Georgia Tech Football Ramblings

Dead Week Review Session - Pop Quiz Edition

2010-04-28T11:39:00.000-07:00

DRAFT ANGLE - (4 degrees)

Some people believe in the existence of a legendary league in which the game of football is played professionally and the players are payed. Of course, I've always said that's a load of 'basura caliente' (or 'Sti-mi PU-pi' in Japanese). Why would anyone other than proud American university men want to play football? It's all about old-timey tradition, friendly competition, and the love of the game...ya know - the way it makes for a family-like camaraderie amongst the university community and a great study break, right? RIGHT...?

Ok, so Tech did well in the NFL draft. 2 players in the first round, 4 overall, and a free agent signee. Not shabby for us, but not where I want us to be in the college world.

EXTRANEOUS BITS OF TID

In other news, the T-DAY game had lightning, so, true to form, the 1st team offense was a'ramblin...something about how Anthony Allen is a force of nature oughta go here. Anyway, wish we could have seen more.

Tech swept the cowpies in baseball this season, FINALLY winning one at the Ted! Nice. Now to clench the historic series we gotta do that for another ten years or so. It's a start.

Also, it's the Dead Week/Finals Week blur. I am a studio hermit, and am constantly high on plastic fumes. This will lead me to maybe post some more stupid junk on the blog later in the week. For a start, let's watch this...

It sums up how trying to earn a degree from Tech makes me feel.

It's called the Cupid Shuffle...

2010-04-22T11:51:00.000-07:00

Okay, everyone's freakin' out over conference expansion, and I'm not about to sit the whole thing out.

Scenario - Big Ten (11) goes to 14 teams by grabbing Notre Dame and some Big East-ers. The Big 12, Pac-10, ACC, and SEC need to respond (I assume the Big East is done...). Here's how the Southern United States gets what it wants. Note - this is ALL about dominating the TV landscape (something the SEC loves to do, and the ACC needs more of).

First, the SEC and ACC need to each recognize that they are holding onto some states that have little market value and some that have more. They compete in some and not in others. Some states are "owned" by each conference. If they want to grow and move up they need to work together in a way.

The SEC should strike a deal with the ACC to give all “market-redundant” teams to that conference, allowing the ACC to add more historic Southern programs. Then, the ACC needs to oust all the small-stuff teams that never had business in the big market. No one with stadiums seating fewer than 40k should be admitted to this deal.

The deal is as follows - any flagship school being the "U of (insert state name here)" goes to the former SEC. Any other teams in that state that qualify go to the former ACC. In this way we create a dead-even TV market competition from DC down to Austin. Each state has its flagship University in a 14 team superconference, and all other big deal schools in each state are in a rival conference - IN THE SAME MARKET! Rivalry week just got HUGE! Here is the way I see that working so that nearly every state in the Southern US is accounted for by each conference.

Former SEC (new name)-
West: (Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, LSU, Mississippi, Alabama, West Virginia);
East: (Tennessee, Kentucky, Georgia, Florida, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia)

Former ACC (new name)-
West: (OK State, Texas A&M, Baylor, Miss State, Louisville, Vandy, Auburn);
East: (GT, Clemson, NC State, VT, FSU, Miami, East Carolina)

The end result would be two 14-team BCS conferences controlling the biggest markets in the South and competing more evenly for money, fans, and hopefully championships.

HINT- This makes the most sense on a map.

Go Jackets!

Lynx

2010-04-20T12:12:00.000-07:00

This just in - Paul Johnson is good at what he does (gasp!)

And introducing Rev. Dr. Joshua Wincrest Thurston Beauregard Nesbitt, The Eighth, Esq. , as his momma calls him.

This one fraternity I know about did pretty well when teamed up with this different fraternity I've heard about to dominate the 2010 Georgia Tech Stroll Competition. Most unique Greek system in the world? I know one thing - it's certainly kept my life fun for [censored] years!

Go Jackets!

Click, Click -- BOOM!

2010-04-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

Ladies and Gentlemen, Wrecks and Ramblers, Jackets and Scotties, Engineers, Studio Junkies, M-Train Jockeys and...pre-law majors? - Brothers and Sisters in the White and Gold,

I. AM. BACK!!!

Yes, me - the studio-dwelling, car-designing, A-town Stompin'est, polo shirt-wearin'est, Dr. Pepper chuggin'est, ramblin' wreck on Techwood! What's that noise, you ask? That, my Fellow Jackets, is the sound of my blogger engine crackin' to life like the snappy-growl of a new Ferrari (designed by a Tech grad, thank you kindly) ready to tear up some track in the pursuit of excellence. Do I presume to compare my blogging to the cut-and-jive of a trained Ferrarista? No, friends, I have a day job. I won't be one to rack up a thousand hours to attain the level of blog virtuoso. This, friends, is just my way of saying that I am very excited to announce a return to my hobby. I probably won't write everyday, but I will always bring something ridiculous and Tech related. Fo reals. Pinky swearz...

When it comes to bloggin' I know it seems I've missed a lot. Ah, but miss it I did not! I was there for all of it, just forced to pine from my cell in studio. But, compadres, I have been here all along! I was there for the coronation in Tampa, there for the reality check in Miami, there for the topsy-turvy, inexplicable ride through the hardcourt jungle, there for the historic burial of the red and black rounders. And, amigos, I will be here for the practice reports, the rumors, the silly ranting, the whims and the heckling to play my part as a friend, motivator and general positive influence for the GT Faithful. Onward and upward, comrades, together we ramble on!

Check back as I plan to TRY and bring you something ridiculous at least 3 times a week.

Go Jackets!

Yellow Jackets dream of crystal honey combs

2009-10-23T18:48:00.000-07:00

Sorry I never update - school is the most time-consuming it's ever been for me here at "Ma Tech," the North Avenue Trade School, the good ole Institute. So what makes a nesting Yellow Jacket dare to dream?

Saturday saw the Jackets extend our win streak to 4 games and take down the number four team in the country (over rated as they may have been) and place themselves back in the ACC title conversation. Grant field was stormed and a goalpost was taken down. The BCS standings printed the next day had us at #12.

We are in the best spot we've been in since I've been at Tech. That's including 2006's ACC-Title shot. Back then we didn't have the beans to beat Wake in the championship game and definitely would've gotten hosed in any BCS bowl. This time around? Well, let's just say that from the #12 spot we are capable of anything. ANYTHING. If we win out and the right teams lose we could conceivably be up against anyone in the country for any trophy or title they make for college football teams. And that DOES NOT scare me this time. You heard it here first - we could take the best of the best to the wire. Give us a Trojan, Longhorn, Gator or Buckeye - it doesn't matter. Our defense is not what it used to be - sure enough - but it'll hang with anyone for 60 minutes and let our offense light the fireworks at will. And, oh, the fireworks this offense can bring! Not sayin' we'd WIN the national championship if we went...but I'll bet it'd go better than people might think.

SO...

