POLL: How do you feel about Key as HFC?

[InsideLB]

Feel free to add your thoughts on your choice below.

 

[InsideLB]

Thoughts:

Recruiting:
-Main benefit to me from being a Tech Man is it will give him lots of credibility with recruits because he can speak with conviction from personal experience about the GT experience.
-Because he has a strong reputation as arecruiter from time at Bama, and because parents of current players seem to like him, I don’t see GT going downhill in recruiting. Has some upside and chance to develop into a HC “closer”.
-Georgia HS coaches seem to like and respect him.
-Has held current class together for most part and has added guys.
-Kenyatta seems likely to remain at GT with Key at helm.
-Has coached/recruited principally in FL, AL, & GA. The overwhelming # of guys we get come from these states.

Overall recruiting impression: Probably will recruit as least as well as GT has historically. Has some upside potential for incremental improvement. Could see him recruiting OL well, which is pretty darn important. Best realistic expectation IMO is classes ranked 20 to 40 and attract tough SOBs who may not be as highly rated but will work their arses off and fight to the death.

Player Retention
-A mass exodus of players of players through the portal could set the program back significantly. Especially if on OL & DL. While such an exodus may still happen Key is popular with the team. Kind of a side benefit of keeping him, but not why you’d want to hire someone.

Building a Staff
-Seems well-known and respected within the industry. Has a lot of contacts.
-Some existing staff may be worth keeping. D/T experience working working with them as interim Key will have a good idea whom to try and retain. Again not why you’d hire him, but a side benefit. May be able to keep parts that ain’t broke.

Interrim Performance
-Made different personal decisions that appeared to paid off (e.g. Stewart PK, starting Hall at RB, moving some OL around).
-Players displayed fight-to-the-death mentality that had been missing (Collins lost close games regularly. Key beat VT and UNC with resilient efforts from our guys). Players clearly responded to Key and showed development of mental toughness under him.
-Changed practice structure to better simulate games. Appeared to better prepare us on game day.
-Showed ability to take whatever was in the pantry and manufacture some impressive wins. Showed ability to lead/oversee staff in creating novel game plans that got results. Showed some ability to be adaptive on the fly.
-Showed ability to simplify things where needed to get improved results (offense, punting).
-Represents well in press conferences. Plain-spoken, gives intelligent answers.
-Small sample size is a negative. Losses to UVA and Miami were bad.

Coaching Chops
-3 years under Saban as OL coach and multiple years under O’Leary are positives.
-Very Limited HC experience. Has never had year-in/year-out experience of the administrative planning and managing/developing a program.
-Does appear to have ability to develop, hold, and lead around a vision (at least in the short term). In a fairly short time he had our guys extremely processed-focused.

Financial Considerations
-Apparently we don’t have money to burn on a more proven track record and like Dabo at Clemson or Sam Pittman at Arkansas we are going with a less experienced guy who showed a potential fit for the job.

Overall My Opinion:
-Hires are a crapshoot, so who the hell knows. This hire seems more about identifying the qualities you want in your HFC and going with that over track record. Of course guys with track records can mysteriously fail (fit, motivation, personal problems, etc.).
-That said, I do see reasons why Key could well be successful at GT. I do feel excited going forward and seeing what he can do. He does seem like a good fit uniquely for Georgia Tech. I always feel like we have to do more with less and that part of the fun of GT football is seeing a bunch of tough SOBs fight people to the death. Let’s do this thing!

 

[BuzzStone]

To stabilize the program and keep the kids playing hard I think this was the right move. I hope for Keys sake he has the best of luck on his side too. He is not walking into a great situation as a first time head coach. I truly want him to succeed.

 

[jgtengineer]

I think its all going to come down to how key navigates building his staff.

His hires for LB OL and OC/TE will be important. I really hope he doesn't keep long. RB coach will need a good coach too. Honestly going after Dell Magee to be RB/OC Retaining Wienke as QB coach. Would not be a bad call.

As for LB. Daryl Smith is current a coach at Wheeler High school.

 

[gtg936g]

Regardless of how well he does I see this as a 2-4 year hire. If he does well he will get a better opportunity, if he does poorly he will be fired. I don’t see him as a 10 year coach at GT.

