AJC > Sports > Blog > Archives > 2008 > April > 17 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USHow Georgia State can be successful in football
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia State will announce later today that it is starting a football program. It’s just one man’s opinion, but here are five things I believe the Panthers are going to have to do if they want to be successful.
1. Follow the Georgia Southern plan: When coach Erk Russell was hired in 1981 to re-start the football program in Statesboro, he put together a very detailed plan for success. The plan included reaching out to all the high school coaches in the state to let them know that there was now another opportunity for their players. Russell and his staff went to every club, every organization that would let them come speak and spread the word about Georgia Southern football. Coach Russell was the best motivator of people I have ever met. He never wavered from his plan and sold the Georgia Southern program to the state before the Eagles had ever played a game.
2. Hire a coach who has recruited this state: This is crucial. Georgia State’s new head coach should not have to introduce himself when he gets to a high school in Georgia. The Panthers need someone who knows the high school coaches well enough to trust their judgment. You’re not going to beat Georgia or Georgia Tech on a player they want. So it’s crucial to identify the player who may be a couple of inches too short and half a step too slow to play at Division I-A but can be a very good player at the I-AA level. The high school coach can help you find those guys if they trust you.
There are a lot of people out there who fit this description but here are four off the top of my head:
Hugh Nall, offensive line coach, Auburn: Nall played on Georgia’s 1980 national championship team and was on coach Russell’s original staff at Georgia Southern.
George Godsey, quarterbacks coach, Central Florida: The former Georgia Tech quarterback remains very popular in the state.
Brad Lambert, defensive coordinator, Wake Forest: The Deacons had 19 players from Georgia on their ACC championship team in 2006. Lambert, a former assistant to Jim Donnan at Georgia, recruits heavily here.
Rodney Garner, assistant head coach/recruiting coordinator, Georgia: Garner would be perfect for this job but it would be very difficult to get him out of Athens. But you can still ask.
3. Make it your goal to eventually play in the Southern Conference: The Colonial Athletic Association is a fine league but college football is built around rivalries. All of Georgia State’s natural rivalries in I-AA football (Georgia Southern, Appalachian State, Chattanooga, Furman) are in the Southern Conference. When Georgia State’s new president arrives (Dr. Carl Patton retires in June) later this year, he or she should start reaching out to the fellow presidents in the Southern Conference to determine what it is going to take to gain membership. Then do it. Whatever it takes. Whatever it costs.
4. Play anybody, anywhere: Once the program is up and running be willing to go on the road and play anybody. This is the philosophy Bobby Bowden used to build Florida State. Yes, you’ll take your lumps. But the players will learn what it is going to take to be successful. Schedule a game with Georgia Southern as soon as possible. Chances are Georgia Southern will only want to play at their place and not come to Atlanta. That’s okay. Play the game anyway.
5. Make the Georgia Dome your home: The critics will be all over you for playing in such a huge facility. But use it to your advantage in recruiting. How many Division I-AA players get to perform in an NFL Stadium? Block off the upper deck. Put out a bunch of signs. Turn what many will perceive to be a negative-the lack of an on-campus stadium-into a positive.
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Comments
By m
April 17, 2008 8:49 AM | Link to this
Since you covered how they can be successful, let me cover how they can guarantee that they won’t be successful….Hire Chan Gailey. That will guarantee that they will suck eternally. Just say no to Gailey…which is what Tech should have done and finally did.
By Erk
April 17, 2008 9:18 AM | Link to this
“m”
You just won’t give the Gailey thing a rest will you? I think everyone who has ever read any of Tony’s blogs got your message months ago. Time to move on.
The Georgia Southern plan was a great one but Georgia State will have to deal with much more competition than Southern had when starting up.
By Roswell Ed
April 17, 2008 9:29 AM | Link to this
M- you are worse than Ramble On.
We get it. You don’t care for Chan.
Please come up with something at least a little original.
