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January 2008
Jackets show their stripes
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
How do you follow a stinker of a performance against your in-state rival with a gem of an effort against #1 UNC and a gut check ACC victory against Virginia Tech?
Don’t get me wrong, we GT fans are used to ups and downs from watching the football team the last several seasons. We’re just more accustomed to having a big win followed by a head-scratching loss.
This was almost the opposite, which bodes well for the team since it signifies that coach Hewitt has not lost the players. They’re still playing hard. The game against UNC and VT were a glimpse of what this GT team is capable of.
The Hokies have been a thorn in our side for a few seasons now. We needed to get an ACC win and get on the right track. We jumped up early and led bigtime at the half before letting the Hokies tie things up midway through the second period.
Its a testament to the fortitude of this team that they didn’t crumble when their opponent came back and essentially reset the score on them. Instead of sulking and losing, they were able to bear down and recover, winning solidly behind a career effort by Matt Causey.
Football recruiting
When I saw TJ Barnes had committed, I had to wonder if Paul Johnson had ever had a player that big on either of his Georgia Southern or Navy teams. Well … certainly not Navy since they have size restrictions for sailors and etc. TJ is 6-7 and 320 pounds and will play defensive tackle. He’s only 17 right now, which means he may not be done growing! I would imagine that he’ll get to campus and will redshirt this coming season while he matures and gets into shape. He’ll make a mountain of a defensive tackle at about 6-7 and about 310 pounds of muscle by his R-FR season. This kid is huge!
When Marcus Wright shifted his commitment from Tulsa to Georgia Tech a lot of people scratched their heads and asked, “Tulsa? We’re competing with them now?”
But then we saw his resume and accomplishments and felt much, much better. Marcus was the Texas State 5-A Offensive Player of the Year. He played in the U.S. Army All-American Bowl. He amassed 3374 rushing yards as a senior to go along with 45 touchdowns … which ranked historically as the 7th best single season of rushing in Texas state history. Those numbers put him in very select company and are largely a result of his world class speed. He was clocked at 4.36 as a sophomore during a Nike combine. This kid is a serious speedster and a real threat to hit homeruns in Paul Johnson’s offense. We’re talking CJ Spiller / Noel Devine speed here folks. Serious speed …
It seems he committed very early to Tulsa and was overlooked by alot of programs because of his size. (He’s 5-7, 170 lbs) A few BCS level schools tried to get in touch with him but his parents pretty much shut them all out until Tech came calling. The combination of Johnson’s triple option offense and family connections back in Georgia apparently got us in the door with Marcus … and now he’s ours.
These two latests recruits look to be impact players at some point in the near future. You can’t coach defensive tackle size and blazing home-run speed … you have to recruit it.
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BCS vs Playoff?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
I’m not quite sure why Michael Adams suddenly became interested in a renovation of the BCS and an implementation of a eight team play off.
Wait a minute…yes I am. He’s suddenly interested because he thinks UGA got jobbed by the current system.
Lets forget the fact that Auburn got jobbed much more obviously a few years ago. I don’t remember any Michael Adams comments at that time. Auburn went 13-0…winning the SEC and the Sugar Bowl. But I don’t recall any great outrage from the powers that be out in Athens.
Beyond the obviously self serving and horrendous timing on this proclamation, Adams’ play off isn’t realistic in its details.
A eight team play off is too much, especially considering that everyone would have to drop back to an eleven game schedule.
That’s right…general concensus is that everyone would have to reduce their schedule in order to accomodate allowing a select few teams the time needed to play extra playoff games. That means the entire remainder of the NCAA Division I roster of schools would essentially be giving up the revenue from a game.
Yup…Michael Adams wants everyone to give up money out of their budget in order to allow the perennially top football programs the chance to play in a playoff.
So…in essence…we have sour grapes, bad timing, and horrendous logic. Its good for radio talk show fodder, but that’s about it.
