Justin Thomas has GT believing

[Eric]

http://espn.go.com/blog/acc/post/_/...evingjustin-thomas-has-georgia-tech-believing

Some really good quotes in here.

 

[jwsavhGT]

So very excited about what these guys can do!

 

[JacketFromUGA]

Dennis Andrews seems like a stand up guy

 

[GTJoeBrew]

I am more and more impressed with all of these guys the more that I hear from them. They all seem to know what is required to win: buy in, do what your told, and work to get better. Oh yeah, and nothing is as good or as bad as it seems.

 

[AE 87]

I get the feeling that some of the "time for a change" tweets etc a couple years ago may not have been about Paul Johnson, as many at the time seemed to assume.

 

[GTJoeBrew]

I get the feeling that some of the "time for a change" tweets etc a couple years ago may not have been about Paul Johnson, as many at the time seemed to assume.

How times have changed. It was all doom and gloom at the beginning of last season. Amazing what a great leader can do for a team... Even as a sophomore. Really hoping I'll be back in the south for the upcoming season.

I'm not a big fan of players saying that they think they can go undefeated, but if they truly buy in and believe in what JT can do then maybe its possible.

On a side note, what are the team mates calling JT? Was it "smooth"? I really liked the JeT nickname.

 

[jwsavhGT]

How times have changed. It was all doom and gloom at the beginning of last season. Amazing what a great leader can do for a team... Even as a sophomore. Really hoping I'll be back in the south for the upcoming season.

I'm not a big fan of players saying that they think they can go undefeated, but if they truly buy in and believe in what JT can do then maybe its possible.

On a side note, what are the team mates calling JT? Was it "smooth"? I really liked the JeT nickname.

His Twitter handle is @smooov

 

[GaTech4ever]

Great article, but I don't like CPJ throwing Vad under the bus like that. Without saying his name directly, that's obviously what he did. I think everyone knows by now that a lot of the players wanted Justin to play from Day 1, and maybe thought that Vad thought he was better than the offense. But the article is about Justin, and talking about Vad's lack of "buy-in" 1-2 years later doesn't make Justin look better than he already does.

I get that CPJ is a no bull**** guy and tells it like it is, and I love that about him. But if you're going to talk about a kid like that, at least wait a few years until he can stand up for himself. It comes across as CPJ blaming one player for a bad year, which even if true, he can't do. The article is about Justin, I just don't get why he's still talking about Vad, especially bringing up deep issues like some of his own teammates didn't like him. Unless I'm missing something, Vad was a great representative of GT off-the-field, and never made an *** of himself on gamely. Deep team issues from behind-the-scenes two years ago shouldn't still be talked about (if it ever should have), but I guess it's the offseason.

 

[Yoda]

Great article, but I don't like CPJ throwing Vad under the bus like that. Without saying his name directly, that's obviously what he did. I think everyone knows by now that a lot of the players wanted Justin to play from Day 1, and maybe thought that Vad thought he was better than the offense. But the article is about Justin, and talking about Vad's lack of "buy-in" 1-2 years later doesn't make Justin look better than he already does.

I get that CPJ is a no bull**** guy and tells it like it is, and I love that about him. But if you're going to talk about a kid like that, at least wait a few years until he can stand up for himself. It comes across as CPJ blaming one player for a bad year, which even if true, he can't do. The article is about Justin, I just don't get why he's still talking about Vad, especially bringing up deep issues like some of his own teammates didn't like him. Unless I'm missing something, Vad was a great representative of GT off-the-field, and never made an *** of himself on gamely. Deep team issues from behind-the-scenes two years ago shouldn't still be talked about (if it ever should have), but I guess it's the offseason.

Paul Johnson doesn't give two craps what people think.

 

[GaTech4ever]

Paul Johnson doesn't give two craps what people think.

I get that mentality and I understand that gives him his edge. But he isn't a player, he is a head coach who runs a multi-million dollar program - and there is a line. And I bet he does care about the recruits from NC who see their hero getting thrown under the bus in an ESPN article two years after the fact and cross GT off their list.

I could be overreacting, but it wouldn't surprise me if our rivals' coaches show recruits (especially QBs) this article and say "If it doesn't work out at in that weird offense at Tech, you'll get thrown under the bus on ESPN years later." In my opinion, I just don't think that's a stretch.

