AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2007 > December
December 2007
Tenn. Tech has a gem in Mike Sutton
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Didn’t get to put any of this in tonight’s Georgia Tech game story, but Tennessee Tech has interesting stories, not to mention seven players from Georgia.
Sorry, Jackets fans, for upcoming references to your dreaded rival. But not really.
I first met TT coach Mike Sutton in 1996, when I covered Tubby Smith and Jim Donnan’s first seasons at Georgia. Sutton was an assistant, an incredibly pleasant man.
Had no clue until tonight that in 2005 he was afflicted with Guillaine-Barre syndrome, with which the body’s immune system goes haywire and attacks parts of the peripheral nervous system. Just a few years after he finally got his break as a head coach after being an assistant for years in places like Virginia Commonwealth, Tulsa, Georgia and Kentucky, it landed him in a motorized wheelchair. He eventually transitioned to the walker he uses now (though he still sometimes uses a wheelchair).
Limited greatly in his ability to move, he still guided the Golden Eagles to a 19-12 record that season, and a third-place finish in the Ohio Valley Conference. Last season, 19-13 and third place in the OVC again.
Tennessee Tech is 4-9, with losses at Florida, Kentucky and Tech, plus a win at Oregon State. But for a few very narrow losses, the Golden Eagles’ record would look different.
Few men could have more to be bitter about yet be so gracious.
Sutton spent the first five or six minutes after the game Thursday night thanking Paul Hewitt for allowing him to bring so many players “home” for a game, gushing about the job Bobby Cremins did years ago in turning around Tech (he attended Cremins’ camps as a high school coach) and complimenting Hewitt as one of college basketball’s most upstanding men.
He went on to reflect on the two years he spent in the state of Georgia, the fun he had — except when Georgia’s G.G. Smith cramped up late in one of the Georgia-Georgia Tech games — and again thank Hewitt for letting him bring half his team home.
The Golden Eagles were led Thursday by senior Anthony Fisher (23 points) of Alpharetta’s Chattahoochee High and Amadi McKenzie (16 points, 11 rebounds) of Washington High, where he would have been a student at the same time as Tech cornerback Avery Roberson.
Daniel Northern of Houston County High — south of Warner Robins — had 11 points and seven rebounds, and Frank Davis of East Hall was limited by a hand injury. Other TT players from Georgia include Mario Stowers (Hartwell), grumpy Ra’shun Bryant (Coosa High in Rome), and Bassey Inameti of Peachtree Ridge (he’s redshirting).
After Sutton’s turn at the microphone, which prompted just two questions from a modest media contingent, he said, “that was easy.” I said, “That’s because you made it easy. Thank you for your great stories.”
Sutton spent a few more minutes in the hallway, reminiscing a little longer, with wife Karen nearby. He recognized me, but probably couldn’t attach a name to my aging face, and held out a shrunken, trembling hand. I re-introduced myself. We chatted a bit more about the Tech-Georgia games as he recalled them (I couldn’t remember a single detail), and I spoke of Dogs’ trip that year to the Sweet 16, where they lost in double overtime to Syracuse as the Orangemen hopped on the considerable back of John Wallace in Denver.
He spoke of former Georgia star Shandon Anderson getting just a fingernail on Wallace’s game-winning shot. Then Paul Hewitt came by, and wondered why the media interview room was empty. Reporters soon followed him back in there.
Mike Sutton was why. Great man, terrible break.
But still incredibly pleasant. Earth could use more people like Mike.
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Hewitt’s deep thoughts on coaching, McHenry
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you didn’t read the story in Thursday’s AJC about Anthony McHenry trying to become a basketball coach, I’ll summarize: Paul Hewitt couldn’t be happier.
Hewitt is a deep thinker. That’s no secret. He does not dabble in thoughts; he dives in and surrounds himself with concepts. That’s part of the reason, I guess, that he’s typically so strongly set in his opinions. They run through him like blood rather than over him like water.
He’s been thinking about McHenry as a coach since, oh, Anthony’s sophomore season at Tech, about six years ago. Not for the pursuit of victory does Hewitt think McHenry is a solid candidate for the job. He’s of the opinion that McHenry “gets it,” not to mention that he has a personality that looks like a match for recruiting.
All of Hewitt’s better teams have “gotten it.” The Final Four team “got it.” But when I asked if that team was closer than others he’s had, Paul said it was a close team, but not necessarily his closest. He wanted to make it clear that teams are not close because they win; they win because they’re close.
