GT COACHING HISTORY

Rodney Kent

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First, I would think some posters should be wary of their comparisons, due to comparing Paul Johnson with some of our very inept coaches of the past.

Bud Carson had a total career record of 27-27 and only coached at Tech as a Head Coach. By the way, he also accumulated some baggage which may have entered into his short coaching career here. Carson was the antithesis of Johnson. He was a great defensive coach, but not innovative with his offense.

There is no need to consider Bill Fulcher as he coached only two years with a record of 12-10. His heart was not in coaching, and he resigned.

Pepper Rodgers record at GT was 34-31 and his Triple Option failed to produce a winning attitude. He also had some baggage that did not endear him to some of the GT boosters and fans. His overall Head Coaching record was 73-65. Since Pepper ran the option, it would be proper to compare Johnson’s tenure with Rodgers’.

Bill Curry was selected by Bobby Dodd. Bill had an impeccable character, but was not a good Head Coach with the X’s and O’s. He played pro football and was an excellent center, but it did not correlate to coaching. His record at Tech was 31-43. His overall record as a Head Coach was 93-128.

Bobby Ross had a record of 31-26 at Tech, but did win a national title one year. His overall record as a Head Coach was 103-101.

Bill Lewis had a record of 11-19 at Tech and never seemed to have the program under control. His overall Head Coaching record is 46-52.

George O’Leary had a record of 52-33 at Tech with Friegden; however his record without Friegden was 18-20. To be fair, it must be accounted to him for hiring Friegden. O’Leary’s overall Head Coaching record is a respectable 124-89 with a record of 72-56 at UCF.

Chan Gailey’s record at Tech was 44-33. His overall record was 68-43, with stints at Troy Alabama (19-5) and Samford (5-6). He was a good recruiter, but his best year was 9-5. His other years here were all winners, but barely with three 7-6 years and two 7-5 years.

John Heisman’s record at Tech was 104-29. He had stints at Akron, Ohio (6-2); Auburn (12-4), Clemson (19-3), Pennsylvania (10-6), and Rice (14-18). His first records at Akron, Auburn, and Clemson were over more years than indicated because they only played 3 or 4 games a year. Heisman’s overall record was 171-66.

William Alexander’s record was similar to Dodd’s in that it was his only Head Coaching stint. He was 134-95 at GT.

Bobby Dodd’s record was 165-64.

Paul Johnson’s record is similar only to Chan Gailey’s in a small way. Only a fraction of Gailey’s coaching was at a smaller college (Troy & Samford). Paul Johnson’s best record is at a small college (Georgia Southern). His record at GSU was 62-10. However, his next record was a very respectable record at Navy (45-29) which is much more limited in recruiting than Tech. Paul’s record at Tech is presently 47-32 which is in line with his coaching at Navy. It is understood that he gets better material at Tech than Navy, but also plays stronger opponents.

His overall record comes close to matching that of Heisman and Dodd, but arguably the biggest success was in a weaker conference. For comparisons, it does not seem reasonable to try and compare his record at Tech to those of Bud Carson, Bill Curry, or Bill Lewis. It would have to be conceded that these coaches were subpar and probably could not win consistently at Texas, FSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama, etal.

There is one problem with comparing Johnson to Gailey. Gailey was a good recruiter. It seems reasonable that Johnson’s first two years may have been given a boost by the recruits left by Gailey. This then leaves a question about Johnson’s ability to recruit which might have something to do with the downward trend in his record at Tech. This does not take away the fact that Johnson won respectably in his first two years.
 

IEEEWreck

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655
I don't think I understand what you're getting at here. What should we take away from these numbers?

A few thoughts:

1. GSU is Georgia State University. I see a bunch of people doing this and it really annoys me for some reason. We're not GIT, and Southern is not GSU.

2. Calling Gailey a good recruiter (especially by implied comparison to Johnson) sounds like hindsight to me. Sure, his last classes were quite strong, but sentiment at the time did not recognize that, if I recall.
 

augustabuzz

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3,401
...

Bud Carson had a total career record of 27-27 and only coached at Tech as a Head Coach. By the way, he also accumulated some baggage which may have entered into his short coaching career here. Carson was the antithesis of Johnson. He was a great defensive coach, but not innovative with his offense.

Bill Curry was selected by Bobby Dodd. Bill had an impeccable character, but was not a good Head Coach with the X’s and O’s. He played pro football and was an excellent center, but it did not correlate to coaching. His record at Tech was 31-43. His overall record as a Head Coach was 93-128.

His overall record comes close to matching that of Heisman and Dodd, but arguably the biggest success was in a weaker conference. For comparisons, it does not seem reasonable to try and compare his record at Tech to those of Bud Carson, Bill Curry, or Bill Lewis. It would have to be conceded that these coaches were subpar and probably could not win consistently at Texas, FSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama, etal.
.

Bud Carson was Dodd's DC in 1966.

Bill Curry was not selected by Dodd. Curry did win consistently at Alabama. Carson did win as head coach of the Cleveland Browns even though he was brought in as a caretaker until the next coach became available.
 

collegeballfan

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Gailey's record as a recruiter was rankings of 18, 62, 62, 79, 50 & 63 per Rivals. Except for one class, a worse recruiter than Johnson.

