AJC > Sports > Tech > Blog > Archives > 2008 > November > 30 > Entry
DEL.ICIO.USJackets Sting Mutts 45-42!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If any Tech fans out there are still holding out to see what Paul Johnson is all about…well, I don’t think they’ll ever be convinced.
I’ll admit that I was “cautiously optimistic” going into this season and wasn’t quite sure what to expect. Splitting the Boston College and Virginia Tech games on the road showed me that Johnson had quickly implemented the attitude and grit needed to win in the ACC.
Following that up with big wins over Mississippi State and Duke, while playing the backup QB, showed me that Johnson’s offensive system worked and could be run efficiently using just about any piece available on the offensive roster.
By the time we’d beaten Clemson, Florida State, and Miami en route to an 8-3 record I had been completely sold on Paul Johnson as THE coach to guide the Georgia Tech program forward. The VT, UVA, and UNC losses were aggravating but it was obvious where those losses came from…bad penalties at the end against VT, a great performance by the UVA offensive line, and turnovers on the road against a solid UNC team.
The coup de grace occurred yesterday in Athens.
Paul Johnson took his first Georgia Tech squad into the belly of the beast and promptly fell behind 28-12. But instead of folding up the tent and losing hope, like previous Tech teams would have done, the Jackets came out in the second half and went back to work.
Johnson didn’t panic and neither did the players. They believed and stepped up and executed and suddenly the score had flipped around to an amazing 38-28 advantage to GT. In what may have been the best quarter Tech played all season, the Jackets scored 26 points while forcing three UGA punts and recovering a fumble kick off return.
Give the Dawgs credit though…they rallied after that dismal third quarter and scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. Only Roddy Jones’ 54 yard scamper on 3rd and 7 from midfield protected the Jackets’ ultimate three point margin of victory.
To my eyes, the level of talent on the field seemed to be pretty close. That is largely the result of the sophomores and redshirt freshmen that comprise a large majority of the Tech starting lineup.
The real difference appeared to be the level of talent on the sidelines.
Paul Johnson outcoached Mark Richt in two very fundamental areas.
1) Johnson did not panic and stuck with his bread and butter. He made adjustments at the half and established his running game. Richt, by comparison, never got the UGA ground game going despite the fact that Knowshon Moreno was running extremely well and was consistently gashing the GT defense when given opportunities. Moreno averaged 5.5 yards per carry but was only given the ball 17 times while Stafford threw it 39 times.
2) Johnson did a much better job of managing the game clock and timeouts. Consider the fact that UGA outgained Tech 488-428, picked up 7 more first downs, and converted at nearly 50% on third down chances. Given that information, not many people would predict that GT would have won the time of possession battle 33:24 to 26:36…and run the clock out to 0 seconds on fourth down to win the game.
But getting back to my original point…Tech fans have reason to be excited. Paul Johnson is probably one of the Top 5 coaches in the nation and is a difference maker. He’s not just a good coach (7-5 consistency)…he’s a great coach and he understands Georgia Tech.
Paul Johnson is truly…the Perfect Option.
Go Jackets!
45-42!
THWG!
Comments
By Todd
November 30, 2008 4:09 PM | Link to this
THWG!
Everyone likes to complain to the AD when things aren’t going well, so how about everyone send Mr. DRad congratulating him on his decision to hire Paul Johnson. I think he might appreciate it!
By BuzzFactor
November 30, 2008 4:39 PM | Link to this
D-Rad has made the best coaching hire in the modern day era of Tech Sports. I’ve loved the choice from day one, and it has paid off in year one. Season ticket sales will reflect this next year. The dividends are starting to roll. It is a great time to be a Yellow Jacket! Our players have more heart than anyone in the nation.
By Buzz Belle
November 30, 2008 4:50 PM | Link to this
Whatever it takes to keep Johnson and DRad, do it. Incredible game - absolutely incredible! We beate’m tween the hedges, we came from way behind - we went to their house and took them down. Stewart Mandel speaking about rival games said Tech would be an elite team in ‘09. This is almost as good as it gets! (Also, love reading the mutts wimper on their blog!) THWG
By some still want much more passing
November 30, 2008 5:18 PM | Link to this
So Tech did not build air castles, but did they need that? No.
Come Jack G, how about a pleasant reply.
By wes
November 30, 2008 5:20 PM | Link to this
Dave Braine is an idiot! LOL
Ten wins (hopefully if we win the bowl game), a Top 25 finish, Tied for 1st place in our division, and a win over UGAg?
Pretty nice foundation CPJ has laid out on the Flats.
I am LOVING this. ABSOLUTELY LOVING this!!!!