McHenry said he’s learned the most so far this season about trying to create team chemistry. So Anthony is on the way to “getting” this, too.
“That’s what I think the people who cover our game don’t get or understand,” Hewitt said. “I think we all realize that winning is what keeps you in the job. But if that’s the only thing you’re getting out of it, it’s a real shallow existence.
“I get so tired of reading in the paper that they went to the Final Four or whatever. That thing is long over with. If you stopped 10 people in the street and asked them who was in the Final Four in 2004, they wouldn’t know. They might know Connecticut won.
“That is constantly being thrown up as a benchmark. That really means nothing. Every year is a different year, a different season. What you’re trying to get out of it is on the way to winning, you hope that these guys understand the value of hard work, and they’re getting their education, and they’re building the kind of camaraderie that they can fall back on 10 years from now.”
Hewitt has multiple former Tech players in the coaching pipeline. I may not list all of them here because we did not talk about all of them.
But Jon Babul is assisting former Tech assistant Dean Keener at James Madison. Clarence Moore, whose daughter Ava was born recently, is helping with a high school team in Louisville. Darryl LaBarrie is assisting at East Carolina. Some resist Hewitt’s suggestion. “I thought Marvin Lewis would be a good coach, but he wants nothing to do with it,” Hewitt said. “Willie Reese hooked him up with an interview, he’s a CPA [in Atlanta], married, doing really well. I thought he’d be a great coach. He was like, ‘Coach, no way. I’m not touching it.’ He’s going to be a star in whatever he chooses to do.”
Hewitt also said, ” I’m trying like hell right now to get one of our former players hired by Tech. I’m not going to tell you who. There’s an open job in our administration. He missed one practice in four years, was a Dean’s List guy.”
As for championships, or big victories, etc., “You stash it away, and every once in a while you look at it. The things that are constant are walking in the office and seeing that kid, and saying I know that kid is going to be a great coach one day and he’s pursuing it based on my advice.”
So, does it seem like Paul’s pleased with McHenry’s decision to pursue coaching?
There wasn’t room for this in the story, but I think some of it is interesting so I decided to blog around it.
Matt
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Your vote: Where does Choice rank?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Happy day-after-Christmas, Georgia Tech readers. I hope your holiday went as well as mine, which took a turn for the better sometime after 2 a.m. when I found the computer file where I’d typed the comments from Tashard Choice about his place in Yellow Jackets football history.
I’m en route to Boise for the Humanitarian Bowl, and I’m sitting in an airport in Portland, and the Boise flight has been delayed 45 minutes so far, and it will be a while longer. But it’s warm in here, and dry, and there’s a power outlet for my computer, and the cell card connection is good and strong. And, after reading some Fresno Bee coverage of Fresno State, Tech’s opponent, I’m reminded that I’ve got far more to be thankful about than to gripe about.
Here’s a summary of the injuries the Bulldogs have dealt with this season: injuries.
Here’s an even more poignant item: defensive coordinator’s fight with cancer.
OK, back to Tech. The AJC should soon be posting my story about Choice, in which all-time Tech rushing leader Robert Lavette says Choice ranks among his top five Yellow Jackets running backs of all time. Lavette ranks Eddie Lee Ivery first.
What do you think? Where does Tashard fit in with the likes of Dorsey Levens, Jerry Mays, Lenny Snow, Clint Castleberry, Eddie Prokop …?
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Of this, that and money trails
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Until today, when I went out after practice and wrote a notebook, I haven’t done much on Tech football (been doing basketball, taking vacation) and I know nothing about this Mr. Wommack who is alleged to be in line to be Tech’s next DC. Mr. Knobler, especially with his ties to Mississippi, figures to know more about the former Southern Miss DC, and I’m sure he’s learning more than what he knew and fast.
So I’m re-blogging on other issues for now. We’ll get a pertinent blog up as soon as it’s possible on Tech’s new hire, provided indeed there is a hire.
Meanwhile …
When Ra’Sean Dickey tore up his left knee playing football in eighth grade or thereabouts, they put it in a cast. And that was it … even though he shredded most, perhaps all, of the ligaments in there. And you wonder why he has tendinitis now.
I’m the decision to redshirt Dickey means coach Paul Hewitt will stop recruiting. He’s got one — G Iman Shumpert — coming in, and still three going out — SG Anthony Morrow, F Jeremis Smith and PG Matt Causey. Does he need another big in this recruiting class to replace Smith next year (not talking about down the road here)? Peacock, Lawal, Aminu and Sheehan are coming back, of course. Barring transfers or early defections to the NBA, heaven forbid. I don’t consider Faye a big. I’d say Paul probably still would like to add another big, although some early targets, like Ralph Sampson, Al-Farouq Aminu are off the board now.