 

[Randy Carson]

Thoughts:

This hire seems more about identifying the qualities you want in your HFC and going with that over track record. Of course guys with track records can mysteriously fail (fit, motivation, personal problems, etc.).
-That said, I do see reasons why Key could well be successful at GT. I do feel excited going forward and seeing what he can do. He does seem like a good fit uniquely for Georgia Tech. I always feel like we have to do more with less and that part of the fun of GT football is seeing a bunch of tough SOBs fight people to the death. Let’s do this thing!

Spot.Freaking.On.

Lots of folks with experience don't have the qualities (or character) that I want to see in our HC. CBK does AND he will gain experience quickly. You can't coach moral fiber.

Well said, sir.

 

[wesgt123]

Gee I wonder who that 1 vote for “very disappointed” was

 

[malak05]

Regardless of how well he does I see this as a 2-4 year hire. If he does well he will get a better opportunity, if he does poorly he will be fired. I don’t see him as a 10 year coach at GT.

Interesting thought.... Becoming a Legacy Coach is rare and special in College Football I'm not saying he's gonna takeover the ACC but let's pretend he takes the program and turns it into perennially Top 20 team always in the top 3-4 teams in ACC maybe even flirts with making playoffs. Why would you think he would leave his Alma Mater who he's always shown so much Love for if it gets to the point were the Football Program is humming and financials are looking better and he can get a sweet pay raise and firm his legacy as potential right there with the best ever GT coaches??

 

[Randy Carson]

Regardless of how well he does I see this as a 2-4 year hire. If he does well he will get a better opportunity, if he does poorly he will be fired. I don’t see him as a 10 year coach at GT.

Maybe.

Have you ever turned down a job opportunity with a different company because you really loved what you were doing and the people you worked with?

Happens all the time.

 

[leatherneckjacket]

For the record, I sit somewhere between the second and third option.

 

[Randy Carson]

For the record, I sit somewhere between the second and third option.

So...optimistically cautious?

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

Mixture of first choice and cautiously optimistic for me.

Gonna get a short sleeve hoody for games next year.

 

[RonJohn]

Mixture of first choice and cautiously optimistic for me.

Gonna get a short sleeve hoody for games next year.

Are you in favor of getting Flair to make a "Go Jackets WHOOOOO!!!" video for the message boards at the games?

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

Are you in favor of getting Flair to make a "Go Jackets WHOOOOO!!!" video for the message boards at the games?

 

[bobongo]

Regardless of how well he does I see this as a 2-4 year hire. If he does well he will get a better opportunity, if he does poorly he will be fired. I don’t see him as a 10 year coach at GT.

If he does well, Tech will match any offer to keep him here, and they'll have the dough by virtue of his success. He's a Tech man and I see him here for a long, long time. The man has met his moment.

 

[Jacket05]

Thoughts:

Recruiting:
-Main benefit to me from being a Tech Man is it will give him lots of credibility with recruits because he can speak with conviction from personal experience about the GT experience.
-Because he has a strong reputation as arecruiter from time at Bama, and because parents of current players seem to like him, I don’t see GT going downhill in recruiting. Has some upside and chance to develop into a HC “closer”.
-Georgia HS coaches seem to like and respect him.
-Has held current class together for most part and has added guys.
-Kenyatta seems likely to remain at GT with Key at helm.
-Has coached/recruited principally in FL, AL, & GA. The overwhelming # of guys we get come from these states.

Overall recruiting impression: Probably will recruit as least as well as GT has historically. Has some upside potential for incremental improvement. Could see him recruiting OL well, which is pretty darn important. Best realistic expectation IMO is classes ranked 20 to 40 and attract tough SOBs who may not be as highly rated but will work their arses off and fight to the death.

Player Retention
-A mass exodus of players of players through the portal could set the program back significantly. Especially if on OL & DL. While such an exodus may still happen Key is popular with the team. Kind of a side benefit of keeping him, but not why you’d want to hire someone.

Building a Staff
-Seems well-known and respected within the industry. Has a lot of contacts.
-Some existing staff may be worth keeping. D/T experience working working with them as interim Key will have a good idea whom to try and retain. Again not why you’d hire him, but a side benefit. May be able to keep parts that ain’t broke.

