AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2006 > September > 13
Wednesday, September 13, 2006
Itching for ACC action
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I dunno about others, but I’m ready for Tech to dive into the ACC. Maybe it was all the buzz that came with a season-opening game against Notre Dame that’s warped my vantage point, but back to back weeks of Samford and Troy in the wake of that game has made it tough to get into.
In the long run, it’s probably a good thing all the way around. Starting the season off with excitement, then having two games to tweak things in before the conference schedule, but I wish Tech was playing an ACC game this week. Silly me.
It would be a surprise if the Jackets play as many this Saturday as last. I don’t think Troy’s going to allow that to happen. Then again, with the next game being just five days later, the urge to pull some starters a little earlier than usual might be there.
Getting Michael Johnson back in time for him to get a game’s worth of work before the ACC schedule is a good thing. With him, Tech has three DEs Tenuta can be comfortable rotating in on a regular basis, while leaving Anoai in the DT rotation (which is a solid four strong, at least). At least that’s what I think the Jackets will do. Reminds me of the Dallas Cowboys’ D-line of the mid-1990s, when they played eight, and they were almost all monsters (Lett, Maryland, Haley, Jeffcoat, et al).
Someone asked Chan Gailey yesterday why he chose to hook up new punt returner Andrew Smith for counseling with former Tech PR Kelley Rhino when there are so many PRs available.
Don’t know where all these PRs are available for a chat with Andrew, maybe there’s a hotline or something, but doesn’t that seem kind of obvious? Rhino was at Tech just a few years ago, he wasn’t real big, and more importantly, according to Gailey, they’re similar in skill sets. “They share the same speed,” he said, which means not a whole heck of a lot. But they’re both quick, which is critical in returning punts if one’s savvy enough to get upfield right away rather than dancing around and hoping the first tackler or two or three happen to miss so one can take off in a full sprint.
Doubt, say, Deion Sanders, would be able to advise Smith as well.
Big fan of PRs who go straight forward immediately, unless they’re about to get crushed, and then worry about making a move or two.
About a month or so ‘til hoops begin to crank it up; looking forward to that.
