.

The Jackets went down big in the first half, which is a death-wish against Duke. However, they managed a big run early in the 2nd half to cut it to 2 points. For a few minutes it looked like it might actually be a game. How did they cut into something like a 19 point lead? First, Duke backed off a bit defensively. Second, GT figured out a nice pick-and-roll strategy to get penetration at the top of the key and exploit some over-playing out high. Third, the Jackets hit a bunch of shots both inside and outside and didn't miss many. Fouth, Duke went cold.

But that was it. Duke turned back up the defensive pressure and that was all she wrote. Really there were two key plays that seemed to be back-breakers. Both were the result of strong aggressive defense by the Jackets, but both resulted in easy, quick transition 3-pt hoops by Duke. Back-breakers.............. whatever.

At the end of the day, the season was characterized by frustration for fans, players and coaches, with a few brief sprinkles of fun and excitement. The highlight was probably the victory on senior day over Clemson. Anyhow, thanks again to Jeremis Smith, Anthony Morrow and Matt Causey. Great having you here.

Looking ahead, it's going to be hard to predict what we'll have next season. Losing those three guys but only adding Iman Shumpert (for now). It's going to take maturation and development, not an influx of new talent.

Guess it's time to move on...............

Speaking of moving on, the beesball team loses 8-7 to FSU in the bottom of the 9th. Rough day.