GT Ranked 48th in Preseason SP+ Projections

[WreckinGT]

Regressing or staying the same. There was huge progression in 2020 compared to 2019. However, that did not translate to more wins due to Covid. So, if there is more progress in 2021 we should win more games. 4>3. However, 4 isn’t good enough, we need to be competitive in each and every game which I mentioned in my post above. If we continue to get better then I can see us winning 8-10 games in a couple of seasons. We just haven’t been there in the trenches imo

Was there really a huge progression? We went from 107th in overall efficiency in 2019 to 101st in 2020. Offense went from 100th to 92nd. Defense went from 96th to 88th. Special teams regressed from 85th to 94th even though we had the best punter in the country. Penalties were significantly worse. Turnovers were significantly worse. It really wasn't a great progression from year 1 to year 2. That said, I can buy the argument that year one was trying to plug square pegs into round holes and year 2 we had to deal with alot of youth and a loss of practice time due to covid. Year three needs to show pretty significant improvements in all of these numbers or else we have a problem.

 

[Sheboygan]

Was there really a huge progression? We went from 107th in overall efficiency in 2019 to 101st in 2020. Offense went from 100th to 92nd. Defense went from 96th to 88th. Special teams regressed from 85th to 94th even though we had the best punter in the country. Penalties were significantly worse. Turnovers were significantly worse. It really wasn't a great progression from year 1 to year 2. That said, I can buy the argument that year one was trying to plug square pegs into round holes and year 2 we had to deal with alot of youth and a loss of practice time due to covid. Year three needs to show pretty significant improvements in all of these numbers or else we have a problem.

Been saying that for weeks.............

 

[forensicbuzz]

Was there really a huge progression? We went from 107th in overall efficiency in 2019 to 101st in 2020. Offense went from 100th to 92nd. Defense went from 96th to 88th. Special teams regressed from 85th to 94th even though we had the best punter in the country. Penalties were significantly worse. Turnovers were significantly worse. It really wasn't a great progression from year 1 to year 2. That said, I can buy the argument that year one was trying to plug square pegs into round holes and year 2 we had to deal with alot of youth and a loss of practice time due to covid. Year three needs to show pretty significant improvements in all of these numbers or else we have a problem.

Yes. There was a huge progression. I'm not worried about the numbers; I go by what I saw with my eyes. I saw a team that was much better in 2020 than in 2019, despite the COVID restrictions, despite the reduction in preparation, despite the increased competition. I saw better performance on offense and defense, despite what the "numbers" say. Sometimes you just have to look beyond the numbers. I look for even more improvement this year.

As for turnovers, much can be attributed to a true freshman running point. He'll be a true freshman again this year, with 1-1/3 Spring Practices and a whole season of preparation. I expect 2021 to have much fewer turnovers. Regarding penalties, this is going to be a key point I look for the assess how our coaching staff is growing. If the penalties remain high, if the false starts continue to be high, I'll be very disappointed in the coaching staff. I don't expect I'll be disappointed.

 

[TheNaturalScientist]

Yes. There was a huge progression. I'm not worried about the numbers; I go by what I saw with my eyes. I saw a team that was much better in 2020 than in 2019, despite the COVID restrictions, despite the reduction in preparation, despite the increased competition. I saw better performance on offense and defense, despite what the "numbers" say. Sometimes you just have to look beyond the numbers. I look for even more improvement this year.

As for turnovers, much can be attributed to a true freshman running point. He'll be a true freshman again this year, with 1-1/3 Spring Practices and a whole season of preparation. I expect 2021 to have much fewer turnovers. Regarding penalties, this is going to be a key point I look for the assess how our coaching staff is growing. If the penalties remain high, if the false starts continue to be high, I'll be very disappointed in the coaching staff. I don't expect I'll be disappointed.

Couldn’t have said it better myself. If some people think that there was no progress last season then I just assume they didn’t watch the games or forgot how truly awful watching the 2019 team was. That team didn’t have a pulse against Citadel, Temple, Duke, VT. Not to mention Clemson and uGA (admittedly the 2020 team looked lost against Clemson). I’m not a huge CGC supporter yet but the progression was clear to me. If we continue to shoot ourselves in the foot or heaven forbid lose one of the first two, then I will lose all my optimism

 

[Sheboygan]

How sad that our fan base would settle for a 4 to 5 win season. Damn shame.

As part of our fanbase, I would not settle for 4 wins.....for me, it is 5 wins MINIMUM !!

 

[Sheboygan]

Yes. There was a huge progression. I'm not worried about the numbers; I go by what I saw with my eyes. I saw a team that was much better in 2020 than in 2019, despite the COVID restrictions, despite the reduction in preparation, despite the increased competition. I saw better performance on offense and defense, despite what the "numbers" say. Sometimes you just have to look beyond the numbers. I look for even more improvement this year.

