Genuine Questions!

[Skeptic]

Here's the reality, transferring out mostly makes sense if you're a grad transfer with degree in hand; or if you're willing to lose a year and go to another P5 or simply about to flunk out. If you are simply leaving for Playing time with aspirations of the NFL you are getting terrible advice. Essentially to go D2, D3 or Juco, you are simply leaving behind in most cases, - better education, better coaches , better competition to push you, and better players ahead of you on the depth chart to push you. Dropping down a level to start every game against the JV won't get the NFLs attention anymore than being a senior at a P5 pro day if you are actually talented!

The NFL is not in my calculations. Playing time is. And if a back wants to play in the NFL, then Tech's offense is not the place for him.

 

[LibertyTurns]

Putting aside the fact very few kids go on to play in the NFL, I can't think of a player who transferred from Georgia Tech doing much of anything at another FBS program.

Quitsey Carter had a good career if I recall correctly. He lost to us 2-3 times and had a long career in the NFL didn't he? Maybe MM can do the same.

I'll say it again about MM but that kid supported the Institute in an outstanding fashion right up to his last carry. His "I'm leaving the Team" note was professional and respectful. I'll be dismayed if he turns and ends up playing for those wretched bastards, but anywhere else I hope he has a great football career. GT is not for everyone and we seem to forget that from time to time.

 

[forensicbuzz]

Quitsey Carter had a good career if I recall correctly. He lost to us 2-3 times and had a long career in the NFL didn't he? Maybe MM can do the same.

I'll say it again about MM but that kid supported the Institute in an outstanding fashion right up to his last carry. His "I'm leaving the Team" note was professional and respectful. I'll be dismayed if he turns and ends up playing for those wretched bastards, but anywhere else I hope he has a great football career. GT is not for everyone and we seem to forget that from time to time.

I agree 100% with the 2nd paragraph. As for the first point, QC never joined the team at GT, so he didn't quit. He decided to play pro baseball (as I'm positive you know), and then when he decided to go back to college football, he backed out of his agreement. Had he wanted to play anywhere but uga or an ACC school, and he would have been released from his LOI. Since he wanted to go to uga, he had to get a ruling from the NCAA to break that contract.

I'd say what QC did was break his word, not quit on the team. Even then, it was tenuous. Had he gone somewhere else and succeeded, he'd merely be a footnote.

 

[croberts]

The NFL is not in my calculations. Playing time is. And if a back wants to play in the NFL, then Tech's offense is not the place for him.

And if he wants to reach the NFL as a WR blah blah blah. And if he wants to reach the NFL as a OL blah blah blah.

 

[Skeptic]

And if he wants to reach the NFL as a WR blah blah blah. And if he wants to reach the NFL as a OL blah blah blah.

Well, I am willing to hear a counter argument at RB. Name one on an active roster? In eight years? (Two, both cut? ) it is not a criticism of the offense. Again, for the umpteenth time -- I have no idea what that means but Ma used to say it so it is important -- I like it. But it is not an NFL, one-back offense. (And for the record, I've never made that WR argument. That would be kind of foolish, right?)

 

[forensicbuzz]

Well, I am willing to hear a counter argument at RB. Name one on an active roster? In eight years? (Two, both cut? ) it is not a criticism of the offense. Again, for the umpteenth time -- I have no idea what that means but Ma used to say it so it is important -- I like it. But it is not an NFL, one-back offense. (And for the record, I've never made that WR argument. That would be kind of foolish, right?)

Well, I can name 5 off the top of my head that were given a chance to make an NFL roster, probably more. Really, when it comes right down to it, a chance is all you can really ask for. It's tough to make the NFL as a RB, regardless of where you go to school and what type of offense you're in.

Zach Laskey is on the active roster for the LA Rams.

The average career of an NFL running back is 2.57 years. We had 2 running backs invited to camps from last year's team. One of them made the team and is active on the roster today against the Falcons. 50% is pretty good. A-Backs are either a scat back or a slot receiver in the NFL, so that's a tougher route to the NFL.

 

[MountainBuzzMan]

If you have the skill for the NFL, it will find you. Dwyer, Allen come to mind fairly quickly. Laskey made the practice squad. Sorry, but if we had a B-Back with NFL skills, they would certainly get a shot.

