Tech loses recruiting coordinator — updated at 9:35 p.m.
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Days before Signing Day, Georgia Tech recruiting coordinator Giff Smith has accepted a job as outside linebackers coach with the NFL’s Buffalo Bills.
Smith will be reunited with Chan Gailey, recently hired to be the Bills’ head coach a little more than two years after he was fired as the Yellow Jackets’ coach. A call to the Buffalo Bills hasn’t been returned. A text and call to Smith hasn’t been returned.
Signing Day is Wednesday, Feb. 3 and Tech’s class is ranked No. 44 by Rivals.com and No. 45 by Scout.com.
Giff Smith
Smith has been Tech’s recruiting coordinator and defensive line coach for the past four seasons. Gailey hired him as the line coach in 2004, after Smith spent five seasons at Tulane.
A native of Mableton (Pebblebrook), Smith is a graduate of Georgia Southern (1991).
During Smith’s tenure as recruiting coordinator, the Jackets have signed several nationally ranked players, including Jonathan Dwyer, Derrick Morgan, Demaryius Thomas and Morgan Burnett, whom are all expected to go in the first four rounds of the NFL Draft in April.
Smith was paid $189,000 at Tech.
Several Tech recruits said Smith’s decision won’t affect their commitments.
Northview defensive tackle Denzel McCoy said he was “mad” when he heard that Smith was leaving. But McCoy calmed down after talking over the phone with him.
“We were pretty tight,” McCoy said. “Smith called to tell me about the news. He said he was looking forward to watching me the next four years, and hopefully would get to coach me at the next level (NFL).”
McCoy said he and fellow Georgia Tech commitment Shawn Green of Grayson had visited with Smith for nearly eight hours. They talked about Tech’s defensive line of the future, and watch films of old NFC championship games, including the 1998 thriller between the Falcons and Vikings.
“It was a good day,” McCoy said. “(Smith) didn’t say anything about another job. We had big plans for next year. I was mad at first when I heard he was leaving, but it’s all good now. I’m moving forward.”
Tech head coach Paul Johnson also called McCoy on Tuesday. “(Johnson) said not to worry about it, that they were going to bring someone in highly capable to do the job,” McCoy said.
McCoy said Arkansas has been trying to sway him, but that he remains committed to Tech.
Union Grove defensive end Anthony Williams said his commitment is firm because of the relationships that he’s made with the rest of Tech’s coaches, as well as with the other commitments.
Central High (Phenix City, Ala.) running back Deon Hill said his commitment is firm because “of the program and the education I’ll get.”
What was the reaction of Blessed Trinity defensive back Jake Skole? “It stinks,” he said. “He was a good dude, and a good coach.”
“I was disappointed to hear about it. But I picked Georgia Tech for a lot of reasons, and I know (Johnson) knows what he’s going and will hire a good replacement. We’ll be all right.”
Skole said he remains committed to Tech.
Synjyn Days’ father, Calvin, said his son is committed to “coach Johnson and coach [Brian] Bohannon, the Institute and the things that are happening there.”
Synjyn, a quarterback at Hillgrove, said it’s hard to see Smith go because he said they had such a good connection. Synjyn said before the Georgia game, when the players were jumping around in the huddle, Smith walked over and asked: “You want to get in there, don’t you?”
Synjyn’s response: “You know me too well, coach.”
He hadn’t heard from any of Tech’s coaches on Tuesday, but he said he is “100-percent firm” in his commitment.
The Jackets have 16 players committed with two scholarships remaining. Offers have been made to two players: Stephenson defensive tackle Mike Thornton and Roswell wide receiver Chris Boyd, who previously committed to Vanderbilt.
Commitments are non-binding until the players sign their letters of intent next week.
