How Good Was Coach Johnson at Tech?

[Boaty1]

And, of course, there's what everybody who brings up 2015 studiously avoids mentioning. That before the season started we lost for the year:

* The number 1 and 2 BBs
• Four ABs including 2 who were in the rotation (losing Cottrell was especially bad)
* Out pre-season All-ACC OT, Griffin

Then there was the year itself where we lost for the season:

• We lost both Snoddy and Seccey by the third game
• We lost Tim Byerly
• Our leading WR, Summers
• We ended up with two (count 'em 2) OLs who played in all 12 games and they were frosh (Bryan and Braun)

By the 5th game we were starting a PWO freshman AB (Willis) because he was all we had left and it simply kept getting worse. It was the worst tsunami of injuries in Tech history.

And what did we get from people who were upset with Paul's offense? "Next man up! Every team has injuries! The other side has the O figured out! We can't sustain success!" And we wonder why Paul got worn out dealing with this.

I've never been happier then when we won 9 games in 2016, beat Ugag down there, and curb-stomped another SEC opponent in the Taxslayer.

I mean, if you want to play with numbers, at least try to keep the context in mind.

Sources:

https://www.myajc.com/blog/georgia-tech/tabulating-georgia-tech-injury-toll/p8Lkke9qJIXh7xw39dEwxM/

https://www.sbnation.com/college-fo...ia-tech-football-2016-preview-schedule-roster

Fair points but do you believe there were no years that had a significant amount of injuries/attrition prior to 2015? I can think of 1 right off the top of my head that was worse than this yet we managed to hold the team together and have a respectable season.

 

[wesgt123]

To be fair, someone posted a graph in some thread here that showed overall football spending in the ACC since like 2008. CLEM's meteoric rise directly coincided with their football budget skyrocketing around 2010 (them and FSU are leaps and bounds above the rest of the conference and are trending upward in spending).

I think this has more to do with the recent success of some programs than any other factor.

Looks like we have some work cut out for us lol

 

[takethepoints]

Fair points but do you believe there were no years that had a significant amount of injuries/attrition prior to 2015? I can think of 1 right off the top of my head that was worse than this yet we managed to hold the team together and have a respectable season.

There was nothing even close to this in recent (after WW2) Tech football history. We've lost critical people before, sure; we lost Benson this year in the second game and probably lost 2 - 3 games (USF, Pitt, Duke) as a result, but 2015 was a disaster for the team. If we don't have the injuries - or only have half of them - that team would have won 8 - 9 games. Shoot, as it was, even with severely depleted ranks, we lost 8 of those games by an average of 7 points. (I left out Clemson; they were going to win regardless.) This is a loooooong way from falling apart.

Btw, I forgot to mention losing Gotsis for the last 4 games and Gamble for the last 8. The epidemic hit both sides. Look at the sources, if you don't believe me.

So when we get all this "Johnson had lost his edge! Look at our seasons from 2015 - 2017! We couldn't beat decent teams!" remember that, while 2017 wasn't what we wanted (no Mills, remember?) there's a reason why our record looks bad for those years It stems directly from the 2015 injury list, not some kind of defensive secret sauce that our opponents had come up with.

 

[Boaty1]

There was nothing even close to this in recent (after WW2) Tech football history. We've lost critical people before, sure; we lost Benson this year in the second game and probably lost 2 - 3 games (USF, Pitt, Duke) as a result, but 2015 was a disaster for the team. If we don't have the injuries - or only have half of them - that team would have won 8 - 9 games. Shoot, as it was, even with severely depleted ranks, we lost 8 of those games by an average of 7 points. (I left out Clemson; they were going to win regardless.) This is a loooooong way from falling apart.

Btw, I forgot to mention losing Gotsis for the last 4 games and Gamble for the last 8. The epidemic hit both sides. Look at the sources, if you don't believe me.

2003 was worse. Checkout flunkgate and you will see what I mean. We literally were moving LB's to DL to have enough bodies there. We lost some pro talent in that bunch as well.

