Rodney Kent
Ramblin' Wreck
- Messages
- 558
- Location
- McDonough, GA
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.
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.