What does my wildest dream for a perfect end to this season look like as it stands tonight after 7 games? Georgia Tech wins the next four convincingly and Miami loses to Clemson. Tech beats Georgia who has miraculously eeked a win over Florida and climbed the rankings. We beat Clemson in a rematch to grab the ACC Crown and rub it in their faces. All the right teams between #1 and whatever we're ranked after all that drop a game at crucial moments getting us to the #2 BCS spot. Georgia Tech meets Alabama for a historic national championship game in Pasadena's Rose Bowl. The most exciting game in the history of college football ensues as Mark Ingram lights up our D for a million yards and all of our "options" light up the Tide for a million and a half. The game stays touchdown for touchdown until a 45-45 stalemate sets in through the fourth quarter. Bludgeoned and bloodied in overtime after a clutch defensive stop, Josh Nesbitt takes the snap, fakes to Dwyer, rolls right and pitches to Roddy Jones. Anthony Allen lowers the boom and flattens an oncoming D-back into little more than a grease spot for an epic block. Roddy slips through the huge hole only to be hit and fumble the ball straight to a linebacker who finds himself violently helmeted in the chest and the ball ripped from his grasp by a now fire-breathing Josh Nesbitt who swiftly turns, hurdles two more defenders, blazes up the sideline, sheds a tackle, gets caught from behind by four other defenders and proceeds to charge onward dragging them all into the endzone by virtue of sheer will. After gladiating his way to victory to the din of an erupting crowd he camly returns the championship winning ball to the nearest ref, hugs each of his teammates and then passes out in a pool of his own sacrificial blood. Paul Johnson is then handed the crystal football only to put it back on the pedestal and say "Thanks, but there's no sense makin' a fuss over it. We plan on comin' back."

Ah, dreams.

Let's just start with beating the Hoos in Charlottesville tomorrow.

Jackets vs. the SEC

2009-10-03T17:42:00.001-07:00

Well tonight we begin the special Out of Conference portion of our football schedule in Starkville against the Missisippi State Bulldogs. Not the same ones we destroyed last year in the Dodd...the new ones with head coach Dan Mullen. It is nearly halftime and the score of the game is 21-14 Jackets up. Our offense is moving the ball at will, but our defense is not stopping much of anything....

UPDATE - Fair to say turnovers are killing MSU. Just ran another one in for 6!

UPDATE - exciting end to the half...held 'em to the field goal, they faked to get 10 seconds with the ball. All they could do with that was attempt one pass play (Burnett was all over it and nearly picked it off)...so they kicked the FG to put the score at 28 -17 Jackets. Hope Paul Johnson keeps the team intense for the 3rd and 4th!

Week 4 and I'm finally getting started!

2009-09-27T09:30:00.000-07:00

Okay, I've been away for too long. There is much to talk about, but I'll focus on the important things in this short hit.

First, a third of the season is behind us. You have likely read plenty about the games from other blogs so here's my take on the season as a whole thus far:

Bobby Dodd Stadium - Has some great new additions, is more full and is louder. This needs to keep trending upward, and it will if the Jackets keep their home winning streak alive. Georgia Tech needs to be seen as a great place to be on a Staurday for anyone that lives near Atlanta. Maybe tackle the parking problems next?

Yellow Jacket Nation - Is more motivated and responsive to the team. How do I know? The Dodd was not only bathed in white for the White Out Game against Clemson, but it was loud and energetic. Alumni stood up. Crazy, I know...but it happened.

The Band - Continues to amp up the players with "Put On" by Young Jeezy (the song they played last year after the big win in Athens) but falls flat with the new "Let's Go Tech" cheer on first downs....please find a new first down cheer!

The Coach - Does not let this team get away with anything. He calls it like he sees it and then either gets the team to play the right way or makes changes to help them play the right way. This bodes very well.

The Offense - So many ways to run the ball...so many! Just stay bloodthirsty on the blocking and tougher than your opponent's defense and points will come. When we're in the red zone we need to our running backs to scare linebackers. I want to hear the pads clapping on hits from the other side of the stadium! How bad do we want those points?!

Special Teams - Dear Scott Blair, you got benched because you're not delivering. Practice more...or whatever helps you get the job done. Oh, and Jarrard Tarrant is an awesome boost for this team. Opponents are afraid to punt to him.

Defense - Hot then cold. Obviously, Dave Wommack changed schemes before Week 4's game, and they looked better against UNC. But then again...it's UNC. I know the media says Butch Davis has 'em playin' like an SEC team, but offense wasn't really the lynchpin of that argument. So in order for any praise to come from me for the Jacket defense, I'm going to need to see them do the same against Missy State and FSU.

Upcoming Games - Our SEC grudge match just got more interesting as we march into Starkeville (if anyone can find it) to take on a team that just played #7 LSU to the wire and should have won. No more Sly Croom on the sidelines. This is Dan Mullen's team now...and you can bet your life that he will have them ready to play the Jackets. Our coach needs to prepare our players for a very physical game in which the attitudes will be nasty and the points will not come easily. Then it's a roadtrip down to Pitch-a-hissee to take on the skitsophrenic Criminoles. They should have beaten Miami, had to fight for dear life against Jax State (whom we handled with relative ease), went and embarrassed a ranked BYU...and then lost to USF. We should expect to see their best since it would seem they are the spitting image of the Chan Gailey Yellow Jackets of years gone by - playing dangerously relaxed to the weaklings and giving the big guys fits playing up to the good teams. That game could be embarrassing or glorious....guess it's up to the players to decide for us.

I will try to post more regularly. GO JACKETS!

Fall Camp

2009-08-04T07:19:00.000-07:00

Preseason football camp is now on. Hopefully I'll make it out to several practices while they are open and bring you my perspective on what I see. My blogging should ramp up as the season does. See you on The Flats!

Go Jackets!

Heads Up!

2009-06-26T09:38:00.000-07:00

The Georgia Tech 2009 schedule is very interesting this year. Beginning again with JSU and heading straight into a stretch that includes Clemson, Miami, UNC and MSU will act as the warm-up for the possibly make-or-break (in terms of the ACC) games against VT and FSU. Does it let up from there? Well depending on how well UVA, Vandy, and Wake get up for their game against us, maybe not. Then it's Duke and a week off. And then it'll be time to show the rednecks how we put on for our city (this time in our own house).

SO here's my question to you, fans in white and gold: What game are you most willing to call early one that we have "in the bag?" Which promises to be the best toe-to-toe fight to the finish, and which are you most worried that we might not be ready for?

Your thoughts please...

For the backseat drivers

2009-06-09T15:59:00.000-07:00

Questions about the current GT football philosophy? Let Coach set you straight.

Paul Johnson does not worry...he only gets angry, designs a new wrinkle into his offense, then wins some more.

Sleep well this summer, Jacket Nation. Fall will be good times!

Rankings and Delusions of Grandeur

2009-05-15T13:28:00.000-07:00

Brethren in White and Gold,

Baseball is doing well, and this keeps me happy. However, let us talk football.

By now you may have seen some of the post-spring/pre-season rankings that are beginning to come out. Tony Barnhart of the AJC has us right ahead of U(sic)GA at #13 while others have us slightly lower or higher.

There are big questions here, though, as the team and fans have not been here for a while. Plenty of you say rankings don't really matter. "Focus on winning games" is what I hear "we don't want/need the hype." And it's all fair point, no doubt. But to say the rankings don't matter? Well, I'm just not sure.

Obviously there are arguments to prove that rankings don't ensure anything. That farm school in Athens had a team ranked #1 nationally at the beginning of last season, and look where it got them. So surely we can't expect that our Jackets will perform just under the top ten teams simply because reporters and coaches SAY they will.

But to say the rankings don't MATTER. Well, I'm not on that bandwagon. It seems to me in the topsy-turvy BCS, rankings are a function of national attention generated by wins, respect, and history. You NEED them to win Championships. The #1 and #2 teams in the BCS poll are the ONLY ones last I checked that get into that NC game at year's end, and all I'm saying is that neither of those teams begins the season unranked. Usually, they've started in the top 10.

What does this mean for Georgia Tech? I think it means this: In order to win a National Championship we need to be CONSISTANTLY breaking into the preseason Top 25 rankings for multiple polls. Then, in time, we need to break into the Top 10 and perform dominantly all season long against the most important opponents, win our conference, and do it all with style points to spare.