By gtne80
November 30, 2008 5:25 PM | Link to this
Going into the season, I feared that we would have a tough time putting together enough wins to be bowl eligible. We faced road games at BC, VT, Clemson, UNC, and UGA. If you can remember back that far, Clemson came into the year rated in the top 10 and, well….UGA was rated #1.
Methodically, this coach and this team have made a believer of this skeptic. 6 long seasons of watching Chan Gailey coach this team had me doubting that much of anything could be achieved, especially in the first year of a new HC.
Regarding yesterday’s game, if you had told me before the game that UGA would score 42 points, I would have told you that we would lose by at least 17 points. I thought that the key to ANY victory for us would be to hold UGA to 25 or less.
I can’t wait to see where Paul Johnson and Dan Rad will take this program. The funk of pessimism left on the program by years of Braine and Gailey, has been dispelled. I want to see this offense at work when Coach Johnson has an offensive line made up of studs that he has recruited for his style of play.
To those who believe that this is a one-dimensional “high school” offense, you can’t be more wrong. This coach is all about doing whatever it takes to win. He knows his personnel and what they are capable of. When the talent is in place, it will be fun to watch. We’ll be throwing when they expect us to run. When they back off and respect the pass, they will be gashed by a powerful running game.
One thing we can be sure of, Paul Johnson’s teams will be well-coached and prepared. They will play with confidence and emotion…not the “robotic” performances inspired by our former HC.
We need to show CPJ that his future is at Georgia Tech. Dan Rad knows what that means.
Go Jackets!!!! To HELL with UGA!!!!!
By addicted
November 30, 2008 5:30 PM | Link to this
Good post Chris. But I think you are mistaken about Moreno. Our defense pretty much stopped him everytime he was handed the ball. Where he did get his yards, however, were the screen passes. And UGA did use that a lot. Also, the passes to Massaquoi and Green were getting them far more yards, and far more quickly.
By Jack G
November 30, 2008 5:39 PM | Link to this
Some still
I still dont like the system, I prefer a more run pass balanced offense.
Having said that, I must congratulate CPJ and the GT team on a great game. No one can argue with sucess.
I almost missed this blog and I have not been following football very much this week. I lost my constant companion, my best buddy and the love of my life this past week. Maggie was a beagle mix and for 15 years she looked after me as I looked after her. She could read me like a book and bossed me around and I loved it. She thought she was human (and she almost was). She was buried in the family pet cemetery on the family farm in Cherokee county. amen
By jabster
November 30, 2008 5:52 PM | Link to this
Polls are out…Tech #15 in BCS and AP, #16 in Coaches’, ahead of UGA. Tech the highest ranked team in the ACC, and the highest ranked 3-loss team besides Okie State (which I agree with) and Oregon (which I don’t).
SEC does have more top 25 teams, with Bama and Florida, plus UGA and Ole Miss, vs. GT and BC from the ACC (although VT, UNC, and FSU are receiving votes). Do remember that UGA and Ole Miss are 0-2 against the ACC.
ACC is currently 6-4 against the SEC this year. Take away games against Bama and Florida (who could beat anyone right now), and it becomes 6-1.
Props to the SEC for having the top 2 teams in the country. But don’t call the ACC weak.
Sagarin now has the ACC as the #1 conference, ahead of the Big 12 and SEC. To be fair, he still has Tech a fraction of a point below UGA and FSU, which seems to be attributable to Tech’s narrow margins of victory against high-ranking opponents (4-2 against Sagarin top 30).
By m
November 30, 2008 6:00 PM | Link to this
We could have had Paul Johnson back in 2002 when the hiring of Chan Gailey, which was the worst mistake in Tech history, occurred. We were made to suffer for 6 long years needlessly. And, unfortunately, many of you tolerated or even defended Chan during those 6 long years. If you did, then you were just as much a part of the problem as Chan was…and you SUCK just as bad as he did. Paul Johnson is the real deal. Thank God and Greyhound that Chan is gone FOREVER, and everyone that had anything to do with hiring Chan, or keeping him for 6 long years, really sucks.
By inveniojacket
November 30, 2008 6:35 PM | Link to this
Todd: I just emailed D-Rad to thank him for the CPJ hire…and EVERYONE else should do the same.
M: Your rants about Gailey all year have been so annoying, but when I just ready your post I was thinking the same thing…
THANK GOD AND GREYHOUND CG IS GONE FOREVER!!!
Go Yellow Jackets!!!
THWG!!!
By THWG
November 30, 2008 6:55 PM | Link to this
Jack G- You should take a look at GT’s passing numbers in games in which we’ve won and lost. You’ll see that the games where we put major points up (Miami, UGA, etc), we haven’t passed the ball hardly any. In comparison, when we pass the ball quite a bit (UNC) is when we are desperate for points. Also, sorry to hear about your loss. I’m sure Maggie will rest in peace.
