Can Georgia Tech win a National Championship with CPJ?

[Whiskey_Clear]

Ffs....the defeatism from many in this thread makes it an impossible read for me...maybe got half way into it but I can't take anymore. I think I see proof of why our stadium is half empty all the time. Many Tech fans can't believe even when there is reason to. Smdh

 

[OldJacketFan]

Ffs....the defeatism from many in this thread makes it an impossible read for me...maybe got half way into it but I can't take anymore. I think I see proof of why our stadium is half empty all the time. Many Tech fans can't believe even when there is reason to. Smdh

It does get tiresome at times, doesn't it? But then just take a look at the poll #s and smile

 

[WreckinGT]

In the current climate of college football, I don't think any coach could win a national championship here. That's not really meant to bash us, there are few programs in the country who have a legitimate chance.

 

[lv20gt]

Realistically no. Johnson doesn't recruit at a level that allows enough wiggle rooms to allow for it. We would need literally everything to go our way and that just isn't going to happen. People point to 2014, but I think sometimes people forget just how many breaks we did catch that year. I also think his focus on offense, being his own OC, also negatively effects our defense and will prevent us from having the level of D that we would need to get there.

I disagree with those that say nobody could. I think it can be done, albeit highly unlikely.

 

[Oldgoldandwhite]

BOLD PREDICTION: GT will be in the 2017 playoffs and go on to win it all!

Wow! I remember this optimism going into the 2015 season!

 

[wvGT11]

With this offense for sure, but at the recruiting level we have probably not. Johnson always likes to point out how well we do with 0 and 1 star recruits, which we have but to a limit. I look at Alabama and Clemson this past year and can see a huge talent gap. 2014 was a great season, we caught a bunch of breaks though and that season when we played FSU you could really see the talent gap

 

[tech_wreck47]

With this offense for sure, but at the recruiting level we have probably not. Johnson always likes to point out how well we do with 0 and 1 star recruits, which we have but to a limit. I look at Alabama and Clemson this past year and can see a huge talent gap. 2014 was a great season, we caught a bunch of breaks though and that season when we played FSU you could really see the talent gap

I agree there is normally a noticeable talent gap but in 2014 I don't see what you are talking about with FSU we only lost by two. Both Defenses played not so good but besides that we were pretty evenly matched.

 

[Jacket4Life9]

The conundrum is that every team out there that had a good year has a similar bucket list of what-ifs. Fact is we lost three, and what-ifs don't win championships. It's fun I know, but to be national champions you just about have to win those close games that tilted bad. (Clemson lost one but won three of them, pretty good for building calluses on your mental toughness.) Can we win another NC? In today's game I don't think so. I hope so, and there is that thing about reach and grasp, but as you can see from the transfers it is awful hard building depth and championship teams are built on it, over several years. Maybe that helps explain why we have a good year followed by a so-so year. First, eliminate the so-so years and then let's see.

My point was that with an offense of an equal or superior caliber than the 2009/2014 offenses and a truly good defense, it would not be anywhere near impossible for Georgia Tech to reach the top 4. I pointed out 2014 to show that we were a top 10 team whose losses all could have gone either way while fielding a below average defense. No team, whether it is Georgia Tech or Alabama, could win a National Title with the defenses we've had here on the Flats since 2009. If we were able to attain what i consider a reachable goal in fielding a legitimate top 20-25 defense (not just based on statistics--I mean a dominant pass rush and solid play in all areas) under Paul Johnson, we would almost certainly have the ability to reach the College Football Playoffs. The sad truth is that I (and many of us on this board) have forgotten what it feels like to have a consistently reliable defense since Johnson has become our coach. I don't believe it's all his fault, but if we were able to field one of the better defenses in college football, our team would certainly have the ability to reach the top 4. The question is CAN cpj win a title, not will he. I wouldn't bet much on him winning one, but he most certainly can win a national title at Georgia Tech-just not as long as we have an average or below average defense.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

Listen. We have never had a team finish in the top 4 since 1990. 26 years. Let alone win the playoff. Before 90 it was 1952 folks.