Tech’s 2010 commitments
Catlin Alford OL 6-4 275 Adairsville, GA
Jeremiah Attaochu LB 6-3 223 Washington, DC
Ryan Ayers DB 5-10 175 Douglasville, GA
Morgan Bailey OL 6-4 285 Loganville, GA
Barry Bostic ATH 5-10 156 Louisville, GA
Synjyn Days ATH 6-2 205 Powder Springs, GA
Shawn Green DT 6-2 275 Loganville, GA
Deon Hill RB 6-0 195 Phenix City, AL
Fred Holton DB 6-1 196 Thomasville, GA
Isaiah Johnson DB 6-2 175 Tyrone, GA
Denzel McCoy DT 6-4 275 Duluth, GA
Justin Moore K 5-10 160 Atlanta, GA
Quayshawn Nealy LB 6-0 215 Lakeland, FL
Charles Perkins RB 6-0 195 Suwanee, GA
Jake Skole DB 6-1 185 Roswell, GA
Anthony Williams DE 6-4 235 McDonough, GA
————–
Staff report Michael Carvell and correspondent Matt Winkeljohn contributed to this report.
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89 comments Add your comment
juvenal
January 26th, 2010
8:27 pm
5 years from now we’ll know..grad salaries, see payscale.com(GT in mid 30’s, uga in lower 200’s)
Wreckmaniac
January 26th, 2010
8:36 pm
Super Dawg: The Big House is in Ann Arbor, MI. Tech does not play there this year. Is this your first experience as a UGA blogmouth ?
Wreckmaniac
January 26th, 2010
8:39 pm
I’d rather have a coach leave than to have to fire one which is what CMR just had to do to half his staff to keep his job.
Wreckmaniac
January 26th, 2010
8:41 pm
Did UGA find a defensive coach yet ?
Wreckmaniac
January 26th, 2010
8:43 pm
Any announcement involving Gaily is ok as long it’s not an announcement that he’s returning to Tech.
Jacketman
January 26th, 2010
8:49 pm
CPJ will find his man.
Jacketman
January 26th, 2010
9:04 pm
CPJ will have his fish fry
GTMike
January 26th, 2010
9:05 pm
Danny G, I’m a 2nd year Tech student and what Tech75 says is correct. I know for a fact that in my major (EE), 96% of all grads find employment in their field within 6 months of graduation. And the remaining 4% most likely are just taking some time before entering the workforce. I imagine that the statistics are similar in any part of Tech that you look at.
bud
January 26th, 2010
9:24 pm
so you dog fans dont know tech recruits who cares this is a sing of a good program smith got an advancement all the tech defensive coaches were not fired like the dogs oh this also means al can form his own coaching staff
Jacketman
January 26th, 2010
9:30 pm
Definitely the sing of a good program bud. Now if we can just find a way to average more than 5 points on offense in a bowl game we’ll be all set.
Willie Martinez
January 26th, 2010
9:36 pm
Pleeeeeeeaaaase Hire Me!
Big Bob
January 26th, 2010
9:36 pm
At a boy, Chan. Take their recruiting coordinator away just a week before signing day. Looks like Chan has the last laugh.
gt2012
January 26th, 2010
10:16 pm
Georgia Tech tops special admits for football?
http://www.fanblogs.com/ncaa/007731.php
Try again, my friend. Georgia Tech reports 9% special admits, as opposed to the University of Georgia’s 94% special admits… who’d at the top of that list again?
BS Patrol
January 26th, 2010
10:18 pm
I call BS on MachineCoOwner,
12.50 an hour? For a Cad/Cam programmer? No way! I know because I can do it ALL.
Stumpknocker
January 26th, 2010
10:22 pm
Hey U moronic-bugger-eating morons……..I mean Dawg fans on this blog. My son graduated from Tech in 05, is a civilian engineer for the Gov…..makes 75G-plus………….But don’t worry I hear Wal-Mart has good ins and retirement.
Joshua Barlowe
January 26th, 2010
10:47 pm
dear UGA “fans” (Wal-Mart employees) – when you get 4 National Championships – come back and talk.
