AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2009 > February > 10 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USFootball schedule forthcoming and notes from Gardner
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Good morning, all
Don’t know if you read today’s story about Andrew Gardner, but a few things that I couldn’t fit in.
He hasn’t had much contact with any NFL teams. (That would have happened had he gone to an all-star game like the Senior Bowl or East-West Shrine Game). He retained Sportstars, Inc. to represent him. His agent is former Falcon Lester Archambeau.
He graduated in December with a management degree.
His take on missing the last four games of the season (including the bowl game): “I definitely wanted to be out there. It was hard not being able to play and just having to watch, but I was really happy for my teammates and really proud of them. I didn’t feel like I was apart from the team when we won those games. I really felt like I played a part in all of that during the year and throughout my career at Tech.”
On being a lightly-recruited player who became a two-time all-ACC first-teamer: “There’s definitely a level of athleticism and that type of thing that guys pretty much need to have to be top-level players, but really, it’s just a lot of hard work. You really have to want to be good and be willing to put in the extra work. A lot of small things people don’t pay attention to, but the mental aspect of the game and really good technique and that type of thing - there’s always ground to be made in those areas that other people might neglect. That type of stuff will put a guy to the next level.”
Tony Villani, who is training Gardner for the different pre-draft drills he’ll have to do - 40-yard dash, shuttle runs, vertical leap, broad jump and bench press - said that Gardner will do fine once he’s cleared medically. He said that he’s trained Branden Albert (first guard taken last year, at No. 14 to Kansas City) and Arron Sears (second guard taken in 2007, second round to Tampa Bay) “and athletically, he’s right up there with them.”
The ACC is expected to release the schedule for the 2009 season this week, possibly even today. Tech’s home games are Clemson, Georgia, Jacksonville State, North Carolina, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest.
The games on the road are Duke, Florida State, Miami, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt and Virginia.
It’s one less home game than last year (Tech had three non-conference home games - Jacksonville State, Mississippi State and Gardner-Webb) but rather arguably a better set of games.
I’ll be interested to see, presuming Tech is given another Thursday night home game (it’s had one every year but one since 1999), who the Jackets will get. My guess would be either Virginia Tech or North Carolina.
Is there anything particular you are hoping to see in the schedule?
Comments
By CoachRob
February 10, 2009 9:26 AM | Link to this
As for the schedule, come on, it is the ACC, doesn’t it really matter. The confernece is pretty weak top to bottom year in and year out and very few teams play anyone decent outside of conference, other then their in-state games, which usually end up in a defeat as well because those teams they play are from better conferences.
I mean come on, when you have home games with Garner-Webb and Jack. St and you already get to play Duke and Virgina, get real. Then you go out and play two of the SEC’s worst teams, Miss. St. and Vanderbilt. At least play some decent out of conference games to go with the cupcakes that are inconference.
With that schedule, if you don’t win 9 games every year, something is wrong. You have automatic wins with: Jack St. Miss. St. Garner Webb Duke Virgina Vandy? Miami - overrated
That is 7 wins already. Makes no sense. Go out and schedule a Pac 10, Big Ten or Big Twelve team like the powerhouse schools do.
How come the AJC isn’t running a story on how there are numerous Georgia Tech Championship Rings for sale on Ebay? Just happened to be looking around and noticed several football, basketball and baseball listed.
Wasn’t this a huge story for the AJC when some UGA players did it? Just wondering why there is no big time story like UGA had.
By Observer
February 10, 2009 9:53 AM | Link to this
CoachRob - The first paragraph of your post reveals your ignorance (not surprising, given that you’re a UGA fan). You refer to the ACC as a weak conference from top to bottom yet the ACC was the top rated conference in America last year – from top to bottom.
While there is no question that the ACC did not have a team that could compete with the SEC’s top two, the rest of the comparisons between the two conferences aren’t close. Head-to-head the ACC won. Number of bowl bids – the ACC won. And oh yeah, my favorite, head-to-head between Tech and UGA - well, you know how that turned out.
Next time, before boring us with your ignorant drivel, do some homework.
GO JACKETS! THWG!
By Dumb Mutts
February 10, 2009 9:54 AM | Link to this
CoachRob- i just looked on Ebay, and you are a liar. There are STILL more UGA rings for sale, than GT rings. Good try though. Why were you seaching for GT rings anyway?? Obsess much??
