Let the Hype train Begin...

danny daniel

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CPJ says the 2016 team was young, only 10 seniors (with only 6 or 7 players with significant playing time). The 2017 team will have only 12 seniors, but 10 are major contributors with lots of playing time. In addition the younger players such as Gray, , Braun,, Bryan, LSimmons, Henderson, Alexander, Mitchell, Mills, and St Amour have significant PT. The team taking the field will be significantly more mature and experienced in 2017. If we get the expected QB play and kicking, and improvement needed at the DTs and LBs, we should have a really solid team in 2017.
 

Sowega

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Most experienced GT fans know that it's a fools errand to try and predict the next season with any sort of accuracy this far out, especially based on some crude formula of "We had X Wins this year, only lost Y numbers of players, got Z guys coming back on O and D, we play such as such at home = {rose-colored Win total!!}

The reality is college football is tremendously volatile due to the parity of talent and the age of the players. Sure, Bama will be good and probably 3-4 other blue chip factories. But every season, especially for GT where our margin of error is razor thin, is its own entity. And as noted above, things are not the same in NOv. as they were in September. Things are not linear in college football. Random things and chaos play HUGE roles in individual games, and ultimately W-L records.

That said, think we will be at 8-4. ;)
 
Boomergump

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Nothing predicts future seasons very well in CFB, however, there is no greater predictor for success than a talented, physical, and experienced offensive line. It seems to me, we will have that. We will miss Freddie Burden in spirit, but I don't think we will have a let down because of his absence. These guys are only going to get better.

The group of ABs can catch the football and make plays with their feet. Thet are not quite as physical as some past groups, nor do they block up to standard yet, but they showed improvement late in the year. What is to like is the versatility and soft hands.

Mills might end up being the best BB in this system ever at GT. It remains to be seen if he stays out of trouble and / or a viable number two steps up from inside the program.

Any time your team is replacing its starting QB it is a concern. Personally, I embrace our situation as a program and look anxiously forward to the ensuing competition. I am perfectly comfortable with Jordan winning the job if it comes to that. Surely our personality on offense will change, but that does not have to be a bad thing. I fully expect him to continue developing and become a very effective player and leader.

I don't think our secondary is as fast on the outside as it has been in recent years, nor as long, but you have to give our back four credit for one special thing: they are the best tackling group in the CPJ era. In fact, they are currently the best tackling group on the team, which brings me to:

The LBs. We need to find something here. There has been a lack of speed and cohesion that was greatly magnified when Davis was out. Well, now he is gone. I am more worried about this group right now than any other.

Along the DL we have been weak for a while now. With that said, I think we have started trending up. You may have noticed we started getting some QB pressure later in the season. This bodes well. A lot rides on Adams really having a good off season. This year, he was the only guy we had who would stymie the double team or push his man backwards. He has to meet ALL of the demands of the position though and that starts now with his off season conditioning.

It is going to be tough replacing Butker. The reps of the kickers coming in is great. Lets hope it is well deserved.

In short, if the QB, kicker, and LB questions get answered to the positive, I believe we will be a really tough team to deal with.
 
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Sideways

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Rock said:
LOL... be careful what you ask for.

(see Washington)
Click to expand...
True dat. In Dodd's last season Tech went 9-0 with a home win against Virginia. The fans were chanting "We want Bama" Meaning to play the #1 0r #2 ranked Tide in a bowl game. Dodd muttered under his breath: "Maybe you want them but I don't" Of course, that team's lack of depth on both lines caught up to it and we ended up losing to both Georgia and Florida to end the season but it was a great team and did finish in the top 10.
 

Sideways

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Boomergump said:
Nothing predicts future seasons very well in CFB, however, there is no greater predictor for success than a talented, physical, and experienced offensive line. It seems to me, we will have that. We will miss Freddie Burden in spirit, but I don't think we will have a let down because of his absence. These guys are only going to get better.

The group of ABs can catch the football and make plays with their feet. Thet are not quite as physical as some past groups, nor do they block up to standard yet, but they showed improvement late in the year. What is to like is the versatility and soft hands.

