Georgia Tech loses receiver, fires assistant

By Doug Roberson

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Next season, Georgia Tech will play without at least one of the players who helped it win the 2009 ACC football championship.

Demaryius Thomas, who led the ACC with 1,154 yards receiving, announced Friday he is leaving school for the NFL.

About an hour later, coach Paul Johnson announced that Dave Wommack won't return as defensive coordinator. The Jackets allowed 24.8 points and 360.3 yards per game this season.

Johnson said the hires for the defensive coordinator position as well as the special-teams coordinator job would happen soon. He said he favors no particular defensive scheme or plan, other than what gives them the best chance to win. He downplayed Internet rumors that Al Groh, who observed a practice in December, would replace Wommack, who coached at Georgia Tech for two seasons.

There will be no other staff changes initiated by Johnson, who said he didn't expect that whomever he hired at the coordinator positions would make changes to the current staff.

"I'm a bottom-line guy," Johnson said. "I don't care if we're 4-3, 3-4 or whatever, as long as I feel we're making progress and we're getting better."

Johnson said he began to realize that a change was needed as the season progressed. In Tech's last three games, a loss to Georgia, a win against Clemson for the ACC title, and an Orange Bowl loss to Iowa, the Yellow Jackets allowed an average of 31 points.

"It wasn't working for us to the degree that I felt like we had to play for us to get where I want to go," Johnson said. "It's never easy when you have to do those things. But ultimately, I have to do what I think is best for the program."

As powerful as Tech's offense was — it generated 67 plays of at least 20 yards, averaged 6.2 yards per play, led the nation in time of possession (33:49) and averaged 33.8 points per game — the defense had as many issues. It allowed 66 big plays, gave up an average of 6.1 yards per play, and didn't force a punt in the loss to the Bulldogs or the Tigers. The Hawkeyes, who averaged 330.8 yards per game, put up 403.

"I felt like when we played the better offensive teams, we struggled," Johnson said. "That's not all what we were doing; we have some personnel issues and some other things we have to address. It certainly wasn't all Dave, but it got to a point where you have to choose to make a decision or go status quo. To get where we needed to go, I needed to change directions."

Wommack, who made $288,500 annually, thanked Johnson for the past two years, and said he hoped that he positively impacted his players' lives.

In the end, he said injuries submarined his charges' progress. The team repped in an eight-man front in the spring, but injuries to defensive end Robert Hall and safeties Cooper Taylor and Dominique Reese in the third week against Miami forced them to change to a 4-3. More injuries forced more changes as the season progressed. By the Orange Bowl, five players who started the season opener against Jacksonville State either were out with season-ending injuries or had enough injuries to significantly reduce their playing time.

"You feel pressure as a coach and certainly as a coordinator," Wommack said. "It's not just about wins and losses. It's about how your unit performs. We had some deficiencies in areas that held us back. It forced us to change and try to put the best people on the field. It forces you to lose your repetitions in the spring and the fall."

Thomas' decision to leave after his junior season wasn't nearly as surprising as the Wommack news.

He is one of four juniors, including defensive end Derrick Morgan, B-back Jonathan Dwyer and safety Morgan Burnett, who said weeks ago that they were considering leaving Tech.

Thomas leaves in the top 10 in several Tech categories: second in yards per reception (19.5), fourth in touchdown receptions (15), fourth on career receiving yards list (2,339) and seventh in career receptions (120).

"Something I've been wanting to do since I was a little boy before I came to Tech," Thomas said, telling reporters how he told his mom when he was a little boy that he would one day be a professional football player.

Despite his tight-end size (6-foot-3, 230 pounds), Thomas should play wide receiver in the NFL, according to NFL Network draft analyst Charles Davis. Thomas is projected to go as high as late in the second round, according to the paperwork he received from the NFL Draft Advisory Board. His stock will be affected by how fast he runs the 40-yard dash for scouts, Davis said. Teams will also want to know if Thomas can beat coverage when defenses are expecting a pass play. Davis said Tech's run-focused offense made it easier for Thomas because every defense was so focused on stopping the run that he often got man coverage and help from play-action calls.

Thomas said he hopes to sign with an agent next week and then will begin working to prepare himself for the April draft. He agrees with Davis' assessment that he needs to work on his speed and route-running. He also will take classes the spring. He is two semesters away from graduating with a degree in management.

Johnson said that Thomas needs to work on the technical aspects of the positions, such as getting off the line in press coverage. He added that Thomas is such a hard worker that he might be able to improve his draft standing in the next three months.

Instead of being worried about potentially losing all four players, Johnson chose to focus on the positive.

"I've sat down with all those guys, and they have to make the best decision for them," Johnson said. "It's a good problem to have. It means you've got good players. I would love to see them all come back if that's what they chose to do. There's a lot of money out there. Whatever they decide, I'm going to support 100 percent."