Js-showman
Jolly Good Fellow
- Messages
- 340
I have been a tech fan for 40 years. The enjoyment from this season has been, at worst, in the top 3 of all of the time I have been watching tech football. 1990 is at the top for obvious reasons. 2014 is at or better than 1998 and exceeds 2009. 1998 was great in that we ended up with a #9 ranking, beat UGA and then Notre Dame in the Gator Bowl, but lost the conference to Florida State (pre ACCCG). While 2009 was great in that we won the ACC title in the CG against Clemson, we still lost to UGA and then to Iowa in the OB. 2014 was better than 2009. Beating UGA is still more important than winning the ACC.
This year had other positive happenings as well.
1. We won the damn Orange Bowl !!! Hasn't happened in my lifetime. In 1990 we won the NC. At that time, GT hadn't won the NC in my lifetime. Winning the OB isn't the NC, but it is really special.
2. The manner in which we played this year was magical. Never gave up in any game. The 'kick and the pick' is already folklore that is worthy of an additional chapter in Clean Old Fashion Hate. The dominant beauty of option football when executed at a high level with the right personnel. The death marches against Miami. The pick 6 that broke the back of Clemson. DJ White's incredible speed at Pitt. The total shutdown of Nick Chubb in the second half of the UGA game. JT blowing past all of that Miss State "SEC Speed" in the Orange bowl. There were more incredible moments in this season than I can recount.
3. The chemistry of this team. You may never see it again. I can't recall ever seeing this kind of chemistry in a GT football team in the past. That show of support for Snoddy should be posted on the wall in the locker room and remembered forever.
4. The team speed. This was noticeable early on, but still surprising. I actually went back and looked at replays of game segments from 1990, 1998 and 2009. This team is just faster than those teams, including 2009 with Dwyer and Thomas. Who knew?
5. The statistics. The team rushing numbers. JT getting 1,000 yards. (I never thought I'd see that again after Nesbitt did it. It only took 5 years.) Fewest punts in CFB. The highest FEI rating in the land. The 3rd down conversion percentages, etc. etc. etc.
6. We had a lot of injuries to key people and never seem to miss a beat. I think this has to do with #5, but going into a bowl game without Snoddy and Smelter had me concerned. Not to mention the guys we lost at the beginning of the season, which had our prospects for success looking grim. With guys going down, other guys started stepping up. I had no idea that we had that kind of depth. It is amazing when you think about it.
7. The foundation for the future. Not to quote a puppet, but as Yoda states about the future, it is difficult to see. Perhaps so, but it looks promising. Really promising. The talent is there. The coaching is there. If the chemistry can be maintained, if we avoid key injuries, then wow.
8. The total collapse of the SEC (myth). As Gore Vidal said, "it is not enough that I succeed, my enemies must also fail."
The 0-4 SEC East record against the ACC, followed by the 2-5 record in bowl games by the SEC West. In short, the alleged best conference in football sucked when it came down to playing the power teams from other conferences. Auburn not withstanding, the SEC is Alabama. Take away Cam Newton and 2 divine plays in 2013 and Auburn's program is nowhere near the top 10. Florida is in disarray - they are now happy to beat East Carolina in the whogivesacrap bowl. UT has been in disarray for years. LSU is down. TAM without Johnny Football is middle of the pack. Missouri is the premier team in the East and there isn't a coach on the planet who does 'less with more' than Mark Richt. Despite all of this, the talking heads on Atlanta sports radio and ESPN wanted at least 2 teams and as many as 4 teams from the SEC in the playoff. The preseason narrative from these clowns next year should be comical.
9. The CFB playoff format. (Which also helped demolish the myth of the SEC.) It makes one wonder if the SEC would have won all of those NCs had we had a playoff format during that period. Without a playoff this year, it would have probably been FSU and Alabama in the NC game. The playoff changes it all. No doubt in my mind that Auburn would have never made it to the NC game last year if they had to run the gauntlet outside the SEC.
To those of you who are younger than I, which probably is most of you, I say 'enjoy this'. In my experience, seasons like 2014 don't come around very often. I hope 2014 is a prelude to the future for GT, but until I see it as so, I am banking this one for years to come.
This year had other positive happenings as well.
1. We won the damn Orange Bowl !!! Hasn't happened in my lifetime. In 1990 we won the NC. At that time, GT hadn't won the NC in my lifetime. Winning the OB isn't the NC, but it is really special.
2. The manner in which we played this year was magical. Never gave up in any game. The 'kick and the pick' is already folklore that is worthy of an additional chapter in Clean Old Fashion Hate. The dominant beauty of option football when executed at a high level with the right personnel. The death marches against Miami. The pick 6 that broke the back of Clemson. DJ White's incredible speed at Pitt. The total shutdown of Nick Chubb in the second half of the UGA game. JT blowing past all of that Miss State "SEC Speed" in the Orange bowl. There were more incredible moments in this season than I can recount.
3. The chemistry of this team. You may never see it again. I can't recall ever seeing this kind of chemistry in a GT football team in the past. That show of support for Snoddy should be posted on the wall in the locker room and remembered forever.
4. The team speed. This was noticeable early on, but still surprising. I actually went back and looked at replays of game segments from 1990, 1998 and 2009. This team is just faster than those teams, including 2009 with Dwyer and Thomas. Who knew?
5. The statistics. The team rushing numbers. JT getting 1,000 yards. (I never thought I'd see that again after Nesbitt did it. It only took 5 years.) Fewest punts in CFB. The highest FEI rating in the land. The 3rd down conversion percentages, etc. etc. etc.
6. We had a lot of injuries to key people and never seem to miss a beat. I think this has to do with #5, but going into a bowl game without Snoddy and Smelter had me concerned. Not to mention the guys we lost at the beginning of the season, which had our prospects for success looking grim. With guys going down, other guys started stepping up. I had no idea that we had that kind of depth. It is amazing when you think about it.
7. The foundation for the future. Not to quote a puppet, but as Yoda states about the future, it is difficult to see. Perhaps so, but it looks promising. Really promising. The talent is there. The coaching is there. If the chemistry can be maintained, if we avoid key injuries, then wow.
8. The total collapse of the SEC (myth). As Gore Vidal said, "it is not enough that I succeed, my enemies must also fail."
The 0-4 SEC East record against the ACC, followed by the 2-5 record in bowl games by the SEC West. In short, the alleged best conference in football sucked when it came down to playing the power teams from other conferences. Auburn not withstanding, the SEC is Alabama. Take away Cam Newton and 2 divine plays in 2013 and Auburn's program is nowhere near the top 10. Florida is in disarray - they are now happy to beat East Carolina in the whogivesacrap bowl. UT has been in disarray for years. LSU is down. TAM without Johnny Football is middle of the pack. Missouri is the premier team in the East and there isn't a coach on the planet who does 'less with more' than Mark Richt. Despite all of this, the talking heads on Atlanta sports radio and ESPN wanted at least 2 teams and as many as 4 teams from the SEC in the playoff. The preseason narrative from these clowns next year should be comical.
9. The CFB playoff format. (Which also helped demolish the myth of the SEC.) It makes one wonder if the SEC would have won all of those NCs had we had a playoff format during that period. Without a playoff this year, it would have probably been FSU and Alabama in the NC game. The playoff changes it all. No doubt in my mind that Auburn would have never made it to the NC game last year if they had to run the gauntlet outside the SEC.
To those of you who are younger than I, which probably is most of you, I say 'enjoy this'. In my experience, seasons like 2014 don't come around very often. I hope 2014 is a prelude to the future for GT, but until I see it as so, I am banking this one for years to come.