As for turnovers, much can be attributed to a true freshman running point. He'll be a true freshman again this year, with 1-1/3 Spring Practices and a whole season of preparation. I expect 2021 to have much fewer turnovers. Regarding penalties, this is going to be a key point I look for the assess how our coaching staff is growing. If the penalties remain high, if the false starts continue to be high, I'll be very disappointed in the coaching staff. I don't expect I'll be disappointed.

I only quibble with your use of the word "huge". Maybe it's because I wiped 2019 from my memory as a nightmare. But anywho, I share your expectations with a heightened sense of urgency that has formed as a small knot in my gut. That knot says" WHAT IF we win only 3-4 games in 2021 ? I hope that knot starts to go away in the first 3-4 games of 2021.....

 

[forensicbuzz]

I only quibble with your use of the word "huge". Maybe it's because I wiped 2019 from my memory as a nightmare. But anywho, I share your expectations with a heightened sense of urgency that has formed as a small knot in my gut. That knot says" WHAT IF we win only 3-4 games in 2021 ? I hope that knot starts to go away in the first 3-4 games of 2021.....

I think the gameplay in 2020 was infinitely better than in 2019. But, I'm one set of eyes and one opinion.

I'm disappointed every time we lose a game, regardless of what everyone else thinks about our chances. I am a full-board optimist going into a game. That being said, I also realize that we're probably going to lose our share of games in 2021 (although I won't count a loss until it's lost). You just never know.

I'm not worried about wins and losses in 2021 (well, that's a lie, but I'm less concerned than most years). I'm much more interested in seeing this team exhibit the little things that indicate they're developing into a team that will compete with EVERYONE on our schedule. Those are going to be associated with the OL (I'm tired of our interior linemen looking like luchadors), the interior DL (no more skates), linebackers (less tackles after a 6-8 yard gain), and getting off the field after 3rd down. The rest of the development I hope to see, I've already mentioned.

 

[Sheboygan]

I think the gameplay in 2020 was infinitely better than in 2019. But, I'm one set of eyes and one opinion.

I'm disappointed every time we lose a game, regardless of what everyone else thinks about our chances. I am a full-board optimist going into a game. That being said, I also realize that we're probably going to lose our share of games in 2021 (although I won't count a loss until it's lost). You just never know.

I'm not worried about wins and losses in 2021 (well, that's a lie, but I'm less concerned than most years). I'm much more interested in seeing this team exhibit the little things that indicate they're developing into a team that will compete with EVERYONE on our schedule. Those are going to be associated with the OL (I'm tired of our interior linemen looking like luchadors), the interior DL (no more skates), linebackers (less tackles after a 6-8 yard gain), and getting off the field after 3rd down. The rest of the development I hope to see, I've already mentioned.

Agreed ! Can't wait for more college football !

 

[WreckinGT]

Yes. There was a huge progression. I'm not worried about the numbers; I go by what I saw with my eyes. I saw a team that was much better in 2020 than in 2019, despite the COVID restrictions, despite the reduction in preparation, despite the increased competition. I saw better performance on offense and defense, despite what the "numbers" say. Sometimes you just have to look beyond the numbers. I look for even more improvement this year.

As for turnovers, much can be attributed to a true freshman running point. He'll be a true freshman again this year, with 1-1/3 Spring Practices and a whole season of preparation. I expect 2021 to have much fewer turnovers. Regarding penalties, this is going to be a key point I look for the assess how our coaching staff is growing. If the penalties remain high, if the false starts continue to be high, I'll be very disappointed in the coaching staff. I don't expect I'll be disappointed.

Everyone is going to have a different opinion if you just go off of an eye test. For me I would have said the offense is a good bit improved, and the defense got a good bit worse this season. The stats don't really bare that out completely but that was my impression. Admittedly, my impression of the defense is heavily weighted on our final game which was an embarrassing performance.

 

[WreckinGT]

Couldn’t have said it better myself. If some people think that there was no progress last season then I just assume they didn’t watch the games or forgot how truly awful watching the 2019 team was. That team didn’t have a pulse against Citadel, Temple, Duke, VT. Not to mention Clemson and uGA (admittedly the 2020 team looked lost against Clemson). I’m not a huge CGC supporter yet but the progression was clear to me. If we continue to shoot ourselves in the foot or heaven forbid lose one of the first two, then I will lose all my optimism

I mean, we lost by 66 points to Clemson this year. We lost by double digits to a team who only beat us. We weren't even really competitive against a pretty average BC team. You can find examples of ugly in both seasons. I think we progressed in some areas and regressed in others which is why we ended up in relatively the same spot. To call it a huge progression would be ignoring the actual results. We do have the potential for a pretty large improvements going into this season though, and we should expect it in wins and in stats.

 

[stech81]

Everyone hates to lose, I really can't I saw that much improvement from 2019 to 2020 maybe a little from time to time but not over all. But what I thought was improvement could have been the running backs only. What I do know after this year I'll know if it's the talent we have of if we need better coordinators . I'm betting it's the coordinators that are the problem.

