Tech to begin fine tuning

By Matt Winkeljohn

For the AJC

With most of the heavy lifting -- and pushing, and pulling, and blocking and tackling – done until the season begins, Georgia Tech players had a day off Sunday, their first since Aug. 5. When practice resumes Monday, the Yellow Jackets will pay more attention to details.

To be specific, they will focus on South Carolina State in preparation for the Sept. 4 season opener.

S.C. State, located in Orangeburg, has won back-to-back Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference championships, and last season was voted the SBN Black College Champion. They’re ranked No. 1 in the preseason as well, keyed by the return of senior quarterback Malcolm Long.

The big fella (6-feet-3, 257 pounds) from Gaffney completed 65 percent of his passes last season for 2,502 yards and 20 touchdowns as S.C. State went 10-1 (losing at South Carolina) before falling 20-13 in the Football Championship Series playoffs to Appalachian State.

“They’re a talented, young group,” said inside linebacker Brad Jefferson. “We’ve got to look at them like they’re the big dogs.”

Tech, in fact, spent a little time practicing against S.C. State’s schemes late last week and that wasn’t the first time in camp that the Jackets worked against schemes other than their own.

In an Aug. 14 scrimmage in Bobby Dodd Stadium, the defense stuck to the base 3-4 defense that has been installed by new coordinator Al Groh, and the offense stuck with coach Paul Johnson’s trademark option attack.

That was open to the public.

Everything else, though has been closed and behind the walls surrounding the Rose Bowl practice fields, the Jackets have spent plenty of time this summer working against unfamiliar schemes and likely installing wrinkles of their own.

Tech’s offense has worked quite a bit in practice against more traditional defensive alignments.

“We don’t even hardly practice against the 3-4 except when we play against it,” Johnson said. “And [the defense . . . is not just practicing totally against [Tech’s] offense. They’re practicing against  [single-back, single tight end] personnel, [one-back, two-tight] personnel. You practice against all the stuff you’ll see in games.

“We practice against ourselves [Tech’s base defense and option offense] very little. That’s a big misnomer.”

The defense likewise has worked a good deal against offenses other than Tech’s.

Said Jefferson: “We work against conventional offense because during the season we’re not going to be playing against an option offense. We don’t get as much work against the option.”

Taking the long road

Freshman A-back Tony Zenon, who was the last player to receive a scholarship from Tech for the 2010 recruiting class, grew up in New Orleans. His family left in advance of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, though, and settled in Albany, Ga. That wasn’t the plan when he and 23 or so family members and friends piled into a van, an SUV and two cars as the storm barreled down on their hometown.

“We probably had like two outfits each,” said Zenon, who is likely to redshirt this season. “We thought we were going back [in a couple days] because there had been more than one hurricane before and they weren’t talking like it was going to be a big disaster.

“Initially, we wanted to go to Texas but the roads were blocked there was so much traffic. We really didn’t have a plan B. We [turned around] and went through Alabama, and Florida and all those places. [Albany] was the only place that had hotels.”

Seeking to repeat

The Jackets recently set their team goals, including beating Georgia, leading the nation in rushing offense, and third-down conversion rate among others. Said tackle Austin Barrick, “The No. 1 goal is to win the ACC championship again.” Johnson said, “You want to know the key to your third down rate? Stay out of third and long.” Genius, that.

Extra points

On TV Tuesday evening (6-7 p.m.), SportsNite on Comcast Sports Southeast will feature safety Cooper Taylor. Jefferson is to be featured Thursday evening. . . . Tech’s “Can’t Wait Til Kickoff” luncheon will be Friday at the Cobb Galleria. Doors will open at 11:30 a.m. Johnson will be among several speakers, and players will sit with fans for lunch. Tech merchandise and apparel will be available. For more information, check the website (http://ramblinwreck.cstv.com). . . . Fall quarter classes begin Monday at Tech.