In 64 years we have had ONE top 4 team. So sure its possible to make the playoff every 40-60 years.

But factor in the new environment and stricter school. For me possible. Like in the next 100 years. Not more possible than that. I just hope that flash in the pan is in the next 40 years not the full 100

2014 says otherwise. We were two or three plays away from making the playoffs in '14. Of course we were also two or three not-s0-fortunate plays away from being 8 - 5. But my point is the the mountain is not as high as history suggests.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

The conundrum is that every team out there that had a good year has a similar bucket list of what-ifs. Fact is we lost three, and what-ifs don't win championships. It's fun I know, but to be national champions you just about have to win those close games that tilted bad. (Clemson lost one but won three of them, pretty good for building calluses on your mental toughness.) Can we win another NC? In today's game I don't think so. I hope so, and there is that thing about reach and grasp, but as you can see from the transfers it is awful hard building depth and championship teams are built on it, over several years. Maybe that helps explain why we have a good year followed by a so-so year. First, eliminate the so-so years and then let's see.

You're right on the money with the depth angle. Programs like GT, where the majority of the players are projects from the start that must develop over time, cannot be successful with high attrition rates. We're just not replacing them with oven-ready players like the factories. It's like going back to square one every time someone leaves early.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

Johnson doesn't recruit at a level that allows enough wiggle rooms to allow for it.

Who would?

 

[Jacket prime]

I think if we had Don Brown as DC, we wouldn't even be asking the question.

Ffs....the defeatism from many in this thread makes it an impossible read for me...maybe got half way into it but I can't take anymore. I think I see proof of why our stadium is half empty all the time. Many Tech fans can't believe even when there is reason to. Smdh

I get the desire to be optimistic, I just think a realistic assessment is that the chance is small enough to answer "no." Doesn't mean the game isn't worth playing.

My @$$ will be at Bobby Dodd cheering regardless.

 

[99jacket]

I remember the same conversation during Bill Lewis' era. We stunk. Bobby Ross and a few years later and we're NC.

Flawless execution. Explosive offense. Yeah, we can do it.

Didn't fill the stadium then either.

Lewis came after Bobby Ross. Not before. I think you may be thinking of Bill Curry.

 

[Skeptic]

My point was that with an offense of an equal or superior caliber than the 2009/2014 offenses and a truly good defense, it would not be anywhere near impossible for Georgia Tech to reach the top 4. I pointed out 2014 to show that we were a top 10 team whose losses all could have gone either way while fielding a below average defense. No team, whether it is Georgia Tech or Alabama, could win a National Title with the defenses we've had here on the Flats since 2009. If we were able to attain what i consider a reachable goal in fielding a legitimate top 20-25 defense (not just based on statistics--I mean a dominant pass rush and solid play in all areas) under Paul Johnson, we would almost certainly have the ability to reach the College Football Playoffs. The sad truth is that I (and many of us on this board) have forgotten what it feels like to have a consistently reliable defense since Johnson has become our coach. I don't believe it's all his fault, but if we were able to field one of the better defenses in college football, our team would certainly have the ability to reach the top 4. The question is CAN cpj win a title, not will he. I wouldn't bet much on him winning one, but he most certainly can win a national title at Georgia Tech-just not as long as we have an average or below average defense.

If the question then is can Johnson coach well enough to win a title, yes, and with his offense, yes. Can he recruit, offense or defense, well enough? The only way we would find that out is if he coached at a large school that supported football and with a very large liberal arts curriculum -- Clemson is just one example. Those schools are just not imaginative enough to hire a Johnson or any of his acolytes, because no matter how many he wins or how many bowl games he wins, his offense is cast as "a service academy offense."But at Georgia Tech? I don't think so. Look how close you cite 2014, and then think how far away we really were -- three games. There all kinds of ways to get there -- Clemson with a very good defense but a truly great QB; Alabama with a freshman QB but a truly great defense. (And Alabama consistently illustrates it can win without a franchise type QB with that defense you cite.) I will keep hoping, regardless, but if the only way to find out is for Johnson to go elsewhere, nah. Let's keep the lovable curmudgeon around.