By shane #1
April 17, 2008 9:49 AM | Link to this
Tony, I think Ga St must hire a coach that can sell Their team to the people of Atlanta.Atlanta fans are fickle, They love a winner, but stay away in droves when a team has a bad year or two. Even Tech, with a great football tradition, finds it difficult to fill Their stadium. Erk sold the program to the locals in Statesboro, eating breakfast with the good old boys every morning and making friends with the local civic leaders. There was no tradition at Ga Southern, so Erk made one up, “Beautiful Eagle Creek” for example. There will never be another Erk, and Atlanta is not Statesboro, so Ga State’s new coach will have His work cut out for Him, that’s for sure! M, why don’t You give it a rest! Ga St would be damn lucky to get Chan!
By Jack G
April 17, 2008 10:07 AM | Link to this
m is the Chan Gailey of bloggers
By bull-gator
April 17, 2008 10:17 AM | Link to this
1 - Use the University oF South Florida model.
2- Hire an experienced, successful young head coach. Hire experienced assistant coaches from the states of Georgia, Alabama, Tenn, Fla and South Carolina that can relate to the players and recruit the state.
3- Southern Conference is a good place to start out, but not to end up.
4- Play who you can, where you can, but don’t go and get your players humiliated.
5- Too bad the Georgia Dome is a dome, (I’ll never understand the logic to build a dome in the Atlanta. New Orleans envy, I guess…) but that’s all you got, so use it.
By The Monk
April 17, 2008 10:22 AM | Link to this
Am I wrong or did Chan Gailey win a Notional Championship in 1-AA at Troy?
By Roswell Ed
April 17, 2008 10:43 AM | Link to this
bull-gator:
You don’t get the dome?
Have you ever heard of
the Final Four
the Super Bowl
the SEC Championship game
the ACC Bball tourny
the SEC Bball tourny?
The Falcons need an outdoor stadium but Atl still needs the Dome.
GET IT NOW?
By Miles
April 17, 2008 10:52 AM | Link to this
All the ideas Mr. Barnhart has put forth for Georgia State are good. Playing in the Southern Conference must be a goal for the Panthers. Equally important is its commitment “to go on the road and play anybody.” In addition to Bobby Bowden, a good example of a coach who has built a reputable program and attracted a notable and supportive following for his team is Fresno State’s Pat Hill. Though he has not met the criteria of playing in a remarkable conference (WAC), he has shown a willingness to play team’s from BCS conferences, i.e., Colorado, Kansas State, LSU, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Oregon State, Tennessee, Texas A&M, UCLA, USC, Washington, and Wisconsin. Go Panthers!
By G-MAN
April 17, 2008 10:53 AM | Link to this
M————————
Can you please move on, perhaps using Greyhound. Your the least interesting Blogger of all time. Think of something new to say!!. I don’t think you can judge Gailey vs Johnson until TECH has played agame under Johnson!!
By Canton Dawg
April 17, 2008 10:58 AM | Link to this
Why does Georgia State want a team? Waste of money.
By Pittjacket
April 17, 2008 11:09 AM | Link to this
College teams playing in an NFL stadium ain’t all that great. Pittsburgh built a stadium for Pitt and the Steelers, but it mostly feels like a neutral site on Saturdays in the fall.
On campus is better.
By ColumbusJacket
April 17, 2008 11:09 AM | Link to this
Roswell Ed— It worked out well for AU recently when they scheduled GT early and often.
By MarkyMark
April 17, 2008 11:15 AM | Link to this
Good points.
By mcdawg
April 17, 2008 11:15 AM | Link to this
Garner is unavailable -thanks for asking
By epope
April 17, 2008 11:21 AM | Link to this
Five points or 500 points. The only reason Georgia Southern was successful was because they hired Erk Russell. Erk did for Ga. Southern what Lefty Dressel did for Maryland, but Georgia State has already tried that.
By ugahatr
April 17, 2008 11:32 AM | Link to this
Ga State may have an easier time getting things rolling than we think. The “big city life” will appeal to more 18 year olds than a 4 year stay in Statesboro.The kids who don’t quiet have enough hipe to get to a div I school may find that going to Atl and playing is just what they want. Add in the right coach and correct scheduling and they may have something.