As Dodd was leaving as head coach GT went through a period where losing was the name of the game. That reputation as a losing program is still there today. Add to that the trend that started in the 1960's of players going to college, not to play college ball or get a free education, but to attend the NFL minor league and you have the challenge of building Tech into a top 25 team.

If I am a 4* or 5* player and I absolutely know I am going to play on Sunday, I am going to sign with the easiest school I can that will get me into the 1st round of the NFL draft. And that ain't Georgia Tech. It ain't never been Georgia Tech.

What does Georgia Tech need to do to turn the program around? Does Georgia Tech even want to take that step?
 

jayparr

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First, I would think some posters should be wary of their comparisons, due to comparing Paul Johnson with some of our very inept coaches of the past.

Bud Carson had a total career record of 27-27 and only coached at Tech as a Head Coach. By the way, he also accumulated some baggage which may have entered into his short coaching career here. Carson was the antithesis of Johnson. He was a great defensive coach, but not innovative with his offense.

There is no need to consider Bill Fulcher as he coached only two years with a record of 12-10. His heart was not in coaching, and he resigned.

Pepper Rodgers record at GT was 34-31 and his Triple Option failed to produce a winning attitude. He also had some baggage that did not endear him to some of the GT boosters and fans. His overall Head Coaching record was 73-65. Since Pepper ran the option, it would be proper to compare Johnson’s tenure with Rodgers’.

Bill Curry was selected by Bobby Dodd. Bill had an impeccable character, but was not a good Head Coach with the X’s and O’s. He played pro football and was an excellent center, but it did not correlate to coaching. His record at Tech was 31-43. His overall record as a Head Coach was 93-128.

Bobby Ross had a record of 31-26 at Tech, but did win a national title one year. His overall record as a Head Coach was 103-101.

Bill Lewis had a record of 11-19 at Tech and never seemed to have the program under control. His overall Head Coaching record is 46-52.

George O’Leary had a record of 52-33 at Tech with Friegden; however his record without Friegden was 18-20. To be fair, it must be accounted to him for hiring Friegden. O’Leary’s overall Head Coaching record is a respectable 124-89 with a record of 72-56 at UCF.

Chan Gailey’s record at Tech was 44-33. His overall record was 68-43, with stints at Troy Alabama (19-5) and Samford (5-6). He was a good recruiter, but his best year was 9-5. His other years here were all winners, but barely with three 7-6 years and two 7-5 years.

John Heisman’s record at Tech was 104-29. He had stints at Akron, Ohio (6-2); Auburn (12-4), Clemson (19-3), Pennsylvania (10-6), and Rice (14-18). His first records at Akron, Auburn, and Clemson were over more years than indicated because they only played 3 or 4 games a year. Heisman’s overall record was 171-66.

William Alexander’s record was similar to Dodd’s in that it was his only Head Coaching stint. He was 134-95 at GT.

Bobby Dodd’s record was 165-64.

Paul Johnson’s record is similar only to Chan Gailey’s in a small way. Only a fraction of Gailey’s coaching was at a smaller college (Troy & Samford). Paul Johnson’s best record is at a small college (Georgia Southern). His record at GSU was 62-10. However, his next record was a very respectable record at Navy (45-29) which is much more limited in recruiting than Tech. Paul’s record at Tech is presently 47-32 which is in line with his coaching at Navy. It is understood that he gets better material at Tech than Navy, but also plays stronger opponents.

His overall record comes close to matching that of Heisman and Dodd, but arguably the biggest success was in a weaker conference. For comparisons, it does not seem reasonable to try and compare his record at Tech to those of Bud Carson, Bill Curry, or Bill Lewis. It would have to be conceded that these coaches were subpar and probably could not win consistently at Texas, FSU, Michigan, Ohio State, Alabama, etal.

There is one problem with comparing Johnson to Gailey. Gailey was a good recruiter. It seems reasonable that Johnson’s first two years may have been given a boost by the recruits left by Gailey. This then leaves a question about Johnson’s ability to recruit which might have something to do with the downward trend in his record at Tech. This does not take away the fact that Johnson won respectably in his first two years.
As far as Fulcher goes. Some may be inerested to know that well after the Tech job he went to a VERY small high school in Daytona Beach as the head coach! As I remember it was in the early to 1990's.
 

jayparr

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Gailey's record as a recruiter was rankings of 18, 62, 62, 79, 50 & 63 per Rivals. Except for one class, a worse recruiter than Johnson.

As Dodd was leaving as head coach GT went through a period where losing was the name of the game. That reputation as a losing program is still there today. Add to that the trend that started in the 1960's of players going to college, not to play college ball or get a free education, but to attend the NFL minor league and you have the challenge of building Tech into a top 25 team.

If I am a 4* or 5* player and I absolutely know I am going to play on Sunday, I am going to sign with the easiest school I can that will get me into the 1st round of the NFL draft. And that ain't Georgia Tech. It ain't never been Georgia Tech.

