This board is pretty dead but maybe some folks will read this because now that GT has lost maybe their second all time best coach in Paul Johnson, they face an interesting choice. I know this is a UGA board but this is our state rival. As such, I see potential for GT to become more of a force in the ACC IF they hire a good coach AND commit the resources available to make that new coach successful. I think the new AD over there was/is willing to help and so this does impact us, although I think in mostly a positive way-WHY, because the state of GA produces a boatload of talent each and every year-UGA can only grab a select few, meanwhile our SEC rivals come in and scoop up some really good players that play against us-granted GT plays against us too but I believe them entering the recruiting market in GA helps us more than hurts us-because they might help spread the talent even more, Johnson didn't care about recruiting and also seemed to drift outside of the state to do most of his recruiting. Also, having a more traditional offense to close out our season to me is a positive-and lets be honest, we are ALWAYS going to have a talent advantage over Tech considering their facilities-which I know I mentioned the new AD is more willing to spend, but they have way too far to catch up to even middle of the road ACC schools, much less what we have in Athens. So, a better and more traditional team at the end of our schedule, is more a positive than negative-we should never lose more than 1-2 games every 10 years against them regardless of the coach there.
This brings me to another point I want to make and I say this knowing I am FAR from an expert on the academics at GT. I didn't go there but I have friends that did, but they attended back in my time, the late 80's and early 90's, in other words, before O'Leary came to be over there. O'Leary somehow got more majors added to what once was strictly engineering with some business mixed in. Here are some majors that they offer that you might not know-Applied Physiology, Applied Languages and Intercultural studies, Biology, Building construction, Business Admin (this has always been a strong school for GT, same for UGA), Chemistry, Cybersecurity, Digital Media, Literature, Media and Communications, Health Systems, Human-Computer Interaction, History, Technology and Society, International Affairs, International Affairs and Modern Languages, Literature, Media and Communications, Operations Research, and Public Policy. I am NEVER going to say ANY education at GT is easy, because I know the school is a fine academic institute, however, take a look at the football roster for them and see what the top 3 majors are for football players-
Business Administration, Literature, Media and Communications, and HIstory, Technology and Society. I am not saying these majors are soft or simple, but there is a reason most of the athletes-the bulk not all, are in these three majors.
As the coaching search continues, you are going to hear how it takes a special coach to go in to GT because of academics, Wes Durham was quoted as saying, "You're not going to pay lip service to the mission statement at Georgia Tech," he said. "When they tell you there's an academic side to the deal, there is really an academic piece to this that's not just something they say. You've got to understand that it is a unique situation.
So, I guess this is to discredit the job David Shaw has done at Stanford, or even the job David Cutcliffe has done at Duke, Pat Fitzgerald has done at Northwestern?? We all know that student athletes at all schools are not admitted to the same standards as the normal student, yep, even at GT despite what they want you to believe. We also all know that EVERY college or institution, provides tutors to all athletes-yep, even Tech.
Bottom line is this, GT can be a better football program if they make a good hire and give that hire what he needs, but if they continue to hide behind, well, we have tough academics here so we can't compete, they will continue to be exactly what they are. The ACC is horrible right now, Pitt won Tech division with a 7-5 record!!! What a joke, so they have a shot to get back to the top of that side since what other program in the Coastal looks to be on the upswing??? Miami-Richt had them looking good last year but look at this year, Pitt??, UNC has a new coach, Duke-they are doing about as good as Duke is capable, Virginia and VT-maybe, but both don't appear great by any means.