By JConn
April 17, 2008 11:34 AM | Link to this
Godsey’s up the gut option TD was the best thing that happened to Georgia…It got rid of Jim Donnan. Thanks George Godsey, your 3 minute “sprint” to the endzone made the Dawgs what it is today! When that happened, I heard a large door slam on the Donnan era; to think that ESPN criticized us, including Mr. Barnhardt…Georgia’s expectations are not realistic they said. Wow, “experts”.
By eljewell
April 17, 2008 11:36 AM | Link to this
Go Panthers. I would love to see us play in the Ga Dome.
By EagleFan
April 17, 2008 11:38 AM | Link to this
state will get football just in time to take georgia southern’s place in the southern conference. hopefully southern will be gone from the socon in the next few years anyway…the eagles are (hopefully) getting things ready for a jump to I-A in 2011, which as soon as the NCAA will allow it.
georgia state and chattanooga would make a nice rivalry though…those two schools are not far apart at all.
By me
April 17, 2008 11:44 AM | Link to this
Anybody ever notice how quickly and how much UGA ”fans” want to talk about homosexuality? A little subliminal defensiveness here? Freud would have a hay day with that….
By GeorgiaSouthern
April 17, 2008 11:52 AM | Link to this
On the contrary, I’m sure Georgia Southern would come to Atlanta for the game…free recruiting. I just don’t think Ga. State (the fake GSU) would want us coming up there, smacking them around and reminding any Atlanta recruits that there’s a national championship caliber team a couple hours south.
By Roswell Ed
April 17, 2008 11:56 AM | Link to this
I’d love to go back to playing Tech every year.
Even a blind squirrel finds a nut or two every now and then.
By Georgia Fan
April 17, 2008 12:27 PM | Link to this
As an alum of both UGA and Georgia State I am thrilled that the city of Atlanta will FINALLY have a college football program that we can all be proud of. Go Panthers!!!
By Gene
April 17, 2008 12:28 PM | Link to this
Back in the 90’s, Dr. Patton had this ego trip that he could build a successful basket program with “Lefty” Drisell. This experiment allowed Patton to travel with the team and hang out with former basketball big shots, but it proved to be a disaster that left students with a huge activity bill and minimal student interest. The same thing will happen with football, but on a larger and more expensive scale. Georgia State is a fine school that fills a need for older and working students. Football will fail as basketball has, and working students will pay for another Patton fiasco.
By chris
April 17, 2008 12:29 PM | Link to this
Morris Brown, Clark Atlanta, & Morehouse are more like what Ga. State will be. Nothing but the BAND to watch.
By mike
April 17, 2008 12:31 PM | Link to this
will tech be man enough to play them as tech has been scared for years to play southern?????
By Andhy
April 17, 2008 12:37 PM | Link to this
Georgia State (the fake GSU)? Shows how smart you guys really are down there in statesboro. Why don’t you try this link: www.GSU.edu
ouch!! that must hurt
GO PANTHERS!!!!!!
By RAMBLE ON!
April 17, 2008 12:42 PM | Link to this
Well, well Roswell eDIOT once again says the same dumb and stupid thing over and over and then has the audacity to once again say “Please come up with something at least a little original”. I guess it would be a little too much to expect the same from you.
You sir, are a true moron.
Don’t look in that mirror. You’ll hate what you see.
Funny, your boy Tommy T. won’t be scheduling GT early and often anymore. Yes, I’m saying it again, only because you had to go there. Question, what time during the 3rd quarter did your arse high tail it out of the stadiums with your tiger tail between you legs?
Wait “Even a blind squirrel finds a nut or two every now and then”, there’s an orginal one. How witty…yawn.
By blah
April 17, 2008 1:04 PM | Link to this
Roswell ED probably went to Awbarn. He is obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed. My dog could get into Awbarn and graduate with honors.
By Ramble On!
April 17, 2008 1:05 PM | Link to this
Tim Teblow, will you marry me?
