Stephen Hill invited to NFL combine
Former Georgia Tech wide receiver Stephen Hill is one of 47 wide receivers who has received an invitation to the NFL scouting combine, to take place Feb. 22-28 in Indianapolis.
The NFL released the list Tuesday. Hill, the only former Tech player to make the 327-player invite list, declared himself an early-entry candidate for the draft Jan. 5. His invitation to the combine is hardly a guarantee that he’ll get drafted; annually, players who aren’t invited to the combine get drafted and players who do get invited get passed up in the draft. However, it is certainly an indication that NFL scouts see him as a draftable player.
The draft website nfldraftscout.com ranks Hill as the No. 7 wide receiver in the draft and projects him as a second-round selection. ESPN draft expert Mel Kiper Jr. said that Hill would have to impress at the combine to get into the third round.
Georgia Tech-Boston College live blog
Greetings-
Hope you’re feeling zesty for the 1 p.m. tipoff between Georgia Tech and Boston College, two teams that are on a combined 11-game losing streak. I imagine both teams are looking at each other the way that hungry cartoon animals look at each other and imagine a turkey drumstick. That never gets old.
Anyway, a few points of note.
1. It appears guard Glen Rice Jr. (toe) will play but won’t start. He took part in warmups.
2. In ACC play, Boston College is the lowest-scoring team in the league, averaging 56.5 points per game. Tech is eighth, at 61.2 ppg. The Eagles, though, like to put up 3-pointers, which has not been a great strength for Tech. Boston College averages 20.3 3-point tries per game in ACC play, making 6.6. Tech is last in the league at 3-point field goal defense at 46.2 percent.
3. These are the two worst free-throw shooting teams in the conference.
Other than that, it should be an offensive bonanza.
ACC approves nine-game football schedule
The ACC has approved a nine-game league football schedule and 18 conference games for men’s and women’s basketball and has assigned newcomers Pittsburgh and Syracuse into divisions for football. They were among several scheduling formats made official Friday at a league meeting of athletic directors and faculty athletic representatives.
Pittsburgh will join Georgia Tech’s Coastal Division, while Syracuse will become part of the Atlantic. Those changes, as well as the nine-game league schedule, will go into place once those schools join the ACC from the Big East. It has yet to be determined when that will happen, but the schools are under contract to remain in the Big East through the 2013-14 academic year.
Each school will play its six division opponents with three crossover games, including its primary partner. Tech’s will remain Clemson.
The Coastal Division, including Tech, appears to be receiving the stronger football team in recent history. The Panthers have averaged 7.6 …
Tech coach Spencer resigns over rules violations
Georgia Tech co-offensive line coach Todd Spencer has resigned. Spencer offered his resignation in the midst of a school investigation into numerous text messages to recruits that he had sent in violation of NCAA rules.
“I find it inexplicable that an employee would violate these rules with regard to text messaging after our ongoing focus to educate our personnel on NCAA rules and regulations,” athletic director Dan Radakovich said in a statement. “Actions of this type simply are not acceptable in our programs and will not be tolerated.”
NCAA rules limit electronic communication between coaches and prospects or their parents or guardians to e-mail and faxes. Other forms, such as text messaging and instant messaging, are not allowed.
Monitoring software caught the violation Jan. 12, and Spencer was placed on administrative leave the following day. The athletic department has been in a state of high alert in matters of NCAA rules compliance since being placed on probation after …
Continue reading Tech coach Spencer resigns over rules violations »
Tech sets T-Day game for a Fri. night
Georgia Tech will break from tradition and play its T-Day spring game on a Friday night. The Yellow Jackets will conclude spring practice April 20 at Bobby Dodd Stadium in a scrimmage to be held under the lights. A post-game fireworks show is among activities planned for the event. The game has typically been played on a Saturday afternoon.
Impermissible texts snag Georgia Tech recruiting
Georgia Tech handcuffed itself in its recruiting efforts with impermissible text messages to a recruit and his father. The NCAA banned the Tech coaching staff from initiating telephone or written communication with the prospect for four weeks, starting in late December, according to an e-mail from Tech compliance director Jerome Rodgers that was obtained through the Georgia Open Record Act.