No, he’s not going to look into having Takais transfer to Tech. He’s found a home somewhere else, actually. And it wouldn’t matter from Tech’s vantage point if he hadn’t. Folks, this is a joke. Takais Brown to Tech was never discussed by anybody, and I can’t believe people have asked me about it.
The womens basketball team needs some attention, from the AJC and others. They’re really darned good.
Come to think of it, womens sports at Tech have been pretty darned good almost across the board for the past couple years and are presently. Hmmm!?
For those wonder, Chan Gailey does not get a lump sum payoff. I asked Dan Radakovich about this, and he will continue to be paid regularly as before. And no, it doesn’t matter if he takes another job. The salary there will not be subtracted from what Tech owes Chan. Tech owes Chan what it owes Chan, period.
Did rich folks pay to have Chan fired? Dan said no. But he didn’t deny that contributions have entered the AA, some perhaps for that reason. Earmarked to pay off Chan? Dan said the AA budget doesn’t work like that. All the money goes into one pot, and then out to several. When I asked if somebody offered a donation contingent upon it being used to pay Chan, would he/the AA decline to take it. Uh, no. He said they would find a way to make that work. You don’t say?
Matt
Jackets hope to be artificially fast
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The best I can figure it (with help from Taylor Bennett), Georgia Tech’s Humanitarian Bowl appearance will be its first game on artificial turf since … Tech’s last Humanitarian Bowl appearance. This will be Fresno State’s fifth artificial-field game this season.
Advantage, Fresno?
Not necessarily. Tech practices at the Georgia Dome on bad-weather days and has an artificial-surface practice area alongside the natural grass one at Rose Bowl Field. So it’s not as if the Yellow Jackets are unfamiliar with an artificial surface.
The rule of thumb is that an artificial surface favors the faster team, because the solid and sure footing accentuates whatever speed advantage exists. Bennett said it’s no big deal.
One thing’s for sure: The surface will be better than the slop the Yellow Jackets played in at the Emerald Bowl two years ago in San Francisco.
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When good is not good enough
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Right off the top, I’ll say that Tech had played every game with the passion shown Tuesday night, the Jackets sure wouldn’t be 4-5.
Kansas is a really, really, really good team. As good in theory as any Tech will play, in one man’s humble opinion.
This did not come down to officiating. It came down to Kansas playing more “small ball” than all season according to coach Bill Self, and still blocking nine shots to Tech’s zero, and limiting the Jackets’ big men to 6 of 22 shooting.
Sure, Tech outrebounded the Jayhawks, which was either a statististical surprise, a factor of Kansas playing small (I’m not up enough on the Jayhawks to weigh in on whether Self was poor-mouthing that one) or both.
Clinch? Solid, solid, solid. Morrow? So-so. Causey? A pain in Kansas’ butt while on offense, at least when they failed to successfully pressure him with double teams, which they did some times (while he was limited to 14 minutes by four fouls). On defense, Matt pedals real hard, and comes up with the occasional play, like his steal and bucket under the basket in the final minute.
Self credited D’Andre Bell (7 points) for forcing “help” defense as well. Those four perimeter players scored 50 of Tech’s 66 points.
No controversy in this game through my eyes. Kansas is just really good, and Tech’s last offensive possession didn’t work (I liked, and understood Hewitt’s concept, though; see game story for details).
I think the decision to redshirt Ra’Sean Dickey is a good one, too, especially since the Jackets have not yet recruited an incoming big man for next season.
Matt
Jackson becomes collateral damage stat
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Hey, I’m back. Took some vacation, and then began dealing with family health issues as my mother landed in the hospital as a result of a bad fall and leg problems. That stretched my time away, and probably will be an issue in the weeks to come as well.
Surely, there aren’t many Tech fans surprised by Chris Jackson’s defection to Alabama. It’s been rumored for a while. The Henry County wide receiver wasn’t evasive this morning in the school’s library, where he “announced” his change of mind. Pretty much to the point. He said Tech’s coaching change led to this, not that it was good, bad or anything else for the Jackets. He simply didn’t perceive it to be good for him. Guy’s got to look out for himself. Others can judge (not necessarily correctly) whether he’s reading the tea leaves correctly.
Disappointment? Now, that’s another matter. Understandable, and predictable — just as the collateral damage to Tech’s recruiting has been.
