Georgia Tech counting on improved conditioning
Georgia Tech’s first day of practice didn’t reveal everything about the strength and conditioning work the team did over the summer.
“Sometimes when you start back, you’ve kind of got to play yourself back into football shape,” coach Paul Johnson said.
However, players across the board have raved about the team’s conditioning level after a summer with new strength and conditioning coach John Sisk. The hope for the Jackets is that it pays off both in improved practices and superior endurance in the fourth quarter.
“I think, as a team, that was an issue last year, as you saw at the end of games like Virginia and Utah, games where we should have just finished it out,” B-back David Sims said. “But we weren’t able to do it. I think that’s going to change this year.”
Tech started out the season 6-0 before crawling home with losses in five of its last seven games. Over those games, Tech was outscored 54-17 in the fourth quarter and in the overtime period of the Sun Bowl loss to Utah. The Jackets averaged 6.3 yards per play in the first three quarters of those final seven games and 3.4 after that. The defense’s average actually improved, from 6.6 yards per play in the first three quarters to 4.0 in the fourth quarter and overtime.
In fourth quarters last season, linebacker Quayshawn Nealy looked to defensive coordinator Al Groh for the signals and, he said, “sometimes, it gets real blurry. Boy, it gets pretty rough, but to be conditioned and have that mental focus, that’s what we’re going to camp to build on, so I think we’ll be ready.”
In July, Sisk flipped the mix of three lifting sessions and two conditioning workouts per week to three conditioning workouts and two lifting workouts in order to prepare the team for fall camp. The Jackets usually ran in the afternoon heat.
“Everybody knows that mentally, we can push through things,” guard Omoregie Uzzi said. “We know that mentally, we can do it. Half the battle is thinking you can do it.”
If the team’s fitness has indeed improved, it won’t only mean players will be able to play better at the end of games or long drives. A fitter player can practice longer and better, as well.
Friday’s practice, conducted without pads, didn’t provide enough opportunity for players to reveal the conditioning level to coaches. But they could see differences.
“Conditioning comes when you get the pads on and you play certain (number of) snaps in a row, but you saw enough to know they’ve done a good job working all summer to be able to get themselves ready to be in position to do that,” defensive line coach Andy McCollum said.
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
96 comments Add your comment
Flowery Branch Yellow Jacket
August 3rd, 2012
10:04 pm
Can’t wait for the season to start.
BLT
August 3rd, 2012
10:08 pm
Nice update Ken. I saw the slideshow, nice addition. Let’s get it done Jackets! I can’t wait for this season. Thank you!
Tech dropout
August 3rd, 2012
10:09 pm
Go Jackets!
Nick
August 3rd, 2012
10:11 pm
Lots of talk about improved conditioning and optimism for the year. Time to walk the walk.
Ol'JacketFan
August 3rd, 2012
10:11 pm
I am so ready for the season to start! Go Jackets!
JAdams
August 3rd, 2012
10:33 pm
good stuff keep it coming
Delbert D.
August 3rd, 2012
11:08 pm
More depth all around, too.
superDawg
August 3rd, 2012
11:25 pm
Enter your comments here
superDawg
August 3rd, 2012
11:26 pm
All Puffed up and knowhere to GO!Howdy YA’LL.
Head Nurd!
August 3rd, 2012
11:30 pm
Nuff Said!HUNKER DOWN!!!
superDawg
August 3rd, 2012
11:34 pm
FACT IS THE GEORGIA BULLDAWGS OWN YOU.good luck.
Bee
August 3rd, 2012
11:38 pm
Jackets kick butt!~
5150 UOAD
August 3rd, 2012
11:40 pm
superdWag is that all you got?
You never played the game and won.
No body owns me.
You have nothing to add but your inferiority complex.
Stumpknocker
August 3rd, 2012
11:42 pm
All those years of being the Bridesmaid and nothing to show for it …….The clocks’ ticking on you Dawgs. After this year your gonna be in rebuilding mode…..again.
GTKurt80
August 3rd, 2012
11:43 pm
Our team appears hungry, it all boils down to the VT game, if we have a shot at going far, lots of pressure.
I’m really looking forward to seeing the game, should be fun!
I think it’s going down to coaching, I believe CPJ has the edge. We’ve done better than expected against VT before, let’s do it again!!!
Go Jackets!!!
Stumpknocker
August 3rd, 2012
11:53 pm
I like the fact that Tech is a “sleeper”, flying under the radar. I watched Johnson at Ga So and you can tell by his attitude when he knows he’s got a good team……a lot less negativity and little bit of swagger.
BLT
August 4th, 2012
12:01 am
superDawg
August 3rd, 2012
11:25 pm
“Enter your comments here”
Thanks
what about---
August 4th, 2012
12:09 am
dog poops. the national media is making fun of your schedule, no bama, lsu or arkansas….do you think you will receive the vote of the country by beating the charleston southerns? why bother recruiting 5 stars for that?
1 4 GT
August 4th, 2012
12:43 am
Ignore the trolls for the next few days. Pay no attention to their negativity. We don’t want it! We don’t need it! We will prevail in the long run.