Remember when ugay scheduled Colorado OOC and needed a miracle come back to win by 1 point!!! How many games did Colorado win that year???? 2. Besides this year, and I commend uga for their schedule this year (2009), you girls NEVER schedule anyone OOC. ASU was a joke, CMU-joke, GSU-joke, then YOU girls also play Vandy, UK (nice defense there also), Auburn, and UT were all TERRIBLE this past year. You think they are going to be leaps and bounds better NEXT YEAR???? With Kiffin and Chizik??? Are you stupid?
And as for the instate ACC OOC games, im pretty sure that GT beat uga and Clemson beat SC, who again, uga needed a MIRACLE fumble in the endzone to beat this past year. FSU got stomped by UF, but im pretty sure that UF did a little stomping of the mutts as well.
By GT66
February 10, 2009 9:55 AM | Link to this
Andrew Gardner is a great example of why the recruiting services ratings are not a foolproof way or by no means guarantee success at the next level. He is a very athletic guy who should do well in the pros. I just hope is shoulder is sufficiently healed by the combine to be able to bench press. He was a model student/athlete who never got into trouble and was a great representative of Georgia Tech. We are proud of you Andrew.
By neil maralowe
February 10, 2009 10:22 AM | Link to this
coachrob may be the dumbest person to ever venture a comment, and that is saying a lot, considering all the UGA rednecks that try to say something intelligent.
By Jaded Jacket
February 10, 2009 10:43 AM | Link to this
Coach Rob, everything you mentioned is old news or completely false. I presume you just woke from a long coma or perhaps your ailment is similar to what a lot of other UGA fans suffer from - delushionary moronitis. Your comments indicate that your IQ is insufferably low.
By blackwatchdefense
February 10, 2009 10:56 AM | Link to this
Coach Rob is a dadgum baboon.
By RT
February 10, 2009 11:36 AM | Link to this
Coach Rob, You are absolutely right. GT should take advantage of their winnable ACC schedule and play top tier OOC games, preferably early. Historically, teams from weak conferences are often in the hunt for championships: USC, Virginia Tech(Big East days), Nebraska. If we improve our team, we should also improve our schedule and put ourselves in position to become an overrated team instead of an underated team. J’vill, Vandy, and Miss. State wins are not going to impress anyone, especially with our collapse this year against LSU.
If Garner is not 100% he may want to skip the combine. Its a tough choice though, you only get a couple of opportunities to make the NFL. Good luck to him.
By ken sugiura
February 10, 2009 11:51 AM | Link to this
I’ll pass on commenting on Coach Rob, but it doesn’t look like Gardner will be able to bench press at the combine. He’s targeting being ready by Tech’s pro day, which I believe is March 9.
By Unabashed Hater
February 10, 2009 11:51 AM | Link to this
Notice how the Techies neglect to say a single solitary word about how Tech got absolutely blasted in its bowl game by a team with a losing SEC record. Have the Techies already blacked this out and convinced themselves that it didn’t happen? That is record time. It usually takes months before the delusions set in. I’ll give CPJ one thing. He really has these Techies thinking they are something special after 9 wins. They are high as a kite over this miracle. When do the commemorative Coke bottles come out with “9-4” on them? I would like one for a gag gift.
By bb
February 10, 2009 12:01 PM | Link to this
Interesting that CoachRob and the like, who love to talk down the ACC, seem to have not noticed that the lowly Dukies that he mentioned (1-7 in the ACC) beat a .500 SEC team this year. The bottom third (4 teams for the mathmatically impaired) of the ACC was on par with the middle third of the SEC and much better than the bottom third of the SEC (which were truly putrid this year).
By hem o'roid
February 10, 2009 12:21 PM | Link to this
COACH ROB & UNABASHED HATER—you are typical of the in-bred leg humper nation. IDIOTS! How do you like 45 to 42. Hurts, don’t it, but get used to it. another year to getting used to the option spells doom for the dog terds and you know it. I love to see you canine rednecks get riled up, because it don’t take much. Now go to your single wide and take a nap before your late shift at McDonalds starts.
By donnioeelkin
February 10, 2009 12:22 PM | Link to this
Mississippi State is going to show you an automatic win when you come to Starkville next year. Bring your option game and get ready for a beat down. MSU has played in the SEC Championship game when has GT played for anything recently?
By The Dude
February 10, 2009 12:39 PM | Link to this
Gardner is a good role model. It’s a shame they can’t all be like him in that respect. Congratulations on the degree Andrew.
Tech did get smoked by LSU on national television, no excuses. Georgia got spanked harder in front of a national audience by their “biggest rival”. I’ll leave it at that.
By I know ....
February 10, 2009 12:46 PM | Link to this
“donnioeelkin” … is that a serious question?
