Together We GTSwarm?

[GTJake]

"Together We GTSwarm" is the perfect title for this thread, because although I agree that even on our worst day we should never lose to a 1-AA opponent, the incredible highs and lows as always been a part of GT sports fandom.
And if that is a deal breaker for anyone, maybe they should step away from GT sports.
Whats hard for me to understand is we hire a coach that immediately starts doing things that a lot of us have previously talked about that we should be doing ... connecting to the ATL, selling us for the total package of SA's, Branding, etc.
And that hasn't had a unifying effect on our fanbase ??

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

"Together We GTSwarm" is the perfect title for this thread, because although I agree that even on our worst day we should never lose to a 1-AA opponent, the incredible highs and lows as always been a part of GT sports fandom.
And if that is a deal breaker for anyone, maybe they should step away from GT sports.
Whats hard for me to understand is we hire a coach that immediately starts doing things that a lot of us have previously talked about that we should be doing ... connecting to the ATL, selling us for the total package of SA's, Branding, etc.
And that hasn't had a unifying effect on our fanbase ??

No coach will ever have a unifying effect on a fanbase, and while CGC is doing a lot of things well, he's also bringing a lot of change. Change, while needed, is not always good. Some of his changes may work out, others may not, but when a change impacts something you love about the GT experience and tradition you are comfortable with, it will serve to push away certain members of the fan base.

Now, I believe in a lot of what he is doing and trying to build, but I can also see where some things he has done are hard for long time fans to swallow. He's a generational shift to the younger in a fan base where a lot of the donors are older. It's going to be a challenge for him to manage both sections, and that's why we need to support him no matter what for the next three years. After that he will have to live and die on his results.

 

[Augusta_Jacket]

In defense of CGC, I'd also like to point out that new coaches often have several gaffes in the first couple of years that haunt them in the short term. CPJ famously told the press we had bigger fish to fry before the 2009 uga game. He never really lived that down. CGC will do and say things that will seem stupid/silly/ridiculous to many of us at times. We can either extend grace and allow him the time and opportunity to remake this program in his fashion or we can nitpick every decision and wonder why he leaves us for a better job as soon as it becomes available. Coaching carousels aren't fun or productive. We need to ride this out and be prepared to endure a couple years of pain in the process.

 

[Southpawmac]

I don't understand why CPJ should be relevant to any convo any more, unless we are specifically talking about past coaches. This weekend, we were talking about Citadel and the current team, not the prior regime.

Saying CPJ isn't relevant to this team isn't really accurate though. This team is almost entirely players CPJ recruited, so anytime you talk about the players, CPJ is naturally going to be included in that conversation. Just in reference to the Citadel game, the Oline was probably the worst performing group of the day. Injuries played a big part in that, but recruiting for our previous scheme also played a part in that.

 

[TheSilasSonRising]

I don't understand why CPJ should be relevant to any convo any more, unless we are specifically talking about past coaches. This weekend, we were talking about Citadel and the current team, not the prior regime.

In general I think your statement is correct.

But for quite some time many were concerned with the roster management inequities of having to recruit enough “athletes”, a backs, b backs and QBs to fill the roster.

Many were concerned that we were robbing Peter to pay Paul in too many other areas and continually changing DCs would not help.

So if it is fair to blame the current staff on current outcomes it might be fair to blame previous staff for their warts as well.

But it is all just spitting in the wind.

I expect us to go to better places than we have in the last 11 years, but not this year.

 

[Technut1990]

The biggest way to accomplish this in my opinion is to realize that we follow Tech Football because we are fans. Fans get “triggered” because they are (we are) passionate about our team. It is not personal to watch the games and *****.

Sports is sports it generates competition and that applies to the fan base also. Notice that all of us get mad or object to things which we think HURTS our chances of winning. We argue about which QB should start because we think our particular thoughts will help win.

Applied logically all we are doing is bit**ing about something we love, which is struggling. If your son hits the curb in some form or fashion you explain to him why he hit it, you criticize how he did it. Football is no different. If I say fan A is wrong it isn’t personal, it’s a sports disagreement ! My hunch is that we are living by the same rules the real players live by, if not nicer.

I know beyond a doubt that the players yell at each other and use profanity, I know the coaches do. They do it to correct. Just like they pat each other on the back or make sure they are there for each other when the time arises. We e seen members of this board pass on and/or lose loved ones, I think we came together when that happened. We are who we are because of expectations not because we are mean and cruel. That is Tech, it is what it is because of expectations.

It’s sports, it’s football and it’s competition.

