On its face, it is a preposterous declaration. In the mind-boggling nose dive that Georgia Tech has taken from celebrating the Orange Bowl championship last New Year’s Eve to stumbling to its worst season since 1994, it invites ridicule.
Still, Gregg Garrett, a major contributor to Tech’s athletic department, holds true to his contention about what might have been for the Yellow Jackets.
“The amazing thing is, you’re 3-8, but outside of (the decisive loss to) Clemson, you can make the case that you could be 10-1,” he said.
The idea that the Jackets could be contending for a spot in the College Football Playoff as it takes the field Saturday against arch-rival Georgia is almost too bizarre for words. The season’s numbing routine of inconsistent play, ineffective coaching, injuries and breaks falling against the Jackets has reduced Tech to last place in the ACC Coastal Division. But, Garrett is right — a case can be made.
Two plays against Notre Dame — a non-call of a pass interference and an arguable holding penalty — were worth 14 points in an eight-point loss. Three botched special-teams plays drove the Duke game into a ditch. Two failed attempts to score from the North Carolina 1-yard line opened the door for the Tar Heels’ first win in Bobby Dodd Stadium in nine tries. Any Tech fan, preferably one a safe distance from sharp objects, can continue the recitation.
“It’s almost like everything that went right last year, whether it was the bounce of the ball or the key play at the right time, has gone wrong this year, other than the Florida State game,” Garrett said.
Garrett’s perspective on the season largely aligns with those held by coach Paul Johnson, athletic director Mike Bobinski and other influential donors: Tech was felled by a collection of factors, some within the Jackets’ control, others not. It was a hugely disappointing season that will require an earnest review after Saturday. But, ultimately, the team remains pointed in the right direction and seeds for a recovery in 2016 have been planted.
“It’s just like, when you’re winning, sometimes the little things don’t get magnified — the path of the B-back or the cutting off (of defenders) or whatever, because the next play, you score,” Johnson said. “But when you lose, all that stuff gets magnified. It just kind of is a harsh reality of (how) you’ve got to stay on top of all the little things all the time and you’ve got to get them fixed.”
This season, without a senior-stocked offense, those shortcomings were plentiful and laid bare. That was evident to Johnson early. Bobinski recalled a conversation with Johnson before the Notre Dame game, at which point Tech had was ranked No. 14 after easy wins over Alcorn State and Tulane.
“After we had rolled up 60-plus points on our first couple opponents, he goes, ‘I’m not sure we’re all that good,’” Bobinski said this past week.
Despite four returning starters, the offensive line was not playing well. The loss of experience, productivity and leadership from graduated skill players such as wide receiver DeAndre Smelter, B-backs Synjyn Days and Zach Laskey and A-back Charles Perkins, as well as guard Shaquille Mason, was increasingly felt. What followed was a game in which the Jackets — who tied an NCAA record for highest third-down conversion rate in 2014 — went 3-for-15 on third downs, missed two field-goal tries and gave up touchdown plays of 46 and 91 yards (Johnson later said the ACC told him that the former should have been disallowed by offensive pass interference). The final score was 30-22.
A number of patterns that the Jackets seemed powerless to undo were set into play that afternoon — poor ball security, faltering special teams, critical injuries and defensive play that was improved, but often unable to deliver the big play.
“As I think about the year, I feel like we got hit in the mouth at Notre Dame hard in the first half, and while we rallied late in that one, I don’t know that we ever really recovered from that,” Bobinski said.
Steve Zelnak, a donor whose name adorns the football team meeting room and the basketball practice facility, also points to the combination of injuries, breaks and the loss of experienced starters.
“You know what kind of season it is when you lose on a 56-yard field goal (to Pittsburgh) and (star defensive tackle) Adam Gotsis tears up his knee with a non-contact injury on the first play of the Virginia game,” he said. “It just says it’s not your year.”
A win over the Bulldogs might mitigate the sour taste of 2015, but otherwise won’t change much.
“I don’t think there’s any way around the fact that if you’re 3-9 or 4-8, you’ve had a disappointing year,” Garrett said. “I don’t think you can sugarcoat that.”
That said, Garrett and Zelnak said that they and others in their circles believe in the program’s direction under Johnson.
“I can tell you this, not only for myself, but people that I think are the most influential and the biggest contributors are in lock step, as far as I know, in their support for him and this coaching staff,” Garrett said. “As much as we’re disappointed in the season, I think the big picture is very positive, and everyone feels that way.”
About the Author