1 4 GT
August 4th, 2012
12:50 am
Better conditioned athletes have fewer injuries! They heal faster! Their stamina is better! They are stronger! They hit harder! They run faster! They are harder to tackle! They block better. They jump higher & further! They catch the ball better. Better conditioning makes betters ballers! GOOOOOO JACKETS THWvpi
dagnabit
August 4th, 2012
1:04 am
We’ll find out if all this is true when the first game is counted.
macrotech
August 4th, 2012
1:38 am
superDumb…living up to the name….every time! Can’t wait to see this season begin!!!
List Mama » Georgia Tech counting on improved conditioning – Atlanta Journal Constitution (blog)
August 4th, 2012
4:02 am
[...] Georgia Tech counting on improved conditioningAtlanta Journal Constitution (blog)Tech started out the season 6-0 before crawling home with losses in five of its last seven games. Over those games, Tech was outscored 54-17 in the fourth quarter and in the overtime period of the Sun Bowl loss to Utah. The Jackets averaged 6.3 yards …Washington leads Ga. Tech through first practiceSacramento BeeGeorgia Tech football team goes back to workMacon Telegraph (blog)Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: SecondaryFrom The Rumble SeatESPN (blog) -Thecoastalsourceall 37 news articles » [...]
GT71
August 4th, 2012
5:58 am
A well-conditioned athlete is a good idea. A well-conditioned athlete with talent, speed and football smarts is much better.
Hopefully, we’ve got enough of that kind to win the big ones – VPI and UGA – bookends on a good season.
ToeMeetsLeather
August 4th, 2012
6:30 am
SuperDawg, the Dawgs also own a lot of weapons, dope, their teammates belongings and tend to beat up ladies on occasion. Thanks for checking in though.
Wal-Mart Retards
August 4th, 2012
6:59 am
UGA Football – we ruin this state!
blackandwhitestripes
August 4th, 2012
7:56 am
mutt prisoners can’t beat the big time sec teams. Start with Buffalo welding program and go to culenary and floral arrangement programs. LOL
Hey, what about...
August 4th, 2012
7:58 am
…the national media may make fun of the UGA schedule, but UGA does not make the schedule. Plus, you can spin it that AL, LSU and AR do NOT play UGA, either, and most do not play UF – but, IF UGA gets to the SEC title game THEN they would probably play one of those 3, so part of the crticism is solved – but, hey, don’t let the facts get in the way of a good rant – Go Jacklets…
college is forever
August 4th, 2012
8:13 am
And, like all the jolly good fellows I drink my whiskey clear.
kingster
August 4th, 2012
9:50 am
Super Dawg, UGA plays in the SEC, thats who they need to own, UGA cann’t win a National Championship, can they win a SEC Championship only wanting to beat TECH, you never talk it up about Auburn, Alabama, LSU, South Carolina, UGA ain’t nothing but a bunch of cry babies and dope smokers, with all those 5 and 4 stars what have you done lately, clean out some to that ear wax Buddy.
Supersize that order, mutt
August 4th, 2012
10:10 am
@ Hey, what about……UGA certainly does make their own schedule for OOC games. Do you really think that Buffalo, Florida Atlantic, and Ga Southern (and, btw, I LIKE Ga Southern) make up for the SEC-determined patsy conference schedule the dwags play? The dwags probably have the weakest schedule in the entire country.
5150 UOAD
August 4th, 2012
10:27 am
No the DWAGS don’t have the easiest schedule.
SEE the Morons that do the rankings are DRUNK on the SEC Kool-aid and rank the WHOLE leagues as TUFF.
Ole Miss
Miss St
Kentucky
Vandy
USC
Mizzou
have been Life Long Losers.
USC is better the last few years but that is it.
5150 UOAD
August 4th, 2012
10:32 am
UGA always having to play
USC
Vandy
Kentucky
TECH (I hate it but UGa usually beats us)
PLUS
1 Div 1 AA
2 Sisters of the Blind
UGa has a pretty EZ 7(on paper) win season based on the talent the Dwags.
Add a Miss St or Ole Miss the WOW they SHOULD sleepwalk to a bowl game no matter WHO the coach is.
Supersize that order, mutt
August 4th, 2012
10:32 am
Vandy is getting better and actually should have beat the dwags last year.
5150 UOAD
August 4th, 2012
10:41 am
Super TRUE but look at USC and Vandy’s HISTORY they are bad year in year out with a peak here 7 there once in a great while.
Not Disappointed!
August 4th, 2012
10:50 am
Enter your comments here
Not Disappointed!
August 4th, 2012
10:50 am
I’m so ready for JACKET Football and Wes Durham!
5150 UOAD
August 4th, 2012
10:53 am
Looks like the RAIN will blow through before the Fan Day Starts at 3pm. Should make it cooler!!!
Supersize that order, mutt
August 4th, 2012
11:18 am
@ UOAD……SC sucked until Spurrier got there. I hope he stays forever……as long as we don’t have to play them…..LOL
I hope the rain blows over and y’all have a great time at Fan Day. Take lots of photos.