It happens EVERY TIME there is a coaching change. It’s happening at West Virginia, where Rich Rodriguez jumped off to become coach at Michigan. David Cutcliffe left Tennessee to become coach at Duke, and one of the Vols’ top prospects, Pa. QB Terrelle Pryor (who a long, long time ago had Tech on his list) has said Tennessee is no longer in the running, but Michigan is because of Rodriguez. Pryor, who many consider the nation’s No. 1 prospect, was previously considering West Virginia, too. Don’t know if the Mountaineers are still in the mix.
The depth of Jackson’s loss may not be gauged simply by whether one considers it schematically important or not for new coach Paul Johnson - an avowed proponent of running the football first, foremost, second and often third — to add a wide receiver who caught 76 passes for 1,470 yards and 23 touchdowns as a senior.
More notably, Jackson was a Tech touchstone of sorts for reasons beyond his skill set.
Over the past two years, he attended countless Tech practices and camps, visited campus frequently, and all but idolized former Tech wide receiver Calvin Johnson. One year ago, he became the Jackets’ first 2008 commitment and began working phones and thumbs (text messaging) to recruit fellow prospects.
If he wasn’t a symbol, maybe the next incarnation of Kyle Jackson — the “ambassador” or last year’s recruiting class — he was at least not your standard run-of-the-mill recruit.
Tech has seven weeks and a day to get on beam in recruiting. That’s plenty of time for Johnson and his staff to figure out who they want to pursue in the re-targeting process. There are student-athletes who fit his profile, and he’s proven the ability to recruit to a school whose standards are beyond the norm (whatever that is).
This is not good news, but it is not disaster. Tech has every wide receiver back next year, provided none transfer. The candidate you’ve all read rumors about, D.J. Donley, did not say he wouldn’t transfer yesterday, but he sure didn’t confirm the rumors that he is going to, either. “I ain’t going anywhere any time soon,” he said.
The reality is that until the coaching staff is firmed up, there will be flux in recruiting. There’s no way around that, but it doesn’t mean that recruiting - of already committed players and new prospects — will stop. This is, however, a dead period so there’s not going to be a lot of action for the next two-plus weeks.
That dead period comes at a good time for Tech because the program (and Navy’s for that matter) is sort of stuck in a netherworld where the coaches who are going to be leaving would be pressed to recruit on those institutions’ behalf, and they can’t yet really recruit — at least not aggressively — for their new employers, either, not while preparing their current school for a bowl game. Some coaches almost certainly do not yet know their futures. I suspect some do, though.
I think the Navy assistants who are going to make the trip to Tech already know it. Those names, chiefly on the offensive side of the ball, have been reported up there. Johnson has been, as one would expect, difficult to reach since the day of his hiring save a 15-minute interview with Knobler last week.
Jackson said WR coach Buddy Geis will be gone, and he’s pretty sure DL coach/recruiting coordinator Giff Smith is staying. That’s in keeping with rampant rumors.
We’re not much for reporting rumors (I haven’t been reporting much of anything lately, personally), and a whole boatload of them (not all relating to Tech) have been proven wrong recently (Les Miles to Michigan anyone?) by the rush to be first or be damned. Which is to say be wrong.
It is an awkward time at Tech. It will end. Drawing an exact bead on Tech’s recruiting fortunes, which is an inexact science even in the most stable of environments when there is no coaching change afoot, will be near impossible for weeks or so.
All we can do is report comings and goings, commits and de-commits, and some of what the prospects have to say about matters. Chiefly, Jeff Hood handles that.
Unless, that is, Paul Johnson decides to give some insight as to the eventual makeup of his staff, when — or if — we get to talk to him. He can’t talk about specific recruits, but he can shed some light on his eventual staff. Or, you can rely on rumors; there are plenty out there.
I’ll blog again tonight after Tech’s basketball game. If I talk to Johnson, and I’ve put in a request, the story on-line will be updated to reflect it.
Matt
For starters, it’s Bennett
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech is approaching the Humanitarian Bowl as the last game of 2007 instead of as the first game of the post-Chan Gailey era. There will be some changes, such as Pat Clark at receiver, but there probably will be a lot more similarities to the schemes and plays and personnel used while the Yellow Jackets won seven games and lost five.
For instance, interim coach Jon Tenuta told me Tuesday that, as of now, Taylor Bennett is the starting quarterback.