By Moc Watcher
April 17, 2008 1:19 PM | Link to this
Good points,Tony, but…
1) Better schedule Chattanooga soon. the Mocs program is on life support and may not be around much longer. Idiotic leadership has just about run it into the ground.This would be a great rivalry,though…
2) Market the darn thing. People won’t just show up because there is a game being played. The team will be in competition with SEC and ACC football for attention and $$$.There could be a market there,but just trying to be a scaled down “big school” won’t bring in the fans.
3)The Southern Conference is one of the most competitive conferences in 1-AA. It’s the SEC of the FCS. But the Carolina schools don’t travel all that well. (Appy State is an exception),so a local fan base is critical.
4) Don’t schedule anylower division that your own. noting to gain,lots to lose. UTC did this at the first game with Carson Newman last season and lost and you could distinctly hear crickets chirping at their games the rest of the season.
By shane #1
April 17, 2008 2:09 PM | Link to this
Tony, as Mr College Football, I would like for You to keep Us updated on a couple of on-going stories. 1-There may be more to the story of the tragic death of the UCF player than was first reported. It seems that some players have said that the young man gave signs of distress before collapsing, and that some on the coaching staff gathered around His prostrate form yelling at Him to “get Up”. It has also been reported that UCF palyers were told to “keep quiet” about the incident. A major lawsuit could be in the works. 2-Saban got LOIs from 32 recruits. A college can only award 25 scholarships in a given year. Even 25 new football scholarships would put Bama over the 85 scholly limit. So some of the new recruits may not recieve scholarships, and some current players will lose Theirs. I think the “stuff” could hit the fan when a recruit is told that the spot on the team that He was promised is not there, or when ‘Bama baller is handed His walking papers. Saban is very combative with the press, so much so that even the Mobile press is starting to question His tactics. You know Mobile is where Bear walked on water.
By rambo
April 17, 2008 2:16 PM | Link to this
There’s a great stadium next door to the dome that’s not being used. Has a great atmosphere and seats about the right amount for 1-AA. Morris Brown has a first class facility, locker rooms, training rooms, press box, etc. GSU could even practice there rather than traveling out to Panthersville. Just wonder why this hasn’t been brought up.
By paaaaatsy
April 17, 2008 2:44 PM | Link to this
hear the dogs are looking for an opener for ‘11. They should have won about four MNC’s by then…LOL!
By Butler
April 17, 2008 3:11 PM | Link to this
Hire Brian Van Gorder!
Big name coach and then then real GSU (Georgia Southern) will never have to worry about losing to State…ever.
Plus, he is already in Atlanta and has shown he does not mind changing jobs.
Not to mention it would make our beloved Falcons better as well.
It is a win/win for the entire state of Georgia.
By Damone
April 17, 2008 3:48 PM | Link to this
I think its a dumb idea. The vast majority of the (albeit large) alumni base attended as commuters or at night and have no emotional connection whatsoever to the school. It was just a place to go to get that piece of paper so we could move forward in our careers. Even when the basketball team was winning in the Lefty era, there was no impetus for better facilities, etc. I can’t think of any similar university that has been successful in football.
By JUNE_BABY
April 17, 2008 3:48 PM | Link to this
instead of playing at the dome, why not use morris brown’s empty stadium(herndon)? it’s not in use presently, and i have to believe it would be better than playing in the cavernous dome.that would give ga state a chance to bring a good team(5 or 6 years), into a new stadium of their own. what worked in statesboro won’t cut it in atlanta. statesboro had a captive audience, atlanta doesn’t. instead of reaching out to ga state’s alumni, market the games to the atlanta region. if the region embraces it, the alumni will also. it may even cause uga to sced. some reg season games in the atl.(i don’t understand why they don’t already do this). when you have these ready assets, they should be used.
By Not In The Know
April 17, 2008 3:55 PM | Link to this
Nobody has asked about the Ga. State alumni base. Where are they, in Ga. or elsewhere? Do they like football? Will they give $$$ for football? Even Southern alumni from the late 80s and 90s have not packed “their house” on a regular basis. Tailgating will be tough at The Dome. Football costs big money so the alumni will have to be behind it.
