Georgia Tech doesn’t look ACC ready, starting with defense
Coach Paul Johnson's offense, led by Joshua Nesbitt, managed just one touchdown in the last nine possessions, but the Jackets struggled big-time on defense. (AP photo)
LAWRENCE, Kan. – In the final game before opening the defense of its ACC championship, Georgia Tech missed tackles, missed assignments, dropped passes, roughed the kicker, roughed the quarterback, certainly roughed its own fan base, shanked a punt 13 yards, seem to float in and out of consciousness against a team that a week ago was dropped by North Dakota State and looked so bad on defense that one was tempted to ask, “So, anybody have Dave Wommack’s phone number?”
Forget the question of whether the Yellow Jackets are ready for next Saturday’s ACC opener against North Carolina. They’re not. The only question is: How deep is the hole?
“There’s nothing magic I can say, like, ‘Abracadabra, kazaam,’ and it’s going to be fixed,” coach Paul Johnson said. “You just have to get better.”
The Jackets just suffered the worst loss of the Johnson era. Projected to win by two touchdowns, they lost 28-25 on Saturday to a Kansas team that a week before was dropped by North Dakota State 6-3.
Fortunately, North Dakota State isn’t also on Tech’s schedule.
Kansas receiver Daymond Patterson spins away from Tech's Kyle Jackson. He finished with seven catches, including a touchdown.
Humiliation was well represented on both sides of the ball. Even Johnson’s vaunted offense struggled. The Jackets scored one touchdown in their last nine possessions.
But the problems really start with the one area on Tech’s team that figured to improve this season, and the one area that absolutely had to: defense.
When Johnson fired Wommack and hired Al Groh, he had no illusions that Tech suddenly would morph into Alabama. He just figured the Jackets would be better than Alabama-Birmingham. Hasn’t happened.
Tech continues to miss tackles and blow assignments. The middle of the defense looks soft against the run, even going back to last week’s game against South Carolina State (178 yards rushing) . When Kansas went to a no-huddle early in the game, watching Tech’s players was like looking at a kicked fire ant hill.
The Jayhawks scored touchdowns on two of their first three possessions. They converted four of their first five third-down situations. It would have been five out of six, if not for a dropped pass. They had a freshman running back, James Sims, rush for 101 yards. They had a receiver, Daymond Patterson, with seven catches for 85 yards and a touchdown.
So much for the Groh effect.
To what extent this can be attributed to a slow transition to Groh’s 3-4 and how much of it is simply bad play can’t be certain.
“You’ve got to get off blocks,” Johnson said. “Sooner or later, it can’t all be the scheme.”
True enough. But who takes the fall for players coming out flat (linebacker Kyle Jackson: “We didn’t look like we were ready to play. We came out kind of dull.”)? Or failing in basics like making a tackle?
“I’m in charge of it,” Groh said. “If there’s any finger to be pointed, it’s at me.”
Groh said the Jackets have practiced enough against the no-huddle, so “to say that was the issue would be a cop-out.”
He said of the 3-4 scheme: “It is what it is. We’ve made the transition. We’re playing the defense. We just have to play it well enough. You’re not going to be competitively tough if you just start making excuses.”
When asked if Kansas — who managed only a field goal in 12 possessions against North Dakota State — is a team that should score four touchdowns against the Jackets, Groh got a little testy.
“That’s fantasy football. I just deal with what happened today,” he said.
But it’s not fantasy — Kansas really did score only three points.
Groh: “That was then. This is now. That’s not the game coaches play. Coaches play the game that’s played today. The rest is talk radio, those guys who have all the answers.”
If Groh has the answers, it doesn’t show. The Jackets go to Chapel Hill next week to start things for real, and as Jackson said when asked if he felt like the team was ready: “You know — I feel like we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
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248 comments Add your comment
C.D. Collins
September 11th, 2010
7:07 pm
GT Fans, I told you so. On behalf of the state of Virginia, thank you for talking Al Groh off our hands.
Tech is Tech
September 11th, 2010
7:10 pm
Kansas, really Kansas! According to Tech’s logic if you lose to a team, you lose to all the teams they play. In which case, Tech lost to South Dakota. Yes, Tech really is football stupid, that’s the only reason I hate Tech!