Now, for this 2009 season I'll say it's very possible to follow this formula to success in a BCS bowl, but because of media bias that swings in favor of nationally famous, well-followed (SEC, Big 12 and USC) teams we will probably not get into the NC game even if undefeated. We have not made enough of a name for ourselves...yet.

What steps do we need to take? We need to take a page out of Les Miles' book from the CFA Bowl. LSU was up on us, and decided to break our will with faked kicks. Paul Johnson needs to be this kind of bully against rivals that threaten our bid for ACC dominance. VT, FSU, Clemson, UNC, and Miami all need to feel the pain not just of being beaten but being utterly silenced. At season's end a victory over Georgia would act as icing on the cake and a crucial ranking-booster, and then an ACC Championship followed by an Orange Bowl victory would finish us in the top 5.

Do this for 2 years coupled with decent recruiting classes and we'll be enjoying consistant preseason top 10 rankings that give us the perfect launch pad for a long-awaited look at a fifth National Championship. Falter along the way, and expect to wait even longer.

In the ACC it takes dominance and consistancy. Right now, before the season starts I see ONE team in our conference that has achieved the feat of consistancy. If we do not silence them and their growing media following then we will play a very frustrated second fiddle for a long time. This season we need to put that particular team and fanbase on notice. Target? Virginia Tech

Your comments please.

The view from T-Day

2009-04-19T21:29:00.000-07:00

Toe met leather Saturday in Bobby Dodd Stadium with a large crowd (for a spring game) of around 8,500 fans. The occasion? Coach Paul Johnson's second Yellow Jacket team playing some lighting fast, smashmouth Southern football against itself. The weather was great, and the football was even better.

First off, the offense (especially the 2nd string against the 2nd string D) looked great with a very potent selection of weapons on deck. Nesbitt sat out, and Dwyer didn't play much...but the offense still looked as good as it had against some big opponents last season. There are some new names to add to the arsenal like Anthony Allen, Tyler Melton, Marcus Wright, Preston Lyons, and a bunch that I'm sure I'm leaving out.

Along with the new guys there are some improved veterans and some special cases coming back to the team. Jarrard Tarrant is back and playing well. Tevin Washington is the solid #3 at quarterback who passes at least as well as Jaybo Shaw and is bigger to boot. Roddy Jones and Marcus Wright are A-backs that have blinding speed and can CATCH!

The downsides are there too, though. Shaw's reads seemed questionable at times, and his passing isn't accurate. The O-line could still be more dominant, and the kicking game is non-existant. At one point Paul Johnson slapped the ball out of Scott Blair's hands and told him to get off the field.

Those of you who were there, what are your thoughts? Those who weren't, what are your questions?

Under the Microscope

2009-04-13T13:01:00.000-07:00

Alright, so my last post idea did not, as it seems, meet with your approval. I'll choose to take it as a good thing that you who are fan enough to read blogs do not think about, watch, or cheer for other college football teams. Jackets 24/7 I guess. Well, good.

So I've chosen not to report constantly about Spring practices since I'd rather let my colleagues at other student blogs and the AJC relay that info (recommended reading links are at the bottom of my page). That being said, I'll float some of the over-arching themes I've perceived in practices, reading and talking with insiders. This is all in a mental build-up to Saturday's T-DAY game in Bobby Dodd Stadium.

I hope we see better O-line play, and I hear they are improving. I hope the D-Line keeps the intensity it needs to make up for what it had in Michael Johnson. I know the secondary is going to be great this year, and I hope our receivers benefit from that in practice. On receivers, I want to see A-backs that can actually block...and I mean really. Ferocious, aggressive, cut-blocking that frustrates and fatigues opposing defenses and paves way for some long runs. Get nasty!

Okay enough of me, what do you hope to see on T-Day this Saturday, and what do you actually expect?

Also, ask yourself how many friends and family you can invite or fit in your car to take to the game. The players, students, recruits, Athletic Department, coaches, and other fans need to see an excited crowd of interested Yellow Jacket observers. This is good practice for the Fall when we need to pack the stadium out for the big home games. You have no excuse...BE THERE!

Go Jackets!

Enemies and Allies

2009-04-03T19:21:00.000-07:00

Being a Yellow Jacket these days means a lot of things to all of us who are dyed-in-the-wool Georgia Tech people. Last week I asked for your help defining who Tech's Top 5 rivals are, and the results were very interesting. Without further introduction here are all the teams you mentioned in calculated order of hatred!

1) Georgia
2) Clemson
3) Auburn
4) Virginia Tech
5) FSU
6) Miami
7) Virginia
8) Alabama

I simply averaged their scores and weighted them according to how often they were mentioned. I must say that this was pleasantly surprising, and I want to try it again this week.

This time I want to know about all those teams OTHER THAN Georgia Tech that we find ourselves watching and rooting for in an ALMOST fan-like manner....even though none of us would ever betray our Yellow Jackets. Do you like Florida since they perennially beat down our #1 rival? Do you like another team in the ACC (gasp!), or do you follow some of the big guys that the Jackets never seem to play like Texas, USC, Michigan, Ohio State, etc? Maybe a fan of someone in the Big East? WAC? CUSA? Let's hear about it.

Give me your top 3 college football teams other than Georgia Tech that you pull for.

Rivalry Talk

2009-03-27T17:16:00.000-07:00

Something that comes with being a better team is respect. This translates at times into making enemies.

In my four years (so far) here at Tech I've noticed that there seems to be a wide range of teams that our fans dislike enough to talk trash about. Obviously, most fans can connect to the traditional HATE we all feel for the Bullcraps, especially those from in-state.

But after that there begin to be some real inconsistencies. It's my understanding that other traditional rivalries have existed in the past almost more fiercely than Clean, Old Fashion Hate. It seems that alumni and older fans treat the War Kittens of Awfulburn and the Crimson Elephants from Tuscaloser as the next teams to hate (at least they talk that way). I think this could be a carryover from Tech's history as a founding member of the SEC. Think Bryant v. Dodd here. Remember that we're still targeted in Bama's fight song, and it was during a game against Tech that their historic Million Dollar Band was named (we beat them so badly that the band was what the media focused on). Remember, too, that it was the Rocky Flops that vandalized the Ramblin Wreck in the '70's.

Another historic rival is Notre Lame, as both the film Rudy and the fact that they have played Tech more than any other school in the South point toward. Rumor has it that it was Tech students who started the frozen fish tradition after beating the Leprechauns on their home field back in the day.

Obviously, the ACC recognizes Clem and Sons as the Yellow Jackets' official cross-conference rival, and there surely is a lot of hype every time the two teams meet. But as our program grows in dominance within the ACC other names begin to emerge in conversation. I've heard that alumni just a few years older than me hate the Semi-trolls from "F-S-Eww" more than almost any other team, and that's the same crowd that gives the Miami Pelicanes grief. But I think the consensus among my generation is that the Poseur Tech Hookies are a threat that needs quieting and deserves a lot of extra hatred.

So I'm conducting a little experiment. Please rank the top five rivalries that you think Georgia Tech fans (and maybe even the GTAA) should focus on.

Is HATE still our top rivalry? Do you still hate all shades of orange and any form of tiger? Do newer teams with far less tradition and history than Georgia Tech deserve the energy of a hyped-up rivalry? Post your opinions!

Please Comment!

Springtime

2009-03-20T18:46:00.000-07:00

I went to LSU this weekend on Spring Break as part of a longer roadtrip that included New Orleans, Baton Rouge and, eventually, Pensacola. Yes, that's me above punching a Tiger statue that had a GT helmet in its mouth. When discussing football with the students they had already forgotten the Chick-fil-A Bowl, so I think we should go ahead and put it out of mind as well. I was there and it hurt to watch, but it's over now. The end.

