Article on Brent Key

stinger 1957

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I agree with what I see everyone saying about CBK and some what about the other coaches, but think there is also a major factor the other coaches never really had. The school never really made a comittment to GTFB like it is presently doing for CBK. I think they would have done that with another hire also, but personally CBK is beginning to look like the perfect hire at the perfect time. I'm excited. Obviously there are supporters getting behind it also. Lots of things seem to be coming together.
 
AugustaSwarm

AugustaSwarm

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stinger 1957 said:
I agree with what I see everyone saying about CBK and some what about the other coaches, but think there is also a major factor the other coaches never really had. The school never really made a comittment to GTFB like it is presently doing for CBK. I think they would have done that with another hire also, but personally CBK is beginning to look like the perfect hire at the perfect time. I'm excited. Obviously there are supporters getting behind it also. Lots of things seem to be coming together.
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Agreed. Key's excitement is contagious. His passion for GT runs deep and it's genuine. I think it's much easier to donate to the program when we have a coach that we might have a chance of holding onto for a while.
 

g0lftime

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stinger 1957 said:
I agree with what I see everyone saying about CBK and some what about the other coaches, but think there is also a major factor the other coaches never really had. The school never really made a comittment to GTFB like it is presently doing for CBK. I think they would have done that with another hire also, but personally CBK is beginning to look like the perfect hire at the perfect time. I'm excited. Obviously there are supporters getting behind it also. Lots of things seem to be coming together.
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He is making really good hires on his staff. We are bound to lose some as they move up the coaching ladder and his longevity will be somewhat dependent on his ability to replace them with quality hires.
 
Techster

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stinger 1957 said:
I agree with what I see everyone saying about CBK and some what about the other coaches, but think there is also a major factor the other coaches never really had. The school never really made a comittment to GTFB like it is presently doing for CBK. I think they would have done that with another hire also, but personally CBK is beginning to look like the perfect hire at the perfect time. I'm excited. Obviously there are supporters getting behind it also. Lots of things seem to be coming together.
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It's not just the school (see: GT President), it's also the donor base. To say there was some donor division due to egos is an understatement. Credit Batt and Key for telling everyone to move on and focus on what's important: Getting GT back to where we are one of the best programs in the country. The division among donors was getting bad at the end of the CPJ era, and it got worse with Collins/Stansbury. If Batt knew the extent of how some donors were willing to cut their noses to spite GT's success, I'm not sure he would have taken the job. The head coach search turned into a drama filled fiasco due to some donors. Again, give credit to Key in knowing he was not Batt's top choice, but understanding that he could be someone to heal the fanbase and move us forward. Key knows certain donors wanted a fresh start and get rid of everyone connected to the Collins and Stansbury era, but he swallowed his pride, went to those same donors to ask for their support after he was hired permanently. Some of those donors that were skeptical of hiring Key full time have now become one of his biggest supporters (both vocally and $$$). Fans forget that Head Coaches at this level aren't just football coaches, they're also politicians and ambassadors for our program. Key could have easily been spiteful, especially after having a very good first season, but instead he leveraged it to the benefit of our program. Alignment among the school, the sports program, and the coaches is important, but alignment among donors is also important. Key and Batt have both done a heck of a job since they've taken over.

On another note, a friend of mine had a long conversation with one of Key's assistant coaches recently. The coach said that Key's program is very reminiscent of what 'Bama and UGA are doing, but without crippling pressure. Coaches talk to other coaches, and if Key continues to push this program forward, GT will be a program up and coming coaches seek out to come coach for.
 
stech81

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Techster said:
It's not just the school (see: GT President), it's also the donor base. To say there was some donor division due to egos is an understatement. Credit Batt and Key for telling everyone to move on and focus on what's important: Getting GT back to where we are one of the best programs in the country. The division among donors was getting bad at the end of the CPJ era, and it got worse with Collins/Stansbury. If Batt knew the extent of how some donors were willing to cut their noses to spite GT's success, I'm not sure he would have taken the job. The head coach search turned into a drama filled fiasco due to some donors. Again, give credit to Key in knowing he was not Batt's top choice, but understanding that he could be someone to heal the fanbase and move us forward. Key knows certain donors wanted a fresh start and get rid of everyone connected to the Collins and Stansbury era, but he swallowed his pride, went to those same donors to ask for their support after he was hired permanently. Some of those donors that were skeptical of hiring Key full time have now become one of his biggest supporters (both vocally and $$$). Fans forget that Head Coaches at this level aren't just football coaches, they're also politicians and ambassadors for our program. Key could have easily been spiteful, especially after having a very good first season, but instead he leveraged it to the benefit of our program. Alignment among the school, the sports program, and the coaches is important, but alignment among donors is also important. Key and Batt have both done a heck of a job since they've taken over.