The only thing you run is my order at lunch.
Alabama Jack
January 26th, 2010
11:36 pm
DAWGNUTS at least apparently has some unlike, most of the idiot UGAys on this blog.
Anyway, dawgs are all irrelevant.
Go get em Jackets
January 26th, 2010
11:56 pm
not a fan of the Chan, but the man did beat Miami in 05, 06 and 07 not to mention Auburn as well when AU was ranked 2nd in the country..
macrotech
January 27th, 2010
2:45 am
superDawg, “See you in the BIG house with a sold out crowd of Red and Black.”….is “BIG house” a reference to prison?
Lewis Buzzard
January 27th, 2010
5:12 am
Good luck to Giff. He has been involved with some of the finest classes Tech has brought in, but I am disappointed he has hitched his wagon to the wrong team. Gailey was one of the sorriest coaches that I can recall here at Tech and I don’t expect him to be able to get it done at Buffalo. Then poor Giff will be scrambling to try to land in another program. I believe his patience would have been rewarded here had he decided to stay.
DDT
January 27th, 2010
6:25 am
That’s what Rueben Houston calls it macrotech.
FactsRFacts
January 27th, 2010
6:38 am
gt2012
January 26th, 2010
10:16 pm
Georgia Tech tops special admits for football?
http://www.fanblogs.com/ncaa/007731.php
Try again, my friend. Georgia Tech reports 9% special admits, as opposed to the University of Georgia’s 94% special admits… who’d at the top of that list again
An Associated Press review of admissions data submitted to the NCAA by most of the 120 schools in college football’s top tier shows that athletes enjoy strikingly better odds of having admission requirements bent on their behalf.
The review identified at least 27 schools where football players were at least 10 times more likely to benefit from special admission programs than students in the general population.
The NCAA defines special admissions programs as those designed for students who don’t meet “standard or normal entrance requirements.” The NCAA says such exceptions are fine as long as schools offer the same opportunities to everyone.
That group includes 2009 Bowl Championship Series teams Oregon, Georgia Tech and Alabama, which is playing Texas for the national title Jan. 7.
The NCAA defines special admissions programs as those designed for students who don’t meet “standard or normal entrance requirements.
You stand corrected DUMBAZZ. The myth of GT academic disadvantage has been blown out of the water and you little girls can’t deal with it. Takes away your primary excuse doesn’t it?
superDawg
January 27th, 2010
6:49 am
Dang macro you got up early for that one.All houses are big compared to yours.Did you run to your out house in the cold at 2:45
ok...
January 27th, 2010
6:57 am
Facts, if you look at what gt2012 posted, you’ll see that Georgia Tech allowed and average of 9% special admits for football, as opposed to <1% of special admits for the regular student body… by using those numbers, Georgia Tech does indeed allow roughly 10x the amount of special admits for football as opposed to regular students.
Jim
January 27th, 2010
8:23 am
Good Luck Giff!
Dawg Days
January 27th, 2010
8:31 am
Good factual article Doug…if UGA had just lost their recruiting coordinator and Badley or Schitz had write the article,it would have been spewed will slams on the HC not keeping the program together, or trouble in Athens, or death sentence to the 2010 recruiting class.
It’s refreshing to see the AJC has writers that can just cover the article without the BS.
But PJ needs to get a RC soon..
BobinBuford
January 27th, 2010
8:33 am
LET THE BIG DAWG EAT! :
Go check the AJC Top 50 – 9 of them are on that list.
Which is the same amount that UGA has.
Drew
January 27th, 2010
8:50 am
Yet another reason to hate that jar-headed SOB Chan Gailey. I hope that a– clown gets frostbite in Buffalo. Maybe he can get Dave Braine to cuddle with him.
GT Fan...