By JD
November 30, 2008 7:12 PM | Link to this
I agree with y’all about Gailey finally being gone. His teams would have quit when they got down early. But remember who recruited all the players who were running free down the field. For all Gailey’s faults, give them man credit for the recruiting two years ago. CPJ needs to keep that part up and we’ll be fine.
By gtne80
November 30, 2008 7:22 PM | Link to this
Jack G,
Sorry to hear about your loss. Those are tough to deal with.
I, like you, was a skeptic of Coach Johnson’s system. What I have come to see is that there is more flexibility in it than most people will perceive from the start. When he recruits the athletes to fit the system (which he WILL), the flexibility of the system will become more apparent.
Until then, it’s more than a joy to watch our offense rack up >400 yards on the ground and post more than 40 points on our last two opponents. The run is a beautiful thing. When you can chew up yardage, clock, put up points and keep the other team’s offense on the sidelines, it is a formula for success.
The fumble bugaboo has to be overcome. We need to get past the scholarship restrictions so that we can build depth. We need a stronger and faster O-line. We’ll need to reload on the D-line, and we’ll need to improve on the kicking game. However, a solid foundation has been set down for a successful run.
My advice is for the Tech administration to sit down with CPJ and get him locked in for a long run.
I’m looking forward to watching a bowl game in the Eastern time zone on GREEN grass. More than that, I can’t wait to see what this team will accomplish next year.
Go Jackets, THWG!!!!!!
By Navigator
November 30, 2008 7:26 PM | Link to this
I guess in Georgia we only care about who wins the Tech-UGA game. I’m happy about the win, but #1 priority. I guess not playing in the Orange Bowl is no big deal. Why worry about the regular season if the #1 priority is to beat Georgia? I would settle for a trip to the BCS over a win against UGA anytime. Maybe the coach will worry more about beating UVA, UNC and VTECH next year and get to the ACC title game. I’m at a real loss with these priorities.
By gtne80
November 30, 2008 7:44 PM | Link to this
Navigator,
Good point. However, to consistently beat UVA, UNC, and VT, we’ve got to start landing more of the top in-state talent recruits from the state of Georgia. Our state is recognized as a gold mine of HS talent. Look up and down the rosters of the teams in the SEC, ACC and other conferences. Kids in the state are not going to be attracted to come to Tech if we are a perennial door-mat to our in-state rival. We’ve got to convince them that coming to Atlanta to play for Tech is an exciting prospect.
The priorities for winning the conference championships will be there. Stopping the streak was BIG. In future years, it can be put into more of a proper context.
Of course, it’s always fun to beat the Dawgs and listen to them whimper.
THWG!!!!!
By Carolina Jacket
November 30, 2008 7:49 PM | Link to this
Navigator, I believe that a team that has lost to its main rival seven years in a row has a real need to beat that team (maybe more than any other thing). There have been many coaches who were pretty good but could not win against certain teams who are not longer with us. Do you really believe that if Chan had beaten Ga. a couple of times that he would have been fired? The rivalry game is big. Let us win a couple and then maybe the ACC championship game will become the big thing for us.
By Carolina Jacket
November 30, 2008 8:14 PM | Link to this
P.S. I see that verbal commit Luellen brought his team back from a 16 or so deficit (kind of like Tech) to win the State championship. That looks good for the Jackets’ future.
By Dr. Leo Marvin
November 30, 2008 8:23 PM | Link to this
I hope you Tech fans send Stafford and Samuel a couple of nice thank you notes for those wonderful gifts they gave you. Its the polite thing to do.
By gtne80
November 30, 2008 8:40 PM | Link to this
Dr. Marvin,
You are right. The Dawg fans were always so gracious and thankful for the gifts that Reggie and Chan gave them over the last several years. We’ll work on those thank you notes immediately.
By AlabamaRamblinwreck
November 30, 2008 8:55 PM | Link to this
I was very confident from the beginning that Paul Johnson was the coach that GT needed. I even sent DRad an email before the hire stating my opinion about that.
BUT even I did not believe that this amount of success was possible the first year. One of my co-workers (a Purdue fan) kept telling me what a difference a great coach makes. I knew a great coach made a difference, but I probably did not believe that even a great coach could win with minimal talent and very little depth. I was proven wrong by arguably the best college coach in the country.
Please continue to go to this site everyday to vote for Coach Johnson for Coach of the Year. He deserves it, and all GT alumni knows he deserves it, because we know what attending GT means and the difficulty even for the athletes academically.
http://www.coachoftheyear.com/
Go Jackets!! And God Bless Coach Johnson and all of the coaches, support staff, and our players!!