 

[takethepoints]

2003 was worse. Checkout flunkgate and you will see what I mean. We literally were moving LB's to DL to have enough bodies there. We lost some pro talent in that bunch as well.

Losing Hargrove and Hollings before 2003 was a wrench, but the rest of the players were reserves. It was nothing like the depth of looses in 2015.

 

[Boomergump]

The injuries in 2015 were horrific. However, my mind always wanders back to the games we were in position to win, despite those injuries, and just blew it. UNC for example, up three TDs, dropped an easy pick 6 to go up more, turned the ball over in our own end etc etc.

It was a tough year all around. I don't blame CPJ for 2015 and I don't give him a pass either. It just is a part of the record. Nobody besides us cares about the problems.

I will always remember CPJ for several wonderful reasons that go well beyond, but include, the success on the field. Doing things the right way means a lot to me. There is a lot of low life crap going on in the sports world today. I am so proud that GT and PJ have always operated on a higher plain.

 

[Skeptic]

The injuries in 2015 were horrific. However, my mind always wanders back to the games we were in position to win, despite those injuries, and just blew it. UNC for example, up three TDs, dropped an easy pick 6 to go up more, turned the ball over in our own end etc etc.

It was a tough year all around. I don't blame CPJ for 2015 and I don't give him a pass either. It just is a part of the record. Nobody besides us cares about the problems.

I will always remember CPJ for several wonderful reasons that go well beyond, but include, the success on the field. Doing things the right way means a lot to me. There is a lot of low life crap going on in the sports world today. I am so proud that GT and PJ have always operated on a higher plain.

Yes. It is a reason I have become more accepting, if you will, of Dabo Swinney and Clemson. As much as it frustrates me to lose to them by any score and certainly 3-4 TDs, there has never been even a hint that while he has ramped up that program and the spending for it that he has ever cheated or cut corners. I hope the new guy is as determined in that regard as Johnson.

 

[Animal02]

Yes. It is a reason I have become more accepting, if you will, of Dabo Swinney and Clemson. As much as it frustrates me to lose to them by any score and certainly 3-4 TDs, there has never been even a hint that while he has ramped up that program and the spending for it that he has ever cheated or cut corners. I hope the new guy is as determined in that regard as Johnson.

Now if only Tech could get a "Turf Management" degree

 

[Skeptic]

Now if only Tech could get a "Turf Management" degree

I know a fellow, good friend of Swinney, fan of program, and such as that bothers him, too. By "turf management" do they mean keep your lawn mowed?

 

[Scubapro]

I really liked PJ as our coach. I think losing several B backs really hurt but the biggest lost might have been Ratliff. I think he would have been a game changer but who knows.
I wonder how much PJ over estimated his ability to recruit in the state vs damutts...he recruited well when he was at Southern but he wasn't going head to head with athens...I think HS coaches were happy to steer him to kids as long as he wasn't going after the same kids as damutts.
I think he saw the writing on the wall when coaches weren't giving him the same leads and support as SEC schools.
Speculation: I think he saw how much the Hill could give a sheet when there wasn't an AD to cover his back during boobinski's three years.

 

[Techster]

Now if only Tech could get a "Turf Management" degree

Ironically, GT's field staff has won awards for their work.

http://ramblinwreck.com/grant-field-named-field-of-the-year/

Also, GT's landscaping department is an awarding winning department that offers certificates.

https://facilities.gatech.edu/landscaping

Everything GT touches oozes excellence...

 

[Animal02]

I really liked PJ as our coach. I think losing several B backs really hurt but the biggest lost might have been Ratliff. I think he would have been a game changer but who knows.
I wonder how much PJ over estimated his ability to recruit in the state vs damutts...he recruited well when he was at Southern but he wasn't going head to head with athens...I think HS coaches were happy to steer him to kids as long as he wasn't going after the same kids as damutts.
I think he saw the writing on the wall when coaches weren't giving him the same leads and support as SEC schools.
Speculation: I think he saw how much the Hill could give a sheet when there wasn't an AD to cover his back during boobinski's three years.

