The cold hard facts of GT Offense, Defense, Head Coaches

[Skeptic]

George O’Leary won a fiesta bowl at UCF. He won 8 or more games there seven different seasons. He won a National Championship as a Defensive Coordinator.

Evaluating him on the pre-Fridge years is silly given what he pulled our program out of.

If we’re gonna say O’Leary was nothing without Fridge let’s talk about how crappy of a Coach Johnson was without Gailey’s players.

Your post is straight up nonsense.

Well, okay I guess. Though as I remember Johnson got more out of them in a new scheme that Gailey was able to get, and he recruited them for his stuff. And if you are gonna go there, please mention four straight bowl defeats with them, and an Orange Bowl blowout to Iowa which did a lot more to show the difference in Big 10 Players and ACC players than anything else. They were huge and they were fast. So let's just stop the "whattabout" so popular in Washington and on talk shows, and see what Collins does. He has a core of solid players back, but unless he can recruit about 30 guys in the next month or sign junior college xfers -- I wonder if he and Stansbury had that talk? -- he will either get mauled if he insists on sticking with his formula offense, or maybe be competitive with some formations and roles adopted to the players on hand. If he does that it will a long year. If he can improvise for at least a year, it might be really interesting because Tech has a couple of backs I think are built for the shotgun spread.

 

[Skeptic]

No I’m saying that’s silly to say a coach is lesser because he makes great hires. That is literally the coach’s job. CPJs inability to hire a good DC is an indictment of his coaching ability.

I agree with your intent, but you insist on couching everything on "coaching ability". A good DC is hiring ability. If you phrase it that way, I would not argue much. But it had nothing to do with coaching. Shoot, Johnson could have coached the D, and did in an earlier life for Erk Russell and i think in Hawaii.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Have to agree that is funny - we have NEVER been loaded with talent, although it is true that we had a few more individuals (for GT only) that would play NFL in 2008 and 2009 than other years. BUT, GT has never been, and probably never will be, loaded with talent. I wish we could be "loaded with talent". That would be awesome.

"Never" Alabama is a long time. But your assertion is well founded especially since 2000. I would say that there have been only 4 Tech teams that were truly loaded with talent since WWII. 1952 national champions had 6 All Americans, 1956 team was touted by Dodd as his deepest and most talented team but was stymied by the rule change to one platoon football, the 1990 national champs had talent on both sides of the ball with Ken Swilling, Willie Clay, Jerrel Williams, Calvin Tiggle, and Coleman Rudolph on defense with Shawn Jones, William Bell, BIG (as Al Ciraldo used to say) Mike Mooney, the other tackle whose name escapes me, a pair of excellent wide receivers and the Tech immortal Scott Sisson along with Captain Bookbag as he was known. The fourth team is the much argued about 2009 team which was outstanding just not against UGA that particular day. Good teams loaded with good players on both sides of the ball and pretty much quality depth maybe not to the degree of the 1956 team which Dodd claimed had a second and third team almost as good as the first team. But yes, those are the exceptions not the rule. Maybe Coach Collins can turn that around with just a little support from the Hill and more, much more in the way of recruiting resources devoted especially to finding linemen. FWIW

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Eh, Wake was good in 06, but we were better. If it wasn't played on a rice patty, we probably beat them. The playcalling was frustrating, but Reggie couldn't get any grip and Calvin couldn't get any footing that day. It was just typical Chan Gailey over-the-top conservative offense. As for Duke, their record the last 2 years is 2 games better than ours (7-6, 7-5), the 2 games that they beat us. If that's where we're at, just damn. Wake hung 59 on them and Pitt 54. Army beat them last year. They are not world beaters.

True dat. Duke is not world beaters just "Jacket beaters" for some reason. I feel kind of like Dean Wormer at the end of Animal House when he says "I hate those guys".

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Second string tight end is showing lack of knowledge on the recruiting of Josh Nesbit as a QB. He was one of two four star QB in that class. Jonathan Dyer has never been replicated or even been close to having a B back close to that good. Bebe is still the best WR in the Johnson era. Smelter a close second. He only played FB because his baseball days were done. He had eligibility and excelled. We have not had any where near close to the talent on defense as we did that 08 and 09 teams. Roddy says hello by the way. So yes Gailey could say if I had Nesbit maybe I could of. Just like Paul can say if I only I had Graham or Yates I could of, but both didn't and can't . Yes Gailey's players excelled the success of Paul's offense in the early days.

