Penn State, Georgia State possible Tech opponents
When Georgia Tech athletic director Dan Radakovich contracted with BYU for a four-game series (later shortened to two), his intent was to provide season-ticket buyers with a name-brand opponent for the weaker even-year home schedule.
The school’s continuing efforts to schedule attractive opponents could bring Penn State to Bobby Dodd Stadium. Northwestern, Vanderbilt and Purdue are other teams that could be in the mix down the road.
“We’ve had conversations with all of them about trying to do something,” said Ryan Bamford, Tech’s associate athletic director for internal operations.
Nothing is substantive at this point and games would likely be for the end of the decade. Bamford’s greater priority is finding a fourth non-conference game, ideally a home-and-home with an FBS opponent, for 2013 and 2014. As is the case across the ACC, Tech is in the position of hunting for non-conference games because the league reverted to an eight-game league schedule Oct. 3 after adopting a nine-game league schedule in February.
The league expanded the schedule to accommodate the addition of Pittsburgh and Syracuse. The return to eight games was in response to Notre Dame’s contract with the ACC to play five conference opponents annually.
“There aren’t a lot of teams that have openings,” he said of the 2013-14 seasons. “Trying to find the right fit and marriage for us is important.”
The re-formatting of the ACC schedule could well accommodate Tech’s desire to play Clemson at home in even years to balance the schedule. Playing Clemson, Virginia Tech and Georgia at home in odd years has caused season-ticket sales to spike and drop in alternating years. Bamford said the league has told him that it will attempt to grant that wish, which would likely mean the Yellow Jackets would play at Clemson in 2013 for a second year in a row.
Bamford said that “having to go to Clemson twice (in a row) would stink, but when you look at the 12-year landscape, it looks like a pretty good deal.”
Bamford also said that he has had conversations with a team far closer geographically than BYU, or Clemson – Georgia State. With Georgia State moving up to the Sun Belt for the 2013 season, the Panthers could be a 2-for-1 opponent – two games at Tech and one game at the Georgia Dome. Discussions are at a preliminary stage.
“I think it would be a good thing for Tech and a good thing for Georgia State,” Bamford said.
Saturday, when the Jackets play BYU at Bobby Dodd Stadium, the attendance will be augmented by blue-clad Cougars fans from across the Southeast. At the start of the week, more than 12,000 single-game tickets had been sold for Saturday’s game. Besides the Miami game, which also sold in that range, the single-game ticket sales have ranged from 3,000 to 6,000, said Rick Thorpe, Tech’s associate athletic director for sales and fan experience.
Thorpe said he’s heard from sales reps who’ve sold to BYU fans. The ticket department also reached out to local Mormon churches to drive sales. The Cougars, who became an independent in 2011, have traveled to Boston College, Texas, Tulane, Florida State and Mississippi in recent seasons. They played a home-and-home with Tech in 2002-03.
“When they do come, it’s a big deal,” said Kurt Bartlett, a BYU grad in Spring Hill, Tenn. A season-ticket holder before moving from Utah five years ago, Bartlett and his wife will be taking his triplet 12-year-old boys to their first BYU game.
BYU fans will be arriving from Virginia, Texas and closer points within the Southeast.
“Seeing them in person, it just brings back part of your childhood,” said Tony Camara, a Greensboro, N.C., resident and BYU grad who grew up in Provo, Utah, and will root for the Cougars with about 30 friends and family members.
They are no doubt welcomed visitors for Radakovich, whose department’s ticket sales are $600,000 below budgeted figures.
Said Thorpe of BYU’s drawing power, “It’s definitely helped.”
In case you missed it…
Tech notes: Jackets prep for BYU hurry-up
Tech notes: Pocket containment key vs. BYU
Surgery probable for Tech’s Holton
Finch motivated by Tech streaks
Notes: Tech faces age-gap challenge vs. BYU
Notes: Johnson’s concerns about BYU
Notes: Field-goal unit needing repair
Tech vs. highly ranked run defenses
With BYU next, no-huddle issues loom for Tech
Thanks for reading.