Spring workouts have gone well according to inside sources, and the spring practices leading up to the T-Day game start Monday. This year fans can expect to see more experienced players, better O-line play, and possibly more use of passing in a new run-and-shoot upgrade to the same Option Based Spread offense. Our recruiting class stole a couple players from a certain "football factory" in Athens, and has some promising talent (mostly from in-state...a genuine improvement). I'll try not to bring you things you can read on all the official blogs this season, and I'll try to add more of my personal flavor (classic ranting with a twist of crazy) into the mix.

Last season you, the readers (65% of you), predicted that the Jackets would go no further than 5-7 wins. I chalk this up to Gailey-era conditioning of the fanbase not to expect more than mediocrity. Only 20% of you thought they would win the ACC Coastal Division (which they ended up sharing with Poseur-Tech). I've posted a new poll to see how far you think the Ramblin Wreck can go this season. I'll bring you more as I hear the inside tidbits, and definitely bring you a breakdown of T-Day. Until then feel free to comment it up. I'll even take requests on what you'd like me to write about...especially if it's a question for the football program or me personally.

Go Jackets!

Pickin' Peaches!

2008-12-30T11:30:00.001-08:00

Well, I've taken a long, restful hiatus full of celebrating the Jackets' victory over those Dawgs. While walking around with a big smirk and a GT shirt has been fun, it's time to write about the here and now. Georgia Tech's team is 9-3 on the season with a #14 ranking in the BCS and a 7:30 kickoff tomorrow night in Georgia Dome against "defending" national champion LSU.

About that...I'll be there decked out and screaming my head off like any good GT fan, but I'll admit to being a little nervous. LSU has fallen from grace this season and has honestly been weak by SEC standards, but that might be motivating them more than we expect. They've had a month to prepare and have been doing some special things to get ready for our alien offense. Rumor has it they've hired a specialist from back in the triple option's heyday to consult on how to stop our attack. I've also heard the stories of the Tigers practicing without a football like FSU tried doing. This helps a defense focus on assignments instead of play-making, and it worked okay for the 'Noles. My concern is that LSU may be packing a far better defense than our ACC opponent did...not that the numbers would necessarily show that. I just think it's a factor that LSU is big and fast.

Okay, all that said, I think this will come down to the same thing as the HATE game did. Paul Johnson versus a big name coach from the SEC. Rumor has it CPJ's taken this time to install another portion of his unique offense - the run-and-shoot. This is surely not a secret to LSU, but it would help the Jackets out if LSU had to divide their month of practice between defending the option plays AND the tricky passing plays. My assessment is that no one can prepare for all of the wrinkles Johnson can dial up from either of these schemes. I really hope it leads to well-executed trickery that keeps the Jackets ahead the whole game. I also really hope the GT defense can keep the Tigers' new quarterback on his back. If Micheal Johnson and our fron four can break his will then he'll be no better than their other two helmsmen have been...medicocre and flighty. I hope the "Desroyer" factor can give any three of these quarterbacks (should they choose to rotate or switch) nighmares for the next month.

LSU coach Les Miles has bragged that Altanta is familiar territory for his players and that the LSU fans will be louder than us in the Dome. Our leader Coach Paul Johnson ordered that we take that as a challenge and out-scream the dirty swamp kittens. Our team will need it.

This is big for Tech. If our guys win we'll have a ten win season for the first time in a LONG time, a perfect OOC record for the year, a beautiful 3-0 against the over-hyped SEC (whose market we compete in if you hadn't noticed), a possible finish in the Top 10, and maybe even a decent preseason ranking for next year (not to mention even more traction with recruiting in the South).

Tomorrow night. 7:30pm. Georgia Dome. Wear gold. Sing. Scream. Pray.

GO JACKETS!

A drought ends on a rainy day!

2008-11-29T13:01:00.000-08:00

Georgia Tech - 45

U(sic)GA - 42

Mine eyes have seen the glory of the stomping of the dawgs,
We will teach those poor, dumb farm boys they should stick to slopping hogs,
When the Jackets are triumphant they will raise a mighty yell
Them dawgs can go to HELL!!!

It's gonna be a whole year of fussy puppies!

MORE HATE WEEK

2008-11-25T12:11:00.000-08:00

The To Hell With Georgia Edition of the Technique came out on Tech's campus today (it will be distributed on UGay's campus this weekend).

Find it here: http://www.thwuga.net/

The guys over at the Goldfella's blog know all about Clean, Old Fashioned Hate. They had this to say:

"We play those animals from the Clark County Community College on Saturday, and I plan on tearing down their stadium with my bare hands after we take our victory, then set Athens ablaze, leaving only cinders in the wake of their defeat. Even the tears from every eye of the doggie nation would not be able to put out a fire fueled by such hate."

That's what I'm talkin about!

Celebrate the HATE!

TO HELL WITH GEORGIA!

HATE WEEK

2008-11-23T15:49:00.000-08:00

Ladies and gentlemen, it is officially HATE WEEK.

For those of you that don't know (as a surprisingly high number of young Techies do not), this is the week every football season that is set aside exclusively for hating our rival school(sic) and wishing that Hell itself would open up and wipe it off the map.

For the beginners, let me spread some background propagan - I mean...'knowledge.' First let it be known to all that the University (sic) of Georgia has existed for 100 years longer than has the Georgia Institute of Technology. For those 100 years U(sic)GA was nothing more than a glorified farm school. It had alumni in the Georgia congress around the time they were deciding on the placement of a new technological school to speed the South's recovery from the Civil War. Farmers' sons were going to become engineers that could bring the South into a new era of prominence within the US. Almost immediately the Georgia alumni staged a political siege on the idea hoping that it would either not come to fruition or that engineering would be added to the curriculum at their school (sic).

After the establishment of the Georgia School of Technology just North of Atlanta, the University (sic) of Georgia reportedly tried to launch several attempts to either buy Tech, annex it, or shut it down. Once a baseball rivalry got going it transferred quickly to the growing sport of football. When Tech brought its Blacksmiths to Athens to play the Georgia Wildcats, the students and fans threw rocks and bottles at the Tech players. Fights broke out, but Tech won.

After years of this sort of behavior the Tech-Georgia rivalry got so heated that the football series played between the two schools was halted. It was named CLEAN, OLD FASHIONED HATE when it was re-started as one of the South's most historic and fierce rivalry matches. These days things are a little different. Georgia Tech sports a double mascot scheme (usually only Southern schools do this) using the terms Ramblin Wreck and Yellow Jackets interchangeably to refer their team. Tech uses gold as a school color as a slap in the face to an old Georgie coach that said gold (then part of U(sic)GA's red, black and gold color pallet) was too much like yellow and stood for cowardice (Tech used it immediately as their color when they destroyed Auburn - another Georgia rival). Georgia has also undergone changes. After getting a swollen ego by hiring a faculty member that had attended Yale, they changed their mascot from the Wildcats to the Bulldogs (interesting because Tech has academic ties to Harvard in many of its engineering and architecture-oriented programs).

The rivalry has lost some steam since the two schools tend not to trade blows the way they used to. U(sic)GA's team has seemingly owned Tech in the last 30 years despite Tech earning more accolades in it's conference and even winning the National Title in 1990. We Techies sit in a 7 game losing streak to the Dawgs, and are itching to feel that wind of change that Paul Johnson might bring.

But my point is that this rivalry has less to do with football and more to do with the silent civil war that occurs between the two schools and their communities. There's blood in the water from day one as far as Techies are concerned, while U(sic)GA students feel that Tech is at best average at sports or at worst...(drumroll)...NOT SOUTHERN.

