Archive for February, 2010

Georgia Tech football season-ticket holders will begin receiving their renewal forms in the mail Saturday.

In addition to the $260 season-ticket package, the Institute is offering a $180 package that includes seats in the upper section of the North end of Bobby Dodd Stadium. It is being nicknamed the “Gold Zone,” according to an article on ramblinwreck.com.

Season tickets can be renewed or purchased on the site, or by calling 1-888-Tech-Tix. The renewal deadline is April 16.

Tech’s home schedule for 2010:

Sept. 4 South Carolina State

Sept. 25 North Carolina State

Oct. 9 Virginia

Oct. 16 Middle Tennessee State

Nov. 13 Miami

Nov. 20 Duke

Estimated prices for away game tickets range from $75 for Georgia (Nov. 27) to $45 for Wake Forest (oct. 2). The Thursday night game against Virginia Tech is an estimated $48 per ticket.

Continue reading Tech season-ticket renewal forms on their way »

Something compels me after Wednesday night’s loss to Miami to ask the question. It was posed to Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt today and I’ll pose it to you.

Is Georgia Tech an NCAA tournament team?

“If they were giving out bids today, I’d say yeah we’re in,” Hewitt said. “But they’re not giving out bids today.”

He knows things get no easier with three more ACC road games at Wake Forest, at Maryland and at Clemson. (Tech’s home schedule is potentially a little friendlier with games against North Carolina, Boston College and Virginia Tech – but you can’t assume that, either).

But let’s look at things right now. After the loss at Miami, the Yellow Jackets are 17-7, 5-5 in the ACC. They are bunched together with Clemson and Florida State in sixth place in league standings. If the NCAA tournament committee were choosing right now, I think they might have some head scratching to do.

Since the ACC expanded to 12 teams in 2006, the most teams taken in the NCAA tournament was seven …

Continue reading It’s early but we’re asking, is Tech an NCAA tournament team? »

Andy McCollum remembers going to Georgia Tech games when he was a boy growing up in Marietta. He remembers waking up on Thanksgiving excited about going to watch the “Bullpups” and the Yellow Jackets play each year.

Now, after recently being hired as Tech’s defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator, he said he’s excited about making some new memories.

“It’s an honor,” McCollum said on Thursday as he was driving from Raleigh to Atlanta with a car full of clothes.

McCollum and Tech coach Paul Johnson have known each other since the mid-1980s when McCollum was an assistant at Middle Tennessee State and Johnson an assistant at Georgia Southern.

The respect runs deep for the expertise that the other brings to that side of the ball.

When the two became head coaches at their schools, McCollum was in the process of leading the Blue Raiders from the I-AA to I-A level. As he was scheduling Georgia and Florida, he said Johnson called him and asked if he needed a game.

“I told him I …

Continue reading McCollum excited to get started at Tech »

It’s game day today, with Georgia Tech traveling to Miami for a 7 p.m. tipoff, and if we learned anything on Saturday when Tech played N.C. State, it’s to take nothing for granted.

Just because Miami is tied for last place with N.C. State in the ACC at 2-7 doesn’t make this some kind of shoo-in, especially against a Miami team that’s 10-1 this year at BankUnited Center.

The Hurricanes (16-7, 2-7) played six of their first nine ACC games on the road and went 0-6 in those six ACC road games. As bad as that record is, the Yellow Jackets know a little about how difficult life is on the road in the ACC, at 1-3 themselves.

Miami is 2-1 in ACC play at home, with wins against Wake Forest and Virginia Tech, while losing to Boston College. (One other impressive win for the Hurricanes this season came against South Carolina to win the Charleston Classic tournament.)

Starting tonight, Miami gets five of its last seven ACC games at home.

The Hurricanes are a team that thrives on 3-point …

Continue reading Tech should take nothing for granted in Miami tonight »

Georgia Tech has hired Andy McCollum as defensive line coach and recruiting coordinator.

Formerly N.C. State’s linebackers coach, McCollum is from Marietta and his father still resides there. The hire still must be approved by Tech.

“We will be happy to have a coach with the experience and knowledge that Andy will bring to our program,” Tech coach Paul Johnson said in a statement given to the media. “I have coached against and recruited against him for a long time, and I am confident he will do an outstanding job here at Tech.”

McCollum, 50, recruited Atlanta for the Wolfpack, where he’s been for the past three seasons. He replaces Giff Smith, who recently accepted a job with the Buffalo Bills.

“I am excited to be a part of a great coaching staff and to work with Coach Johnson,” McCollum said in statement given to the media. “It’s a great opportunity to come back home to Georgia and work at an outstanding school.”