Let me tell you, that Smelter was one fine football player. He could block, catch passes, dangerous after the catch, anything and everything. The kind of guy that had opposing DBs looking at during warmups and saying "That is the dude we gotta stop".

 

[Skeptic]

Second string tight end is showing lack of knowledge on the recruiting of Josh Nesbit as a QB. He was one of two four star QB in that class. Jonathan Dyer has never been replicated or even been close to having a B back close to that good. Bebe is still the best WR in the Johnson era. Smelter a close second. He only played FB because his baseball days were done. He had eligibility and excelled. We have not had any where near close to the talent on defense as we did that 08 and 09 teams. Roddy says hello by the way. So yes Gailey could say if I had Nesbit maybe I could of. Just like Paul can say if I only I had Graham or Yates I could of, but both didn't and can't . Yes Gailey's players excelled the success of Paul's offense in the early days.

We saw Nesbitt play, and he played heart and guts and competed. But one assumes a 4-star QB can throw the ball. Well, accurately. He simply could not. The scheme made Nesbitt successful at GT.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Well, okay I guess. Though as I remember Johnson got more out of them in a new scheme that Gailey was able to get, and he recruited them for his stuff. And if you are gonna go there, please mention four straight bowl defeats with them, and an Orange Bowl blowout to Iowa which did a lot more to show the difference in Big 10 Players and ACC players than anything else. They were huge and they were fast. So let's just stop the "whattabout" so popular in Washington and on talk shows, and see what Collins does. He has a core of solid players back, but unless he can recruit about 30 guys in the next month or sign junior college xfers -- I wonder if he and Stansbury had that talk? -- he will either get mauled if he insists on sticking with his formula offense, or maybe be competitive with some formations and roles adopted to the players on hand. If he does that it will a long year. If he can improvise for at least a year, it might be really interesting because Tech has a couple of backs I think are built for the shotgun spread.

Coach Johnson would be the first to tell you that the ACC of his early years was a whole lot easier to deal with than what he has faced recently. FSU and Miami were loaded with talent but for a variety of reasons underachieved, Clemson was very good but not quite the juggernaut they have become under Dabo, Virginia was troublesome but not quite as good as they are now. Virginia Tech is the only team that off the top of my head was better then than they are now. Correction, UNC was definitely better then than they are now. Don't know about Wake or NC State. The ACC now is a pretty tough conference but the Coastal is always crazy, that is one thing that has not changed over the years. Coach Collins has his work cut out for him with UGA and Clemson being elite top 10 along with a much improved Pitt team to contend with. Could be worse, I suppose, Mack Brown could still be at UNC...oops my bad.

 

[Milwaukee]

Coach Johnson would be the first to tell you that the ACC of his early years was a whole lot easier to deal with than what he has faced recently. FSU and Miami were loaded with talent but for a variety of reasons underachieved, Clemson was very good but not quite the juggernaut they have become under Dabo, Virginia was troublesome but not quite as good as they are now. Virginia Tech is the only team that off the top of my head was better then than they are now. Correction, UNC was definitely better then than they are now. Don't know about Wake or NC State. The ACC now is a pretty tough conference but the Coastal is always crazy, that is one thing that has not changed over the years. Coach Collins has his work cut out for him with UGA and Clemson being elite top 10 along with a much improved Pitt team to contend with. Could be worse, I suppose, Mack Brown could still be at UNC...oops my bad.

Paul should've cake-walked to the Acc title game this year. This was the 2nd most disappointing season of his tenure behind 2015.

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Paul should've cake-walked to the Acc title game this year. This was the 2nd most disappointing season of his tenure behind 2015.

It is not good when your team just lays an egg for an entire half against a decent but not really very good Pitt team. It happens. Given the choice, beating Miami and Virginia Tech is always preferable to beating Pitt. At least in my mind. But your point is well taken. A Tech team that beats Miami, Virginia Tech, and Virginia should be able to whip Pitt and Duke. IIWII We will see if Coach Collins can change the equation with recruiting and better defense. It may get worse before it gets better though.

