Expectations on this year and next

stech81

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Fact no one really knows if any team will be good next year. Most are looking at their won loss record this year and last year. Players get hurt coaches come and go . Just enjoy this year.
 

GTJake

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Our OL showed big improvement on Saturday especially in the run game, that is a good omen.
We are looking good at RB and hoping James Graham continues to improve at QB.
DB's look solid, we need help on the DL, with one transfer already on the way.
Glass half-full, no reason to believe we can't be competitive for the Coastal next year ... Glass half-empty, it takes a little longer but we continue to play hard and are fun to watch.
For this year, I would take another ACC win, and then to stun UGAG ... but am not conceding anything in the remainder of our ACC games.
 

JorgeJonas

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I expected 2-10 this season. If we set the over/under on remaining wins this season at .5, I would probably take the under, though Pitt, VT, NC State are possible - probably a one in three shot we win any of them.

Next season, the schedule is such that the team could be vastly improved but their record might be 4-8 (I actually wonder whether the UCF game gets played since we ended up not going to their place). I think the real issue is 2021. If we can’t make a bowl by year three, when the younger guys Collins is rightly playing this year are upperclassmen, then I think alarm bells should be ringing. 2022 should be no fewer than nine wins, regardless of schedule.

Collins walked into a tough job, and he deserves his chance to do it his way, but if in two years there aren’t results to follow, then his way might not be the right way.

I think it’s reasonable to demand no further losses to 1-AA schools.
 

DvilleJacket

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1-2 more wins this season is possible. Miami had 29 missed tackles and failed 3 fg attempts. The win was nice but will anyone make that many mistakes left on schedule? I expect 5-6 wins next season if we get improved line play with a couple transfers.
 

bobongo

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1-2 more wins this season is possible. Miami had 29 missed tackles and failed 3 fg attempts. The win was nice but will anyone make that many mistakes left on schedule? I expect 5-6 wins next season if we get improved line play with a couple transfers.

Missed tackles aren't necessarily mistakes. It takes two to tango.
 

bobongo

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I agree, but tell that to our D who we've been bashing since 2008 for missing tackles.

A "mistake" and just not being as good (agility, strength) as the one you're trying to tackle for one reason or another are two different things. Maybe our runners were better than their tacklers.
 

Augusta_Jacket

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It isnt easy, but the defender can make it much harder than it has to be... I think tackling has improved this year. Do you?

A "mistake" and just not being as good as the one you're trying to tackle for one reason or another are two different things.

I agree wholeheartedly, I just find it interesting that we have always trashed our own D for missing tackles yet are willing to give all credit to our O when they cause missed tackles. It's an inconsistency that we seem to labor under.
 

lv20gt

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For this year my expectation is the team continues to show signs of developing into a team with a specific vision in mind. That isn't necessarily tied directly to wins. We played better on saturday but even so it took a turnover in the endzone, a trick play on a fake punt, and miami missing 3 very makeable FGs to win. That's not to say we didn't make strides, but wins this year will probably have to come when our opponents leave the door open through their own mistakes. Saturday we took that chance and walked away with a win. Not sure if we get another chance though.

As far as next year goes, it's hard to say. I expect improvement, but I'm not sure how exactly it should translate into # of wins. Offensively our OL has us in such a bad spot. Even against miami we didn't pass block particularly well and it took Mason making guys miss or breaking tackles on most runs for the run game to get going. I expect to see improvement, but I could also see the OL being a noticable weakness until we have a chance to both bring in recruits and coach them up. Defense is similar on the lines although I think it's easier for DLmen to play right away than OLmen. Overall I expect next year to be better, and certainly to start quicker than this year. I expect a 4-5 win next year with a couple of games looking back on as "what if" type of things.
 

bobongo

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I agree wholeheartedly, I just find it interesting that we have always trashed our own D for missing tackles yet are willing to give all credit to our O when they cause missed tackles. It's an inconsistency that we seem to labor under.

No inconsistency at all. When you have the ball, you're supposed to cause missed tackles. When you're on defense, you're supposed to make tackles. That's how you win.
 

Buzztheirazz

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The biggest thing I’m looking for is week-to-week improvement. If we win one more game this year, I’d say that’s meeting my expectations. If we win two or more games in the remaining schedule, that exceeds my expectations.