5150 UOAD
August 4th, 2012
11:24 am
SUPER…The rain is going from the South to the North so I think it will blow over.
BigTimeTECHFan
August 4th, 2012
11:34 am
After the season UGA fans will be a wreck
Stop and pause wishing they pull for Tech
Have a garage sale to sale all their UGA gear
Because the Jackets are going to have and awesome year
BigTimeTECHFan
August 4th, 2012
11:35 am
have and = have an
After the season UGA fans will be a wreck
Stop and pause wishing they pull for Tech
Have a garage sale to sale all their UGA gear
Because the Jackets are going to have an awesome year
Gorilla Biscuit
August 4th, 2012
12:10 pm
If Coach PJ wants to improve their stamina, just give ‘em some bling or cash and let ‘em run the crack-head gauntlet just off campus three times a week.
Wilson Pickett
August 4th, 2012
12:18 pm
It will interesting to see if GT’s QB can throw the ball effectively. If so they have a chance at 9 wins.
WnE
August 4th, 2012
12:28 pm
re:
Tech started out the season 6-0 before crawling home with losses in five of its last seven games. Over those games, Tech was outscored 54-17 in the fourth quarter and in the overtime period of the Sun Bowl loss to Utah. The Jackets averaged 6.3 yards per play in the first three quarters of those final seven games and 3.4 after that. The defense’s average actually improved, from 6.6 yards per play in the first three quarters to 4.0 in the fourth quarter and overtime.
________________
GT & CPJ and those among the GT fans that are BLINDLY LOYAL to CPJ are is serious denial!
GT faltered down the stretch last year due to playing TOUGHER TEAMS that had more “FB talent”, not because of conditioning.
We almost lost to a 2-10 Md. team at home, and we could have lost to a crappy Dook team in shootout that should NOT have been a shootout.
Those that think we were “just a couple of plays” away from the ACC-CG are serious denial, once we got to the meat of our schedule we were “toast”, you could see that the teams we were losing to had better FB players and better schemes.
We were simply out-COACHED, out-SCHEMED, and out-TALENTED.
The in-denial segment of the GT fanbase is using “conditioning” as an easy scapegoat for CPJ’s Recruiting FAILURES.
An out-of-shape, FAT, Dwyer in 2009 was more of a threat at B-back than an in-shape D. Sims.
Conditioning had nothing to do with ALL of GT’s QB’s having poor passing mechanics.
Once we played the “more talented segment”: of our schedule CPJ’s recruiting FAILURES rose to surface very quickly.
Conditioning had nothing to do with our fade down the stretch last year, we had ONE MONTH to get ready for a weak Utah Team in the bowl game, yet when we lose we try to blame it on conditioning.
C’mon guys, you gotta do better than that!
WnE
August 4th, 2012
12:28 pm
re:
Tech started out the season 6-0 before crawling home with losses in five of its last seven games. Over those games, Tech was outscored 54-17 in the fourth quarter and in the overtime period of the Sun Bowl loss to Utah. The Jackets averaged 6.3 yards per play in the first three quarters of those final seven games and 3.4 after that. The defense’s average actually improved, from 6.6 yards per play in the first three quarters to 4.0 in the fourth quarter and overtime.
________________
GT & CPJ and those among the GT fans that are BLINDLY LOYAL to CPJ are is serious denial!
GT faltered down the stretch last year due to playing TOUGHER TEAMS that had more “FB talent”, not because of conditioning.
We almost lost to a 2-10 Md. team at home, and we could have lost to a crappy Dook team in shootout that should NOT have been a shootout.
Those that think we were “just a couple of plays” away from the ACC-CG are serious denial, once we got to the meat of our schedule we were “toast”, you could see that the teams we were losing to had better FB players and better schemes.
We were simply out-COACHED, out-SCHEMED, and out-TALENTED.
The in-denial segment of the GT fanbase is using “conditioning” as an easy scapegoat for CPJ’s Recruiting FAILURES.
An out-of-shape, FAT, Dwyer in 2009 was more of a threat at B-back than an in-shape D. Sims.
Conditioning had nothing to do with ALL of GT’s QB’s having poor passing mechanics.
Once we played the “more talented segment”: of our schedule CPJ’s recruiting FAILURES rose to surface very quickly.
Conditioning had nothing to do with our fade down the stretch last year, we had ONE MONTH to get ready for a weak Utah Team in the bowl game, yet when we lose we try to blame it on conditioning.
C’mon guys, you gotta do better than that!
Big Crimson 75
August 4th, 2012
12:33 pm
WnE — Only 4 more month before the Hobbit hits Theaters!!
Big Crimson 75
August 4th, 2012
12:35 pm
……..and fat-man Peter Jackson, ever the capitalist, has decided to “cut” the film into 3 Movies alas Lord of the Rings!!!
Only 4 month til precious returns!!!!
BUZZ Fan
August 4th, 2012
12:36 pm
5 of those 6 wins came against teams with a combined record of 10 – 49.
Supersize that order, mutt
August 4th, 2012
12:37 pm
LOL @ Crimson Glad to see you have picked up on the obvious