 

[forensicbuzz]

If you have the skill for the NFL, it will find you. Dwyer, Allen come to mind fairly quickly. Laskey made the practice squad. Sorry, but if we had a B-Back with NFL skills, they would certainly get a shot.

Laskey is on the IR not the practice squad.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

I completely understand kids transferring who are not getting playing time. How much fun can it be to be a tackling dummy in practice and an obstruction on the sideline during games? No complaints from me if a kid who's not as good as our starters wants to try somewhere else, somewhere where he might be better than the starters. That's just the good ol' American spirit, IMHO.

What is upsetting, though, is when your starting QB (three years ago) and your leading rusher (this year) decide to transfer. Then it seems like there's a problem inside the locker room or with the coaches or what-have-you. Much more worrying.

Both of those cases are outliers, imo, indicative of nothing. Vad only half heartedly bought into the offense to begin with then he got his feelings hurt at the elite qb camps. Then the Vad experimental offense was a disaster so when CPJ recommitted to our bread and butter, Vad was gone. That is a very specific set of circumstances that led to that outcome. As it turns out, he did us a huge favor.

MM got passed up by a freshman and ended up leading us in yards, barely, because said freshman had a couple suspensions and an injury. Even though he began to blossom the last few games, he had already made up his mind. Oh well, have a nice life. I won't be rootin' for ya, though. No ill will, your just not a Jacket anymore and it was your decision. Btw, I was a big Vad fan before he split town but I had no interest in his career afterwards. Didn't wish him ill, either.

 

[Rock]

Both of those cases are outliers, imo, indicative of nothing. Vad only half heartedly bought into the offense to begin with then he got his feelings hurt at the elite qb camps. Then the Vad experimental offense was a disaster so when CPJ recommitted to our bread and butter, Vad was gone. That is a very specific set of circumstances that led to that outcome. As it turns out, he did us a huge favor.

MM got passed up by a freshman and ended up leading us in yards, barely, because said freshman had a couple suspensions and an injury. Even though he began to blossom the last few games, he had already made up his mind. Oh well, have a nice life. I won't be rootin' for ya, though. No ill will, your just not a Jacket anymore and it was your decision. Btw, I was a big Vad fan before he split town but I had no interest in his career afterwards. Didn't wish him ill, either.

and if MM would stick it out, I am afraid strike 3 is not too far away and he would be #1 again.

 

[18in32]

Both of those cases are outliers, imo, indicative of nothing. Vad only half heartedly bought into the offense to begin with then he got his feelings hurt at the elite qb camps. Then the Vad experimental offense was a disaster so when CPJ recommitted to our bread and butter, Vad was gone. That is a very specific set of circumstances that led to that outcome. As it turns out, he did us a huge favor.

MM got passed up by a freshman and ended up leading us in yards, barely, because said freshman had a couple suspensions and an injury. Even though he began to blossom the last few games, he had already made up his mind. Oh well, have a nice life. I won't be rootin' for ya, though. No ill will, your just not a Jacket anymore and it was your decision. Btw, I was a big Vad fan before he split town but I had no interest in his career afterwards. Didn't wish him ill, either.

Yes, those are the 'standard explanations' (and maybe the right ones) for these two situations. But IMHO, neither is a sufficient nor satisfactory explanation, and both cases suggest there's some opaque miscommunication between player and staff that I'm sure both regret.

 

[jeffgt14]

My gawd, reading the stuff on this thread makes me wonder how in the world anybody is going to agree on anything. All the boomer, x-ers, millennials throwing blame around but I don't see anyone taking responsibility for their own actions. Stop blaming each other. Start talking to each other. Listen and learn from each other.

I grant you that I don't understand how someone can walk away from a free education at Georgia Tech but we all know that GT is not for everyone. Students transfer every year, whether they are regular students or student/athletes. Are we upset more about the student leaving our great institute OR are we upset because a good athlete is leaving our football team? The sun comes up, the sun goes down, the world keeps spinning. LIFE GOES ON!

Let's enjoy the Army/Navy game today & cheer on CPJ's coaching tree!!!!!!!!!!!!