January 27th, 2010
8:51 am
Thought Giff did a real good job as RC, tough loss. I’d say his quality of life in Buffalo is going to be h#LL compared to ATL, but it’s obvious he has career goals/aspirations, and they are NOT being a RC his entire career. GS is taking the next career step, and an easy one to do with someone you’ve previously worked for (the same reason why CG has hired him). If he does a good job he won’t be in Buffalo long. Then again if CG doesn’t do good he won’t be in Buffalo long. I, along with several others, can’t understand how CG was given another HC opportunity. But good luck to GS, hope he does well, and gets out of hot, muggy Buffalo quickly.
Question on this ……. is GS leaving b/c Gailey came calling? Or could this have been iniated by GS b/c Al Groh wanted to make changes (GS was the DL coach after all)??
Too Easy
January 27th, 2010
9:09 am
Are we thanking God and Greyhound this morning?
LAKE OCONEE DAWG
January 27th, 2010
9:13 am
Wreckmaniac:
4 posts in a row….rapid fire….Giff leaving must have gotten you steamed up a little…Got to pay a man more that $189K….Giff produced 2 NFL defensive ends in back to back years, but since he is leaving, he could not coach??? Come on, Giff is moving for the money and positioning….Been at Tech a while and got passed over for coordinator….Some high school coaches in Georgia make $125K-$150K….Got to take some of that robotics research money and put it in the football program…Lost a good one in Giff…..
collegeballfan
January 27th, 2010
9:18 am
Special admits for athletes
Alabama – 21%
Auburn – 12%
Florida – 18%
Florida State – 65%
Georgia – 94%
Georgia Tech – 9%
Iowa – 41%
Kentucky – 64%
LSU – 82%
This is a institution decision made by each school under the policies handed down by the respective conferences and handed down by the NCAA.
Each school is within NCAA policy or they would be on probation for violations. The conference probably will handle a violation of their policy on the QT to save face.
All you can read into these numbers is that all these teams are within NCAA guidelines.
They ain't done nuttin since 80
January 27th, 2010
9:31 am
Giff slapped ME in the face……….geez, he bailed and left me with Al Groh and his memories of the 1950 Cleveland Browns. ahahahahah
Got to get my resume outta here searching for a real job, like with some south ga middle school or something.
CPJ
juvenal
January 27th, 2010
9:48 am
chan-beat AU lose to Duke-his troops sometimes did not show, like a lot of 3+star players(not that i’m accusing our jrs. of looking for payday instead of playing hard sometimes)-what we hope for with CPJ is toughness, & we will see when the transition is complete(still looking forcph teams to play tough..)
EW
January 27th, 2010
10:56 am
It’s always amusing to me when GT grads come on here talking about UGA grads working for them, etc. I’ve worked for 2 UGA grad in the past and now have 3 GT grads working for me and I didn’t go to either school. Being in the tech industry, it’s pretty common that GT grads (and the like) are on the bottom end of the pecking order and are generally just computer jockeys…very rarely are they in any position of authority.
JOBO Jacket
January 27th, 2010
11:19 am
We need to the players at UGA all the help they need, it is really hard to get into -
Exercise Science
Interdisciplinary Studies
Magazines
Natural Resource Rec. & Tourism
Recreation & Leisure Studies
Sports Management
or my favorite – Women’s Studies
All of these are listed majors on the UGA web site – you know with such demanding course work they need all the help they can get.
Doug Roberson
January 27th, 2010
2:48 pm
We are going to get to talk to Giff at 3 p.m. or so in an informal press conference. Stay tuned for more details.
LOST to UGA 66-73.
January 28th, 2010
4:19 am
A Bunch of Nobodies for Georgia tek anyway, is all that Giff Smith could get to come here – especially just 3 who want to play in this high school offense.