Definitely think he overestimated in state recruiting......D2 level players are different from D1, and never had the budget to go nationwide. As others have pointed out, was also slow on the pick up of social media etc.....I get it....I am set in my ways wrt to work and see no reason to relearn / learn new...the commitment vs payoff is not there for an old fart like me (still not in Supersize's league though )

 

[iceeater1969]

I really liked PJ as our coach. I think losing several B backs really hurt but the biggest lost might have been Ratliff. I think he would have been a game changer but who knows.
I wonder how much PJ over estimated his ability to recruit in the state vs damutts...he recruited well when he was at Southern but he wasn't going head to head with athens...I think HS coaches were happy to steer him to kids as long as he wasn't going after the same kids as damutts.
I think he saw the writing on the wall when coaches weren't giving him the same leads and support as SEC schools.
Speculation: I think he saw how much the Hill could give a sheet when there wasn't an AD to cover his back during boobinski's three years.

Hammer , nail , hit , u head on.
Still got the j tst bracelet. Guy was a baller.

I was in contact w Todd Spencer - head recruiter and co ol coach in early years. He had no help and was committed to winning recruiting in georgia. He was a one armed paper hanger.

Recruiting higher academic guys
I knew coach hurt in 14/15. He seemed to do a number of things ( sort out the behind the scenes stuff = Custis on campus working out - we find out oh paper work not completed by hs coach, now too late) .

I am not sure tstan has hill on board based on what I have heard from current recruiter. I know he was furious we didnt offer a very high academic ol guy he thought we had a shot at landing. Per Andy we are going to be in desperate need some big ol men that can move.
Time will tell but I am optimistic that Coach johnson has built up good will with hill so we will have more latitude.

However, I hope we can catch up with Stanford, northwestern, ND and get to 100% - we are at 86%. Hard to negatively recruit against a high grad rate.

I hope we can balance our tutoring to effectively help the special admits . Its working great for high academics -

Matthew jordan who was a backup qb left with eligibility remaining and a gt masters degree. He was hurt in 17 as r Jr and gave notice to participate w seniors in senior day celebration. In April this year completed. Maybe the rah rah of GC will make guys stay through r - sr year. ( This season w LJ out and TM injured - imo MJ with his size, time in system, and passing would have been a big help.)

I am hoping the hill gives GC the benefit of the good work by the tutors and players. Coaches discipline and commitment to academics played a key role in our rise in grad rates.

Go jackets

 

[takethepoints]

The injuries in 2015 were horrific. However, my mind always wanders back to the games we were in position to win, despite those injuries, and just blew it. UNC for example, up three TDs, dropped an easy pick 6 to go up more, turned the ball over in our own end etc etc.

It was a tough year all around. I don't blame CPJ for 2015 and I don't give him a pass either. It just is a part of the record. Nobody besides us cares about the problems.

I remember what Coach said about the UNC lose. Quoth he, "I looked out there in the 4th and our entire backfield except for Justin was freshmen." You want a recipe for problems? That and the youth on D caused by - yep - injuries was easy enough to make the difference in close games. I remember one game - can't remember which - where our ABs who were supposed to be pitch men ran to the opposite side to block leaving JT nobody to pitch to. Three times.

Yep. Inexperience in the O could lead to problems in execution.

 

[CTJacket]