That makes a lot of sense to me. With the old coaching staff, and limited practice opportunities (basically Monday through Friday this week, plus one workout here on Dec. 26 and then two full sessions plus a walk-through in Boise), there’s neither the time nor the people to start pushing the Jackets toward the Paul Johnson offense or the whoever-will-be-in-charge defense of 2008.
If you’re Tech, the best way to end 2007 right is with a victory, and perhaps using a deeper bench than during the regular season. The new coaches will have 44 practices to point the team in a new direction before the opening game of 2008. (That’s 15 practices in the spring and 29 in the preseason, if you’re keeping score at home.)
Clark back at receiver
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Pat Clark will end his Georgia Tech career where he started it, at receiver. That’s the only position move interim coach Jon Tenuta said the Yellow Jackets have made in preparation for the Humanitarian Bowl.
Clark, a senior, started two games on offense as a sophomore in 2005 and started four games at cornerback as a junior in 2006. This year, he has played much less, with only one tackle since the third game of the season.
Clark has 16 catches for 106 yards in his career, including a six-catch game in Tech’s 2005 upset victory at Auburn.
Are there other position moves you think Tech should try for its Dec. 31 game against Fresno State? What do you think of this one?
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Creative fundraising: Only $11.2 million to go
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’ve got to hand it to Georgia Tech’s athletics department. Someone there was smart enough to figure out a quick way to capitalize on the excitement surrounding the hiring of a new football coach.
Tech fans were invited to bid on the first Paul Johnson autographed Georgia Tech football (the contest closed Friday). The white football with the gold GT logo and Johnson’s autograph was to have fetched at least $650 (the current high bid as I write this blog).
Here’s a link: http://ramblinwreck.cstvauctions.com/gallery.cfm.
Tech is paying Johnson $11.2 million over seven years, before incentives and benefits. At an average of $700 a football, that would be only a little more than 2,200 footballs a year.
The athletics department also has to pay off the remaining $4 million on Chan Gailey’s contract, plus the approximately $500,000 owed Navy to buy out Johnson’s contract, plus remaining debt on the Bobby Dodd Stadium expansion. That’s a lot of dough. And there’s only so much ticket sales and Tech Fund contributions can cover.
So why stop with autographed footballs? How about auctioning off:
—One play call a game. Whoever puts up the most cash can design and call the first play of the third quarter.
—A football scholarship. Chan Gailey had to get by on 79 scholarship players this season and last season. What could it hurt to auction off one of the 85 Johnson will have at his disposal in 2008? (The winner would have to meet NCAA and Georgia Tech eligibility requirements and sign a waiver agreeing not hold Tech liable for any injuries suffered in practices or games.)
—A spot in the halftime show. You can fill the role of Big Boi and perform with the Georgia Tech Marching Band on the biggest karaoke stage in Atlanta!
Ideas?
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Johnson’s hometown is football country
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
My apologies for blogging so late today. I have had a long day, venturing all the way to Newland, N.C., hometown of new Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson, for a story planned for Sunday’s AJC.
Johnson’s hometown is not far from Boone, N.C., home to Appalachian State. Boone is one county over, I believe. They’re gearing up for the Division I-AA championship game against Delaware.
Appalachian State, you remember, knocked off Michigan. Delaware’s claim to I-A fame? It knocked off Johnson’s bowl-bound Navy team.
I’ve talked with about 15 people about Johnson and will spend tomorrow trying to distill it into one story. It won’t all fit. He’s an interesting guy, who has made a lot of very loyal friends.
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Should Tech play Georgia Southern?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Paul Johnson didn’t stay at Navy long enough to coach against his former employer, Georgia Southern, but he did get the Eagles on the Midshipmen’s 2009 schedule.
So, is Georgia Southern in Georgia Tech’s future scheduling plans?
“That’s something that I would be open to discussing with our administration. We’ll see,” Johnson said the day Tech introduced him as coach.
Georgia Southern and Tech have never met on a football field. Should they? Is the added attendance the Yellow Jackets would get over a game against another Division I-AA team worth the risk of an Appalachian State-Michigan outcome?
And what about Tech vs. Navy?
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Johnson’s incentives: What would you add?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
New Georgia Tech football coach Paul Johnson will get a minimum of $11,225,000 if he stays for the full seven years of his soon-to-be-finalized contract.
The story I reported today details the terms of the deal; I won’t repeat them here. There are incentives for on-the-field success, measured by championships and bowl games, and for academic success, measured by graduation rates and academic performance rates.