Javaris Crittenton is a thug, a college drop-out of Georgia tek, who yesterday was kicked out of basketball for the remainder of the year when David Stern announced that Javaris Crittenton plead Guilty to Gun Possession in the locker-room in a dispute with another player, just like Stephon Marbury. No different. Either one. Thugs. “Possession of Guns will not be tolerated in the workplace,” Stern announced. Crittenton admitted brandishing guns he brought into the Wizards’ locker room — violating a provision added to the collective bargaining agreement in 2005 — after a dispute stemming from a card game on a team flight where the gambling debts are welched and so they draw down on each other like the Old West. Crittenton was injured and wasn’t playing anyway, but forfeits his pay starting today for the rest of the year. Mired in a horrible season, this Georgia tek thug was not going to help his teammates and fans with a play-off anyway, and now he loses all his pay. Javaris Crittenton is a Thug from Georgia tek, if there ever was a Thug from Georgia tek.
Paul Hewitt currently has Georgia tek on NCAA Probation following a ruling that the Academic Progress Rate of the Georgia tek men’s basketball Thugs is 914, the lowest in the nation. The NCAA has limited Paul Hewitt to only 11 Scholarships today January 28, 2010 for the Thug basketball he is promoting at Georgia tek. UGA men’s basketball enjoys a huge advantage Academically over the Thugs from Georgia tek on Paul Hewitt’s teams, with a much Higher NCAA Academic Progress Rate for UGA compared to Paul Hewitt as well. And by the way Paul Hewitt has a Losing Record by Several Games to UGA.
Stephon Marbury is a thug, a college drop-out of Georgia tek, who in 2007 defended Michael Vick in the infamous Newsweek interview where Marbury thug said “We don’t react the same when other animals are being killed for sport or for the sake of human pleasure.” It’s not wrong to kill dogs like Michael Vick did holding them up and cutting their throats when they didn’t perform well in dogfights, according to this Georgia tek Thug. In 2005, married with 2 children, Marbury had sex in the back of his pick-up truck with a loose woman on an outing to a strip club. Marbury has had numerous public fights with teammates and his coaches such as Larry Brown in 2006. The Knicks’ poor performance combined with Marbury’s public spats with his coach led to a severe decline in Marbury’s popularity, with Frank Isola and Michael O’Keefe of the New York Daily News stating that Marbury is “the most reviled athlete in New York.” In 2007, Isiah Thomas as his coach then removed Marbury from the line-up and Marbury just left the team and said in public that Marbury would blackmail Isiah Thomas for removing Marbury from the line-up and got into a fisticuffs over it on the plane flight. Marbury is a thug who was hated by all his teammates, hated by all his coaches, and who was wildly booed by the fans the loudest of all boos ever before being run out of basketball. Run out. And, now 2 weeks ago, it is announced that Marbury has signed with Shanxi, a Chinese basketball team. Marbury, a Thug, is not a team player as demonstrated in the 2004 Olympics when for the 1st time in history the U.S. Dream Team lost and lost and got only a bronze medal. Stephon Marbury is a Thug from Georgia tek, if there ever was a Thug from Georgia tek.
This is who Paul Hewitt brings to Georgia tek to get Beat by UGA, and why.
MaChelle Joseph, Georgia tek women’s basketball coach, refused to shake the hand of Andy Landers when The Lady Dawgs beat the crap out of Georgia tek’s women’s basketball team again and now have a 29-3 record against Georgia tek women. Poor sportsmanship is a theme at Georgia tek nowadays. She also has a worse NCAA Academic Progress Rate than UGA Lady Bulldogs, which is another Theme in Academics of your Athletics’ Department at Georgia tek.
Paul Johnson’s Recruiting Coordinator Giff Smith, on the same day yesterday, one week prior to Signing Date for the Nation’s Number 44 Football Recruiting Class, quits the position of Paul Johnson’s Recruiting Coordinator. How is that going to affect the Number 44 Recruiting Class in the Nation ? Uh, it cannot get any worse. Very disappointing recruiting class for Paul Johnson, again and for Giff Smith. No wonder he quit with the Number 44 Ranked Recruiting Class of just Thugs anyway. Thugs who Flunk Out. Thugs who cannot win a bowl game. Thugs who are 1-8 vs. Coach Richt. This is yet another serious black eye for Georgia tek and Paul Johnson. Obviously, Giff Smith is not needed in Buffalo in the next 6 days, so why burn Paul Johnson and Georgia tek like this, instead of waiting until after next Wednesday ?
