Michael Summers Has Left the Team

MacJacket · Nov 9, 2015

Thanks for the time you put in, Mr. Summers. I think the light is coming on for Juene and the writing is on the wall with next year's talent. The only real downside to this is how thin we are at WR for the next 3 games.

Pj4prez01 · Nov 9, 2015

I wish him the best as he was our best receiver, and concievably the next GT WR to get drafted. He had all the tools.

Purely conversational, but it would it be interesting if he ended up at JMU.

stingyoa$$ · Nov 9, 2015

Losing has a way of taking the heart out of some.

Pj4prez01 said:
I wish him the best as he was our best receiver, and concievably the next GT WR to get drafted. He had all the tools.

Purely conversational, but it would it be interesting if he ended up at JMU.

I hope he plays at GS and comes up to ATL next year and has a career day!

SavannahBee · Nov 9, 2015

A colleague of mine was in a meeting this morning with Michael Summers, Sr. among others. He has been fielding phone calls from friends , all asking why Michael Jr decided to leave the team. He explained that, after the injury, he decided that it would be better to focus on school and get his degree rather than return/remain, not necessarily in top form, and risk a more serious injury.

Supersizethatorder-mutt · Nov 9, 2015

SavannahBee said:
A colleague of mine was in a meeting this morning with Michael Summers, Sr. among others. He has been fielding phone calls from friends , all asking why Michael Jr decided to leave the team. He explained that, after the injury, he decided that it would be better to focus on school and get his degree rather than return/remain, not necessarily in top form, and risk a more serious injury.

Thanks for that.

Declinometer · Nov 9, 2015

stingyoa$$ said:
Losing has a way of taking the heart out of some.

I hope he plays at GS and comes up to ATL next year and has a career day!

Huh!.....what?

bke1984 · Nov 9, 2015

first&ten said:
I'd hardly call this mid-season, other than that, I hate to see him go.

We still have 25% of the games to play. That's enough for me to consider it mid-season. Interesting time to back out of a commitment you made....especially if it's due to a disagreement with a coach rather than some sort of injury issue.

If it's due to injury as someone recently reported, then I 100% get it.

This is nothing that I wouldn't tell my own kids some day...if you decide to make a commitment to a team, you need to honor it. With regards to sports, I think it's always fair to re-evaluate after a season, but one should never quit while there are games to be played and the team needs them.

But look, like I said...I wish him the best. If he doesn't want to play, then he needs to go. He definitely won't help us if he's not giving 100%.

I agree that he needs to get the degree. That will stay with him the rest of his life.

gtg936g · Nov 9, 2015

I wish he had given 100% and played the remainder of the season, but sometimes it is harder to admit your heart isn't in it. He did not take the easy path out IMO. The easy path would have been to go through the motions.

I am sure this season has been really stressful for the team. They are competitors and don't like to lose. The expectations were sky high at the beginning of the season, and they are probably more disappointed than we are as fans. They are the ones that grind everyday and go to class. We just see the game on Saturday, and not the body of work that goes into it. It takes a lot of commitment to work hard and endure the lows they have had this season. Things will get better. Maybe not this year, maybe not next year, but it will get better.

GaTech4ever · Nov 9, 2015

SavannahBee said:
A colleague of mine was in a meeting this morning with Michael Summers, Sr. among others. He has been fielding phone calls from friends , all asking why Michael Jr decided to leave the team. He explained that, after the injury, he decided that it would be better to focus on school and get his degree rather than return/remain, not necessarily in top form, and risk a more serious injury.

I don't think the coaches would have forced him to play if he didn't feel healthy enough. I'm not saying it isn't true, but anyone who thinks he quit the team simply because he didn't want to re-injure himself is naive. Is Snoddy quitting the team? He had a month left and couldn't stick it out. That is fact. Guys just don't quit with a few weeks left in the semester/season to focus on school. He could have quit after the season and focused on school his last semester. There's barely 4 weeks left til classes are over.

awbuzz · Nov 9, 2015

SavannahBee said:
A colleague of mine was in a meeting this morning with Michael Summers, Sr. among others. He has been fielding phone calls from friends , all asking why Michael Jr decided to leave the team. He explained that, after the injury, he decided that it would be better to focus on school and get his degree rather than return/remain, not necessarily in top form, and risk a more serious injury.