Johnson is likely to collect a sizeable amount of additional income. His history of success at Georgia Southern and Navy suggests he’ll be able to continue Tech’s streak of earning bowl invitations, and the APR incentives are eminently reachable. In fact, Tech’s most recent APR average for football is 959, which would trigger a $75,000 bonus for Johnson.
One incentive that didn’t get carried over from the previous coach’s deal: Chan Gailey’s assistants would have received $5,000 apiece every time one of Gailey’s teams beat Georgia. That, of course, was an incentive Tech’s athletics department never paid. (I mention this not to be nasty to the Yellow Jackets but to point out one of the chief ways in which the incentives are different for Johnson than they were for Gailey. His success in rivalry games at Navy suggests he will find a way to win against Georgia. It will be interesting to see how often.)
What do you think of Johnson’s contract terms? What incentives would you have added?
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Tech in recruiting limbo
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Georgia Tech is stuck betwixt and between, and that’s not likely to end for awhile.
Fortunately, because of the recruiting calendar, it really only hurts for the rest of this week.
Because new coach Paul Johnson is coming from a school that is playing in a bowl, and because the Jackets are playing in a bowl, too, there’s some delay in getting a new staff together and on the road recruiting for the Yellow Jackets.
Johnson can be on the road recruiting. So can the 2007 Tech assistants. But the assistants he is bringing from elsewhere, including from Navy, can’t begin recruiting for Tech until there’s room for them on the staff. And if the old staff is coaching in the bowl, that can’t be until after Dec. 31.
Fortunately for Tech, the recruiting calendar is like this: Contact period through Dec. 15, which is Saturday. Quiet period on Sunday. Dead period from Sunday through Jan. 3.
You can bet your bottom dollar Johnson is heavily focused on recruiting this week and that he’ll have his staff in place quickly to make up for lost time once January arrives.
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Johnson wins; will he sell?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Paul Johnson’s Navy teams have drawn the three biggest crowds in school history the past two seasons. That might be the most significant statistic that helped Johnson become Georgia Tech’s football coach.
The Yellow Jackets need to draw fans to Bobbby Dodd Stadium, and the former Bobby Dodd national coach of the year has proven that, despite some people’s misgivings about a run-first, pass-last offense, Johnson can sell tickets.
Before you start telling me about how Johnson will pass more with players who have more talent, let me say this: Perhaps. He could hardly pass less than he has at Navy. The passing is a red herring, anyway. If you’ve watched Navy’s offense, or Georgia Southern’s under Johnson, you know it’s exciting. Navy scored 74 points this season against North Texas. Enough said.
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Stop thinking, and start balling
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The good news is Tech played with some moxie down the stretch Wednesday night. The bad news? Well, you need a list.
If the Jackets didn’t summon moxie or something of the sort from deep within over the final 10 minutes last night, they would be 0-3 this season against three mid-majors who entered their games against Tech with a combined record against ACC teams of 1-72.
Georgia State had Tech on the ropes, for sure, with leads of 40:32 with 15:32 remaining, and 51-45 with 10:01 left.
The Jackets haven’t played a solid 20 minutes this season. They played pretty well over the final 10 minutes Wednsday to win by 5 against a team that lost by 30 to Florida State.
After missing four straight free throws (three by Jeremis Smith, one by Matt Causey), Tech made its final eight. That’s progress.
And Causey, Lewis Clinch and Zack Peacock made several critical plays down the stretch. It’s great that Peacock (17 points) is back, but where have some other players gone? Anthony Morrow, who was scoreless in the first half Saturday at Vandy, made Tech’s first basket, and then hit 2 of 9 the rest of the way to finish with 7 points. Jeremis may still be injured (back). Alade Aminu, who was replaced in the starting lineup by Gani Lawal, has fallen off a cliff.
He was Tech’s second-leading scorer and rebounder through the first six games, but has scored 2 in back-to-back games.
Maybe it’s just me, but he looks like he’s playing as if worried about screwing up. It looks like a lot of players are playing that way … THINKING FIRST, AND PLAYING SECOND.
Over the final 10 minutes or so, the Jackets just played. They stopped seeking perfection, and just played. That seems a solid strategy. Play your butt off, like Wednesday night spectator Mario West once did, and worry later in film study about your mistakes. Don’t think about that stuff on the court.
Causey played 31 minutes at the point after starting, Miller 9. Bell played all of his minutes, I’m pretty sure on the wing.
Causey pushes the ball instinctively, which Hewitt prefers. He was pushing with a rocket on his back over the final 10 minutes.