 

[Yoda]

I get that mentality and I understand that gives him his edge. But he isn't a player, he is a head coach who runs a multi-million dollar program - and there is a line. And I bet he does care about the recruits from NC who see their hero getting thrown under the bus in an ESPN article two years after the fact and cross GT off their list.

I could be overreacting, but it wouldn't surprise me if our rivals' coaches show recruits (especially QBs) this article and say "If it doesn't work out at in that weird offense at Tech, you'll get thrown under the bus on ESPN years later." In my opinion, I just don't think that's a stretch.

I'd have to see those words come out of his mouth before I believe this article.

 

[deeeznutz]

Maybe the question was framed in a way that asked Johnson to compare the "feel" of last years team to the one before, so he had to mention the difference in leadership. It's really hard to extrapolate anything from a quote in an article as that quote is already taken out of context and used to fit the author's narrative. Just something to keep in mind.
Btw I feel bad for Deon Hill getting no love for his play last year. I thought he was one of our top 2 all-around ABs, and he made some HUGELY important plays last year (GSU game winner among others). I think he'll be the one we miss on the edge the most, but feel confident in Dennis, Brod, and the new guys.

 

[BranMart]

I don't see how he threw him under the bus. He was just talking difference in Team Leadership, which is important. He is saying buying in makes all the difference in the world and selfishness doesn't work here.

 

[BranMart]

How times have changed. It was all doom and gloom at the beginning of last season. Amazing what a great leader can do for a team... Even as a sophomore. Really hoping I'll be back in the south for the upcoming season.

I'm not a big fan of players saying that they think they can go undefeated, but if they truly buy in and believe in what JT can do then maybe its possible.

On a side note, what are the team mates calling JT? Was it "smooth"? I really liked the JeT nickname.

Why wouldn't you want guys to believe they can win them all, or is it just making it public knowledge you disagree with?

Much prefer Smoov over JeT.

 

[McCamish Maniacs]

The hype is real

 

[JacketFromUGA]

I thought him saying He didn't notice it till too late was him putting the blame on himself for that as opposed to throwing Vad under the bus.

 

[GaTech4ever]

Why wouldn't you want guys to believe they can win them all, or is it just making it public knowledge you disagree with?

Much prefer Smoov over JeT.

Definitely just the public knowledge part. In my opinion, letting the world know (especially through a medium such as ESPN) that Vad's teammates didn't like/trust him is throwing him under the bus. Just because it was true doesn't mean it's right to put out there, but I guess that's where the "Our coach doesn't give a f*** so it's okay" mentality comes out.

 

[GaTech4ever]

Maybe the question was framed in a way that asked Johnson to compare the "feel" of last years team to the one before, so he had to mention the difference in leadership. It's really hard to extrapolate anything from a quote in an article as that quote is already taken out of context and used to fit the author's narrative. Just something to keep in mind.
Btw I feel bad for Deon Hill getting no love for his play last year. I thought he was one of our top 2 all-around ABs, and he made some HUGELY important plays last year (GSU game winner among others). I think he'll be the one we miss on the edge the most, but feel confident in Dennis, Brod, and the new guys.

Yeah, I agree with literally everything posted here. If CPJ was asked specifically about Vad and really couldn't get around it then I can cut him some slack. But he has been pretty hard on him publicly in the past, and I don't know if he had to take it as far as he did (player not liking him).

And yes, I think we'll miss Deon on the edge the most - really wish he could have gotten more opportunities with the ball in his hands but he was extremely underrated in every aspect of his game.

 

[AE 87]

Yeah, I think, that CPJ was just musing about the difference between last year and previous years, trying to make sense of it. I get the impression that he really, really enjoyed last year off the field as well as on. That is, I think, his comments about the most fun he's had as a coach were perhaps an understatement. I suspect the difference in the team from one year to the next was something that he was musing about because he wants to watch out for signs of going one way or the other.

 

[sidewalkGTfan]

CPJ is just confirming what most fans already knew. CPJ gave Vad every chance to be the future QB but Vad didn't want to buy in to the option and he decided to move on. I don't understand why some fans want to over-analyze everything that CPJ says.