It was a very good year at Georgia Tech
Some random thoughts before I get on the plane to West Coast, where it is warm and sunny:
1. It’s been a very good year at Georgia Tech. While last night’s loss to Iowa in the Orange Bowl was a disappointment to Georgia Tech and its fans, at some point today it will be time to put it into perspective with the rest of the season. Georgia Tech ran into a big, athletic defense that had had over 40 days to prepare. When quarterback Ricky Stanzi was healthy, Iowa was the best team in the Big Ten and would have likely gone undefeated if he had been available for the Northwestern and Ohio State games.
In just two seasons Paul Johnson has made Georgia Tech a player again on the national stage with an ACC championship, a BCS bowl, and a win over Georgia. While it can’t be a great year unless you beat the state rival, this was a very good year at Georgia Tech.
2. Time to give the Big Ten its props. The Big Ten has gotten beat up during bowl season lately, going 1-6 last year. Iowa was the only Big Ten team to win a bowl last season when it beat South Carolina. But this season the Big Ten has posted four pretty impressive wins: Ohio State over Oregon to snap the Big Ten’s six-game losing streak in the Rose; Penn State over LSU in the Capital One; Wisconsin over what was supposed to be a faster, more athletic Miami in the Champs Sports; and finally Iowa over the ACC champs in the Orange. Northwestern had several chances to beat Auburn in the Outback before losing in overtime.
3. Kudos to Rich Brooks. The former Falcons assistant coach has decided to step down at Kentucky after seven seasons. One of his goals when he took the job was to leave the program in better shape than he found it. On that point he was a huge success. The program was devastated by NCAA probation when he got there and after struggling (9-25) in his first three seasons there were a lot of people who wanted to get rid of him. But athletics director Mitch Barnhart and President Lee Todd stuck with Brooks, who then took the Wildcats to four straight bowl games, something never done in the football history of the school. I will never forget Kentucky’s upset of No. 1 LSU in Lexington in 2007. In fact, that season I went to Lexington three times to watch Kentucky play and saw three great games, including a four-overtime loss to Tennessee which put the Vols into the SEC championship game over Georgia. Brooks turns the reins over to offensive coordinator Joker Phillips.
4. Bama looking for first win over Texas. There is a lot of history that says No. 2 Texas can beat No. 1 Alabama in tomorrow night’s BCS championship game. The two storied programs have met eight times in history with Texas holding a 7-0-1 mark:
Year———————Winner
1902———————Texas, 10-0 (Regular season)
1915———————Texas, 20-0 (Regular season)
1922——————–Texas, 19-10 (Regular season)
1947——————–Texas, 27-7 (Sugar Bowl)
1960——————–3-3 Tie (Bluebonnet Bowl)
1964——————–Texas, 21-17 (Orange Bowl)
1972——————–Texas, 17-13 (Cotton Bowl)
1981——————–Texas, 14-12 (Cotton Bowl)
I’ll be in Los Angeles on Thursday where I will give you my five burning questions about the BCS Championship game.
5. Urban Meyer wasting no time. For a guy who was supposed to be taking a leave of absence, Florida’s Urban Meyer has been a busy boy this week. He has lost four assistant coaches since the end of the regular season—Defensive coordinator Charlie Strong along with assistants Kenny Carter and Vance Bedford are all headed to Louisville. Offensive assistant Billy Gonzalez left before the bowl game to go to LSU. He has been replaced by Zach Azzani of Central Michigan. Meyer and interim coach Steve Addazio have hired former Gator assistant Stan Drayton, who left for Tennessee with some hard feelings in 2007 saying that he wanted to coach in a more conventional offense. Drayton is a good recruiter and Florida needs that to hold this class together. D.J. Durkin, who coached the past three seasons at Stanford, has been hired to coach the linebackers, which was Strong’s position. We’re still waiting to hear on the defensive coordinator’s job although published reports say that current assistant Chuck Heater has a shot.