While I wish he would have stuck it out for the team, I can respect the decision. I'm sure it wasn't easy.

1979jacket · Nov 9, 2015

I have no idea why he is leaving the team. However , if I were his Father I would tell him -Get your degree - plying football or not is your choice, but your chances in the NFL are low so your degree is the important thing. Football is a labor of love for most and I don't go for the commitment malarkey. Summers provided plenty and owes the team nothing. Football is business and you need to do what is best for you.

awbuzz · Nov 9, 2015

Article states tha CPJ said that Summers was on track to graduate in May. Appears he plans on getting his degree.

Dottie1145 · Nov 9, 2015

Jacketfish said:
I find this very strange also. I'm pretty sure his dad did play for CPJ at one point. I remember MS saying how excited he was to play for him and something about his family knowing him well.

Also, while rushing the field after the FSU win I was talking to some of the players and MS was one of them. He didn't even seem in the slightest bit enthusiastic about the win, which I thought was weird. Didn't think much of it at the time.

Summers dad played at South Carolina State. He grew up in Statesboro during the CPJ reign at Georgia Southern. Now I know that Mike's father works at Savannah State, not sure if he was at GSU before hand.

Cam · Nov 9, 2015

This reminds me a lot of Vad Lee's situation. The only difference is that Vad didn't quit when he lost the heart to play, but some may wish he would have. Football is a game that benefits from intensity and having a player lack it can hurt team morale and production. It's a difficult situation. GT is a grind and adding a sport on top of it where people have expectations for you makes it even more difficult. Sometimes you just need to set your priorities and know when to quit. Seems like Michael figured that out. Hope it relieves some pressure on him and he earns his degree next May. Thanks for the effort, Michael.

ATL1 · Nov 9, 2015

Per: http://www.fromtherumbleseat.com/ge...otball-starting-wr-micheal-summers-quits-team

"It's unclear why he chose to depart the team when he did, although sources close to the program have speculated some potential frustration with the relatively limited nature of his role."

He just had his best game:
"This news comes out after Summers had 4 catches for 58 yards at Virginia"

AE 87 · Nov 9, 2015

ATL1 said:
Per: http://www.fromtherumbleseat.com/ge...otball-starting-wr-micheal-summers-quits-team

"It's unclear why he chose to depart the team when he did, although sources close to the program have speculated some potential frustration with the relatively limited nature of his role."

He just had his best game:
"This news comes out after Summers had 4 catches for 58 yards at Virginia"

It actually angers me a bit how we didn't choose to feature him more. I don't think he dropped a catchable pass. In the last game, he got separation at the endzone, and JT overthrew it out of bounds. Then he was forgotten till the last drives where he made his catches. Then we went away from him and stalled.

Blumpkin Souffle · Nov 9, 2015

Did he just leave the team today or did the story just beak today? It would've been nice had he known he was leaving the team to do it before the bye week so his replacement got an extra week in the role.

AE 87 · Nov 9, 2015

Blumpkin Souffle said:
Did he just leave the team today or did the story just beak today? It would've been nice had he known he was leaving the team to do it before the bye week so his replacement got an extra week in the role.

There's not much difference in practice time for top several rxs

alagold · Nov 9, 2015

BleedingGold said:
Don't usually see starters quit the team 75% of the way through the season. Got to wonder the reasoning behind it. Was doing a pretty good job and showing better consistency. Wonder if he'll come back next season, try to transfer, or is just done with football.

how many teams go from 11-3 to 3-9 ? when the going gets tough, the weak get going,going,gone

SidewalkJacket · Nov 9, 2015

alagold said:
how many teams go from 11-3 to 3-9 ? when the going gets tough, the weak get going,going,gone

Funny, I must've missed the end of the season. Hate that we lost out.

Michael Summers Has Left the Team

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