Tech & UGA Hoops Both teams are so bad, that we couldn’t even get a local television broadcast. That’s pathetic. UGA vs GT hoops couldn’t even warrant a local broadcast. How does that happen?
I’m a huge Hewitt fan, always have been. But his seat is getting warm…very warm.
We’re at rock bottom…nowhere to go but up now…at least I hope…it can’t get worse than losing to an undermanned UGA team that doesn’t even have a full roster of scholarship players.
Women’s Tennis The Lady Jackets are ranked #1 going into this season. That’s awesome.
And its a good positive note to end this blog on!
Go Jackets!
THWG!
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Assessing Johnson’s coaching staff
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Lets just say I’m glad the season is over and change is around the bend.
We know we have the talent and the players to compete at the top of the ACC and against our instate rival. That much has been proven. We just need more consistent and focused leadership.
The Humanitarian Bowl was a dismal combination of poor play, injuries, and less than sufficient motivation in the face of upcoming coaching changes…
‘07 is officially behind us…so lets focus on ‘08 now.
New Coaching Staff*
Lets take a look…we all know about Paul Johnson by now. Who are the other new faces going to be, in addition to keeping Giff Smith, Brian Jean-Mary, and Charles Kelly?
Dave Wommack (Defensive Coordinator) - Wommack has nearly three decades of coaching experience, including stints at Arkansas, South Carolina, Southern Miss, Missouri, and UNLV. Looking over his resume he has experience coaching just about every defensive position as well as calling the shots as defensive coordinator.
Buzz Preston (Wide Receivers) - 27 years of coaching experience, including time at Notre Dame, Stanford, Washington State, Hawaii, and UNLV. His most recent position was at New Mexico where he coached running backs and was responsible for recruiting Southern California.
Brian Bohannon (QBs and RBs) - A UGA grad who hails from Griffin GA, not far from my hometown of Barnesville. He appears to be one of “Johnson’s Guys” who followed him from Georgia Southern to Navy. Bohannon is a young guy and can probably expect some good natured ribbing at Signing Day regarding his UGA roots.
Jeff Monken (Slot Backs and Special Teams) - Monken has connections to Paul Johnson by way of Hawaii and Georgia Southern. He’s from Illinois where 12 members of his family have been involved in high school or college coaching. At one point his dad and four brothers were all high school head coaches. He’s another young guy on Johnson’s staff.
Todd Spencer (Offensive Line) - Spencer spent the last 11 seasons working with offensive tackles at the Naval Academy. He appears to be an option specialist of sorts with experience coaching at Oregon State, Oregon, Texas, UTEP, Northern Illinois, and other locations.
Mike Sewak (Offensive Line) - Another guy with strong ties to Paul Johnson, Sewak has past history at Georgia Southern and Hawaii. Sewak is a UVA grad and former player who actually spent a season as a graduate assistant tight end coach here at Georgia Tech before signing on with Erk Russell at Georgia Southern. Sewak has been an offensive coordinator at both Ohio and Georgia Southern before taking over the Eagles as head coach when Paul Johnson moved on to Navy.
All in all this is an intriguing staff.
Wommack and Preston are the older guys, each with close to 30 years of coaching experience. Both have coached at the BCS level before and have been around the block numerous times with good success at various stops.
Bohannon and Monken appear to be Paul Johnson proteges who will handle the quarterbacks, running backs, and slot backs. They are young guys and Georgia Tech will be their first BCS conference level coaching positions. Make no mistake…they will be here to do it the way Paul Johnson wants it done.
Spencer and Sewak look to be option football specialists and offensive line coaches. Both are guys with extensive time working with Paul Johnson. Again…coaches that know the system Johnson intends to implement.
Looking at this staff…we can expect Nesbitt, Dwyer, and Jones (Roddy) to run for huge rushing numbers next season. We’ll have to see if Johnson has the pieces he needs to install a passing game along with the expected ground game and if Wommack and the holdover defensive coaches can continue the solid defensive teams that Tech has fielded over the past several years.
One thing is certain…we’re going to see a vastly different football team next fall!
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