Allow me to point out that Tech's school song is derived from a popular Confederate Army drinking song while our football fight song contains the tune of "Whistling Dixie" as a trumpet flourish. All while Georgia sings "The Battle Hymn of the Republic" which is not only a song written for the Northern Army, but was sung loudly as Sherman marched through and burned most of the South to the ground. Some proud Southern institution, no?

All this aside, one should realize that academically the Clarke County Farm School and Correctional Facility (as we Tech faithful view that red and black mess) is far more laid back and unproductive an institution to attend than the Georgia Institute of Technology. It used to be that Georgia had a school of commerce that was failing badly. The U(sic)GA loving lawmen in the state capitol dumped that school and it's employees onto Tech. That program became a night school and is now known as Georgia State University (the law school of which is now ranked a better value than that at U[sic]GA). Oh, but you'd rather go to Georgia for Business, right? That Terry College? Well, the Georgia Tech school of Management has been ranked more highly the last four years and churns out alumni that earn a higher average starting salary by a good bit. And Tech now has film, journalism, history, graphic design, pre-law, and other liberal arts that will soon be on par with Emory and other bright spots in the South.

Tech is ranked the 7th best public school in the US, and the #1 public technological school in (at least) the US and possibly the world. Georgie ranks 20th among public schools, and that is WAY up from where they used to be.

In short, the Un-iversity of Georgia is a blight on this great Empire State of the South while the Georgia Institute of Technology adds to our economy and prestige, turning out alumni that change the world.

When our boys stroll into Sanford next weekend to fight between the hedges while a million drunken rednecks bark like fools and that useless mascot lays on some ice chips, they will be playing for SO much more than a W on their season record. This one's personal. And this time we may just have the weapons to show those Mutts who holds their leash.

So this week, hate on that cesspool up in Athens, and wear a whole lot of White and Gold.

More to come as the game approaches.

TO HELL WITH GEORGIA!

No really....it's me, not U.

2008-11-21T15:20:00.000-08:00

Well, we knew all along that Thursday night we were all gonna get some interesting weather. We had some Hurricanes gathering strength to South of us ready to head into town and blow down our house. At the same time the GT Athletic Department had warned citizens of A-town of an impending White Out.

Naturally, the television stations were present for this perfect storm and were all predicting mayhem. What few predicted was some strong precipitation. A swarm of Yellow Jackets "made it rain" all night against Miami. A trick play resulting in an A-back pass to an already downfield B-back Lucas Cox that connected for something like 15 or 20 yards on the very first Yellow Jackets snap stunned everyone and got the crowd surge to peak levels. Nearly 500 yards rushing. Domination of the time of possession battle. A gut-punch pick-six by non other than the Destroyer, Michael Johnson. Huge runs by Dwyer and Cox. Big punt returns. Some scarily ferocious tackles by that big ol' D-line and our ballhawk safeties.

Memorable moments besides the bizarre wrinkle play on the first snap and the gorgeous interception included one Morgan Burnett literally lifting, flipping and slamming a receiver on the perimeter. He had a great look to him as he flew around punishing Miami for trying to pass in his house.

The 'Canes were effortlessly manhandled to the tune of about 41-16 until PJ put in our seniors and third string allowing a couple more TD's in the second half.

The White Out wasn't perfect or even anything to write home about, but it sure was fun. I believe it was a good first step towards getting some unity and adrenaline into the stands. The house was just shy of packed, but the stadium was as loud as it ever has been. Great night.

Hurricanes, White Out, high winds, frigid temperatures...in the end the real story was a surprisingly powerful swarm of Yellow Jackets that took over the stadium and never relented.

Jackets 41
Canes 23

Get ready for Clean, Old Fashioned HATE!

Welcome to Tar Hell...

2008-11-08T12:14:00.001-08:00

Well, that hurt. Now let me say this. UNC is not a team I get emotional about playing. I don't think there's really any rivalry with them as far as I can tell. But their players were fired up to play the Jackets, and they were excellent against them all afternoon.

It was almost a Tar Heels' shut out. It also could have been Georgia Tech domination. What tipped the scales? Well, in my opinion, after pushing Carolina back on the first couple of plays they completed an ugly pass that put a chink in the mental armor of our secondary. Our offense didn't produce much, and when it did there were penalties and a couple of fumbles. The Jackets kind of demoralized themselves...refused to get fired up, began missing on assignments and good execution, and ultimately failed to do anything of real importance. Dwyer saved us from the shutout, and the rest of the game was more of the same Tar Heel lock down on our offense.

In my mind this was the first team we've seen that has done a legitimately good job at shutting down our offense (and maybe it's because our O-line went back to sucking...especially without Andrew Gardner), and our defense can't score all our points. So, congratulations, UNC, you figured out the Yellow Jackets, got into their heads, and earned every inch of that victory.

UNC 28
Tech 7

We have work to do.

Our Big Break, and the chance to capitalize!

2008-11-08T08:19:00.000-08:00

Yep, we finally beat FSU! First time since 1975. First time since they joined the ACC. And it was the first time we've stormed the field since I've been at Tech. According to student folklore, the last time that happened to such a wild and boisterous extent was when Georgie was defeated in a nail-biter in 1999.

Well, this has huge implications for the Jackets. They're sitting atop the ACC Coastal by record alone with some stupid Hokies just beneath. Tech has the chance to make it to the ACC Championship if they beat North Carolina today in Chapel Hill, beat Miami in the Thursday night White Out game on the 20th, and Virginia Tech and Virginia both lose games.

Let's focus on today, though. Here we sit in November looking at one of the toughest schedules we've had during this time of year. Our players and fans are fired up. Our coaches are working hard to prepare the team, and a lot is on the line. The Tar Heels are probably more desperate than the Jackets, and will come out with a huge chip on their shoulder (they haven't beaten us but once in the last nine meetings). Our players will have to make something big happen in the secondary to defend UNC properly. Our offense might have a real chance of tearing them to shreds, though. We shall see today at noon on Raycom Sports.

Go Jackets!

Moving on...

2008-11-01T07:27:00.000-07:00

Okay last weeks game sucked. That's all I got from my minimal exposure to it. From what I understand it wasn't just my home game streak that died, but Georgia Tech's home winning streak, the winning streak for homecoming (11 years...and it died), and the pattern of beating Virginia only at home all kicked the bucket with that loss.

So let's move on. Come down to Bobby Dodd Stadium today for the 3:30 kickoff. It's clear and beautiful, and I will be there shouting my face off the entire game. If our fans fail to drown out that stupid chop-and-chant routine then I will consider it a moral failure on the part of the more put-together White and Gold Nation.

So this game is a big deal. We need a win here to secure some respect for ourselves and nurture our outside chance at the ACC Coastal title. The Jackets renew a little rivalry today in playing the Seminoles, and it's an important one to keep going as both teams try to rise back to national prominence. More to come after the game! Go Jackets!

The Death of a Streak

2008-10-25T12:00:00.000-07:00

I'm in my fourth football season as a student at our beloved Institute. I knew little to nothing about football when I was accepted as a student...I was in most senses of the word a "nerd." So I decided to broaden my horizons. I made a commitment to myself that I would attend every single home football game for my entire academic career at Tech. I've done that and so much more. I fell in love. I've dressed up with my fraternity, screamed my heart out on defense, learned all the players' numbers, learned the schemes and plays, learned our opponent's strengths and weaknesses, and even traveled to some lesser schools to watch Georgia Tech do its thing.
This week I am laid up in bed after an emergency surgery. My home television does not get ESPN-U either. I will not only miss this very important home game, but I will be forced to listen to it. There will be no in depth blogging from me after this one, because I won't know what I'm talking about.