By UGA&SouthernSuck
April 17, 2008 3:56 PM | Link to this
What are you people talking about basketball, and this and that. What does this have to do with basketball and Lefty? If you haven’t notice, football is king down here in the South and can bring a lot more to a school than basketball.
Don’t get me wrong, I love basketball, and I attend every game at Georgia State, but football has the potential if you know what I mean.
I, as well as many other people will be in full support of Georgia State (The REAL GSU) football and the athletics program. GO STATE!!!
By Dave
April 17, 2008 4:00 PM | Link to this
Georgia State should join the SoCon, then after a few years, jump along with App State and Ga Southern to I-A!
By Pat
April 17, 2008 4:02 PM | Link to this
June Baby, Why would UGA travel 60 miles to play in a stadium with 20,000 less seats and give up all of the extra money of a home game? If you don’t understand it is because you don’t understand! UGA DOES NOT NEED THE ATLANTA MARKET OF TRANSPLANTS. Geez!
By PantherPaws
April 17, 2008 4:08 PM | Link to this
The CAA football league has 12 members including several for football only (for example Villanova, Richmond, UMass). Old Dominion and GSU are adding football. That will make an awfully large league.
This year the CAA sent 5 teams to the 16 team I-AA playoffs compared to 2 teams from the Southern Conference. Appy State defeated CAA member Delaware in the championship game. Delaware finished third in the southern division of the CAA in the regular season. Appy State defeated CAA member James Madison in the second round by one point.
The CAA and the Southern Conference are the ACC and SEC of I-AA football. For Georgia to have members in both the CAA and Southern Conference as it does in the ACC and SEC would be no problem. The two GSU’s could play every year just like Tech and UGA, and that would be enough of an in-state rivalry for both without eventually sacrificing either school’s chances for league championships and playoff spots.
Frankly being in a football league with UMass, Villanova, Hofstra, Richmond, William & Mary, etc. is a lot more attractive to Georgia State than the Southern Conference and begins to approximate the media coverage area of the Big East.
By Roswell Ed
April 17, 2008 4:15 PM | Link to this
AU scared of the Jackets.
Now that is original and VERY funny.
Thanks Ramble On that was a good one.
By JUNE_BABY
April 17, 2008 4:22 PM | Link to this
pat…, if alabama and clemson can find a way to make this happen, why not uga?? they play in jacksonville, which is more than 60 miles from their fan base.i’m sure they could make just as much in atlanta as they make in j’ville. at the same time this would be a slap at ga tech. seems to me, that alone would be worth it to uga fans. and btw a lot of those transplants are uga alumni. it should also go far in putting up a recruiting wall around metro atlanta. those other schools are coming here for a reason, and it’s all about recruiting.
By azcat225
April 17, 2008 4:24 PM | Link to this
Isn’t Kennesaw starting up a football program, too? Given the current economy, I have to wonder where all the $$$ is going to come from to get these programs started properly. And no, it darn well better not be tax dollars, or increased fees to the students…
By Erk
April 17, 2008 4:25 PM | Link to this
RAMBLE ON
See updated “Florida/Meyer put Ga on Notice” blog.
By SickandTired
April 17, 2008 4:36 PM | Link to this
Well it didn’t take long for some of the Dawg fans to go ripping on Georgia Tech and the new football program at Georgia State. Word to the wise, largest university in the State of Georgia, alumni base that has just as deep if not deeper pockets than the alumni bases of Georgia and Georgia Tech. They actually do have people with money that went there and are quite powerful in politcal and business circles. They will also, if done correctly be able to recruit kids that neither Georgia or Tech will recruit that are quite good athletes. Give them 5-7 years and the right coaching staff and no one in this state will want to play them. They have a better than average chance of developing a good football program. All the Georgia fans looking down their work shirt with the McDonalds logo as they type should think about it as they eat that quarter pounder with cheese.
