Let’s talk...IMO this needs to happen...

[GT Tennessee]

IMO we need to really comb through the Grad Transfer market for a QB or JUCO ranks. Nothing against James Graham, but with a Grad Transfer(or a QB ala Yates shows up in spring) I can see us winning more games than we have this season. Defense is playing great for the spots they are in. What do y’all think? Go Jackets

 

[LargeFO]

Gleason + better OL talent(7 incoming that fit what new staff wants) could move the needle.

 

[MidtownJacket]

This has been a constant point of discussion this year. I believe, as many do, that our woes on offense start and stop with the OL. We have guys playing their tails off out there, though the brutal reality is they aren’t ready to be D1 dudes yet.

Injuries and transferring have been brutal there and we didn’t have the quality depth needed to sustain ourselves. As a result, nobody (them included) is playing to their potential.

It is hard to do, but frankly more rewarding, to peek into the future and think about what a couple more big bodies will be able to do for the line with JP behind them and whoever gets the nod at QB. Throw in some of the speed we have at skill positions and we can do some damage if the play has time to develop.

This season was a rebuilding one given the changes we elected to make across the team. What may have been a strong option roster was fairly well scrambled for the sake of the future direction we have staked out. There is lots of grumbling still across the fan base about the wisdom in making a change from the previous regime but what is done is done. This is the price for switching all things around on the roster and scheme.

I’m hopeful we will see continued development across the team this season and that we can get the line situation sorted. Given the aspect of our program being a “developmental philosophy” I doubt we would go get a QB in the transfer portal unless things are more abysmal than I realize in the QB room for next year. I said it previously, but I believe until we fix the OL our QBs don’t have a chance to show what they have got. (Example being LJ has got more to give than he has shown, but needs a pocket to do his work; TO was a stud for us but couldn’t threaten reliably through the air and that detracted from our ability to run JP, this is why we find ourselves with JG running the show.)

Tl;dr? We gotta fix them line first, then the QB situation will take care of itself.


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[swarmer]

Our QBs miss wide open receivers when the protection is good. A bad O line is not the cause of our starting QBs completing 1 actual pass; he literally made on target throw all game and 15 dropped it.

We don’t have a legit qb on the roster imo; and finding a transfer that can step it and do the easy things would be awesome

 

[Ibeeballin]

With some players getting an extra yr, i doubt we will be in the transfer market

 

[MidtownJacket]

Our QBs miss wide open receivers when the protection is good. A bad O line is not the cause of our starting QBs completing 1 actual pass; he literally made on target throw all game and 15 dropped it.

We don’t have a legit qb on the roster imo; and finding a transfer that can step it and do the easy things would be awesome

We can agree to disagree, but on greater than 75% of our offensive snaps Pitt has defenders in our backfield. I don’t take issue with your statement about off target throws (but would suggest that timing and hearing footsteps) had a lot to do with Graham missing those passes. Dude has an arm and can make the throws when he is comfortable. By my eye we spent a lot of time reacting to their pressure as opposed to dictating where the ball went and how.


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[smokey_wasp]

What a difference a week makes. I thought it was premature to crown Graham the starter of the future, but I also think it's premature to give up on him. Fact is, we will have Graham coming in next year with a solid year of experience, Yates with a full year to learn the offense, and a QB recruit who was very high on our staff's board in Gleason.

I am not opposed to a grad transfer in principle, but I think that was the play for this year, not next. The problem was, none of the good ones wanted to spend their last year of eligibility in a rebuild situation. We'd have a similar problem next year, I think. If a high level guy just happens to want to come here for some reason, sure. But trying to find a QB in the bargain basement probably won't work. I'd rather use a grad transfer spot on a tight end, actually.

 

[Coloradojacket]

The only Grad transfers we can get have to come from Duke, Stanford Northwestern. And forget Juco because most Juco kids can't get into Tech and hardly any of their classes transfer. Why have so many forgotten that we are an Academic Institution. Calculus Calculus Calculus.

 

[smokey_wasp]

The only Grad transfers we can get have to come from Duke, Stanford Northwestern. And forget Juco because most Juco kids can't get into Tech and hardly any of their classes transfer. Why have so many forgotten that we are an Academic Institution. Calculus Calculus Calculus.

You are largely correct on the JUCO thing but totally wrong about other transfers, yet you keep saying it. Believe me, we would have gotten Jalen Hurts in as a grad transfer if he wanted to come and we would have gotten Justin Fields in as a regular transfer if he wanted to come. We have gotten transfers from all over the place.

 

[Coloradojacket]

You are largely correct on the JUCO thing but totally wrong about other transfers, yet you keep saying it. Believe me, we would have gotten Jalen Hurts in as a grad transfer if he wanted to come and we would have gotten Justin Fields in as a regular transfer if he wanted to come.

I am not sure we could have gotten either but I have no idea what their grades were like. But that being said, everybody on this board is talking about the long range plan....a Grad transfer buys you one season. So if we are at that, then what we want is to win. And if that is the case, then time to move back to the option with our current team. Just pointing out the logic here.

 

[armeck]

You are largely correct on the JUCO thing but totally wrong about other transfers, yet you keep saying it. Believe me, we would have gotten Jalen Hurts in as a grad transfer if he wanted to come and we would have gotten Justin Fields in as a regular transfer if he wanted to come. We have gotten transfers from all over the place.

I always wonder about Fields. By all accounts his grades were stellar out of HS and as a homegrown, could he have looked at Tech had this transition happened say, after the 2015 season (3-9)?