What I will do is hope and pray that the Jackets handle business against Virginia without me. We need to go 7-1, and we need VT to lose to FSU.

Big day....and my streak ends.

Top 25!

2008-10-20T07:35:00.000-07:00

Highest ranked team in the ACC. Partially because of 6 and 1, partially because the three ranked ACC teams all lost Saturday. But whatever....Georgia Tech is FINALLY being recognized!

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/rankingsindex

Go Jackets!

The BIG one?

2008-10-18T20:59:00.000-07:00

This game does a lot to legitimize Georgia Tech's success this season. Or, at least...it was supposed to. As soon as it was over and Tech had come out on top sportscasters were again wondering whom the Jackets had really beaten. See, Clemson the preseason ACC favorites would have been one heck of a team to beat at home this year, but Clemson the 2008 national embarrassment with a last minute coaching change, an injured star running back, and an emotionally underdeveloped quarterback can be a questionable victory. I'm actually not even sure the Jackets will be ranked yet. This angers me, but it doesn't anger me as badly as the thought that they may not be ranked above Boston College who put VPI in their place tonight (thank goodness!). I guess I don't care about rankings. I just want to win the Coastal and end up making a legit run at the ACC Title.

Anyway, the game. It was a good one. And by that I mean it had its problems but was entertaining. Tech's D was golden all day long, and the offense started clicking later than usual. Nesbitt was back in and had a great day. I think the O-line still needs a good bit of work, and so do the special teams, but that's my opinion. One player who had a scary moment was Bay Bay Thomas. He let a gimme 47 yard touchdown pass slip right through his fingers on what would have changed a win into a rout. Nesbitt helped him redeem himself later as two big catches secured the win...one was a critical third down conversion, the other a textbook touchdown pass.

Clemson's team, coaches and fans were all very emotional and ready to dominate, but we did exactly what I said we should...walked into Death Valley paying no attention to their screaming, hit them squarely in the mouth and walked out. Another 'W' on our conference record, and another one in a historic rivalry series between the Jackets and the Tiggers. Regardless whether its a win that earns us some respect or one that keeps us under the radar, we'll take it and quietly move on up to 6-1. Next week we meet a vastly improved Virginia at home for homecoming, and we can't afford to hand one to them. Here's hoping this week sees some awesome practicing!

Georgia Tech 21
Clemson 17

Go Jackets!

Bowden Out

2008-10-13T14:48:00.000-07:00

I ended my last post saying I couldn't wait to see if Clemson finally chooses to get rid of Coach Bowden after we destroy them next week (I also said I'd be humble about Tech football until after we achieve such a feat).

Well, now we don't have to wait. Tommy Bowden has allegedly resigned. The press won't say he was fired, but come on...does it really matter?

So Tech now has really no idea what kind of Tigers team we're going up against. Before Bowden left he had benched quarterback Cullen Harper and said he'd play freshmen phenom Willy Korn. Well, now that the wide receivers coach is standing in as the interim head coach, what changes if any are we going to see? Will Cullen Harper be back? Will this unify the Tiggers or will it drive them into more disarray (Clemson has been in-fighting worse than a Baptist church this season according to insiders).

All I can say is the Jackets need to do what they were going to do anyway and go dominate in Death Valley. Go Jackets!

Not good!

2008-10-12T00:32:00.000-07:00

I was at a wedding today, so I was only in the stadium for the first quarter. I left before the 2nd knowing two things. One: Calvin Booker is not a Paul Johnson quarterback and Two: That the players would eventually get pissed, rally their faculties, and bury that sissy D-2 squad of nobodies.

I was wrong about exactly 50% of that. I'll give you a hint...I know quarterbacks. So I'm driving to this wedding expecting that our scoreless first quarter was just our players still being asleep or something and that after the wedding I'd hear about the Jackets turning some Boiling Springs boys into men to the tune of...oh, say 150 - 0. I figured, hey, what team can shut out an improved Duke and then fail to shut out Gardner-Webb? I mean, I knew we had Booker and the bottom half of the depth chart on either side of the ball, but come on....these are still ACC athletes that should easily trounce a band of misfits in black from this little directional trade facility somewhere in the purple boonies of North Carolina.

I digress. On paper Tech should have won a bajillion to negative twelve, but things don't work that way on an overcast gameday when no fans show up to a game against a nobody team, and everyone's just waiting for Clemson. But that, dear Tech brethren, is how a respectable Southern football team gets itself beat by the little Directional Polytechnic Trade School College and State Universities of the college football world. It almost happened today. Not good.

All I can say is I'm thankful it wasn't televised. I'm thankful it wasn't a loss. I'm thankful Josh Nesbitt and Jaybo Shaw are healing. I'm thankful our pride was taken two notches down, and we can get real and get down to business this week in practice. I want the coaches to use this to get the team sobered up and ready to work hard. We need them to walk stoically into Death Valley saying nothing, punch the Clemson Tigers squarely in the mouth, and walk out. Afterwards I want to see two things: whether they finally fire Bowden, and whether the Jackets finally get ranked.

Be humble this week, Jackets fans. There'll be no bragging until Saturday night.

Tech 10
G-Webb 7

The Devils went down to Georgia...

2008-10-04T16:48:00.000-07:00

Duke's 3-1 Blue Devils strolled into Bobby Dodd Stadium with a lot of momentum and hype behind them. They had just come off of two wins against Navy and Virginia respectively. USA Today had decided that Duke would surprise this also 3-1 Tech team and win the game with their supposedly potent QB-WR combo.

There were a few problems with this theory, though, that Georgia Tech was more than willing not only to point out but exploit. First, the hype both from the new GT coaching staff and from the game had drawn a crowd...a real crowd. This was Duke's first game this season in a real D-1 stadium with actual fan noise (not typical for Tech, but it was LOUD today when it needed to be). This payed off as several obvious miscommunications caused Duke plays to fall apart. Secondly, the Devils had not faced a real defense. Especially in the second half the Yellow Jacket defense shut down the Dukies with stunning consistency. Duke's passing attack never got them to the Tech end zone.

Another little problem: Duke beat Navy. Coach Johnson had an entire game's worth of footage on how Cutcliffe would defend his OBS system. While freshman QB Jaybo Shaw (starting this game while Nesbitt nurses his hamstring for play at Clemson in 2 weeks) did have a tough time making any big plays happen in the first half, the offense began to work handily after the break to produce 27 points by game's end.

Tech outlasted Duke with better coaching, a bigger and louder crowd, better conditioned athletes, and a refusal to give up when the 3 to 0 first half could have discouraged anyone.

In the end, Georgia Tech's Yellow Jackets had shutout Duke's over-hyped Blue Devils and won some respect. Next week we play a practice game against the Gardner-Webb "Runnin' Bulldogs," but then it's off to Clemson. I want our O-line to improve, Nesbitt to get healthy and practice again, and this awesome defense to repeat what Alabama showed us how to do at the outset of the season.

So the Devil came down to Georgia, but everyone knows how that story turns out. That Golden Fiddle looks great in our trophy case next to all our other gold stuff!

27-0 Go Jackets!

M-S-Who?