Speaking of the offense, if CPJ could have sold his offense better, things could have been even better. There was an unfair stigma against his offense that our own fans bought into. The results don’t back it up, but CPJ and Tech should have realized recruits and media perception didn’t care about just the results, as wrong as it may be. We could have and should have “Branded” the option better. If everyone tells you something is “boring”, people go in expecting it to be boring. It’s s self fulfilling prophesy. I can speak of this firsthand. I used to teach a class on classic cinema and my first year the students came in thinking black and white films are boring, stiff, outdated etc.(sound familiar?) I felt my passion for the material could win some people over, and it mostly didn’t. The next year, I changed my strategy. I came in and told the students “hey I know most of these films are boring, stuff and outdated. However, I’m going to show you some classic films that AREN’T like that. Citizen Kane uses modern camera and acting techniques. Casablanca doesn’t have a traditional happy ending yada yada etc.”....The results changed. My students were open minded and were much more interested in the films I was showing, even though I was showing the exact same films from the previous year. Same results the next year. And the next. You could argue my first class just wasn’t into classic films, but I’d argue my approach of specifically acknowledging the stigma and building my teaching around it allowed the students to quit looking at the movies as “old movies” and started to look at them at face value. If CPJ and GT could have figured out a way to get kids to quit looking at the offense as an “option offense” and just look at it at face value as an offense, I think we could have pulled more kids. If you look at the offense at face vaule, there’s not much to not like. It got in the end zone more times than not.

Wow, could NOT have said this better. We had explosive plays, we scored a ton. WRs got to knock the block off DBs and then score on a 40 yd TD. It really needed a different narrative around it.

 

[Skeptic]

I remember what Coach said about the UNC lose. Quoth he, "I looked out there in the 4th and our entire backfield except for Justin was freshmen." You want a recipe for problems? That and the youth on D caused by - yep - injuries was easy enough to make the difference in close games. I remember one game - can't remember which - where our ABs who were supposed to be pitch men ran to the opposite side to block leaving JT nobody to pitch to. Three times.

Yep. Inexperience in the O could lead to problems in execution.

To complicate that year, and it is hard to conclude it given the injuries, I did not think Thomas was as good as he was in '14. That guy in the ACC championship against FSU and then in the Orange Bowl was as good a QB as the ACC had seen, despite the option game. But you pitch man being on the other side of the field can be a bit disconcerting.

 

[ibeattetris]

but the biggest lost might have been Ratliff.

I agree. I believe the freak ATV accident with Ratliffe truly set us back, along with the Jay Jones transfer. Missing out on Lucas Johnson this season just adds on to the misfortune.

 

[Skeptic]

I agree. I believe the freak ATV accident with Ratliffe truly set us back, along with the Jay Jones transfer. Missing out on Lucas Johnson this season just adds on to the misfortune.

One of the great unknown unknowns. Projecting recruits out over four years, particularly in Johnson's offense and its many variables and blocking scheme changes, is hazardous at best. What we do know is that Johnson never had the chance to find out. Did he graduate from Tech, does anybody know? I really hope he took advantage of that commitment.(And for those who think reneging on a commitment is okay, would it be okay in a case like Ratliffe? For consistency, one has to say yes, right?)

 

[Animal02]

To complicate that year, and it is hard to conclude it given the injuries, I did not think Thomas was as good as he was in '14. That guy in the ACC championship against FSU and then in the Orange Bowl was as good a QB as the ACC had seen, despite the option game. But you pitch man being on the other side of the field can be a bit disconcerting.

My one reservation regarding injuries is "was the option game as played, leading to more injuries to QBs etc. Don't know if anyone has done any look at that. It just seems the QB especially gets beat up over time and drops in efficientcy.

 

[Skeptic]

My one reservation regarding injuries is "was the option game as played, leading to more injuries to QBs etc. Don't know if anyone has done any look at that. It just seems the QB especially gets beat up over time and drops in efficientcy.

I think you are probably right, though the biggest hits on quarterbacks I remember are on the fire and fall back stand-in-the-pocket variety. I also think it can intimidate a QB over time into making the wrong choice too quickly to avoid the hit. My only reservation to the option had to do that in order to be a real "option" then your best athletes on the offensive side of the ball, the A backs, may get only 3-4 touches a game. We saw several instances of that this season. I don't think there is an answer to it if it is true option. Rocket tosses and counters help the carry count. We shall see with the new NFL-based offense if running backs are more inclined to choose Georgia Tech and fullbacks maybe less inclined, since that position now becomes a slot blocker more or less.