AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2008 > September > 26
Friday, September 26, 2008
Off Week Ramblings…
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
With no game scheduled for this weekend, its a good time to step back as a GT fan and relax and get some yardwork and chores done.
Personally I find mowing the lawn to be a great opportunity to let my mind wander while I mechanically go through the motions behind the ‘ole John Deere.
A few of the topics I’m likely to think about might come from the following list:
1) Josh or Jaybo?
I was blown away by the competence and focus that Jaybo Shaw showed as a true freshman thrown into the game against MSU…cold and without any real warm up. He obviously has the understanding and the vision to make the reads and the pitches in Paul Johnson’s offense and he gives me great comfort from the knowledge that we have a TRULY capable backup quarterback. That’s right…backup quarterback. Because that is what he is for us this season…the backup. Josh Nesbitt is the solidified starter and should be taking the snaps as soon as he is healthy. He simply has more big play potential and more physical tools than Jaybo has as a true freshman. As badly as Jaybo beat up on MSU this past weekend, I think that Josh would have worked them over even worse.
That said…I think Jaybo needs to start against Duke and Gardner Webb. We should save Nesbitt until mop up duty against Gardner Webb so that he can heal up and then run some series full speed before we make the trip up to Clemson that follows the next two home games.
2) Dwyer or Moreno?
This is a tougher call for me. Both are superior talents that play in different offensive systems. Dwyer is a bigger, more physical runner with true sprinter speed if he gets in the open field. Moreno is more of a slasher, with great vision and elusive moves that show up in highlight reels. Honestly, if Paul Johnson had them both right now…you’d see Dwyer playing B Back and Moreno playing A Back. And boy it would be fun to watch!
If forced to pick one of them…I’d go with Dwyer. Dwyer is a big, durable player who can run away from defensive backs from any position on the field. He won’t hurdle a defender, he’ll stiff arm him or run through him.
Comparatively, Dwyer has 389 net yards on 48 carries for an average of 8.1 yards per carry against defenses that included Boston College, Virginia Tech, and Mississippi State. Moreno has 455 yards on 69 carries…an average of 6.6 yards per carry against defenses that included South Carolina and Arizona State.
3) Pass Defense?
What did it mean when we gave up almost 300 passing yards to Mississippi State this past week?
Not very much, in my opinion.
Mississippi State surprised us a bit when they started flinging the ball around in the first half but we adjusted nicely and played good defense in the second half. The Bulldogs only really moved the ball against defensive configurations that consisted largely of backups, freshmen, and walkons.
We’ll get tested again when Duke comes to town with Thaddeus Lewis and Eron Riley. But I think our defensive line will be more than up to the task and will disrupt the Blue Devils. Cutcliffe will need a few more years there before Duke will be a serious threat to the upper teams in the ACC.
4) White Out Against Miami?
The game will be November 20 at 7:30pm EST and its being billed as a “White Out” game. I can already hear people whining and complaining about how its going to be cold and they only have dark colored coats and its going to be hard to find warm clothes for that game, if they have to be white.
News flash people…wear layers and find a white sweatshirt or hoody. Its not rocket science. Personally I plan to drag out my old cold weather mountain biking gear and layer myself up and wear my white / gold coach’s shirt over the top. I’ll be nice and toasty warm without needing a jacket or coat.
The rest of you guys have something like 2 months to figure out wardrobe concerns…no excuses! Wear white and show support for the effort. Its going to be a huge game and we’ll need all the home field advantage we can muster up…
Go Jackets!
THWG!