 

[RonJohn]

We can agree to disagree, but on greater than 75% of our offensive snaps Pitt has defenders in our backfield. I don’t take issue with your statement about off target throws (but would suggest that timing and hearing footsteps) had a lot to do with Graham missing those passes. Dude has an arm and can make the throws when he is comfortable. By my eye we spent a lot of time reacting to their pressure as opposed to dictating where the ball went and how.

LJ made accurate throws in the second half with the same OL.

I do not agree with the post from @swarmer that you responded to in the GT doesn't "have a legit QB on the roster". Looking at the three QBs starting the season: TO is the best runner. LJ is the best passer. JG is a better runner than LJ and a better passer than TO. Just from a fan perspective, it looks like JG isn't entirely comfortable as of yet. He can run and he can pass, but it looks like the game is too fast for him and he rushes some things. TO has moved to WR. If the blocking gets better, LJ can do really well. He did really well in the second half until the fumble/injury. If JG can get the game to slow down and make better decisions, he can do really well. Football is a team sport. We need the entire offense to get better, not just the QB.

 

[smokey_wasp]

I always wonder about Fields. By all accounts his grades were stellar out of HS and as a homegrown, could he have looked at Tech had this transition happened say, after the 2015 season (3-9)?

Looked at, certainly. Picked us over georgie, I dunno.

 

[Cam]

I think the staff would prefer that we start Tucker Gleason over starting a grad transfer QB. I said this in Gleason's recruiting thread, but it wouldn't surprise me if he enrolls early and works his way to being the starter. He's got a similar skillset to Yates, but he's 2-3 inches taller and 10-20 pounds heavier. It's not uncommon nowadays for freshman to come in and take over a program, you've got Howell (UNC), Nix (Auburn), Hilinski (USCe), Bachmeier (Boise State), and Daniels (Arizona State) just this season alone. The staff is obviously very high on him considering they took him as our first commit and haven't eyed any other QB recruits since that point. Gleason also has reported offers from UGA, VT, WVU, UNC, Vanderbilt, Pitt, Kentucky, Illinois, and Duke. It's hard to believe, but none of our QBs on the current roster (even Yates) had reported QB offers at another P5 program. Honestly though, I'm hoping Gleason doesn't win the job. I hope that he comes in this Spring, pushes the hell out of the QBs already on the roster, and one of Graham or Yates emerges as starter so we can redshirt Gleason.

 

[stech81]

With some players getting an extra yr, i doubt we will be in the transfer market

Could be interesting to see how we sign as many recruits that we have coming in if they sign.

 

[bobongo]

Our QBs miss wide open receivers when the protection is good. A bad O line is not the cause of our starting QBs completing 1 actual pass; he literally made on target throw all game and 15 dropped it.

We don’t have a legit qb on the roster imo; and finding a transfer that can step it and do the easy things would be awesome

What kind of transfer is going to be champing at the bit to play behind this offensive line?

Graham was bad Saturday, but it was his worst game so far. He's young, and we have other alternatives now on the roster and incoming. We need to concentrate on the OL, in my opinion.

 

[Coloradojacket]

What kind of transfer is going to be champing at the bit to play behind this offensive line?

Graham was bad Saturday, but it was his worst game so far. He's young, and we have other alternatives now on the roster and incoming. We need to concentrate on the OL, in my opinion.

Maybe if our staff had decided to run the ball with speed option, some triple like they did at Miami, he would have had a better day. Instead we dropped back passed all day against the number 1 sack team in the nation....go figure.

 

[gtpi]

Our QBs miss wide open receivers when the protection is good. A bad O line is not the cause of our starting QBs completing 1 actual pass; he literally made on target throw all game and 15 dropped it.

We don’t have a legit qb on the roster imo; and finding a transfer that can step it and do the easy things would be awesome

ever play golf.... then you should know what a 'gotcha' is. our qbs have no idea from one drop back to the next where they are going to take a hit or when. GOTCHA!

 

[Ash]

Maybe if our staff had decided to run the ball with speed option, some triple like they did at Miami, he would have had a better day. Instead we dropped back passed all day against the number 1 sack team in the nation....go figure.

I had some not GT fans join me for tailgating and the game on Saturday. When the football talk started..."So hows Tech doing this year? Is the offense coming together?" I had to take a moment to think on how answer the question without coming off like I was annoyed. I wanted to seem optimistic. But the truth is I don't believe the coaches are putting our players in a position to be successful on O this year. Our game planning is all over the place.

Anyway, everything was answered by what they saw on the field. Maybe they will come back next year to see our progress.

 

[Jd89]

Just for some perspective, we have a small offensive line (by triple option design) and a freshman QB against the #10 defense in the country, that is #1 in sacks and #14 in tackles for loss. It is not a recipe for a breakout offensive performance. Did we drop the ball when we shouldn't have, fumble on the goal line and other stupid mistakes, YES. However, defenses cause mistakes and our OL wasn't ready for the pressure. It should have been 20-17 game (the fumble was caused by a great defensive play but I will contend we should have scored). Given those defensive stats with our nascent offense, 20-17 isn't all that bad, a loss but a decent expectation.

You guys get way too tied up into what the coach is saying or not saying in a presser, how the triple option would have won this or that game (ask Monken how that is working now), this coach should have done this or that. This year is a re-boot and we are seeing small signs of progress.

With a much improved OL (which gives QBs time to make less mistakes and opens running lanes), an either more experienced or really good incoming freshman QB, a better tight end group (important as an outlet when under pressure), we will see improvement next year. Probably similar to what Bobby Dodd said after his 4-6 first year when he took over for Coach Alexander who was 8-3 and first in the SEC...with no change to the offense strategy.