He made a fabulous long pass, cross-court, on the run to Clinch for a 3-pointer to tie the game at 58 with 6:28 left. Clinch dribbled into the middle of the lane on the next possession, elevated in traffic, and hit a big 16-footer.
Peacock’s jumper with 5:13 left gave the Jackets the lead for good, at 60-58.
A few minutes later, Causey poked the ball loose from Kevin Lott near the top of the (defensive) arc, pushed, and still couldn’t separate from Lott. Good thing Jeremis was busting his you-know-what to catch up. Still, a helluva play was yet to come from Causey. He probably wouldn’t have made the shot with Lott looming, but kept his dribble, pulled up hard under the basket, and after a 180-degree turn hit the hard-charging Smith for a layup. He missed the ensuing free throw, but Causey led a runout on the next play and fed the ball hard and deep to Clinch for a dunk and a 64-58 lead with 3:02 left.
Free throws sealed the deal; two by Causey, two by Clinch, two by Peacock, and two more by Clinch.
This was shaping up as a nightmare for Tech, playing at State for just the second time, and first time since 1973 (a loss). The crowd was jacked. UNC-Greensboro was 0-24 against ACC schools, and beat Tech. Winthrop was 1-29 against the ACC, and beat Tech. State was 0-19 against ACC schools (both wins against Tech came in the 70s, when Tech wasn’t in the ACC).
Tech can thank Paul Hewitt’s friendship with Ga. State AD Mary McElroy (also a neighbor, and former Tech association AD) for what almost happened. He joked with her after the game that he was not going to be in a good mood when the kids are picked up for car pool Thursday morning.
He wasn’t in a good mood Wednesday night, either. The Jackets ran into three blue streaks. The Panthers (2-5) and their crowd first, and then Hewitt. He saved his blue for the post-game, where players only were his audience.
At 4-4, this team is below where it wants to be, likely should be. Talent isn’t the issue, even if the point guard situation is unsettled (it didn’t completely settle itself in one night, by the way). This is not to say the Jackets should be 8-0, or 7-1, or that they have the material to be a 23-win team.
But tough schedule or not, they have the makings of better than 4-4 with a 5-point win at Georgia State.
The Jackets, though, need to stop thinking, and start playing. Clinch said after the game, “We’re focusing so hard on execution … “
They need to do everything with more force. Trying hard isn’t enough, and sometimes they don’t try hard enough anyway. This team can’t afford anything but max effort all the time. And they have to attach force to their actions on every play.
Just play fellas, and leave the quest for perfection to gymnasts.
Coaching search narrows
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
One of the best signs a coaching search is nearing its end is when the list of known candidates begins shrinking faster than it grows. So today’s news that Will Muschamp is no longer a candidate suggests that Georgia Tech is getting close to hiring a coach. At least, I hope so.
From all reports, Muschamp was a strong candidate. He joins Randy Edsall on the list of former candidates.
That seems to leave Paul Johnson, Rick Neuheisel and Chris Hatcher as possibilities. There are strong arguments for all three, and there are arguments against all three, too.
Today’s news that Johnson was in Dallas speaking with SMU suggests other media reports he will be Tech’s coach were premature.
Sit tight. I don’t think we have long to wait.
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When looking for a new coach …
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If I’m hiring a new head coach to Georgia Tech, here are my criteria, in order:
1a: Connectivity. Gotta get a football coach who’ll inspire the masses, sizzle a little bit both with microphones in his face and on the sideline, yet without acting quite like Les Miles or Mike Leach.
1b. Ethics. If the next guy lands the football team in trouble with the NCAA, the leash given the program by The Hill will shorten, not that it’s long now. Rick Neuheisel? Are you kidding? I wonder if he ever was actually a candidate if the idea was squashed when run up the flag by somebody at or near the very top of the pole. Yeah, he won a suit against the NCAA in one case. But there was dubious activity at both of his stops as a head coach. Having 1a won’t matter if piggybacked by 1b.
Proven record as a winner, whether as an assistant or a head coach. If already a head coach, evidence of improvement while at previous stops greatly appreciated.
Track record not only for recruiting everywhere you’ve been before, but able to demonstrate an understanding of the differences at Tech (whatever they are, depending on your view of them) when it comes to recruiting.
Somebody who shows up to interview with a pretty good idea about who he wants to hire for most, or better yet all, of his staff. Certainly must have it narrowed down to a list of two each for the coordinator spots. Don’t bother showing up for an interview saying, ‘If I get hired, I’ll hire a great staff.’ Gotta do better.