Ken Sugiura, Georgia Tech blog
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167 comments Add your comment
1 4 GT
October 26th, 2012
11:47 am
And to those of you knocking the efforts towards upgrading our schedule, get real. Do you really think ADRad or his underlings can just pick up the phone & schedule anyone they like?? Sorry! It’s just not that easy. The guy that had the main responsibility for making the game after VT take place made over 200 phone calls, per an article right here. GT is not the only school trying to keep their schedule full for OOC games with good games with fan interests in mind. It’s not as easy as some might think.
Walking with a Panther
October 26th, 2012
11:50 am
Wow! Some of you nerds are real clever kicking a start up program when it’s down. Who do you think you guys should he playing? Alabama?? Please!! Yeah Ga. St. should not be too much of a problem for you guys, we play and yeah it will most likely be a “home” game at the dome, but don’t act like you guys are a top program! You lost to Middle Tenn. State?? Ironically in our conference! Nuff said. And for you Southern and uga clowns talking sideways, one question. What have you won????? Georgia is about to be worked by Florida this weekend and Southern? You’re Southern Shut Up. Idiots!
GIVE ME A BREAK
October 26th, 2012
11:55 am
To all of the BYU fans, welcome to BDS. Hope you have a great time. I will always defend a visitor that is being disrepected by a so called GT fan. ” GO JACKETS “
1 4 GT
October 26th, 2012
11:57 am
There is a huge difference between stupidity & ignorance. I admitted to being ignorant (as in unlearned or unknowing). I have never been to your campus. I have never read your charter. I have never seen any official documents with your letterhead on it. I have never lived in Ohio. I have never known any graduates of your school. I was man enough to apologize. Now, you obviously aren’t man enough to accept my apology, since you insult me by calling me stupid. That’s ok. I will remain the bigger, better man by apologizing for offending you again. I’m sorry, bucky.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
11:58 am
@ Thanks……regardless of the real reasons behind including the “The” in OSU’s name, and regardless of why the guys on TV emphasize that, it still COMES ACROSS as arrogant to those of us all to familiar with the use of the term “The U” by Miami graduates. That’s not saying that they ARE being arrogant; just that it comes across that way.
GIVE ME A BREAK
October 26th, 2012
11:59 am
GT goes to Alabama in 2019.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
11:59 am
Well said, 1 4 GT
KSU Owls
October 26th, 2012
12:03 pm
Schedule the Owls for a Home and Home.
No problem, 1 4 GT...
October 26th, 2012
12:05 pm
…I did not mean to denigrate your intellectual abilities – guess it was stupid on my part to try to better inform a Tech man…
STATEment
October 26th, 2012
12:05 pm
I can’t think of anywhere else in the country with two FBS Football programs literally a mile away from each other…not to mention in a big city! Without a doubt if GSU can get their act together and get decent, that game would be masive in the city of Atlanta!!!
And, Supersize...
October 26th, 2012
12:08 pm
…arrogance is in the eye of the beholder, as the term “The U” is now used by most U of M grads, not just athletes, to easily identify their fondness for UM, just as you guys say “Tech” instead of “GA Tech”, and I do not think you guys are being arrogant when identifying the Institute in that manner……
GSU
October 26th, 2012
12:09 pm
All I have to say is:
Middle Tennesse-49 Georgia Tech-28
That is all…
WnE
October 26th, 2012
12:09 pm
re:
1 4 GT
October 26th, 2012
11:47 am
And to those of you knocking the efforts towards upgrading our schedule, get real. Do you really think ADRad or his underlings can just pick up the phone & schedule anyone they like?? Sorry! It’s just not that easy. The guy that had the main responsibility for making the game after VT take place made over 200 phone calls, per an article right here. GT is not the only school trying to keep their schedule full for OOC games with good games with fan interests in mind. It’s not as easy as some might think.
_____________
The REASON it took so many phone calls after the VT game was moved was because GT was looking for the “perfect patsy” to make it EASIER for CPJ & GT to back-door their way into a crappy bowl game to keep their crappy, MEANINGLESS bowl “streak” alive.