NCAA rules forbid all forms of electronically transmitted correspondence to recruits or their parents or guardians except for e-mail and faxes.
The NCAA penalized Tech for two of three texts, which were sent in November. The third was a text from Tech coach Paul Johnson, who thought he was replying to a text from a team member, not a recruit. In the e-mail, Rodgers called the violations “inadvertent.”
The e-mail noted that the school sought NCAA permission to divide the four-week penalty into two two-week periods in order to contact the prospect, identified as “Will,” during …
Continue reading Impermissible texts snag Georgia Tech recruiting »
Georgia Tech-UNC wrap
Greetings-
Four thoughts following Georgia Tech’s 93-81 loss to North Carolina Sunday night in Chapel Hill.
1. The talent disparity was considerable. North Carolina took the court with seven McDonald’s All-Americans, which is seven more than Tech had. On the website draftexpress.com, three of the top nine NBA draft prospects (Harrison Barnes, John Henson and Tyler Zeller), five of the top 19 (James McAdoo and Kendall Marshall) and six of the top 62 players (Reggie Bullock) dressed in white and baby blue Sunday night.
I believe I noticed a time late in the first half when coach Brian Gregory went to the bench to try Nick Foreman at power forward, giving Kammeon Holsey and Julian Royal a break. Foreman got posted up by Zeller and had to foul.
Foreman is a former walk-on. Zeller will be a lottery pick when he enters the draft.
2. Marshall had a big influence on the game. Gregory’s big concern was North Carolina’s transition game, which is led by Marshall. The plan was to get …
Georgia Tech-North Carolina live blog
Greetings-
A few thoughts in advance of the Georgia Tech-North Carolina game, starting at 6 p.m. Game is on both ESPNU and online at ESPN3.com.
To watch:
1. Daniel Miller and Kammeon Holsey (backed up by Nate Hicks and Julian Royal) against North Carolina forwards Tyler Zeller and John Henson. Zeller and Henson average a combined 29.0 points and 19.8 rebounds per game.
Brian Gregory: “The thing with Zeller is the guy plays hard every single play. He’s a very physical player. He’s got that left shoulder jump hook down where he can shoot it from two feet all the way out to 14, 15 feet. Sometimes it’s an unblockable shot.” (I’m not sure if he meant that he takes hook shots out to 14 feet. I sure hope so. That would be pretty cool.)
Miller and Holsey are going to have to bang for rebounds. If they don’t, it’ll be very troublesome for the Jackets.
2. Someone’s got to get hot. Guard Jason Morris was 0-for-7 against Miami. Guard Glen Rice Jr. was 4-for-14. Point guard Mfon Udofia was …
Reports: Tech coach Spencer out
Georgia Tech co-offensive line coach Todd Spencer is not expected back with the team, according to two media outlets, rivals.com and coachingsearch.com.
“We don’t have an announcement (regarding a change),” associate athletic director Wayne Hogan said Saturday.
If true, the timing is not beneficial. Coaching changes typically occur immediately following the season or after signing day. In the days leading up to signing day, which takes place Wednesday, the last thing a team wants to project to prospects is any sort of change or instability.
Prior to last season, Spencer was reprimanded by the school and suspended for the first game of the season by the NCAA for violating its rules about calls to prospects. Apparently acting under a misunderstanding of the rules, Spencer made 14 calls to prospects that were outside of NCAA boundaries.
Spencer was the recruiting coach assigned to Lanier County High defensive end Junior Gnonkonde, whose scholarship was withdrawn Jan. 20. Lanier …
Tech expects NCAA verdict soon
The school expects the verdict from its NCAA appeal to be returned soon. When Tech made its in-person hearing before the appeals committee Nov. 13 in Indianapolis, school officials were told that it could expect a response in 60 to 90 days. Friday marks 75 days.
Associate athletic director Wayne Hogan said that it probably won’t be until next week, as school president G.P. “Bud“ Peterson is at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, through the weekend. The NCAA typically honors requests from the school to hold delivery if its president is away from campus.
The school appealed NCAA findings that it failed to meet conditions and obligations of membership and failed to cooperate in an investigation into possible impermissible benefits violations involving two former football players, which led the NCAA to strip Tech of its 2009 ACC title. The appeals committee’s verdict will be final.
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