If so, Tech played in ACC championship game in 2006.
And I’m betting they have appeared in more post season games (a.k.a. Bowl games) than Mississippi St. has over the past 15-20 years.
By BLAZER
February 10, 2009 1:01 PM | Link to this
45-42 is still good and i guess 49-10 is too.
By Pauline Hewitt
February 10, 2009 1:08 PM | Link to this
Anyone else excited about the upcoming Virginia Tech basketball game? I think this one could be a springboard toward our run to the Big Dance. Trust me, Tech will be the one team nobody will want to face at tournament time.
By Too Easy
February 10, 2009 1:39 PM | Link to this
Observer: I believe if you check Sagarin post-bowl (end-of-year) conference ratings, you won’t find the acc at the top. You MIGHT find the SEC there, though. And don’t look too hard for any acc teams near the top, either. Too crowded with all the SEC teams.
By Dave
February 10, 2009 1:45 PM | Link to this
I have fixed Unabashed Hater’s comment (correction in italics):
Notice how the leg humpers neglect to say a single solitary word about how UGAg got absolutely blasted by UF. Have the leg humpers already blacked this out and convinced themselves that it didn’t happen? That is record time. It usually takes months before the delusions set in. I’ll give CMR one thing. He really has these leg humpers thinking they are something special after 10 wins. They are high as a kite over this miracle. When do the commemorative Coke bottles come out with “10-3” on them? I would like one for a gag gift.
By Too Easy
February 10, 2009 2:05 PM | Link to this
UGA got blasted by UF. TECH got blasted by LSU. TECH’s defense got blasted by 3 fewer points than did UGA’s defense in the state championship. UGA had a final Sagarin rating of 15; TECH 36. The SEC had a final Sagarin rating of 1; acc 3.
It’s easy to admit facts, so I’m stepping out on behalf of both sides.
By Jaded Jacket
February 10, 2009 2:17 PM | Link to this
I love UGA fans! Their irrational chest-thumping comments they post here and on their own blog pages are freakin’ hilarious. When I want a good laugh I can always count on their dim-witted comments to put me in a light-hearted mood. Please don’t stop posting your senseless comments, guys. You guys are more amusing than the freak show at the circus.
By GTSteve
February 10, 2009 2:43 PM | Link to this
Dear Unabashed,
Yes I have completely blacked out the bowl game, as a matter of fact I blacked it out long before halftime. Some times teams get to a point where they have proven all that they can for a particular season, and other teams that have under-achieved that season just have more motivation. As soon as I realized this would be “one of those games” , I switched from TV to DVR and watched the 3rd quarter of the Tech-UGA game over and over and over. So when Dawg fans bring up the bowl game to me, I just smile and say I had a wonderful New Years Eve.
By ken sugiura
February 10, 2009 3:07 PM | Link to this
hello, all-
i hope you can take a break from the uga-tech bashing for a brief notice about the schedule. it will now apparently be released on thursday at 11 a.m.
back to your previously scheduled bashing.
By GTSteve
February 10, 2009 3:43 PM | Link to this
Danged commercials…….
By ken sugiura
February 10, 2009 4:47 PM | Link to this
ha ha. nice work.
By Mike T.
February 10, 2009 7:13 PM | Link to this
42-45 a fluke
By ugahatr
February 10, 2009 7:34 PM | Link to this
Yor right next year it should be 45-17
By Some more numbers
February 11, 2009 1:56 AM | Link to this
Lowly Duke of the ACC had a higher Sagarin rating than 4 SEC teams (i.e. 1/3 the SEC conference). The top of the SEC is definitely stronger than the top of the ACC, and different numerical metrics might say that the SEC is superior. But when Duke is better than 1/3 the SEC, it’s a little hard to say that the ACC is weak from top to bottom (unless the SEC is only strong at the top). Or you may want to consider that the Sagarin has 6 ACC teams in the top 30 (not counting GT at 36), while the SEC has 5 (including LSU).
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/sagarin/fbt08.htm
By DAYUUM
February 11, 2009 2:03 PM | Link to this
By I know ….
February 10, 2009 12:46 PM | Link to this
“donnioeelkin” … is that a serious question?
If so, Tech played in ACC championship game in 2006.
And I’m betting they have appeared in more post season games (a.k.a. Bowl games) than Mississippi St. has over the past 15-20 years.
You know your program is pitiful when you are making comparisons with Miss. St.
By bearcasey
February 13, 2009 9:06 AM | Link to this
Roddy Jones is still running for touchdowns in Athens. Go get another “top ten” recruiting class and see if things improve!