Today several times I heard analysts describe Alabama's football program atmosphere as factory like with both players and assistant coaches knowing full well that is what they are signing up for before with the understanding that they will come out much better at football the other side. Hence the high turnover rate of assistant coaches and player leaving early for the NFL.
Meanwhile Clemson's football atmosphere was described as a family with loyalty from both coaches and players to the Clemson tigers. Assistant coaches rarely leave and players even completing multiple degrees to forgo entering the NFL draft and extending their playing days at Clemson.
Anyway this got me thinking, how would one describe Tech's football program atmosphere? Family, Factory, Something else?
I did not play sports or pledge at Tech, but as a former student, under the old quarter system, "Family" is not the adjective that come to my mind to describe Tech, but words like "Interesting, Professional, Cooperative Students, Grind, Monotonous and Urban," come to mind. Although I did, and still do, love Tech's campus and location I wanted to get out and move on as quickly as possible. Thus, my own experience at Tech was much closer to a work, i.e. factory, than to a family environment. Moreover, CGC comments, about recruiting and preparing player for the NFL and life after, strike me as a more factory than a family atmosphere.
Also It would be interesting to hear from former and current players and recruits on Tech's football program atmosphere.
Clemson is reflective of its head coach who is a quality person all the way around. That said, it is a "football factory" as the term is commonly understood:
A place that prioritizes football over everything else especially academics
A place that organizes curriculum to benefit football
A place that has a game day atmosphere that is choregraphed from long before the players emerge on the field.
A place that has absolutely no restrictions on recruiting and can flagrantly violate any NCAA rule and get away with it
A place that has no problem paying players either openly or under the table using bag men.
A place that utilizes gray shirting, and the process to manage a roster. One way or another in culling unproductive players.
A place that routinely hauls in 4 and 5 star players and top 15 at a minimum recruiting classes.
All of these universities have semi professional football programs in everything but name. It is the reality of the times we live in. That said, the number of true football factories is actually quite small. In order to have one you must possess an administration that is utterly without scruples, will spare no expense and will bend any rule to further the goals of the program. Getting that plus having a fertile recruiting niche is pretty hard to do. Just having a lot of money is not enough. (though helpful to be sure)
At present, I would consider UGA, FSU, Florida, Clemson, Alabama, LSU, Oklahoma, Penn State, Ohio State, USCw, Texas, Texas A&M, and maybe a few wannabes like Auburn (too much under Saban's thumb for the moment), Tennessee (incompetent coaching will cancel out the best intentions), Michigan (recruiting a little shallow perhaps) Oklahoma State, (see Auburn) Notre Dame and Miami (hard for private schools to sustain success but some would put these two in the elite class. This is all speculative and I am sure others will differ. Tech will never aspire to be part of that group so I guess we will be "family". Personally, I would like to be a factory and just go ahead and make the Faustian bargain with the Devil but then I am a sidewalk fan so I do not have scruples like alumni do.