Little Joey Hamilton, Georgia tek Thug.
Paul Johnson’s Director of Player Personnel was arrested for leaving the scene of an accident, was found a few blocks away with pot in his car, and was drunk. This was what little Joey Hamilton did with his 1st Paul Johnson Paycheck as Paul Johnson’s Director of Player Personnel. Then, the week of the Georgia tek Georgia football game Paul Johnson’s wife is interviewed and Paul Johnson’s wife states that she doesn’t even care about football.
Paul Johnson’s football team has a way worse NCAA Academic Progress Rate than UGA football players too.
HIT UGA FANS IN THE FACE after Losing Game CPJ said game not important.
Paul Johnson all week prior to the game, said that he Paul Johnson didn’t think that the UGA game was all that important to him personally. Then, after the game, Paul Johnson yells to reporters of the AJ-C that they should write to the Georgia tek fans having to deal with the aftermath of the 24-30 Loss to a team Paul Johnson didn’t care about beating and said was not an important game to him, that the Georgia tek fans should hit UGA fans in the face.
The 60th win by UGA over Georgia tek in football to 37 losses to Georgia tek with 5 ties. This sport too is not clean old fashioned hate by Georgia tek who have To Hell With Georgia in their Fight Song, which I still say is the cause of the really nasty Georgia tek antics in all sports against UGA. In football, you recall it all started in 1893 when Georgia tek hired 3 football players to play in the game against UGA. Players who were not students at Georgia tek. You named a dorm after one of them on the ramp at North Avenue. They were stoned in the train which then wrecked into the back of a freight train coming back to Atlanta. The photo in the 1893 AJ-C read RAMBLING WRECK RETURNS TO ATLANTA. Since that wrecked TRAIN, Georgia tek has now tried to pass off a 1930 automobile as the WRECKED TRAIN. You have NO HISTORY at Georgia tek except cheating and poor sportsmanship against UGA.
Campus Crime at Georgia tek is rampant. It is mostly your “student-athletes” yet you whine about the Thugs in the surrounding neighborhood.
Before your football games, your Athletics Department has to Warn Georgia tek fans not to throw whiskey bottles at the players of your opponents as they go through the tunnels to the Bobby Dodd stadium named for another college drop-out of the University of Tennessee at Knoxville who never not once beat Vince Dooley, but instead Lost every time and then quit.
Of course on a campus of 30 percent Asian males and only 29 percent women in the slums of a city of 6 million people, Georgia tek fans seriously are not safe and that is the reason why no one goes to any of your games Number 48 in the nation in Attendance while you play 6 teams who did not even go to a bowl game. That’s who Georgia tek can beat, while by direct comparison Georgia tek has not won a Major Bowl Game now since 1955, a span now of 56 years in a Row.
Javarius Crittenton apologized for what he called an “embarrassment”
A long string of continuous embarrassments for Georgia tek.
The NCAA
January 28th, 2010
8:10 am
Special admits for athletes
Alabama – 21%
Auburn – 12%
Clemson – 66%
Florida – 18%
Florida State – 65%
Georgia – 10%
Georgia Tech – 100%
Iowa – 41%
Kentucky – 64%
LSU – 82%
PS. Georgia Tech recently came off NCAA probation for academic fraud. Tech was caught changing the grades of 19 scholarship athletes (11 starting football players) in order to make them eligible to play. That is just downright CHEATING! And Georgia Tech was caught and punished. It is a fact! And no termite spin can change that fact!!!!