By reebok
November 30, 2008 9:02 PM | Link to this
Jack G - Condolences on your loss. I’ve been there, and I know what it feels like.
Great win Jackets!
By Jack G
November 30, 2008 9:42 PM | Link to this
gtne80 and reebok
Thank you for the condolences. I live alone and it makes the loss of Maggie even harder to handle. I am having trouble copeing but time will cure that. we just have to adjust because life goes on
By Brad in Jasper
November 30, 2008 9:48 PM | Link to this
From a Dawg, great game. You guys deserved to win. We’ve certainly pulled out some lucky ones this year, and in the GT rivalry as well. I’ve been saying for several weeks now the GT game was going to be a b**ch. What’s amazing, we still had a chance at the end with better clock management. As Richt said before the game - the winner in the turnover dept will win the game. Proved to be prophetic, unfortunately. Well, good luck in your bowl. I wish you 11-1 next year with a stinging loss in Atlanta late november. Really like CPJ - he’ll take you places.
By He who laughs last ...
November 30, 2008 9:55 PM | Link to this
By Pensacola Dog November 17, 2008 10:09 AM | Link to this.
Nerdies, If you think your team has any chance against the Dawgs you are delusional. Going from playing in the ACC to playing an SEC team is Like a college baseball team going to play the Braves.When is the last time you even stayed with UGA in a game? Can’t remember, now can you!!!!
By BigBadDogs November 19, 2008 11:16 AM | Link to this.
Yea u bees better be ready because the streak is gonna continue for GA, what is it 8 or 9 wins in a ROW come on yall techies are a big joke i may not never see yall beat GA and im still young so get it together because your doom day is coming and trust me we will stop that high school offense yall have and remember we are not Garner Webb man what a big koke and by the way miami is gonna kill yall this week.
By realdawg November 21, 2008 12:09 AM | Link to this.
well tech fans you know what is next—7 years of hearing from your dawg enemies—you are all excited and pulling out your insults on the bulldawg nation—but you still gotta come between the hedges and win—the dawgs are waiting with a qb that will eat you up and a running game that will make you look silly—the best receivers in the country and the defense will expose the tech option—miami is a team with a bunch of freshmen that made too many mistakes—the dawgs will prevail for the 8th year in a row—paul johnson has done a great job and tech is still a couple of years away in from being back—you play in a weak conference anyway—just look at it—tech has three losses and still has a chance to play for the acc title—it will be a great game in athens—but the dawgs will win big and hold nothing back—another long cold winter for the coming out of the woodwork jacket fans—you can not even sell out your small stadium for a nationally televised game—dawgs win big on the 29th.
From Athens, 11/29/08 …
GT-45 GA-42
Roddy Jones 13 rushes, 214 yards, 2 TDs
Jonathan Dwyer 20 rushes, 144 yards, 2TDs GT - 409 yds rushing —— GA - 81 yds rushing
NOT BAD FOR A “HIGH SCHOOL” OFFENSE!
By NYJacket
December 1, 2008 4:46 PM | Link to this
As for UGA fans referring to the triple option as a “high school offense”, what does that make their defense?
By Gt #5
December 2, 2008 9:28 AM | Link to this
My name is Chris Edwards. I’m a former linebacker for Tech. My cousins Robert and Terrance Edwards played for the mutts when I was playing for Tech and loving sticking to them about this huge win over the mutts!!! Go Jackets!!!
By Gt #5
December 2, 2008 9:29 AM | Link to this
My name is Chris Edwards. I’m a former linebacker for Tech. My cousins Robert and Terrance Edwards played for the mutts when I was playing for Tech and i’m loving sticking to them about this huge win over the mutts!!! Go Jackets!!!
By Big Stinger
December 2, 2008 10:03 AM | Link to this
Navigator, you stupid a*, where have you beeen the LAST seven years?
Go back to your chess board, you glass-is-half-empty putz.
Big Stinger
By Not Disappointed
December 4, 2008 2:20 PM | Link to this
Boy, the game was one for the ages!!! Ramble Wreck!
By GotOut07
December 7, 2008 5:37 PM | Link to this
What was amazing to me was that this wasn’t a Navy beating Notre Dame type game, where the stronger rival gets beaten because its going through a rebuilding year. Tech wasn’t playing a terrible Georgia team. While I didn’t ever think these Bulldogs were the best team in the country, they’re none the less very desrving of their spot in the top 25 (below Tech, of course) and their 9-3 record. And CPJ beat this top 25 football team, in their own house, with a squad of mostly underclassmen. It makes you wonder what’s going to happen when this team grows up and the game’s at Tech.