Please follow me on Twitter:
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
588 comments Add your comment
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:16 am
BTW, it was great to see the cut blocks actually called last night. That is what the undersized OL did ALL YEAR long. The referees have finally caught on. It’s going to be along season for the NERD HERD next year….5-6 !!
fuplup
January 6th, 2010
11:17 am
To Really: I wouldn’t mind a Hawkeye-Dawg match next year. It could be a good game if GA gets its act back together. Iowa will have almost all of its starters back, as well as its #1 running back (who didn’t play a down this year). They should be better next year, but opponents will have them targeted, too. They will have more depth and experience and will probably begin the year rated around #5. We’ll see what happens after that.
As a side point, Forida recruited Wegher hard and didn’t get him. He’s the #3 back on the team, and got 114 yards against Tech. Not bad for #3, but what you’d expect from someone who Florida wanted.
The 94 guy was Clayborn. He’s back next year, too.
Finally, look at Iowa’s bowl wins over the last few years — Florida, LSU, South Carolina, and Tech. They aren’t having much difficulty with teams from the South, particularly the SEC.
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:18 am
Hedgehumper,
You will definetely finish higher in the polls THIS year, but we still RUN THIS STATE!!! When was the last time the Nerds finished ranked higher?
Papa Dawg
January 6th, 2010
11:19 am
12:45am Wed morning at the Wal-Mart. All GT clothing 75% OFF
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:20 am
fuplup,
I believe 3 of Iowa’s OL starters were seniors and will be gone.
Orlando Sentinel - College Gridiron 365 Blog – College Football High 5: Iowa beats Georgia Tech
January 6th, 2010
11:20 am
[...] Loss doesn’t diminish Georgia Tech’s season. [...]
Bill
January 6th, 2010
11:20 am
southside Dawg, I’ve been a dawg fan longer than you’ve been alive probably.I even worked for UGA at one time and now retired.
I believe since I lived and worked in Georgia all my life except 4 years in Army that I will and do pull for all State teams except when the play us. What wrong with that? Life’s to short to Hate. Obama is not a citizen…agree. Just ask his grandma!
DawgBuzz
January 6th, 2010
11:20 am
I was pulling for Tech last night. Iowa just shut them down ( and no, I don’t think Iowa would match up well with Georgia ). CPJ never really made adjustments just stated they were not executing in the first half. Tech did have a good year, no doubt. Georgia had a so-so year but should be better next year hopefully. If tech’s offense stays intact the game in Athens next season will be pretty entertaining.
murfdawg
January 6th, 2010
11:24 am
I have to admit that I was surprised at how Iowa handled GT’s offense. Congrats to Iowa and all their fans. Finishing second in the Big 10 +1 was a good season for you(even without your qb for two games).
GT did have a good season…by GT standards. Winning the ACC championship was good. But it is the ACC. As one poster said, it is like winning the tallest midget contest. GT is not ready to play big boy football on a national stage. They will win 7-8 games in the ACC and once in a while win the ACC. But no one outside of the ACC will care.
Tech fans got a little carried away in ‘08 with their win over UGA and with the changes CPJ made at Tech. I have lived here all my life and have seen both schools have good and even great teams. But this Tech team is average at best. The Dawgs were very average also. Neither team is great, regardless of what Tony says.
One more thing that bothers the Bulldog nation, is Johnson’s attitude toward UGA. When he beat them, it was worth a ring. When he lost to them, it was not that important. That is a crybaby attitude and Dawgs will relish every opportunity to watch him and his smug attude get beat.
Go Dawgs.
fuplup
January 6th, 2010
11:26 am
Dawg Man,
Yes the OL needs the most rebuilding. But Ferentz is an OL man at heart and has no problems finding them and getting them in shape. One thing that gets little attention about Iowa is that they don’t recruit 5-star high schoolers. They get 3-star players who are off the radar and willing to play a different position than they did in hs. A lot of Iowa players in the NFL owe their careers to coaches who found their best place on the team and made them better.
Cory
January 6th, 2010
11:26 am
If by “good year” you mean not playing in the Smurf Bowl as usual, then yes, I would have to agree
That Guy!