 

[Coloradojacket]

Paul should've cake-walked to the Acc title game this year. This was the 2nd most disappointing season of his tenure behind 2015.

Milwaukee, I agree and we will look back at this season and scratch our heads. Really like 2014 where we should have at least beaten UNC and Duke. The UCF, Pitt and Duke games just confound me. UCF was special teams and a fumble. Pitt, well I put that on CPJ, no need to fake punt it, that was the difference in the game. Duke, man I was there and we were finally starting to move the ball on them when Howard fumbled. Then Taquon reverted and tried to do to much as did Juanye. The wins over UVA and Miami showed how good we could be. Sorry, Va Tech is a toilet team now.

 

[ibeattetris]

Paul should've cake-walked to the Acc title game this year. This was the 2nd most disappointing season of his tenure behind 2015.

Honestly man, this season is worse for me than 2015. I understand why 2015 was bad with all of the injuries. Considering it was Roof's best defense, 2015 is a special year if the offense has a pulse (which is hard to do with 3rd string OL starting a replacing half your skill players).

This year though, man, we were Jekyll and Hyde at the beginning of the year and didn't figure out how to play complete games until way too late into the season. This season to me will always be the one that go away.

 

[Milwaukee]

Well said @ibeattetris .

 

[56JacketDE]

Coach Johnson would be the first to tell you that the ACC of his early years was a whole lot easier to deal with than what he has faced recently. The ACC now is a pretty tough conference

The ACC was probably the worst P5 conference this year....

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

Could be but still Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Duke is more than enough for us to handle at present.

 

[LibertyTurns]

Could be but still Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Duke is more than enough for us to handle at present.

You do realize we beat 3 of 4 of those teams. That’s hardly what I consider more than enough for us to handle.

Secondly, didn’t Dook beat the team that played in the Big 10 championship game? How bad must that half of the conference suck when their representative couldn’t beat Dook?

 

[Heisman's Ghost]

You do realize we beat 3 of 4 of those teams. That’s hardly what I consider more than enough for us to handle.

Secondly, didn’t Dook beat the team that played in the Big 10 championship game? How bad must that half of the conference suck when their representative couldn’t beat Dook?

Yep I realize it I also realize that those same four teams have at various times in Coach Johnson's tenure been more than we can handle. Miami, in particular, has owned us. "Dook" is well "Dook" a perpetual thorn in our side the same way we have been to Virginia Tech. It was nice this year beating Miami, Virginia Tech, and Virginia so that even though we finished second and played poorly at both Pitt and Duke this year is a success in my view just beating those three. As for Clemson and UGA, well...that is why we got Coach Collins.

 

[GTRambler]

I’ll bee glad when Coach Collins finally names his entire coaching staff, so we all will have real names to discuss and consider for the future of Georgia Tech football going forward.

LOL

 

[Skeptic]

Could be but still Miami, Virginia Tech, Virginia and Duke is more than enough for us to handle at present.

I think it would be shortsighted and foolish to assume based on one miserable year that Miami, VT, Virginia or Duke are down for the count. Those are good programs with good coaches and at least two of the four will not put up with mediocre records. Let's not log any wins just yet.

 

[Skeptic]

Welcome to the board! Well thought out and supported. The word innovation has been bantered about a lot lately. It's something TStan said was critical. It's something CGC says he'll implement. We shall see. We know CPJ was innovative, everybody knew it. His problem was Jimmies and Joes and a lot of his struggles there were (and still are) institutional/GT related, not scheme related. Good luck Geoff, you're gonna need it.

What, you are saying that a guy who disappears into his basement in Statesboro and comes out in a few days with an entirely new offensive concept because the GSU team does not have a great running back is ... innovative? Be careful there.

 

[eetech]

My favorite memory of Nesbitt is of the "wtf?!" look on the face of opposing linebackers when, instead of trying to dodge left or right, a QB was lowering his hat into their chest to truck them.

My favorite Nesbitt moment was when he stole the fumble back against FSU in that crazy 49-44 lightning riddled game.