Moving the VT game was no problem if GT would have simply scheduled a tougher opponent than Presby.
My fellow GT fans are so darn gullible when it come to GT FB and the games that CPJ & DRad are trying to get away with.
Simple solution:
NEVER SCHEDULE D1-AAs, and only schedule 1 game per yr. from outside the BCS conferences, if you do that the schedule takes care of itself.
Teams like ND, USCw, UCLA have NEVER played a D1-AA team in the HISTORY of their school and those schools don’t have all the schedule “drama” that GT has every other yr.
GT’s schedule issues stem from trying to play cupcakes with their 3 open OOC games.
I’m assuming we’ll continue to have the guts to continue to play Muttville every yr. so the 4th OOC game is occupied for the foreseeable future.
In all honesty as WEAK as the ACC is they should “break the mold” and go to 10 Conference games each yr. and force the entire conference to have tougher SoSs.
GT would be able to add FSU every yr. and create a more attractive schedule from within the conference, 6 teams from our division + 4 teams from the other division, Clemson & FSU every yr. plus 2 rotating games.
That’s the real solution, the ACC going to 10 Conference games, with the move to a playoff format SoS will be more important than beating cupcakes anyway, and it allows us to close the perceived gap between us and the SEC by claiming tougher schedules week-in and week-out.
GSU_MEX_ALUM
October 26th, 2012
12:09 pm
Hope GSU gets to play Tech. Good downtown rivalry… I know we are young and Tech would put a beat down on us, but it would be good for the fans.
Go Panthers!
GIVE ME A BREAK
October 26th, 2012
12:09 pm
I owe a “s” to disrespected. I always pay my debts.
UGA = Yawn
October 26th, 2012
12:16 pm
Would prefer Ohio State or Michigan to Purdue or PSU. Breaking up the Clemson-VT-UGA games is a good idea. How did it ever get like that in the 1st place. They shouldn’t all be at home one year and on the road the next. How embarrassing again for us that there will be more BYU fans at the game tomorrow than GT fans. We are sad.
old dog
October 26th, 2012
12:19 pm
Hey, I’m so old I saw Brent Cunningham break y’alls singl-game rushing record against Clemson…..even though we are Dawgs. Got take to a Tech game in and watch him torch Clemson. Congrats on addressing a D-problem….maybe you will benefit! We, on the other hand, will not address our o-line problem…..
Jmonty
October 26th, 2012
12:26 pm
In my humble opinion… No FBS school should be playing Div 2 or 3 schools. They should be scheduling game with other FBS school. Would you rather See GT vs BYU or GT vs Southern Alabama or something small school? Even going OOC, you can find local FBS schools. Central Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina, Southern Miss… all these schools are not that far. They are FBS and would bring extra fans. I think the Georgia State would not be too bad. But, they haven’t quite built a fan base. Much less built a stadium for them. If you want to really determine the best FBS school, have them stop playing schools that nobody has ever heard of.
IL Jacket
October 26th, 2012
12:27 pm
“The ticket department also reached out to local Mormon churches to drive sales.”
The predicate behind that thinking is a worrisome thought indeed. Did they reach out to Presbyterian churches for the game against Presbyterian College? Catholic churches when Notre Dame was on the schedule?
Selah.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
12:28 pm
If Tech doesn’t fire Coach Paul Johnson, GSU could kick our butts and rule Atlanta. Get him out of here, DRad!
Paddy
October 26th, 2012
12:31 pm
The long played but now just an after hought, GT vs Auburn series would be nice to see again. AD’s, other than Notre Dame & So Cal, have a very dificult task finding the right mix and satisying all concerned.
1 4 GT
October 26th, 2012
12:38 pm
Phony name thief @ 12:28 PM is not really “THE” Supersize!
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
12:44 pm
Thanks, 1 4 GT. You nailed it. I guess the world has not become a better place since Sunday, because the creeps are still at work.
GIVE ME A BREAK
October 26th, 2012
12:50 pm
Good call, 1 4 GT. You are ” THE ” man.