For next year, I want to see a competent offense, defense, and special teams. We will still be transitioning, but I’d really like to see us not get blown out by Coastal teams given our improvements this season, our transfers becoming eligible, and (hopefully) some good recruits coming in. As far as W/L, I’m setting my expectations for next year at 5 wins. Getting to a bowl game would be a great sign of improvement.
This nailed my expectations
 

SOWEGA Jacket

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Someone mentioned how the Citadel game hurt us. I don’t get that. It’s a game we lost that no one saw and it’s over. The South Carolina loss hurt UGA way more than Citadel hurt us. Auburn’s loss to Florida hurt them way more. Heck, Tua’s ankle is more of a concern than a rebuilding GT team losing a game that no one outside of us and Citadel fans knows was even played. The only thing that matters for GT football is recruiting. We could lose the rest of our games this year and no one would care. How many of you care that Purdue is 1-5? The point is until we become relevant wins and losses aren’t the end all be all. What matters are - 1) is our recruiting seeing an uptick, 2) are our young players progressing along a path. Sure, I’d like to win every game, but that isn’t realistic with our current depth chart. Collins is building a program from the ground up so as long as the process is on going the results right now do not matter.
 

GTJake

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Someone mentioned how the Citadel game hurt us. I don’t get that. It’s a game we lost that no one saw and it’s over. The South Carolina loss hurt UGA way more than Citadel hurt us. Auburn’s loss to Florida hurt them way more. Heck, Tua’s ankle is more of a concern than a rebuilding GT team losing a game that no one outside of us and Citadel fans knows was even played. The only thing that matters for GT football is recruiting. We could lose the rest of our games this year and no one would care. How many of you care that Purdue is 1-5? The point is until we become relevant wins and losses aren’t the end all be all. What matters are - 1) is our recruiting seeing an uptick, 2) are our young players progressing along a path. Sure, I’d like to win every game, but that isn’t realistic with our current depth chart. Collins is building a program from the ground up so as long as the process is on going the results right now do not matter.

While I agree with the body of your post, to say the Citadel loss was unnoticed is incorrect.
I have seen it mentioned multiple times on different sports websites (ESPN, USA Today, CollegeFootballNews) this week alone when referring to our upset of Miami ... it definitely stung (pun intended) !
 

lv20gt

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While I agree with the body of your post, to say the Citadel loss was unnoticed is incorrect.
I have seen it mentioned multiple times on different sports websites (ESPN, USA Today, CollegeFootballNews) this week alone when referring to our upset of Miami ... it definitely stung (pun intended) !

Maybe not unnoticed, but outside the fanbase nobody really cared. FBS team expected to be bad losing to an FCS really doesn't draw much interest. Like Nicholas State beating Kansas last year. It would be different if a team was expected to be in bowl contention, or even ranked at the time (like Iowa a couple years back I believe), but if Rutgers loses to Liberty this weekend, nobody will care, or talk about it unless Rutgers goes on to upset someone. Kinda of like how nobody outside of GT fans talked about us losing to Citadel until we beat miami.
 

JacketOff

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Someone mentioned how the Citadel game hurt us. I don’t get that. It’s a game we lost that no one saw and it’s over. The South Carolina loss hurt UGA way more than Citadel hurt us. Auburn’s loss to Florida hurt them way more. Heck, Tua’s ankle is more of a concern than a rebuilding GT team losing a game that no one outside of us and Citadel fans knows was even played. The only thing that matters for GT football is recruiting. We could lose the rest of our games this year and no one would care. How many of you care that Purdue is 1-5? The point is until we become relevant wins and losses aren’t the end all be all. What matters are - 1) is our recruiting seeing an uptick, 2) are our young players progressing along a path. Sure, I’d like to win every game, but that isn’t realistic with our current depth chart. Collins is building a program from the ground up so as long as the process is on going the results right now do not matter.
That Purdue comment is so on point for the current situation at Tech. Who cares that Mississippi State is 3-4? Arkansas lost to San Jose State this year, and that made about the same amount of ripples in the national media as The Citadel game. If you’re not expected to compete for championships, or aren’t at least ranked, getting upset by a small school really doesn’t matter. After this season, The Citadel game will simply be a footnote about where the program has been under Collins. If GT goes 10-2, plays for the ACC championship, and goes to the Orange Bowl next year, analysists will just bring that game up and say look how far the team has come.

Heck, I bet you could ask a lot of college football fans if they remember MTSU beating GT and they would look at you like you were crazy.
 
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