Blaming is a much nicer word that what I was using. But yes, all of our generations suck equally so it's best if we all quit our "blaming", support our team, watch some football and enjoy life.

 

[Coloradojacket]

1. Comparing a coach taking another job and a kid transferring are apples and oranges. The coach has one in the hand. The transferring player has nothing. Yes he can go to another school to say be a running back but he then still needs to beat out the current running backs, And if the school has poor running backs then probably he is about to join a lesser team.
2. As far as Tech and the NFL when it comes to running backs. The only Tech running backs that saw real time where Dorsey Levens, a ND transfer, and Tashard Choice, and Oklahoma transfer. Eddie Lee Ivery saw time but sort of messed that up. Our greatest running backs in the modern era, Jerry Mays and Robert Lavette, well Lavattes went to the cowboys but hardly ever played.
3. Our offense only limits a quarterback from becoming an NFL quarterback but that also is still a possibility. Just remember one really good quarterback in the NFL, Donovan McNabb, he played at Syracuse when they ran the Wishbone. It is a matter of the talent.

 

[Ash]

and if MM would stick it out, I am afraid strike 3 is not too far away and he would be #1 again.

I feel confident that MM is smart enough to see that. And if for some reason he did not, I am confident that the coaching staff gave him a honest evaluation of what we have going forward at BB. Since MM decided to leave anyway, I have to assume there are other factors in his decisions than just playing time.

 

[jorgigtsan46]

@Leonard Larramore personally, i think its because thats how weve been conditioned. coaching is a job, but being a player is a commitment. thats just how its been. i also think it has to do with the school itself; if a fanbase knows that the coach has been really good, but the school itself doesnt have a terrific reputation, then they are somewhat ok with an upwards move from the coach since it is a job and the coach can improve his job. meanwhile, we love our school, and any player/student-athlete that doesnt simply doesnt recognize how great it is in our minds, and its much more harmful to our pride. its a big blow.

do you know what happened with lynn griffin by the way? was there a certain incident that led him to make a decision regarding what he wanted to do?

 

[Boomergump]

Well, we certainly don't need hostages on the roster. This current situation with transfers is just a reflection on our society as a whole. Patience is not a current virtue of our "me first" culture. I barely saw the field at TECH my first two seasons. It never even occured to me to transfer. TECH was just the place I decided to go and if I wanted to play, I had to keep working and earn the chance. It eventually happened but it was never easy to hang on to my spot. We kept recruiting good players. While I fully acknowledge this is a free country and every kid has the chance to decide for himself, I still find a little part of myself disappointed when players decide to leave, especially when they are important to the team and a big contributor.

 

[MidtownJacket]

The difference to me, and I am just shooting from the hip now, is that I view SAs signing on for their school first and then athletics second. Coaches are employees like the rest of us (and $ motivations are probably the first thing for them to evaluate).

Coming from the Institute, I know how much value a student can get from their time at MaTech. When we see students transfer out, they are picking football(insert sport here) over the education which is a thorn in the side of those of us who cling to the notion of student athletes.

May well be that people with my view point are delusional and we may be holding onto a notion that doesn't continue to persist in the world today.

 

[dressedcheeseside]

The difference to me, and I am just shooting from the hip now, is that I view SAs signing on for their school first and then athletics second. Coaches are employees like the rest of us (and $ motivations are probably the first thing for them to evaluate).

Coming from the Institute, I know how much value a student can get from their time at MaTech. When we see students transfer out, they are picking football(insert sport here) over the education which is a thorn in the side of those of us who cling to the notion of student athletes.

May well be that people with my view point are delusional and we may be holding onto a notion that doesn't continue to persist in the world today.

The myth persists because of what the recruits say when they're interviewed: "I chose GT for the academics."

 

[a5ehren]

It is funny seeing a youngster complaining about the boomers. We thought nothing of living in dorms with a communal bathroom down the hall, no AC....hell I even lived under a stairs for a year. These days....they demand private rooms, pro ate baths, participation trophies etc.

You weren't paying up to $49k/year, either. (source: http://www.finaid.gatech.edu/upcoming-year-cost-overview )

 

[MidtownJacket]

The myth persists because of what the recruits say when they're interviewed: "I chose GT for the academics."

I agree, and even more so, the NCAA continues the pretense of school first.