Details of McCollum’s contract weren’t released. He …

Continue reading McCollum joins Tech staff — updated »

When it was reported last week that Georgia Tech defensive coordinator Al Groh was going to be paid $150,000 a year, I immediately thought that he might be the lowest-paid in that position in the ACC.

So, I did some checking this morning (thanks to USA Today’s salary database) and discovered that yes, pre-bonus, Groh will be the lowest-paid defensive coordinator in the ACC, at least among the schools that have to report their coaches’ salaries.

Here is a chart, from highest-paid to lowest-paid, of the ACC’s defensive coordinators. Virginia’s Jim Reid is missing because his salary hasn’t been reported. Boston College, Duke, Miami and Wake Forest didn’t participate in USA Today’s report. The chart doesn’t include bonuses, just base pay:

Clemson’s Kevin Steele        $575,000*

Virginia Tech’s Bud Foster $402,000

FSU’s Mark Stoops                 $400,000

UNC’s Everett Withers          $330,000

Maryland’s Dan Brown         $307,440

N.C. …

Continue reading ACC defensive coordinators salaries…not too shabby — updated at 12:15 p.m. »

Hey, there’s some consolation for Tech fans after a nutty 48-hour stretch that included a blow-out loss at Duke and a hang-on-for-dear-life win over N.C. State.

The Yellow Jackets just moved up a step in the Associated Press poll today, from No. 21 to No. 20.

It’s just a figurative pat on the back, yes, but it also tells you something about the bigger picture. A loss at Cameron Indoor Stadium isn’t the end of the world, and a win is a win.

There’s no question this has been a wobbly stretch at a strange time from a Tech team that should be rounding into shape for the February run. But there’s not much time to sit around and pout and reflect, with a game at Miami coming up on Wednesday and at Wake Forest on Saturday.

From what I gathered in the time spent around Tech today, talking to Paul Hewitt and a few players before their walk-through practice this afternoon,  they are handling this like they should.

After some time to cool off, Hewitt thought he overreacted in the shots …

Continue reading Hewitt, Tech calm again, prepping for Miami »

Georgia Tech’s Derrick Favors took ACC rookie of the week honors for the third time this season. The 6-foot-10 forward from South Atlanta averaged 12.0 points and 7.5 rebounds while Tech lost to Duke Thursday and beat N.C. State on Saturday.

Favors had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in Tech’s 73-71 over the Wolfpack. In his past two games he made 10-of-12 (.833) field goals.

Favors is tied with Wake Forest’s C.J. Harris for the ACC lead in scoring by a rookie (11.3 points per game). He leads all ACC rookies in rebounding (8.5) and double-doubles (7).

Continue reading Favors – once again – is ACC rookie of the week »

Hey, good time for a short turn-around, eh? I’m sure the Yellow Jackets are antsy to get back on the court today against NC State and right all the wrongs that went on Thursday in Durham.

Gani Lawal had to want a clean slate since the first 33 seconds Thursday (and his two fouls). Now he’s got it, and at least he didn’t have to wait a full 48 hours to get it.

Tech goes from playing a Duke team atop the ACC standings (at least before Duke tipped off against Boston College today) to a team tied with Miami at the bottom of the ACC standings. You figure they should take advantage, especially playing at home.

The Yellow Jackets are 3-1 at Alexander this season, 1-3 on the road, and it’s pretty obvious by now, you better own your homecourt if you expect to make headway in the ACC.

At 4-4 coming in, Tech is in a three-way tie for sixth place in the ACC, with Clemson and Florida State, not a great place to be. But this point in the schedule is. Tech is playing three of its next four …

Continue reading Tech ready for clean slate against N.C. State »

Al Groh will be paid $150,000 a year to be Georgia Tech’s defensive coordinator, according to a copy of his contract obtained today by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution through the state’s open records law.

Groh signed the two-year deal, with an option for the third year, on Jan. 25. Tech paid Dave Wommack, the previous defensive coordinator who was let go in January, $288,500 a year. However, Groh will receive a minimum bonus of $321,000 on or before Jan. 12, 2012, regardless whether he’s still employed by Tech.

Also, should Tech pick up the option year on Groh’s contract, his pay will jump to a minimum of $344,000. The option must be exercised before Dec. 15, 2011.

There is no buyout in the contract, and he will receive a bonus of 1/12th his salary should Tech make a bowl game. That is a common clause in all of the assistant’s existing contracts.

New A-backs coach Lamar Owens, who was promoted from a graduate assistant position, will make $127,000 annually.

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In other news, …

Continue reading Groh will make $150,000 a year….but there’s more to it than that »