IL Jacket
October 26th, 2012
12:51 pm
Personally, I would love to see a home and home with Northwestern for my own selfish reasons. I’m excited about the ND tie-up, but unless I missed something that would be like every sixth year in South Bend.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
12:56 pm
Thanks for having my back, butt could you slide in a little to the left? Mmm, that’s it.
UGA = Yawn
October 26th, 2012
12:57 pm
Il Jacket – good point about reaching out to Mormon churches. Sets an odd precedence. Only in the South. A strange lot.
GT Lee
October 26th, 2012
12:57 pm
No problem, 1 4 GT…
October 26th, 2012
12:05 pm
…I did not mean to denigrate your intellectual abilities – guess it was stupid on my part to try to better inform a Tech man…
_____________________________
Why can’t you “educate” someone without calling them stupid? And why do you insist on using a different anonymous handle every time?
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
12:59 pm
Send your complaints about the blogs to Scott Peacocke — Sidney dot Peacock at ajc dot com He won’t do anything about it, but he needs to be emailed whenever these things happen.
The filters let name thieves and trolls say anything that want to, but it wouldn’t let me type that email address in a standard format. PATHETIC !!!
dr.dawg
October 26th, 2012
12:59 pm
wow, purdue, penn state, ga state, and maybe even northwestern. now those power teams will be sure to fill the seats. heavens! how ugly can it get? and vandy; that’ll pack ‘em in for sure.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
1:01 pm
Typical of the AJC filters to allow trolls and name thieves to say anything they want to say, and yet I can’t type the name of the person to contact to complain about the abuse. PATHETIC. I am going to try one more time and see if I can get around the filters.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
1:03 pm
Send your complaints about the blogs to Scott Peac ocke: Sidney.Peac ocke@ajc.com
He won’t do anything about it, but we should at least email him EVERY TIME these things happen
Obviously, there doesn’t need to be a space between Peac and ocke, but that’s the only way I could type it and get it past the filters.
UGA = Yawn
October 26th, 2012
1:08 pm
dr dawg – our AD misses the point. Winning is the only thing that can fill the seats!!
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
1:12 pm
@ UGA = Yawn……if that is the case, then why was USC (Columbia) able to fill and enlarge their stadium several times over the years when they hardly won any games of any significance till after Spurrier’s 3rd year? And why does Vandy always fill their stadium? Sure, we want to win, but the competition also plays a part in attendance…..a rather large part, in fact.
SansWorld
October 26th, 2012
1:26 pm
“they are only differentiating themselves from other universities and colleges in Ohio”
I think OSU fans don’t realize that most of the country thought OSU was the ONLY state univiesity in Ohio before everyone there started emphasizing THE. Or the only significant one.
Now, by doing this, it is like OSU is looking over their should, trying to differentiate themselves from a from a callenger that most people don’t even know exist. Sure, you are the big fish in a little pond, but a big fish in a little pond does not really need to point that out.
UGA = Yawn
October 26th, 2012
1:35 pm
Supersize – cause they are the un of south carolina. Their enrollment is probably 2 to 3 times ours and their alumni base is many times bigger. Add to the fact that many of their graduates probably end up nearby and the GT grad move on.
Way to Bury the Lede, AJC — Peach Pundit
October 26th, 2012
1:38 pm
[...] Writing for the Georgia Tech blog, Ken Sugiura details future opponents for the Yellow Jackets in co… [...]
BYU Fan in FL
October 26th, 2012
1:41 pm
If it makes you feel better our big name on the nov. schedule this year is San Jose State. Yikes…welcome to the second year of Independence….but next years schedule looks pretty awesome. Wisc., Texas, GT, ND, Boise State. Dont know what some of the other”slacker” games will be but I am sure they will be there.
SansWorld
October 26th, 2012
1:52 pm
“just as you guys say “Tech” instead of “GA Tech”, and I do not think you guys are being arrogant when identifying the Institute in that manner……”
That is because we are not. “Tech” Is just shorthand. When a GT fan call refers the school as Tech, we are not implying that we are THE singular Tech, or even some sort of elevated or superior Tech. (That claim comes later)
Miami calling themselves “THE U” and UVA calling themselves “THE University” and OSU calling themselves “THE State University…” implies they singularly represent the name. Others that claim the name are inferior or posers.