What does Georgia Tech need to do to turn the program around? Does Georgia Tech even want to take that step?
A LOUD NO. We need help from the hill, and we will not get it!
 

TheSilasSonRising

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Well, Fulcher's last season at GT was 1973 and I thought he went into real estate in the Augusta area. Nor sure.

He would have been a little long in the teeth to go back in the 90's to coach, but that is interesting to know.

As another poster referred to, I don't think curry was Dodd's choice. I heard he wanted Spurrier but, just like when he wanted Dickey to replace him, he was overruled by God knows who insisting we had to have a "Tech Man", whether he could coach or not.

Man we have hurt ourselves so needlessly.
 

jayparr

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Well, Fulcher's last season at GT was 1973 and I thought he went into real estate in the Augusta area. Nor sure.

He would have been a little long in the teeth to go back in the 90's to coach, but that is interesting to know.

As another poster referred to, I don't think curry was Dodd's choice. I heard he wanted Spurrier but, just like when he wanted Dickey to replace him, he was overruled by God knows who insisting we had to have a "Tech Man", whether he could coach or not.

Man we have hurt ourselves so needlessly.
I Spent a lot of time in Daytona from 1992 on, so it was after that year.
 

Rodney Kent

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TheSilasSonRising: I had heard that Spurrier wanted the Tech job, but was passed over! Boy, did we ever miss that one! I also heard he was miffed at Tech because they did not give him a chance at the job.
 

Rodney Kent

Ramblin' Wreck
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558
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McDonough, GA
jayparr: Wow, I would like to know the whole story on why he gave up the Tech job and then later decided to coach in High School! That would be an interesting read.
 

augustabuzz

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3,401
Well, Fulcher's last season at GT was 1973 and I thought he went into real estate in the Augusta area. Nor sure.

He would have been a little long in the teeth to go back in the 90's to coach, but that is interesting to know.

As another poster referred to, I don't think curry was Dodd's choice. I heard he wanted Spurrier but, just like when he wanted Dickey to replace him, he was overruled by God knows who insisting we had to have a "Tech Man", whether he could coach or not.

Man we have hurt ourselves so needlessly.
You are right about Bill in real estate in Augusta. I'll ask him about the HS coaching, but I don't believe it to be true. Kim King was on the committee that interviewed the three finalists for head coach in 1980. He told me at that time that Steve Spurrier, Jerry Glanville, and Bill Curry were the interviewees and Curry dominated the interview.
 

forensicbuzz

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TheSilasSonRising: I had heard that Spurrier wanted the Tech job, but was passed over! Boy, did we ever miss that one! I also heard he was miffed at Tech because they did not give him a chance at the job.
Spurrier was passed over in favor of Bobby Ross. Spurrier then went to Duke (and made them bowl-eligible and beat us) and then to Florida. I wouldn't say we missed on that one. Bobby Ross did bring us a National Championship. Would Spurrier have done that at Tech before moving on to Florida...doubtful.

Or I could be remembering totally wrong.
 

augustabuzz

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You are right about Bill in real estate in Augusta. I'll ask him about the HS coaching, but I don't believe it to be true. Kim King was on the committee that interviewed the three finalists for head coach in 1980. He told me at that time that Steve Spurrier, Jerry Glanville, and Bill Curry were the interviewees and Curry dominated the interview.
I just heard from Bill that he did in fact coach a private school in Florida for one year in the 1990s.
 

augustabuzz

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Spurrier was passed over in favor of Bobby Ross. Spurrier then went to Duke (and made them bowl-eligible and beat us) and then to Florida. I wouldn't say we missed on that one. Bobby Ross did bring us a National Championship. Would Spurrier have done that at Tech before moving on to Florida...doubtful.

Or I could be remembering totally wrong.
Steve was on the Tech staff in 1979 that was fired along with Pepper. He sought the head coach job only then. Homer Rice pulled gold out of his hat in 1987, by getting Ross after leaving Maryland during the Len Bias aftermath.
 

Tech First

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Spurrier was passed over in favor of Bobby Ross. Spurrier then went to Duke (and made them bowl-eligible and beat us) and then to Florida. I wouldn't say we missed on that one. Bobby Ross did bring us a National Championship. Would Spurrier have done that at Tech before moving on to Florida...doubtful.

Or I could be remembering totally wrong.
We missed Spurrier when we hired Curry not ross.
 

collegeballfan

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TheSilasSonRising: I had heard that Spurrier wanted the Tech job, but was passed over! Boy, did we ever miss that one! I also heard he was miffed at Tech because they did not give him a chance at the job.

The story in the ajc at the time, per my memory, was that Curry was hired, Spurrier asked for the OC job, and Curry said "I will let you know". Next day Spurrier was gone. The report was that Spurrier said "I will not let Bill Curry determine my future."

"And now you know the rest of the story." (Sorry guys, just could not resist.)
 

Rodney Kent

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All: Thanks for the additional information on both Fulcher and Spurrier. I missed many parts of these episodes. There are generally many rumors about these things, but somewhere in all of them there is probably some truth. It is called filling in the blanks similar to working crossword puzzles.
 
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