2008-09-20T22:52:00.000-07:00

Two historic Southern football teams meet in the oldest and winningest D-1 stadium in college football to resurrect a series last played in 1929. Back then it was two military schools with budding engineering programs and strong football teams clashing for the same smashmouth Southern style of football that gave birth to what is now the vaunted and revered SEC. One team is still part of that conference. The other moved on to eventually settle in the ACC. One team came in with a reputation for its backbreaking defense which held Auburn to just a field goal only a week ago. The other team is restarting with a new coach, a young team, and new systems on both offense and defense. One team's mascot curdles the blood of the other reminding them of their most hated foe. The other team's mascot was leading its team onto the field for the 300th time. Neither team has tasted championship anytime recently. Neither team boasts heavy national followings. Both are coming off close losses to big conference opponents - games that should have been won. Both have had their ups and downs, and both carry a huge chip on their shoulder.

If you weren't there you missed history. Georgia Tech was expected to win, but on the first drive Josh Nesbitt was hurt forcing a gamble on Jaybo Shaw. This is the same Jaybo Shaw that saw the majority of playtime in the last home game. The same Jaybo Shaw that didn't have to adjust to the triple option offense out of high school and came to Tech to play for Paul Johnson. That very same Jaybo Shaw enlisted the aid of Jonathan Dwyer, Greg Smith, and plenty of others to light up the Bulldogs' world in the first quarter. Apparently that earthquake defense wasn't so groundbreaking.

On the defensive side of things for Tech there was nothing but fierce intensity from all the key players. Michael Johnson finally showed fans what he can do. His play carried the animal rage of a beast from the gates of hell when on a desperate field goal attempt by Miss State he could be seen pointing and shouting at the kicker. Following this display he launched himself over two linemen to spike the kicked ball straight into that kicker's face. When the dust settled those two linemen had mercilessly crushed the blocker in front of them to make way for air Johnson, and the poor sap was on his back seeing stars.

All day long on both offense and defense Georgia Tech told Mississippi State that this, the golden flats, is our house. It was a bona fide shutout until late in the fourth quarter when up by 31 points Georgia Tech's third string defense finally got marched down the field by MSU's first string offense. The Muddawgz fans left the stadium hanging their heads in shame, and the renewed White and Gold Nation walked tall into the afternoon sunlight waxing nostalgic and remembering why the Yellow Jackets deserve their spot among the South's great football teams.

What about ACC vs SEC? Well, strictly speaking, the answer from Atlanta today was 38-7.

Anything else we learned? Yeah. Historic matches are best played in years when new beginnings are the theme. They are best played at home when the very icon of your school's spirit is being honored. And they are best enjoyed in the form of jaw-dropping victories that light the fires of hope for games and seasons to come.

Georgia Tech 38
Mississippi State 7

Go Jackets!

Hokies hold off Yellow Jackets, again...

2008-09-14T11:17:00.001-07:00

Let me vent this before I start: I HATE VIRGINIA TECH!!

What's to hate about it? Is it the fact that they are a gigantic redneck wannabe version of other great public technological schools like Georgia Tech? Nah, because academically they're a lot more like Texas A&M or Clemson (only middle of the pack in the rankings there too). Is it the fact that they threw their Virginia A&M and VPI history out the window by changing their public nickname to Virginia Tech in the early nineties to piggyback on "Tech"s with more athletic history like GT and Texas Tech? Or could it be the hideous Chicago (northern) Maroon and Burnt Orange (already taken by a better school with a better football team... Texas)? Or maybe it's the ridiculous Hokie Bird (not a real animal, named after their Corps of Cadets frequently called "gobblers" for eating so ravenously...as rednecks tend to do after being asked to do any real work)? Is it piercingly loud Lane Stadium and the fact that twenty years ago there was no such thing as a prominent "Virginia Tech" football team with its own brand of football (Beamer ball) or national notoriety? No.

To all of the above, no. Mimicry is the sincerest form of flattery. I can overlook all of this as long as the real Tech wins occasionally. We're building quite the rivalry with VT (yes, I'll even let them have their copy-cat nickname and logo), but it's not going anywhere if every year we lose to them.

I know we weren't expected to win yesterday's game , but it looked like we had a real shot. The turnovers and bad calls got us, and there just wasn't enough time left on the clock to handle business at the end. Did Paul Johnson impress me with his in-game coaching? Yes, but VT shut down our key players in the second half and kept our quarterback unable to make his reads quickly enough to gain yardage. Lane Stadium should get some credit, too, as it was most of our boys' first time in a real college football environment (Bobby Dodd Stadium aint exactly the big show, if you haven't noticed). Now, the three fumbles were the real factor in my opinion, and Paul Johnson was right to say that we can become our own worst enemy. We should have won that game in the 4th quarter. We absolutely could have if not for some blind refs, too. But it happened the way it happened.

VT has been our football kryptonite every year that I've been at Tech (4 years) and it's getting old. If it continues this way then things won't change. VT will still be the ACC media darling on the upswing to rock the college football world. GT will remain the fallen college football angel that can't return to glory. And I don't have to tell you how unacceptable that is. The gloves need to be off next time we play VPI, and we need to mash them into the dirt on the field like we already do in the classroom. How can it be that the cheap knockoff has become more popular than the real thing? This will be a year of passionate hatred for all things maroon and orange. To hell with VPI&SU!

Georgia Tech outlasts Boston College

2008-09-06T15:34:00.000-07:00

Win 19-16 !

All I can say is it was a long, dirty war of attrition. Boston College's sturdy D-line seemed pretty well prepared for our Option Based Spread attack near the beginning of the game. Likewise our entire defense was adequately prepared for their impressive quarterback. So how did we pull it off? Well, it can be chalked up to a combination of things.

First and foremost, there were the turnovers. The BC defense forced one and we gave them two. On the other hand, our defense got interceptions, and hit hard. They forced a safety and scared the dickens out of BC's big, fast quarterback. Nesbitt on offense had a few breakout plays, and so did Dwyer. But Georgia Tech's entire team outlasted BC in conditioning and was able to hang in there all four quarters. Sound like Tech to you? Not last year. But PJ knows how to coach, and coach he does. Players were rotated through on non-crucial series, and timeouts were called to cool the players off, ice kickers, confuse the other team's defense (the whole "we're going for it"..."no we're not, we just wanted you to jump offsides"..."wait, yes we are!" 4th Down trick). Tech's offense put up some points in the second half (ball security in the last 30 minutes was pristine), but the battle was won by a well conditioned and very smart defense.

Next week we go Hokie hunting in Blacksburg! I'm expecting a fight, but another hard-earned victory is very probable after the lessons learned today.

Go Jackets!

GT spanks JSU

2008-08-28T19:55:00.000-07:00

Win 41-14

Dominant victory out on the Flats this evening. It didn't take long to begin the beatdown. Shutout first half with very few first downs for Jax State, and some great big plays for Tech. Yes, there were fumbles and such, but those will get better as the season progresses. And I might add that our defense created a few of its own with two memorable picks by Morgan Burnett and a couple hard hits and ball strips. I'll try to find stats later, but I have work to do tonight...and maybe some more celebrating. Oh, and the GTG's 2nd video is amazing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3aI6EAsKvgg

Put every team in college football on notice: The Paul Johnson era has begun at Georgia Tech...Yes, as a matter of fact that IS a threat!

Season Opener

2008-08-28T12:12:00.000-07:00

7:30 pm Tonight. Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field in the heart of Midtown Atlanta, the 2008 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will storm the Flats and crush Jacksonville State's Gamecocks. It will be an epic rebirth on all fronts. New Head Coach, New Offensive System, New Defensive System, New Uniforms, Young Players, and a sweet new rap video from the GTG's called the "Perfect Option" premiered on the jumbotron during the game.

I've gone to class all day dressed in my frattiest gameday attire completely unable to pay attention to anything academic. All that's on my mind is the tailgating festivities (oh, the sights and smells of the classy East Campus tailgate scene!!), the players' walk, the 7pm preview of the "Perfect Option" rap video in Callaway Plaza (with free 'change of major' forms for the M-train fans), the gameday food, the $1.97 'Noise of the Southland' Yellow Jacket Marching Band, the Ramblin Wreck, and then some FOOTBALL!!!