January 6th, 2010
11:27 am
indianman – are you a “RA TARD”?
That Guy!
January 6th, 2010
11:29 am
11-3 in the ACC is like going 7-6 in the SEC.
boston dawg
January 6th, 2010
11:29 am
dear last commenter,
uga made $45 million in profits in 2008 which is #2 in the country. tech did not make the list. and yes, i can understand why you would give us s**t over our shreveport visit and the fact that you’re all reeeeeaaaal excited to cash your first ever bcs bowl check for pooping in your hats against iowa (we all remember our first, and in our case our second, and our third…), but let’s not compare apples to oranges when it comes to which program is a perennial 10+ game winning money-making machine and which one is just visiting.
this season was our floor and your ceiling and we STILL managed to beat y’all, so suck it.
Southside Dawg
January 6th, 2010
11:31 am
Bill,
Just giving you a little grief. I respect your philosophy on the matter, but I wholeheartedly disagree. I too were like you as a child. I cheered for Tech whenever they played anyone else. But the older I got and the more Tech fans, alumni, etc., I met, the more I came to realize just how truly vile and crude of a fan base they are. I am very proud of my state and pull for all schools, but not Tech. Besides, the majority of their students only speak English as a second language. There is nothing “Georgia” about them.
Yep!
January 6th, 2010
11:32 am
fuplup – let’s hope Northern Iowa doesn’t get a decent kicker and Iowa doesn’t play them next year or Iowa might lose that game next year like they should have this year!
Joe
January 6th, 2010
11:32 am
Once again another lame bowl game(And I am a Tech Fan!) All these bowls are sloppy due to the long lay offs between the end of the season and now. Cant wait until a non BCS team makes the title game and wins so that the BCS will suddenly be alot more eager to have a freaking playoff!
Giles
January 6th, 2010
11:32 am
hedgepruner,
Don’t expect to get much of an argument from UGA fans about the SEC officials. Preaching to the choir, friend.
ORIGINALWARRIORDAWG
January 6th, 2010
11:33 am
IT TAKES MORE THAN TWO GOOD SEASONS TO DECLARE YOUR TEAM AS BEING GOOD ON THE NATIONAL SCENE. LET’S SEE WHERE TECH IS IN TWO MORE YEARS! GO DAWGS!!!!!!!!!
Maxster
January 6th, 2010
11:34 am
Joe -
The Big 10 and Pac 10 will never allow us to have a playoff system. If it ever happens, it won’t be in our lifetime.
fuplup
January 6th, 2010
11:35 am
This is not meant to be a hostile comment, but more of a surprised question. Why could Tech move only 15,000 from Atlanta to Miami, while Iowa had a “bad” traveling year and moved 30,000 fans from Iowa to Miami? There’s just something wrong with that picture.
Joe
January 6th, 2010
11:35 am
I think if one of their 2 teams get left out of a national Championship game over someone in the non-BCS conferences they would change their tune
the dream is over
January 6th, 2010
11:35 am
Wow, tool fans must be crashing hard today. Their little flash in the pan two seasons of decent play is now over. All of Gailey’s talent will leave, the ACC will definitely not be as weak next year and CPJ has been exposed as a fraud.
That Gut
January 6th, 2010
11:36 am
IIt has been confirmed; ALL UGA fans are as stupid as the uGaggers that are posting on this blog.
Elliot
January 6th, 2010
11:37 am
fuplup,
Tech can’t even sellout their high school stadium at home. Whatever made you believe they’d fill all their seats in the Landshark?
DawgDayAfternoon
January 6th, 2010
11:38 am
Cinderella’s just happy to be here. The big boys take care of business. The Hawkeyes can run and hit with all the aplomb of the Buckeyes and Nitanny Lions, all while working with a fraction of their resources. Thanks to the Orange Bowl, the perception is finally going to catch up with the reality.