By College Football Fan
April 17, 2008 5:06 PM | Link to this
College football in Atlanta? Everyone knows there’s no college football in Atlanta!
If you think Atlanta has college football because of tech: consider that tech allowed Alabama and Clemson to run Tech out of its own town. Tech rescheduled its Saturday August 30th game with Jacksonville to Thursday August 28th so tech would not have to compete with the Alabama-Clemson game at the Georgia Dome on August 30th. Now that is a sad indictment on the state of the tech program.
By Karma comes to tech
April 17, 2008 5:32 PM | Link to this
Tech is in REAL trouble now. I buried a Georgia football jersey in the new Grant Field North End Zone stands’ concrete foundation.
You can now watch tech consistantly lose at home for the entire season for only $150. Remember, that includes a soft drink, a hot dog, a barf bag, and some toilet paper.
By shane #1
April 17, 2008 6:06 PM | Link to this
sickandtired, What UGA fan ripped Ga St? I have re-read these posts and I don’t see any smack talk directed at Ga St from anyone that I am sure is a UGA fan. Not much ragging on tech either, except from Roswell Ed, an AUBURN backer. Read the posts, the trash talk is coming from Statesboro, not Athens!
By Bamafan
April 17, 2008 6:15 PM | Link to this
Hey Mr. War Eagle, Want to you thing about the (Saban Rule) not letting head coaches go recruiting during spring!! It started Tuesday 4-15-08. Saban was having a cow about it this morning talking to the SEC reporters!! ROLL TIDE!!
By shane #1
April 17, 2008 6:36 PM | Link to this
Bamafan, what’s up with saban and the home state press? Even the Man I consider “Mr Bama Football” Paul Finebaum has had some harsh words for the Coach. IMO, it would not be wise for Saban to make enemies of the press in Alabama.
By AltamahaDawg
April 17, 2008 7:28 PM | Link to this
5. Schedule an annual game against GeorgiaTech.By Bamafan
April 17, 2008 8:57 PM | Link to this
Finebaum is a sorry piece of a human being!! Saban does care about any reporters in Alabama or Georgia. All Saban wants to do is recruit 24/7/365. We all know Saban is a good coach, but he is a royal pain in the butt as a human being!! ROLL TIDE!!
By War Eagle
April 17, 2008 9:01 PM | Link to this
Shane#1, Bama is in the the forest trying to find daylight. they are losing their five star # 1 WR in the country to GRADES, others will follow on non academic standards. Coach Saban jumped into a hornets nest without Raid. He is nervous as a cat on a hot tin roof..but still LEADS SEC IN TRIPS TO THE BANK. .The only shining light for him is his schedule.
By War Eagle
April 17, 2008 9:11 PM | Link to this
Georgia State needs to hire a UGA asst. coach as in Bobo or Garner who knows state recruiting and can have the leverage to hire solid coaches and a aggressive Athletic Director with right attitude to win… It will be entire different venue than Georgia Southern….Rural environment vs Metro, IT COULD BE A POTENTIAL WINNER…
By GW
April 17, 2008 9:33 PM | Link to this
The thought of UGA ever playing a game in Atlanta vs. Ga. State, Florida, or anyone else is ludicrous. Their home stadium is as good as in Atlanta and larger than the Georgia Dome. Any comparison to the Jacksonville game is off base. That stadium too is larger and the tickets are split 50-50 plus it is a great tradition. Georgia does not need to play Atlanta to sell their program. Tech plays in Atlanta and can’t fill their small stadium.
By shane #1
April 17, 2008 9:42 PM | Link to this
War Eagle, HUSH!!! That’s Our best recruiter and Our OC You are talking about! Seriously, Garner would be a good hire, of course I hope He stays at UGA, but HC offers are to be expected when you develope good assistamts. IMO, Bobo needs a few more years as OC under His belt before He takes a head coaching job.
By FLA DAWG
April 17, 2008 9:44 PM | Link to this
By Dave
April 18, 2008 12:44 PM | Link to this
It looks like other schools without football are looking to follow Georgia State’s lead in starting up a football program. There is a group out in California trying to bring back football to Cal State Fullerton. They even have a website that makes mention of using Georgia State’s success as a blueprint to reinstate their football program.