 

[Vespidae]

Lewis came after Bobby Ross. Not before. I think you may be thinking of Bill Curry.

Yes, correct. Ross took over after Curry left for Alabama.

 

[a5ehren]

No, but I don't think Saban could do it here either.

 

[Jmonty71]

I was talking with a friend of mine who happens to be a sidewalk fan of the University (sic) of Georgia. We were talking football and he said he didn't think that Tech could win a championship with CPJ in charge. He went on to comment that maybe Tech fans are fine with 8 or 9 wins a year but that he didn't think that was good enough.

I defended CPJ by bringing up the usual talking points about Tech itself being the limiting factor, not the offense we run. I also told him that I was happy with an average of 8 or 9 wins and that CPJ has exceeded that many wins a couple of times already.

Anyway, so I've been thinking about that conversation more than I should have. I am convinced that, indeed, Georgia Tech CAN win a national championship with CPJ in charge. It will take a little luck, but don't all champions not named Alabama have a little luck along the way? If we won the ACC with one loss, which I think is entirely possible, we should make the playoffs and then in a one game at a time scenario, I really like our chances.

Yes, the Kool-Aid is strong this morning. But I really think with just a few really good players at some key positions added to the players we normally recruit, in a year with good chemistry and a lot of experience on the field, we could do this. I think we could do it in 2018 if we land a couple of studs by then.

What say ye?

I don't think CPJ and GT will EVER get the 4 and 5 star recruits, like a Clemson and Bama get. This automatically makes it difficult for GT to win, virtually, every game. I just realistically see this happening. The offense defintitely has the ability to roll and score points, we all know this. However; does anyone truly think that we have the defense needed to win a championship? It's more finding the right DC and finding the right system. Need better talent and speed. Just don't think GT is there, nor with the limited academic offering, will get there. Sorry.. Just my logical opinion.

 

[Eastman]

We can but I doubt we will. We can regularly attend bowl games and hopefully with an improved AD and our current talent level we may be able to string some double digit win seasons together and benefit with improved recruiting. If that occurs we will have a realistic shot now and then, but only as an underdog.

 

[Milwaukee]

People point to 2014, but I think sometimes people forget just how many breaks we did catch that year.

So much this. '14 was fun and special, but people cherry pick the instances we needed to go our way in the losses without acknowledging the fact that we won ball games we had no business winning. We were dead to rights in a few of those games and we got breaks, bounces etc.

The rest of your post I disagree with though. I think PJ has just as good a chance to win a natty at Tech as other quality coaches. He just needs to bring in a bigtime recruiter and he'd dominate in my opinion.

 

[Jacket4Life9]

So much this. '14 was fun and special, but people cherry pick the instances we needed to go our way in the losses without acknowledging the fact that we won ball games we had no business winning. We were dead to rights in a few of those games and we got breaks, bounces etc.

The rest of your post I disagree with though. I think PJ has just as good a chance to win a natty at Tech as other quality coaches. He just needs to bring in a bigtime recruiter and he'd dominate in my opinion.

The reason it's interesting, and a good point to point to '14 is because it proved that Tech can be a top 10 team with a BAD defense. Most teams that win or play for Natty's have the type of luck we had in 2014. (Auburn in 2010 and 2013 off the top of my head) My point is that we have had offenses good enough to be a top 4 team. With a solid, consistent defense, we wouldn't need all of those breaks. It takes a great QB and overall offense such as the one we had in 2014 and a defense that we have yet to see under Johnson. And you don't have to recruit 5 stars to have a top tier defense. Ask Boston College. Of course GTs chances to win a Natty are low, it is such a tough thing to do. You have to play nearly perfect football. But for us to think GT wouldn't have a good shot with a good offensive year accompanied with a top 20 defense is naive.