 

[slugboy]

I mean, we lost by 66 points to Clemson this year. We lost by double digits to a team who only beat us. We weren't even really competitive against a pretty average BC team. You can find examples of ugly in both seasons. I think we progressed in some areas and regressed in others which is why we ended up in relatively the same spot. To call it a huge progression would be ignoring the actual results. We do have the potential for a pretty large improvements going into this season though, and we should expect it in wins and in stats.

One star player can make a huge difference. One below average player can also make all the difference.
Look at our running game for an example. While superior offensive lineman can give you a spot advantage (Shamire Devine, for one), you need at least three really good linemen on one side to have a matchup advantage.
If you have one star receiver and the other team has a shutdown corner, they can often scheme that one player out of the picture. For example, the Falcons have Ridley, Gage, and Jones, and they’re looking for a 4th receiver because they need that relief valve.
We have a couple of weak positions on the field. The go to argument is “scheme around the weak position”. To do that, your opponent needs an equal or lesser number of weak spots, or you need to have a star player or two that can do way more than their job.

 

[Sheboygan]

Everyone hates to lose, I really can't I saw that much improvement from 2019 to 2020 maybe a little from time to time but not over all. But what I thought was improvement could have been the running backs only. What I do know after this year I'll know if it's the talent we have of if we need better coordinators . I'm betting it's the coordinators that are the problem.

The coordinators may be the issue. I agree this year should give us a good look into that. That's begs the question " WWCD " ?? What will Collins do (if needed) ? Maybe it will be a moot point ?? I hope so .....

 

[Sheboygan]

One star player can make a huge difference. One below average player can also make all the difference.
Look at our running game for an example. While superior offensive lineman can give you a spot advantage (Shamire Devine, for one), you need at least three really good linemen on one side to have a matchup advantage.
If you have one star receiver and the other team has a shutdown corner, they can often scheme that one player out of the picture. For example, the Falcons have Ridley, Gage, and Jones, and they’re looking for a 4th receiver because they need that relief valve.
We have a couple of weak positions on the field. The go to argument is “scheme around the weak position”. To do that, your opponent needs an equal or lesser number of weak spots, or you need to have a star player or two that can do way more than their job.

We are getting a few playmakers that can make a difference. IMO, next year we will have 2-3 that will need to be accounted for on offense : Gibbs, Sims, Mason, maybe a WR will step up. What we REALLY need is a stud DL/DE that needs to be double teamed .......Clayton ??

 

[Coloradojacket]

The coordinators may be the issue. I agree this year should give us a good look into that. That's begs the question " WWCD " ?? What will Collins do (if needed) ? Maybe it will be a moot point ?? I hope so .....

Coordinators translate to scheme. The shotgun spread offense that CDP runs will not work at Tech. In fact it only works at places like Alabama, LSU etc. Which is stating that it has to be manned with talent that we can not recruit. We will need to go back to a more multi look with option. Coastal Carolina, look at that.

 

[TheJuiceIsLoose404]

We are getting a few playmakers that can make a difference. IMO, next year we will have 2-3 that will need to be accounted for on offense : Gibbs, Sims, Mason, maybe a WR will step up. What we REALLY need is a stud DL/DE that needs to be double teamed .......Clayton ??

Most likely White. But we do have a lot of DE talent going into next year. DT not so much...

 

[augustabuzz]

Yes. There was a huge progression. I'm not worried about the numbers; I go by what I saw with my eyes. I saw a team that was much better in 2020 than in 2019, despite the COVID restrictions, despite the reduction in preparation, despite the increased competition. I saw better performance on offense and defense, despite what the "numbers" say. Sometimes you just have to look beyond the numbers. I look for even more improvement this year.

As for turnovers, much can be attributed to a true freshman running point. He'll be a true freshman again this year, with 1-1/3 Spring Practices and a whole season of preparation. I expect 2021 to have much fewer turnovers. Regarding penalties, this is going to be a key point I look for the assess how our coaching staff is growing. If the penalties remain high, if the false starts continue to be high, I'll be very disappointed in the coaching staff. I don't expect I'll be disappointed.

Agree. My eyes tell me that there was a lot of improvement from the end of 2019 to the end of 2020.

 

[senoiajacket]

The old scheme was clearly not designed to score nearly as much. It would be crazy to go from a higher scoring scheme to a lower scoring one, right?

The only logical assumption I can make to your statement is that your are implying since there were a lower number of possessions per game with the 3O, it wasn't "designed" to score as much? Every offense is designed to score every time they have the ball. The success or failure of reaching that goal is how you measure an offense. Or is there some other logic you are using to say it was CLEARLY not designed to score as much.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Been saying that for weeks.............

A team that wins 3 games is not showing much progression even if they do look better. Wait till next year, will become the eternal rallying cry of Tech fans pretty soon if we don't start winning more ball games. IIWII

 

[augustabuzz]

A team that wins 3 games is not showing much progression even if they do look better. Wait till next year, will become the eternal rallying cry of Tech fans pretty soon if we don't start winning more ball games. IIWII

We saw a 50% increase in conference wins from 2019 to 2020. I expect at least 4 ACC wins this year.