The big boys set a tempo and keep it. Iowa quarterback Ricky Stanzi tossed two touchdowns in the first 12 minutes, completing nine of his first 10 throws. Georgia Tech, an option team not built for playing catch-up, got behind the 8-ball at Land Shark Stadium and stayed there.
The big boys finish. The Hawkeyes put the hammer down late, rushing for 66 yards in the fourth quarter while clinging to a tenuous 17-14 lead. They pounded away, undaunted, until the Jackets’ defense was little more than a Ramblin’ Wreck. When freshman tailback Brandon Wegher burst left and exploded into the clear for a 32-yard touchdown run with 1:56 left in the game, the levee finally broke.
The big boys play over their mistakes. When Ferentz elected a fake run around right end at the 6:53 mark of the fourth quarter rather than try a short field goal, a foot-race between kicker Daniel Murray and Tech safety Morgan Burnett that looked doomed from the start, you wondered if the momentum had finally turned. Instead, the Iowa defense drove the Jackets backwards, forcing a punt.
From the Orlando Sentinel….Obviously the reference to “big boys” isn’t meant for GT.
Joe
January 6th, 2010
11:38 am
Tech fans had to be at work today. Iowa fans do not have to tend to their crops for the winter so they have alot of free time on their hands. Thats why they travel better!
who will be Yech's next coach?
January 6th, 2010
11:38 am
Since Johnson will be fired after his sure-to-be disaster of a season next year, who do you think the bees will hire next?
fuplup
January 6th, 2010
11:40 am
Yep,
It was the first game of the season, and you never know how a team will play in that game. Also, Northern Iowa isn’t really a powder puff. They were ranked #2 in division 1-AA at the time and had a lot of experience, but got hurt badly by injuries through the season.
The fascinating thing about the Iowa year is the way in which they pulled off close wins. That’s probably why they got the highest viewer ratings this year on ESPN when they were on ESPN.
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:42 am
“Ilt” has been confirmed: the 11:36am poster got hit in That Gut!!! Don’t worry, there is that World of Warcraft tourney tonight!!
Dawg Fud
January 6th, 2010
11:42 am
Hedgepruner,
here is where we ranked – Georgia 30 (W), Tech 24 (L)
fuplup
January 6th, 2010
11:42 am
Joe,
Maybe so. But I’d think more support for the team would be apparent. Not only the loss, but also the lack of fan attendance at a BCS game, can’t help recruiting.
DawgDayAfternoon
January 6th, 2010
11:43 am
When one of the participants in the ACC title game had 4 losses going into that game, what that tell a rational person?
Dawg Fud
January 6th, 2010
11:44 am
Joe,
if wrote that on an Iowa blog you would get a beat down…
ANF!
EnoughExcuses
January 6th, 2010
11:44 am
I have been waiting on this all day. Let’s hide the fact that Tech didn’t show up for another Bowl game, and this one on a National stage. Let’s talk about Iowa having 40 days to prepare for Tech. Did they? Considering that Iowa didn’t know until Dec. 6th who would be in the Orange Bowl as ACC champion, isn’t it 30 days? And didn’t Tech have the same 30 days to prepare for Iowa. Looks like Iowa took advantage of the time, just like LSU last year and Tech didn’t. Yes, Tech should be proud they won their first outright ACC title since 1990 and went to their first major bowl in 42 years, but they should step back and think on three things and they are: LSU, Georgia and Iowa. Big defects in probably their 3 biggest games dating back to last December 31st and two of the losses to 7-5 (UGA being 6-5 at time of play) SEC teams that were underachieving. The losses should be looked upon that in a weak ACC conference the offense will work, but outside the conference they need to modify their attack and Paul Johnson needs to quit being pompus and not changing his scheme at all because he is bound and determine to say this offense will work against anyone. Well, it doesn’t.
IF Tech wants to continue winning ACC Championships and be content fine but if they want to win on a National stage they need to change with their “big” game approach. Not use excuses like they were nervous as Dwyer said last night. Passing the ball should be an option, and as Nesbitt proved last night, against UGA and LSU, he cannot deliver.
Huh?
January 6th, 2010
11:44 am
Are you referring to Paul Johnson’s gut?