Interrim Performance
-Made different personal decisions that appeared to paid off (e.g. Stewart PK, starting Hall at RB, moving some OL around).
-Players displayed fight-to-the-death mentality that had been missing (Collins lost close games regularly. Key beat VT and UNC with resilient efforts from our guys). Players clearly responded to Key and showed development of mental toughness under him.
-Changed practice structure to better simulate games. Appeared to better prepare us on game day.
-Showed ability to take whatever was in the pantry and manufacture some impressive wins. Showed ability to lead/oversee staff in creating novel game plans that got results. Showed some ability to be adaptive on the fly.
-Showed ability to simplify things where needed to get improved results (offense, punting).
-Represents well in press conferences. Plain-spoken, gives intelligent answers.
-Small sample size is a negative. Losses to UVA and Miami were bad.

Coaching Chops
-3 years under Saban as OL coach and multiple years under O’Leary are positives.
-Very Limited HC experience. Has never had year-in/year-out experience of the administrative planning and managing/developing a program.
-Does appear to have ability to develop, hold, and lead around a vision (at least in the short term). In a fairly short time he had our guys extremely processed-focused.

Financial Considerations
-Apparently we don’t have money to burn on a more proven track record and like Dabo at Clemson or Sam Pittman at Arkansas we are going with a less experienced guy who showed a potential fit for the job.

Overall My Opinion:
-Hires are a crapshoot, so who the hell knows. This hire seems more about identifying the qualities you want in your HFC and going with that over track record. Of course guys with track records can mysteriously fail (fit, motivation, personal problems, etc.).
-That said, I do see reasons why Key could well be successful at GT. I do feel excited going forward and seeing what he can do. He does seem like a good fit uniquely for Georgia Tech. I always feel like we have to do more with less and that part of the fun of GT football is seeing a bunch of tough SOBs fight people to the death. Let’s do this thing!

Another item to add to his interim performance is instilling accountability in the players on and off the field. This is something I haven't seen mentioned on the board yet, but during either the UGA or UNC game there was a play where Felix was a running back and got a big gain (I believe for a first down) and the next play he was replaced by Dontae. The sideline reporter said one of the coaches in the booth noticed that Felix was holding the ball loosely on the play and so Key put him on the bench for a bit. Felix actually made a great play BUT was held accountable for not doing little details he is coached to do. The fact that he is able to be so tough on the players while still maintaining the overwhelmingly positive relationships with them cannot be understated.

 

[a5ehren]

I knew we were broke, but I didn't think we were "hire the interim because we can't pay enough to hire anyone else" broke. It won't be any worse than Collins, but we have to fix our financial situation so the next guy can be a real hire.

 

[ibeattetris]

Don’t think the options really have my thoughts.

I am disappointed but I’m not “very disappointed”. We will never know what really went down, but all the rumors made it sound like the whole interview process was a **** show. There were proven winners available, and regardless why, we have ended up with Key.

Key led an emotionally charged team the remaining season after getting rid of the worst coach in school history. Will future classes play as hard for Key when he is their full time coach? I hope so, and think we will find some semblance of success if this happens. I think drawing any ultimate conclusions though is hard because the situation was not normal.

I support Key and hope he does well, I just personally haven’t seen anything *yet* to make me think he will have sustained success. I will be cheering for him hard to turn around the ship at least.

I am at least glad I will be able to listen to press conferences and radio shows without rolling my eyes.

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

I knew we were broke, but I didn't think we were "hire the interim because we can't pay enough to hire anyone else" broke. It won't be any worse than Collins, but we have to fix our financial situation so the next guy can be a real hire.

I'm betting we will be in better financial shape 20 years from now when Key retires.

 

[Jacket05]

I knew we were broke, but I didn't think we were "hire the interim because we can't pay enough to hire anyone else" broke. It won't be any worse than Collins, but we have to fix our financial situation so the next guy can be a real hire.

I mentioned this on another thread but I don't think we "can't" pay a coach enough. I don't think we are willing to pay a lot without a guarantee of positive results. All the discussions indicate that we are not willing to pay out a large "guaranteed" salary. However, it doesn't mean that Key won't be paid a lot if he succeeds but a large portion of what he gets paid will be in performance incentives. From what I understand this is similar to the contract Chadwell currently has at Coastal. Someone said chadwell's base salary is only $850,000 but he makes closer to $2.5 million a year after incentive payouts.