Not George O’Leary. No re-inventing the physical laws of the universe, no my way or the highway, expand-the-stadium-or-else business. Got some ideas on how to improve the way the operation works? Great. Make a pitch, or pitches. Think you’re going to get an indoor practice facility soon? Thanks for coming, and leave your resume at the door. Leave a cash donation, too, if you would. We need the dough.
A coach who has developed quarterbacks over the course of a college career because that sure hasn’t happened at Tech in a while. Or, if N/A in the case of the head coach, he need not be the head coach unless he has in mind an OC/QBs coach with said track record, and that better be somebody you’re darned likely to be able to hire.
Be open minded to retaining defensive line coach/recruiting coordinator Giff Smith … if he’s open-minded to staying once he knows the new coach. Note the order of these two.
A nice pair of shill shoes. This relates to No. 1a. Gonna have to be able to sell, sir, or whatever you want to call the idea of hitting the bricks and raising money. It’s going to be a significant part of the job.
Onward …
So who’s going to Boise? And what are you going to do there? What’s there? Who’s been there, but decided then never to return? Who’s never been there who’s dying to go?
New Year’s Eve in the potato state? Hmmm. I don’t know the team’s travel plans yet, but I bet they charter back within a few hours of game’s end. That would put them back in the Atlanta around midnight by my guess.
Man, I gotta go to basketball practice …
Some days you’re just not good — at all
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There’s no glossing over what happened in Nashville Saturday. Georgia Tech was whipped.
Bad body language almost from the start.
I don’t know if it was more about a bad game plan or poor effort, or just misguided effort on the part of players because it was so ugly as to be blinding. All three? Add to whichever of these you might choose the fact that Vandy played great (this team took two overtimes Thursday to beat South Alabama!)
The final score, 92-79, was not indicative. Tech trailed by 20 at halftime, but 27, 28 with about five minutes left. Ugly. Hideously ugly.
Jeremis Smith played just 14 minutes, at least in part because he hurt his back in the first half. Tech’s leading rebounding finished with four, none offensive. Tech’s second leading rebounder, Aminu, did not get one. He played just 10 minutes, scoring 2 points, and if he’s not in the doghouse, I don’t know the definition of a doghouse.
Vanderbilt is 7-0, and much better than last season despite losing the SEC player of the year in Byars (no, it wasn’t a Florida player). They have balance inside and out, and the big difference inside is 6-10, 250-pound freshman center A.J. Ogilvy. Kid’s got moxie, and a few moves. And some muscle.
He had 16 points on 6 of 7 shooting, and hit 4 of 6 free throws. Added six rebounds in a modest 22 minutes with a blocked shot.
“Ogilvy is very impressive for a freshman,” Hewitt said. “I thought we did a good job instructing out bigs just how good he is. He’s got good footwork, a great feel in the low post. He’s a rugged kid. We had some success with Australians in the past; I was kind of wondering why we didn’t him.”
In the pre-game notes handed out by Vanderbilt, his bio said he chose the Commodores over UNLV, New Mexico St., St. Marys (?), Wake Forest, Indiana, Georgia Tech and Washington State.
In the media guide, the same things lists only UNLV New Mexico St. and St. Marys (?).
A Vandy writer asked Hewitt if Tech recruited him (he’s from Canberra, Australia, same country as Luke Schenscher). Paul said, “We knew about him. I will say that he’s a little bit better than advertised.”
He also said that Tech had already received a commitment from Gani Lawal, and there there was no knowing if Ogilvy would’ve come to Tech even if Tech recruited him.
I don’t know why Tech would be listed as one of the schools the kid considered in one place, and not another, especially without talking to him, but that guy can play.
Only one redeeming factor for Tech today. Zack Peacock (17 points). Maybe Lewis Clinch (15), at least on offense.
The intentional fouls by Causey and Lawal? Yuck. Paul took Causey out for good after his, which appeared far more egregious than Lawal’s (which nonetheless was intentional).
Today, the Jackets looked like they didn’t know where to be, when to help out, when not to help out, how to come off screens, or fight through them. It was bad, worse than any game I remember last season other than perhaps at North Carolina.
Vandy tried 37 free throws today, and they didn’t all come in garbage time. The Jackets had a very good day at the line, actually, hitting 19 of 22.
But the ‘Dores still hit more (23) than Tech tried. Actually, Tech has ATTEMPTED only a few more free throws than opponents have made this season. Disparity is one thing. That’s a chasm.
On a lighter note, what about the commotion with Les Miles/Jon Tenuta? From afar, that appears quite bizarre.
Matt
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