GT
January 6th, 2010
11:46 am
Tech played hard, also they had to prepare not knowing who the quarterback was. The Big 10 is back and it is good for college football. Watch for ND to swing back as more coaches figure out how to coach slow headhunters against these spread offenses. If Tech had some linebackers they would have gone undefeated, when the offensive line of Georgia, or Iowa or Miami eats you up and your linebackers are average it is a long night. We will fix it, this was a great year not only for Tech but college football as a whole. For a national audience there has got to be a national sport, the old Southwestern Conference disappearing has always left a hole in the competition, then population movement down south has abandon the Big 10. SEC is still the best conference but they need something beyond a third world nation to make the Olympics.
Pauls Johnson
January 6th, 2010
11:46 am
The Good – Tech had a good year, and has improved in the last two years. Tech beat UGA last year – Tech beat Clemson twice this year and won the ACC
The Bad – Tech lost it’s 5th straight bowl game. Tech lost to UGA this year making it the eighth time in nine years. Tech now has to listen to the payback all year due to the juvenile bloggers like St. Simons, Yellow Fuzz, Stinger, stc. from last year.
30-24 Dawgs - WE RUN THIS STATE
January 6th, 2010
11:47 am
Tech’s lack of attendance at Landshark Stadium had to be a huge letdown to GT’s seniors – almost as disappointing as the fact that Coach Paul Johnson can’t prepare his team to play a bowl game – in 2 years of bowls CPJ is 0-2 and his perfect option has been outscored 62-17!
The one thing the GT seniors never will forget is walking out of the Joke by Coke after an unranked UGA team humiliated them on Senior Night 30-24. THERE GOES CALEB KING UNTOUCHED!
mexdawg
January 6th, 2010
11:48 am
Tech will always SUCK.What a great day to be a GEORGIA BULLDOG.Hey m,stinger,ramble on and all you other nerds repeat after me LET THE BIG DAWG EAT.
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:48 am
Barnet Fife just called: he wants that Sheriff badge back from fatso!!
Dawg Man
January 6th, 2010
11:49 am
Barney Fife, nor Barnet.
Spike
January 6th, 2010
11:50 am
Wow. Five straight bowl losses? Wow.
m is for mullet
January 6th, 2010
11:51 am
someone said they saw m on his moped on I 75 N broke down, come on somone help the brother out!!!
m is for mullet
January 6th, 2010
11:51 am
Enter your comments here
GoJackets
January 6th, 2010
11:52 am
lol at all the UGA hate. I wasnt here last season but Ga Tech fans must have given it to them bad if they are responding like this, this season. They are out in full force.
Observer
January 6th, 2010
11:52 am
Did Ga Tech pick the nerdiest people on campus to be in their marching band? Good lord, I thought a D & D match was going to break out at the fifty before the game!
Pauls Johnson
January 6th, 2010
11:52 am
For a must read, check out: http://leatherhelmetblog.com/2010/01/06/an-open-letter-to-tech-fans/
macrotech
January 6th, 2010
11:53 am
Well, to say that I’m not disappointed after that game would be an understatement! This has been a fun season to be a Tech fan and I look forward to having more fun next season! Iowa looked like the team that I’d expected and they beat Tech down. CPJ has done some amazing things in his short tenure at Tech and I look forward to him finishing what he’s started. I’m not sold out on the ‘bigger defense’ stopping Tech’s offense….not arguing against it, but Navy AND Air Force won their bowl games running the same style offense with smaller players against two ‘bigger defenses’. Hate that we lost in the Orange Bowl the way we did. Congrats to Iowa! Looking forward to next year….CPJ is still at work! GO TECH!!!
30-24 Dawgs - WE RUN THIS STATE
January 6th, 2010
11:54 am
ACC is now 2-10 all time in BCS bowls? Can they be passed up next time for a team from the MAC instead?
Everyone knows ACC is strictly a basketball conference – wait, what’s that you say? The Dawgs beat tech in BOTH football and basketball?