Mills might end up being the best BB in this system ever at GT. It remains to be seen if he stays out of trouble and / or a viable number two steps up from inside the program.

Any time your team is replacing its starting QB it is a concern. Personally, I embrace our situation as a program and look anxiously forward to the ensuing competition. I am perfectly comfortable with Jordan winning the job if it comes to that. Surely our personality on offense will change, but that does not have to be a bad thing. I fully expect him to continue developing and become a very effective player and leader.

I don't think our secondary is as fast on the outside as it has been in recent years, nor as long, but you have to give our back four credit for one special thing: they are the best tackling group in the CPJ era. In fact, they are the best tackling group on the team, which brings me to:

The LBs. We need to find something here. There has been a lack of speed and cohesion that was greatly magnified when Davis was out. Well, now he is gone. I am more worried about this group right now than any other.

Along the DL we have been weak for a while now. With that said, I think we have started trending up. You may have noticed we started getting some QB pressure later in the season. This bodes well. A lot rides on Adams really having a good off season. This year, he was the only guy we had who would stymie the double team or push his man backwards. He has to meet ALL of the demands of the position though and that starts now with his off season conditioning.

It is going to be tough replacing Butker. The reps of the kickers coming in is great. Lets hope it is well deserved.


In short, if the QB, kicker, and LB questions get answered to the positive, I believe we will be a really tough team to deal with.
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As usual, a well written and succinct summary of what our team should look like next year. I anticipate that the offensive line will be the best in the Johnson era. I am concerned about quarterback, and Bback depth on offense. On defense the linebackers are a major concern. A lot is riding on Adams off season conditioning. It could be said that his off season is the most critical of anyone else's on the team. On defense we need to get bigger, stronger and faster across the board. We could be a very good 9 or 10 win team or a rather ordinary 7 or 8 win team. As always with Georgia Tech the difference will be a very fine line indeed.
 

Sideways

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sidewalkGTfan said:
I think this is a bigger myth than reality...

2008 - Started 6-1
2009 - Didn't lose our 2nd game of the year til we played the mutts
2010 - Started 5-2
2011 - Started 6-0
2012 - Started 2-4 and finished 6-7...bad year all around
2013 - Started 3-3 but we were 3-0 initially with wins over Duke and UNC
2014 - Started 5-0
2015 - Straight cluster F
2016 - Started 3-3 but were 3-0 initially with wins over BC and Vandy...we then played Clemson, Miami and Pitt
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Interesting post. I would have bet we did more poorly at the beginning of most of those years. The sad fact is that in 2012 and 2013 we were just not that good but then again with the exception of UGA, Virginia Tech, and Miami neither were most of our opponents. The ACC is much tougher now than it was in those years. Miami, for instance, had lots of talent during much of that time period but most of it went wasted by poor coaching and other self inflicted wounds. Clemson was likewise talented but erratic at times. They were number 5 in the country late in the year in 2011 when Tevin and the guys made them look silly on that Thursday night. Pitt is illustrative. They are much better now than they were just a couple of years ago. UNC is arguably the most improved team in the conference save Clemson and Pitt. Duke is more competitive now than back then as well. Our schedule is tougher top to bottom compared to just a few years ago. It is entirely possible that we could have a better team next year than this year and end up with a worse record.
 

danny daniel

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Boomergump said:
Nothing predicts future seasons very well in CFB, however, there is no greater predictor for success than a talented, physical, and experienced offensive line. It seems to me, we will have that. We will miss Freddie Burden in spirit, but I don't think we will have a let down because of his absence. These guys are only going to get better.

The group of ABs can catch the football and make plays with their feet. Thet are not quite as physical as some past groups, nor do they block up to standard yet, but they showed improvement late in the year. What is to like is the versatility and soft hands.

Mills might end up being the best BB in this system ever at GT. It remains to be seen if he stays out of trouble and / or a viable number two steps up from inside the program.

