Look man. I understand your passion for Tech. I understand that Tech has had great years, and awful years during your fandom. Tech is probably also one of the most historically proud programs in college sports. But if you can say you don’t know what UCLA, Notre Dame, and FSU wear (all teams which are on par with Tech’s tradition, if not more so) then why would anybody outside of Tech fans know what Tech wears? Whether you like it or not, Tech hasn’t been relevant nationally since the 90s. Sure there’s been a few years here or there (‘98, ‘09, ‘14) where Tech has had some national implications, but since 1950, Tech has had just seven 10 win seasons. Compared to other teams in that span:
UGA: 21
Clemson: 14
FSU: 24
UCLA: 8
Notre Dame: 15
Miami: 15
Ohio State: 27
I could continue to go on listing teams like that but there’s no use. Tech has not been good enough consistently to be a nationally recognized brand. Tech’s brand is virtually unrecognizable outside the southeast, and even somewhat within the southeast. A major, major factor of that is because we left the SEC way back when. The average football fan probably thinks as much about Tech as they do about Wake, or Arizona, or Illinois. All proud programs, but not relevant nationally. Leaving the SEC lost us essentially all of our major rivals, and a huge branding advantage. Think about how much more attention GT would get in those years when we bust out 9-11 wins against Auburn, Tennessee, Georgia, Florida, etc. instead of Pitt, Duke, Syracuse, Boston College, etc. Because guess what, virtually every SEC team has a more recognizable brand than Tech does, and even in sports that aren’t football, like Kentucky basketball, or Vandy baseball.