On another note, a friend of mine had a long conversation with one of Key's assistant coaches recently. The coach said that Key's program is very reminiscent of what 'Bama and UGA are doing, but without crippling pressure. Coaches talk to other coaches, and if Key continues to push this program forward, GT will be a program up and coming coaches seek out to come coach for.
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I have to say I was skeptic of Key but without a doubt I back him 100 percent. I hope he stays a long time.
But I guess the question is what is a long time today.
 

WreckinGT

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stech81 said:
I have to say I was skeptic of Key but without a doubt I back him 100 percent. I hope he stays a long time.
But I guess the question is what is a long time today.
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Eh. Im not sure you will get what you really want if he is here for a long time.
 

stinger 1957

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Coaches want to come coach for HC that are good recruiters and instill a winning culture, CBK is a good recruiter and certainly has the background of knowing what a winning culture is made of, I expect to see same at GT as we go fwd. He has natural leadership abilities, been doing it along time now, Capt GT FB.
 

takethepoints

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Jim Prather said:
So maybe the metric should be changed from number of wins/season to number of losses/season? ( i.e. Dodd had 4 0 loss seasons and multiple 1 loss seasons)
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The metric should be to win as many games as we can with the talent we can recruit. Always, always, it is recruiting to a very different environment for winning in college football today. It appears that Coach Key is succeeding at that at about an O'Leary level •cough* Philo *cough* so far, provided this year's class sticks. That's great and I hope it continues. The talent we had in George's salad days should get us reliable success, provided we can keep the assistants who will make it all work.

The jury is still out on whether Key can do that. The signs are good, however.
 
jojatk

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Techster said:
.

On another note, a friend of mine had a long conversation with one of Key's assistant coaches recently. The coach said that Key's program is very reminiscent of what 'Bama and UGA are doing, but without crippling pressure. Coaches talk to other coaches, and if Key continues to push this program forward, GT will be a program up and coming coaches seek out to come coach for.
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Brent understands that keeping good assistant coaches is hard. If they are worth keeping they will be offered other positions and you’re going to lose them at some point. His vision includes GT being a place where coaches are not stifled but rather encouraged and showcased so that they feel like it’s a place where they can enhance their careers. With that mentality there will be coaches who want to coach under him and work their tails off because they know it’ll be worth it.
 

SOWEGA Jacket

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UgaBlows said:
If Key keeps improving our team and keeps winning then i am 100% confident that Batt and Cabrera will take care of him financially
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The most financially important part of the program is the recruiting pool of money. We could pay Key and Faulkner 20 million a year each and that wouldn’t improve our win total. Getting high quality players is what Kirby and Dabo have done and that’s how you win. Key could be the next Saban and we still won’t win 9 or more games until we pay for 4 stars across the board. That’s the new game and what will drive coaches to stay at GT or leave GT.
 

cpf2001

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SOWEGA Jacket said:
The most financially important part of the program is the recruiting pool of money. We could pay Key and Faulkner 20 million a year each and that wouldn’t improve our win total. Getting high quality players is what Kirby and Dabo have done and that’s how you win. Key could be the next Saban and we still won’t win 9 or more games until we pay for 4 stars across the board. That’s the new game and what will drive coaches to stay at GT or leave GT.
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That's true and all but it seems unlikely that we could make it rain for Key and NOT be able to take care of the players too. If Key wins we need the money to follow, across the board.
 

Heisman's Ghost

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stinger78 said:
I agree with the above. I’ll add that I really don’t think CBK wants to be anywhere else. First HC since Dodd that I can wholeheartedly say that about, though perhaps CPJ was as well, for different reasons.

Carson, I think would have rode the elevator up if he could have.
Fulchet, IMO, never really wanted to be a HBC.
Rodgers seemed to love GT, but never really connected for some reason.
Curry left for Bama. Always thought Dodd advised him to go.
Ross left for the NFL.
L**** would have moved on had he been successful, IMPO.
GOL wanted ND.
Gailey was an NFL coach at heart.
Johnson… he wanted a place that his O could thrive in big-boy football. GT was probably it, so he stayed until he retired.
TFG… never got Tech, never really wanted to, IMPO.
CBK gets Tech like no one. Since Curry, but seems to want to stay.
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Carson was not well liked by the players but found his niche as a defensive coordinator in the NFL
Fulcher was going through or had been through a nasty devoice and did not have the heart for the game
Rogers was bedeviled by recruiting and bad facilities along with poor relationships with alumni.
Curry was in fact, advised by Dodd to go to Alabama but soon had reason to regret it. He had a very hard and long road due to facilities and finances.
Ross got tired of dealing with college kids.
Lewis was never the same after the fourth quarter collapse against FSU.
O'Leary did indeed want Notre Dame but found his calling at Central Florida.
Gailey hitched his wagon, for better or worse, to Reggie Ball and Tenuta.
Johnson was the best coach of the bunch. Amazing what he accomplished without a huge amount of talent.
TFG pitched smoke and mirrors to the AD and found the road to riches.
Coach Key: Jury still out but he has miraculously it would seem changed the entire culture of the program. Really about as well as could be hoped.
 
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