Georgia State Provides the Blueprint to Bring Back Titan Football
By Grad Panther
April 18, 2008 8:34 PM | Link to this
I think GSU should hire Tony Barnhart to start the program—I agree with his assessment of the situation 100%
Georgia State has a big problem with it’s present conference. All those schools are along way from Atlanta and not very well known. It’s bound to get expensive really fast and I see a big chance for a lot of disinterest. The Southern Conference would provide foes that the students would have heard of and in places that they could go to for games.
I love the idea but I don’t know how they’re going to pay for it and make it work unless they change conferences.
By Grad Panther
April 18, 2008 8:34 PM | Link to this
I think GSU should hire Tony Barnhart to start the program—I agree with his assessment of the situation 100%
Georgia State has a big problem with it’s present conference. All those schools are along way from Atlanta and not very well known. It’s bound to get expensive really fast and I see a big chance for a lot of disinterest. The Southern Conference would provide foes that the students would have heard of and in places that they could go to for games.
I love the idea but I don’t know how they’re going to pay for it and make it work unless they change conferences.
By Spar
April 19, 2008 1:30 AM | Link to this
Play anybody, anywhere - NO NO NO - see FIU. Play the weakest schedule you can until your program is a few years old. Every team will be better than you and you want a .500 or a WINNING RECORD after 5 years.
The previous AD has almost destroyed the FIU football program by scheduling FBS teams for $ not understanding the psychology of going undefeated.
By FireBrand
April 20, 2008 4:20 AM | Link to this
This is college football. Atlanta fans are NOT picky about College Football. People will be there, people will support. I agree with this article. Having seen what the football club at Ga St has done in the past, and understanding that this is very fertile ground in the metro area, they can build a program VERY quickly and be successful. They need to play in the SoCon, they need to install an offense OR Defense that can sell recruits on perhaps taking a Div I-AA ride in lieu of bench time elsewhere, and they need to get a College Coach. Dan Reeves is a great guy to build a program, but if he becomes Coach without a guy recruiting for ‘em, I don’t know how successful this will be. That said, Don’t touch any of Georgia Southern, or UGA’s coaches, thank you. I’d like to keep our programs where they are. GO EAGLES! GO DAWGS!!! Can’t wait till September!
By FootBaller
April 22, 2008 4:27 PM | Link to this
Tony, Here is a name for you. Mike “Chico” Canales. USF Receivers Coach. Recruits Georgia and was at USF when the program first started. I am sure Godsey is a favorite son in Atlanta but really is he ready to start a program from scratch?
By Petey Pablo Panther
April 22, 2008 4:37 PM | Link to this
Georgia State should definitely go after a place in the SoCon. The best goal would be to take UNC Greensboro’s spot. That school doesn’t play football, isn’t too good in basketball, and there are five North Carolina schools in the SoCon which is at least one too many. UNC Greensboro can take Georgia State’s spot in the CAA and everyone would be happy.
SoCon North: Samford, Tenn. Chattanooga, Appalachian State, West Carolina, Elon, Davidson.
SoCon South: Furman, Wofford, Citadel, College of Charleston, Georgia Southern, Georgia State.
By State Babe
April 23, 2008 5:00 PM | Link to this
Good idea above. I definitely agree about UNC-Greensboro adding nothing to the Southern Conference and Georgia State would be so natural to replace them. That makes UNC-Wilmington happy and there is no reason for the CAA to stretch from Boston all the way down here to Atlanta anyway. Go Panthers.
By Paul
April 24, 2008 10:36 PM | Link to this
Hire Jeff Collins for the head job at Ga. State. He knows the state - was recruit co-ordinater at Ga. Tech, recruited the No. 1 class for Sabin at Ala. and is one of the best defensive minds in the nation. Knows the SoCon. as his defense @ Western Carolina was ranked among the best 1AA in the nation for several years. Ga. State could not go wrong.