Tech has a shot to make some noise but then again, if they chose say Whisenhunt, they would have to wait until Jan to have their coach in place recruiting, and with early signing period now in mid December, this recruiting class would be a wash for the most part. Whisenhunt is a longtime friend of the AD Stansbury, he has NFL and college experience galore, but he a pro set guy-changing that offense to a pro set is going to be a mess, they will have guys leaving and it will take at least 2 years to begin to get it right, probably more like 4, the good news, is Tech fans don't have high expectations and likely would be so happy to get rid of the option, they would be patient. But basically throwing away 2-4 years, for a program that has trouble selling out their stadium and making money period to help improve facilities, it is an uphill battle. That being said, if the make a commitment to it, they could make some noise-there are SOOO many players within an hour of the GT campus that could get into that school, and might consider it if they scrap the option. Time will tell. Interested to get your thoughts AFD and others. I had to post because I am already reading so much about the "tough academics" blah, blah, blah. GT is forever using that excuse when the lose, but if they win, you never hear how tough academics are.
This brings me to another point I want to make and I say this knowing I am FAR from an expert on the academics at GT. I didn't go there but I have friends that did, but they attended back in my time, the late 80's and early 90's, in other words, before O'Leary came to be over there. O'Leary somehow got more majors added to what once was strictly engineering with some business mixed in. Here are some majors that they offer that you might not know-Applied Physiology, Applied Languages and Intercultural studies, Biology, Building construction, Business Admin (this has always been a strong school for GT, same for UGA), Chemistry, Cybersecurity, Digital Media, Literature, Media and Communications, Health Systems, Human-Computer Interaction, History, Technology and Society, International Affairs, International Affairs and Modern Languages, Literature, Media and Communications, Operations Research, and Public Policy. I am NEVER going to say ANY education at GT is easy, because I know the school is a fine academic institute, however, take a look at the football roster for them and see what the top 3 majors are for football players-
Business Administration, Literature, Media and Communications, and HIstory, Technology and Society. I am not saying these majors are soft or simple, but there is a reason most of the athletes-the bulk not all, are in these three majors.
As the coaching search continues, you are going to hear how it takes a special coach to go in to GT because of academics, Wes Durham was quoted as saying, "You're not going to pay lip service to the mission statement at Georgia Tech," he said. "When they tell you there's an academic side to the deal, there is really an academic piece to this that's not just something they say. You've got to understand that it is a unique situation.
So, I guess this is to discredit the job David Shaw has done at Stanford, or even the job David Cutcliffe has done at Duke, Pat Fitzgerald has done at Northwestern?? We all know that student athletes at all schools are not admitted to the same standards as the normal student, yep, even at GT despite what they want you to believe. We also all know that EVERY college or institution, provides tutors to all athletes-yep, even Tech.
Bottom line is this, GT can be a better football program if they make a good hire and give that hire what he needs, but if they continue to hide behind, well, we have tough academics here so we can't compete, they will continue to be exactly what they are. The ACC is horrible right now, Pitt won Tech division with a 7-5 record!!! What a joke, so they have a shot to get back to the top of that side since what other program in the Coastal looks to be on the upswing??? Miami-Richt had them looking good last year but look at this year, Pitt??, UNC has a new coach, Duke-they are doing about as good as Duke is capable, Virginia and VT-maybe, but both don't appear great by any means.
Tech has a shot to make some noise but then again, if they chose say Whisenhunt, they would have to wait until Jan to have their coach in place recruiting, and with early signing period now in mid December, this recruiting class would be a wash for the most part. Whisenhunt is a longtime friend of the AD Stansbury, he has NFL and college experience galore, but he a pro set guy-changing that offense to a pro set is going to be a mess, they will have guys leaving and it will take at least 2 years to begin to get it right, probably more like 4, the good news, is Tech fans don't have high expectations and likely would be so happy to get rid of the option, they would be patient. But basically throwing away 2-4 years, for a program that has trouble selling out their stadium and making money period to help improve facilities, it is an uphill battle. That being said, if the make a commitment to it, they could make some noise-there are SOOO many players within an hour of the GT campus that could get into that school, and might consider it if they scrap the option. Time will tell. Interested to get your thoughts AFD and others. I had to post because I am already reading so much about the "tough academics" blah, blah, blah. GT is forever using that excuse when the lose, but if they win, you never hear how tough academics are.