An injury suffered by Georgia Tech linebacker Julian Burnett in the Sun Bowl could carry significant implications for his playing career. At a news conference Friday, coach Paul Johnson was vague in his comments about Burnett, but offered an indication of the injury’s severity.
“There’s a lot of guys who are playing and have gone through it,” Johnson said in response to a question about players facing the end of their careers because of injuries or health issues. “But they’ve come out on the other end, that they’ve determined it’s OK for them to play. It happens a lot. It’s a violent sport, high-contact.”
Johnson declined to offer more information, saying the matter was between Burnett, his family, his doctors and himself.
“If Julian wanted to shed light on it, he could,” Johnson said, but he has chosen not to do so.
Burnett was injured in the first half of the Sun Bowl and didn’t return to the game. One of three team captains this past season, Burnett led the Yellow Jackets in tackles for the second consecutive season and was named second-team All-ACC.
“I think what has to happen is they’ll sit down at the appropriate time, we’ll sit down, and we’ll do what’s best for Julian,” Johnson said.
Supporting Groh
Johnson offered his support again for defensive coordinator Al Groh, reiterating that he has no plans to make staff changes. Johnson did say “there’s a lot of things you have to take into consideration, and there’s a lot of things we’re going to talk about” regarding the defense once recruiting slows down after signing day Feb. 1.
“If I didn’t think they were doing a credible job, I’d make changes,” he said. “But can we play better? Sure. We can play better on offense, special teams, everywhere.”
No kicker
Tech doesn’t plan to include a kicker in its 2012 signing class. Johnson isn’t opposed to signing a kicker, but said he wouldn’t sign one for the sake of it. This past season, kicker Justin Moore made all 56 of his point-after tries, but was 11-for-17 on field-goal tries. Both he and kicker David Scully had trouble with kickoffs.
“I don’t think we’ve even visited a kicker” for a home visit, Johnson said, “so we probably aren’t going to sign one.”
Departures
Johnson did not have much comment on offensive tackle Phil Smith, who will not return to the team. Smith, a two-year starter, was suspended twice this season.
“Hopefully he’ll graduate this spring, and if he wants to play somewhere else, I’ve given him his release,” Johnson said.
Johnson said he hoped that wide receiver Stephen Hill, who declared for early entry for the NFL draft, would stay in school and said that he could have improved, but he acknowledged that Hill and his family “have to make a decision that they think is best for them. I wish him the best.”
Linebacker B.J. Machen, who has a year of eligibility remaining, will not return after graduating in December. Machen accepted a job at Microsoft, Johnson said.
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