If you're not in the Stadium tonight, you'd better have a good excuse (classes or projects don't count...I'm an ID major, and I'll be in studio all night after the game!). The beginning of the Paul Johnson era needs to be celebrated with as much white and gold revelry as we can muster!

Changing Pace a bit, on your Preseason Pedictions:
The poll is closed, and the results are on display at the bottom of the page. The majority opinion is that our Jackets stand a good chance at 5-7 wins this season and a bowl game come December. A slight minority thinks 4 wins would be a miracle while one guy thought the Golden Tornado was about to blow through the entire college football world and suck up a National Title.

For now, focus on GAMEDAY!!

The New Deal

2008-08-20T13:14:00.001-07:00

Tech. More correctly, the Georgia Institute of Technology, and it is also now correct to refer to GT as the inaugural Russel Athletics Performance Institution. That's right. Think Oregon and others with Nike, but picture two partners that truly need each other.

Russel Athletics isn't the popular brand that Nike or Adidas is, and Tech isn't the dominant power in college football that others are. Join to conquer? Yes, indeed! According to the GT Football Blog, Dan Radakovich said the deal had the potential to be lucrative to the tune of $20 million dollars over 10 years. Russel will supply uniforms for all Tech varsity teams, including the 2008 football uniforms (more on that down the page), and attire for coaches and fans. They plan to use Georgia Tech as a testing ground for sportswear research and design. Isn't Tech kind of taking a chance on Russel Athletics? Maybe, but on the flip side...aren't they kind of taking a chance with Tech? No one here has forgotten to think, it seems, and bonuses are promised for the football program if it wins the ACC, a BCS bowl, or the national championship (six-digit payout for that particular little nugget). Tech expects Russel to design more popular stuff and get big, and Russel wants Tech's name to be popular so their clothing can be. They key to both, of course, is winning games.

On that note, the new uniforms (unveiled yesterday at a big Russel-Tech love fest in Atlantic Station) have some players talking about feeling more confident on the field. We'll see if it makes a difference come the Jax State game, but unless they become the look of a losing team, here's one Techie that thinks the new look is Golden!

TRIVIA: I believe this is the first appearance Buzz has made on the football uniforms. His image appears on the collar insets. Also, nowhere does the term Yellow Jackets appear. The writing above the numbers now says Georgia Tech.

OPINION: The pants need help. The helmets had better look awesome with them.

RUMOR: A navy colored jersey exists for special games as does a white helmet. Russel is rumored to have designs for a navy helmet and pants as well. Wonder what else is to come...

Playing Favorites

2008-08-12T13:42:00.000-07:00

With all the practicing going on and the blogosphere buzzing with injury reports, stats and analysis of everyone on the 2008 Yellow Jacket squad it's all about figuring out who's on the starting team this season. The home opener against Jacksonville State is only about two weeks away, and team leaders are starting to emerge in the two-a-days.

The Georgia Tech student body (the part that emerges from the videogame dungeons and science labs to scream for the football team) is famous for being extremely, um....reactive. Last year we threw liquor bottles at the referees for some bad calls, threw frozen fish at Notre Dame, fought with a ton of bulldogs, and made "Pro-Choice" t-shirts lobbying for a Heisman write-in for Tashard Choice. The notorious "Double DEUCE!!" was the team rockstar in '07 and every student held up those twos when he walked in. And how could we not? Carrying a sledgehammer into the stadium and making emotional speeches on YouTube is great leadership. Other student favorites of Tech's recent past have been PJ Daniels, Calvin Johnson, and Phillip Wheeler. With this new system and a crop of younger players having to step up and lead the Jackets there are about 105 guys that have a shot at some fame on the Flats. Will Nesbitt be the name hollered from the stands, or will Michael Johnson or Jonathan Dwyer be the frat guys' Heisman pipedream? Jaybo Shaw? Morgan Burnett? Someone else? Who's gonna be your favorite to watch this season, and who will be the big man on campus?

Me? I'm all about Michael "The Destroyer" Johnson smashing some chumps in 08!

New Uniforms Unveiled Early, Fall Practice Going Well

2008-08-04T13:16:00.000-07:00

Okay, I'm back from South America now, so I can talk more about my Yellow Jackets. Though the Athletic Dept. said that the new uniforms would not be worn before the official unveiling later this month the players were wearing them without pads during Saturday's Great Yellow Jacket Encounter at Bobby Dodd Stadium. I missed it because of my trip, but pictures are up on the AJC's Tech Sports page. The home jersey was worn, but the real surprise was the "old gold" pants with curved piping on the sides. In my opinion, the pants had better look really good with pads underneath, because the pics I've seen aren't encouraging. Some questions are left, though, like those white helmets, and the traditional styling on the gold jersey in the leaked pictures. And whether or not the gold helmets will change to match the pants in all their mustardy glory is still on my mind a bit.

But uniforms don't win games; players do. So let's talk a bit about camp which started the 30th. Plenty of reports are coming out in both the AJC and the blogosphere that there are some promising things and some things to work on. I'll pose this question: Do you think the team can have the offense installed with tight enough execution to beat BC and VT on the road early this season? Thoughts on the team's development? Thoughts on the uniforms? Let the comments fly!

New Uniforms Unveiled?

2008-07-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

Found this little tidbit today. These could be prototypes or the final choices for the new uniforms this season. Of note are the lack of the navy helmet, and the lack of modern paneling on the gold jersey. The white helmet plus the traditional style on the gold jersey lead me to conclude that those two are for another special throwback game (unless that helmet looks different than the '06 throwback did..can't tell for sure). That means the only questin left is that navy jersey. There was talk that it was for later in the season, so I guess it can't be the away jersey. But with the gold as the throwback does that mean the white over gold look is for both home and away? I had assumed there were still white pants, but if there aren't then could we go all-gold for a game? With a white helmet in the mix we could potentially do all-white, but the alumni might burn down Tech tower. I guess this season could be interesting in a lot of fun new ways!

Uniforms

2008-07-16T07:15:00.000-07:00

There's been some buzz around the Tech campus that uniforms are changing to honor the new coaching regime. Some pictures of new options that I can no longer find have circulated on blogs like this, but nothing official from the Institute has surfaced.

The AJC ran this article/poll asking for the fans to choose from five options which they prefer for home games:

http://www.ajc.com/gatech/content/sports/gatech/stories/2008/06/08/gtuniforms.html

I guess we're going back to the Gold over White over Gold traditional look for home, but I never thought the Gold, Gold, White was bad either. Word is that the Navy tops will be used for special games, but my questions haven't been answered yet. What's the away uniform? Why not try solids for exciting games like all-Gold or Gold helmets over all-white? And I've heard the centennial year had black tops and gold pants. I gotta see pictures of that! I thought the 2006 throwback Thursday was phenomenal, but if we do it again I'd like to see another old combo (eighties era with the Gold, Navy, Gold?). And for the fans I gotta say the stadium "Gold Out" attempts so far have sucked. The fans/alumni always wear Navy, the students wear yellow, the fraternities wear mostly white, and the band dons white. We could try a "White Out" like Penn State does or get everyone to go all-Navy. What do you think?

Any thoughts? I want opinions!

For Starters

2008-07-16T06:53:00.000-07:00

This blog is about Georgia Tech football. However, general Institute talk, jokes, information, questions and expression is allowed. If you feel like deriding that other school out in Athens, go right ahead but keep it clean please!