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Tuesday, February 5, 2008
On Johnson’s first Tech signing class
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Wednesday is the day Paul Johnson locks up his first signing class at Georgia Tech, and it’s an interesting day to consider what this class would look like if football, as some suggest, had an early signing day in the fall, the way basketball does.
Partly because of the coaching staff transition, the Yellow Jackets are likely to wind up with at least four players who previously committed to other schools. Of course, the Jackets lost a few players who had committed to Tech, too.
Examples of who Tech gained: Lee Butler originally committed to Duke. Marcus Wright originally committed to Tulsa. Daniel McKayhan committed to Furman, then Memphis. Jaybo Shaw originally committed to Middle Tennessee State.
Tech lost Sean Renfree to Duke, T.J. Pridemore to Florida and Chris Jackson to Alabama.
Renfree looks like a great example of a quarterback whose talents wouldn’t have been a good mesh for the offensive system the Jackets plan to run. Shaw, on the other hand, is an example of a guy finding a good fit where it didn’t exist previously. Clearly, Tech could have used Pridemore and Jackson. Wright, whose lack of size would have been an issue in Chan Gailey’s/John Bond’s offense, could wind up doing big things in Johnson’s.
In the end, the players got a chance to make a more informed decision, and the schools got players who are likely to be a better fit. Maybe an early signing day isn’t such a good idea, after all.
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