I am gonna start saying “THE Georgia INSTITUTE of Technology” to differentiate us from Southern Poly State U.
Supersize that order, mutt
October 26th, 2012
1:53 pm
@ UGA = Yawn…..that still doesn’t completely explain why they are able to sell out and Tech is not. Over the years, win or lose, Tech fills up for the “big games.” People want to see good teams play, and winning is not the ONLY reason they will come. Nobody wants to see the likes of Presbyterian year after year, especially when coupled with the fact that with the exception of Clemson, VT, and FSU, nobody really cares much about seeing other ACC teams either. Of course, winning will increase attendance, but I’m not sure even winning 11 games a year every year would end up selling out the stadium except for the “big games.”
Al Bundy
October 26th, 2012
2:04 pm
I think this statement says it all when it comes to scheduling.
“They are no doubt welcomed visitors for Radakovich, whose department’s ticket sales are $600,000 below budgeted figures.”
It’s all about putting butts in the seats of Bobby Dodd/Grant Field. DRAD is worried because our football program is doing what he expected. 1. We were told this was the best OL since CPJ took the job and it hasn’t exactly set the world on fire. 2. CAG was going to fix the defense and only made it worse. 3. Our program suffered one of the worst, if not the worst loss in school history. These kind of problems don’t exactly put people in the stadium.
I would love to make the trip to Atlanta to see a game but it’s hard to spend the money and make a 4 hour trip when you have no idea which team will show up. Will it be the team that played BC or the team that played MTSU? I will be willing to spend the cash and make the trip when I see some consistancy.
Al Bundy
October 26th, 2012
2:05 pm
make that “isn’t” doing what he expected.
Uh, SansWorld......
October 26th, 2012
2:05 pm
…it appears that you are full of it…you are just making a case for many to start thinking of Tech people as arrogant when most guys and ladies on here are quite down to earth…
ylojkt
October 26th, 2012
2:11 pm
DRad – Please leave the kiddy diddlers up north in Pennsyltucky and forget about a series with them. As a lifelong Jackets fan, I don’t want to support that school in any way possible!
GT65
October 26th, 2012
2:41 pm
Agree with 5150 UOAD.. we need big name schools to play. To be the best you got to play and beat the best..Go Jackets and Rads get it done.
GT65
October 26th, 2012
2:47 pm
Since Penn State has cleaned house…its ok now to play them YLOJKT. The bas*@# is gone now–don’t blame the players and students.
dick whiskey
October 26th, 2012
2:50 pm
reminds me of the old tech ticket joke,guy calls tech ticket office first thing sat. morn.says i need 200 tickets for todays game for company outing guy says no chance right,tech ticket agent says we got you covered guy says wow great,agent says even got you on the 50 yard line,guy says i can’t believe it great,guy saya well what time does the game start,ticket agent says well what time can you be here
GB's Hamburgers
October 26th, 2012
2:53 pm
Either a rivalry or a big named opponent can fill a stadium. Tech lost both when they pulled out of the SEC and went independent. Riding high at the time, they thought they could be another Notre Dame keep all the money. They landed in the ACC where Clemson is their only natural rival. The UGA game helps each year, but gone are truly great SEC rivals that use to fill the house. So, their AD is taking the right approach.
pcb mike
October 26th, 2012
2:58 pm
Beefing up the schedule is good, but Georgia State? Where’s the beef?
5150 UOAD
October 26th, 2012
3:33 pm
You sound like dawgs
October 26th, 2012
9:53 am
As an engineering grad from tech and MBA grad from GSU, you Tech fans sound like pricks. Both programs doing well only helps the city, so stop trashing State, a 3-year old football program with terrible leadership so far. Some of you sound as bad as UGA fans. At least an intracity rivalry with GSU would be great for Atlanta. Get over yourselves. Go Jackets AND Panthers!
============================================
HAHAHAAAHA……..Talk to GaSTATE BEN……he started talking crap once GaState became FBS and now he is eating the Sh.t he started cooking in August.