Any time your team is replacing its starting QB it is a concern. Personally, I embrace our situation as a program and look anxiously forward to the ensuing competition. I am perfectly comfortable with Jordan winning the job if it comes to that. Surely our personality on offense will change, but that does not have to be a bad thing. I fully expect him to continue developing and become a very effective player and leader.

I don't think our secondary is as fast on the outside as it has been in recent years, nor as long, but you have to give our back four credit for one special thing: they are the best tackling group in the CPJ era. In fact, they are currently the best tackling group on the team, which brings me to:

The LBs. We need to find something here. There has been a lack of speed and cohesion that was greatly magnified when Davis was out. Well, now he is gone. I am more worried about this group right now than any other.

Along the DL we have been weak for a while now. With that said, I think we have started trending up. You may have noticed we started getting some QB pressure later in the season. This bodes well. A lot rides on Adams really having a good off season. This year, he was the only guy we had who would stymie the double team or push his man backwards. He has to meet ALL of the demands of the position though and that starts now with his off season conditioning.

It is going to be tough replacing Butker. The reps of the kickers coming in is great. Lets hope it is well deserved.

In short, if the QB, kicker, and LB questions get answered to the positive, I believe we will be a really tough team to deal with.
Click to expand...

Agree with above points except my projected improved player on the DL is Branch who I think is well ahead of Adams at this point, particularly at pass rush and making plays in space. He played more than Adams against UK for a reason.
 
gt365

gt365

Georgia Tech Fan
Messages
71
I can't wait to see what J. Johnson and T. Lewis bring to the table on the defensive side in 2017. I was looking at the last game stats vs Kentucky. This Johnson kid was 4th in leading tackles. Had 4 tackles in 3min in the 4th qt. Imagine if he played the whole game. T. Lewis had a great game against Mercer and haven't seen the field since on defense. I just hope Roof let the guys that been in the system for 2 to 3 yrs have the opportunity to see the field. Adam, Branch can't wait to see what he brings. 2017 should be a great year for the GT Nation can't wait.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
 
Whiskey_Clear

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Division hype:
Atlantic - Clemson, FSU, L'ville
Coastal - Miami, VPI, GT

These 6 teams will primarily vie for division titles. I expect UNC, Pitt, Duke to return to or remain in the middle of the pack. Someone will surprise, hell Wake could. And someone will falter, L'ville showed signs it could be them. 2017 gonna be a fun ride.
 
Eastman

Eastman

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I also hope we have more depth on defense than we know. There is talk of how Adams needs to be in great shape but even if he does, do we have a good backup if he gets dinged up? Football is so physical and there are so many on the field at a given time that depth is always a factor. Having said that, I more optimistic than usual and hope that increases after the new recruits are signed.
 
Boomergump

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danny daniel said:
Agree with above points except my projected improved player on the DL is Branch who I think is well ahead of Adams at this point, particularly at pass rush and making plays in space. He played more than Adams against UK for a reason.
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I hear you and I feel sure Branch is ahead of Adams right now too. However, my main point was, if we are to make substantial progress along the DL next year, it is going to have to be Adams who raises the bar. Adams could provide the anchor that makes everybody better, especially guys like Branch. If Adams fails to make progress in conditioning etc, I will be surprised to see a major change in productivity from previous seasons.
 
Whiskey_Clear

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Too early to sleep on Glanton and Henderson also. KCH will be a true junior but I still considered him a young player this year. Both can still make big strides. I think KCH might could stand to lean down a little and work on his pad level.

DL will be heavily scrutinized pre season and in early games. Will be interesting to hear coaches appraisals.
 

MikeJackets

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Whiskey_Clear said:
Division hype:
Atlantic - Clemson, FSU, L'ville
Coastal - Miami, VPI, GT

These 6 teams will primarily vie for division titles. I expect UNC, Pitt, Duke to return to or remain in the middle of the pack. Someone will surprise, hell Wake could. And someone will falter, L'ville showed signs it could be them. 2017 gonna be a fun ride.
Click to expand...
If Watson goes declares for the NFL i think Clemson will fall back to 9-3 range and i think the 2017 ACCCG could be GT-FSU.
 
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