We should all realize that all of us want to win. It’s pretty simple

 

[Supersizethatorder-mutt]

Saying CPJ isn't relevant to this team isn't really accurate though. This team is almost entirely players CPJ recruited, so anytime you talk about the players, CPJ is naturally going to be included in that conversation. Just in reference to the Citadel game, the Oline was probably the worst performing group of the day. Injuries played a big part in that, but recruiting for our previous scheme also played a part in that.

Recruiting for our previous system should NOT have mattered against The Citadel .... against Clemson and others on the schedule, yes, but definitely not The Citadel. Injuries and lack of intensity did us in.

 

[gt02]

Saying CPJ isn't relevant to this team isn't really accurate though. This team is almost entirely players CPJ recruited, so anytime you talk about the players, CPJ is naturally going to be included in that conversation. Just in reference to the Citadel game, the Oline was probably the worst performing group of the day. Injuries played a big part in that, but recruiting for our previous scheme also played a part in that.

CPJ was not there on Saturday. Nor was he around this summer, installing the new system. Nor was it his gameplan, or his system. Nor his blocking technique.

If what you are trying to say is that you would like to throw the players CPJ recruited under the bus, then say that. I have a feeling it won't be well received by others, because (1) it is a low class statement; and (2) it is a ridiculous to point to the players as the reason we lost against Citadel, but if that's what you really believe, say it.

 

[gtie73]

I just turned 69. Appears several posters are around this age or older. I don't post very often. But...…..
Having attended 3 GT gatherings in the past two months,most if not ALL attendees are white haired (like myself). Most were older. Instead of the eternal and most recent negative topics of games, players, coaches, etc can we move onto working as a group to draw younger fans into the fold. Easier to keep drilling on the negative but I'd like another group of ardent fans to displace us when we are gone or need extra help getting to the stadium, arenas, diamond, etc.

 

[TheWhiteKenyan]

I just turned 69.

Nice.

 

[Vespidae]

I just turned 69. Appears several posters are around this age or older. I don't post very often. But...…..
Having attended 3 GT gatherings in the past two months,most if not ALL attendees are white haired (like myself). Most were older. Instead of the eternal and most recent negative topics of games, players, coaches, etc can we move onto working as a group to draw younger fans into the fold. Easier to keep drilling on the negative but I'd like another group of ardent fans to displace us when we are gone or need extra help getting to the stadium, arenas, diamond, etc.

Great post, thank you.

 

[takethepoints]

Personally I don't think we have two extreme camps..I think we have a fan base with a few vocal fans at each extreme and much of the fan base in the middle (like me).

I really don't care much about the type of offense, the hype stuff, etc etc..I care only about competitive results. Saturday wasn't acceptable. Full stop. And there is plenty of blame to go around the entire organization, top to bottom. But I also will want to wait and see how this team and coaching staff goes about its business the rest of the year before I form any lasting impressions. Adversity can bring out different reactions...sometimes teams will pull together and become stronger, smarter, more dedicated. It is also possible some folks will give up and peel out. I will wait and see what happens before making my own judgments. It's why I have posted very little since Saturday. As bad as it was, I think there has been a lot of over-reaction. (It is understandable though, I am not being critical as much as I'm trying to say "let's just chill a bit and watch and see what happens".)

Yes; this happened last year after our early season losses. At least two of those (USF, Pitt) were arguably due in part to some bad coaching decisions. We overcame the early downturns and ended up doing ok. There's no reason at all why this can't happen again. I'm pretty sure that this year's team is just as adverse to losing as last year's.

Needless to say, the coaching staff is too. Let's give them and the team a chance to overcome adversity.

 

[takethepoints]

I just turned 69. Appears several posters are around this age or older. I don't post very often. But...…..
Having attended 3 GT gatherings in the past two months,most if not ALL attendees are white haired (like myself). Most were older. Instead of the eternal and most recent negative topics of games, players, coaches, etc can we move onto working as a group to draw younger fans into the fold. Easier to keep drilling on the negative but I'd like another group of ardent fans to displace us when we are gone or need extra help getting to the stadium, arenas, diamond, etc.

This should be the topic for another and very interesting thread. I think you have hit on one of the biggest problems for Tech - nay, college - football going forward. Why not start it and see what people think?

Btw, I'm 73 and see the same thing you do.

 

[Southpawmac]

CPJ was not there on Saturday. Nor was he around this summer, installing the new system. Nor was it his gameplan, or his system. Nor his blocking technique.

If what you are trying to say is that you would like to throw the players CPJ recruited under the bus, then say that. I have a feeling it won't be well received by others, because (1) it is a low class statement; and (2) it is a ridiculous to point to the players as the reason we lost against Citadel, but if that's what you really believe, say it.

And this is what every thread turns into. People start accusing other of "throwing kids under the bus" when I was giving you a reason how CPJ gets brought up in regards to this team. How is anything I said throwing players under the bus? Players recruited for the option are shockingly best suited for the option. That's not their fault, but it's also a factual statement and a reason teams like Clemson, Miami, etc. weren't recruiting the same linemen as CPJ. They are talented kids, that's why they were recruited, but they are also gonna struggle a lot because they are learning a completely new way to do their job(see the bold part of your reply) and were best suited body and technique wise for option blocking. Also where in my statement did I say that Oline play was the reason we lost to Citadel? We lost to Citadel cause we played like crap across the board, coaches to players.

 

[gt02]

And this is what every thread turns into. People start accusing other of "throwing kids under the bus" when I was giving you a reason how CPJ gets brought up in regards to this team. How is anything I said throwing players under the bus? Players recruited for the option are shockingly best suited for the option. That's not their fault, but it's also a factual statement and a reason teams like Clemson, Miami, etc. weren't recruiting the same linemen as CPJ. They are talented kids, that's why they were recruited, but they are also gonna struggle a lot because they are learning a completely new way to do their job(see the bold part of your reply) and were best suited body and technique wise for option blocking. Also where in my statement did I say that Oline play was the reason we lost to Citadel? We lost to Citadel cause we played like crap across the board, coaches to players.

As best as I could understand your post, you are trying to rationalize why CPJ is brought up in posts about Saturday. My point is that you are using him as a straw man. Otherwise, I don’t see how he is relevant.

 

[bke1984]

The “wait and see” crew never been that. It’s always felt like “wait & pounce on the 1st sign of trouble & get a pound a flesh for CPJ”

Kind of a strange assertion since the wait and see camp probably doesn’t post all that much...

 

[AlabamaBuzz]

You can be in the "wait and see" group, but still want to vent (post) about such an historically bad loss. I would have been posting about it no matter who the coaches were. It was terrible, and that is a fact.

But, I will agree that some of the stuff that is not directly related to the on the field stuff that bothers some of us should be left out of the conversation, and I have been guilty of bringing that stuff up. I commit to doing better in that regard. If it is not directly related to performance or decision making on the field, and it is just a "personal preference" issue, I will try hard not to mention that in any post, unless the thread is actually about one of those items.

I have said all along that it is great that we all have strong opinions (and, of course, each one of us believes we are "right" ) As long as we keep things civil and do not throw personal insults at each other, I think this will continue to be a great place for our discussions.

The mods are doing a great and thankless job.

 

[AE 87]

The “wait and see” crew never been that. It’s always felt like “wait & pounce on the 1st sign of trouble & get a pound a flesh for CPJ”

I purposely said “felt” bc feelings are not on absolute for everyone.

I appreciate your use of the word, "felt," in your second sentence. However, you directly label those who consider themselves as "wait and see" as liars or deluded in your first "sentence." Those people are already offended by the absolute assertion that they have "never been that." So, your use of the word "felt" reads as the basis of your absolute conclusion rather than as a way of qualifying it.

Still, I think the biggest problem is when people respond to posts assuming that their feelings are true rather than responding to what was actually posted. So, instead of saying, "I disagree with what you say here," someone posts, "So, you were just waiting to see CGC fail." In that case a person is responding to their feeling about the other person not to the post.

 

[Animal02]

.

You can be in the "wait and see" group, but still want to vent (post) about such an historically bad loss. I would have been posting about it no matter who the coaches were. It was terrible, and that is a fact.

But, I will agree that some of the stuff that is not directly related to the on the field stuff that bothers some of us should be left out of the conversation, and I have been guilty of bringing that stuff up. I commit to doing better in that regard. If it is not directly related to performance or decision making on the field, and it is just a "personal preference" issue, I will try hard not to mention that in any post, unless the thread is actually about one of those items.

I have said all along that it is great that we all have strong opinions (and, of course, each one of us believes we are "right" ) As long as we keep things civil and do not throw personal insults at each other, I think this will continue to be a great place for our discussions.

The mods are doing a great and thankless job.

And skewering the koolaid drinkers does not mean hating or wanting CGC to fail.

 

[Ibeeballin]

Kind of a strange assertion since the wait and see camp probably doesn’t post all that much...

Lmao... you must be new here.