Damon Evans
September 11th, 2010
7:10 pm
Sniff sniff
Gonna be a lonng season
September 11th, 2010
7:10 pm
South Carolina will wind up in the top ten before year end. Murray loked good but the offensive play calling was too conservative to win and the defense couldn’t tackle Lattimore.
On the other hand Ga Tek looked lost against a team that got beat North Dakota St. , North Dakota St. guys. No way you can spin this to make it sound like the losses were similar. UGA was the underdog. Tek was favored by 14.
Angus
September 11th, 2010
7:13 pm
Worst day in the history of ACC football?
layinlow
September 11th, 2010
7:13 pm
The way I see it Tech is in a catch 22. PJ is certainly a superior college coach to chan gailey. However, like gailey or not he recruited some pretty damn good football players to Tech. And PJ? I just don’t see any of his recruits rising up. Where is the up and coming talent? I just don’t see it. What happens next season when Nesbitt is gone? I’m willing to bet he won’t be so damn arrogant in the future. His mouth has wrote some checks his a$$ can’t cash. lol.
Techredneck
September 11th, 2010
7:14 pm
The Jackets lost some great players to the NFL. They’re just not that good this season. There’s no great mystery in PJ’s offense. I’m glad he’s the coach but theres not that much talent on the tech team!
DeepDiver
September 11th, 2010
7:15 pm
Oh yeah, Tech is most definitely ACC-ready. What a pathetic stretch for this wretched conference…so basketball practice officially starts in just over a month. Can’t wait!
UVA Fan
September 11th, 2010
7:15 pm
That’s what you guys get for hiring Groh. Hope you enjoy the next 7 years of smart-ass, conceited comments like we did!
Captain Obvious
September 11th, 2010
7:17 pm
A long year it will be for these Jackets. It looks like we believed that if we rolled our helmets on the field we would win based on our season last year. Kansas did not get that memo. Neither will anyone else left on the schedule. The coaching needs to improve. The all powerful offense was offensive today. I expect the defense to be mediocre. I have been told that this offense will score points and be very difficult to defend. I think I have been told an untruth. It will be interesting to see what CPJ comes up with moving forward. I will be watching.
HugoStiglitz
September 11th, 2010
7:18 pm
St Simons friend. You know it doesn’t work like that. A lot of teams struggle early in the season. Kansas unfortunately struggled too much. They came back strong though, kudos to them. Oklahoma looked terrible last week too, as well as Florida. We won’t really know how good anybody really is until mid season.
Boise Dawg
September 11th, 2010
7:26 pm
Well the Hokies just cost Boise State any shot in the BCS championship game. Virginia Tech was pretty stupid to schedule anyone on a short week after such a big game. I have to laugh that they were the ones that insisted on Boise moving the game to Labor Day…. game was supposed to have been played in October.
I really thought FSU was going to beat Oklahoma too. This could be the worst single day in ACC football history. I guess look on the bright side Tech fans…. it is anyones conference for the taking.
Jetbuzz
September 11th, 2010
7:31 pm
I agree with SC’s comment about the DC’s position/pay. We may have taken the “easy” road in hiring a semi-retired and inexpensive DC. A younger guy who’s hungry to eventually make Head Coach, who’s both skilled and passionate in D coaching, might be worth the extra bucks. The D squad needs spit-n-fire from above. Preparation/execution might be valuable also.
Poor showing all around today. No excuses top to bottom. Let’s get it moving Jackets! This is your talk radio dimwit – over & out.
Demonic Deacon
September 11th, 2010
7:45 pm
You better stick with the service academies.
gt has put the ZZZZzzzzzzz back into football.
LOL
macrotech
September 11th, 2010
7:46 pm
Hate that we lost…I give credit to the Jayhawks for their execution of play! Our ‘D’ seemed lost through the entirety of the game and someone needs to teach Hill how to run routs. He seemed as lost as our ‘D’. I hope that THIS game will wake our team up…two weeks in a row that they showed up flat. Not a good week for the ACC…gonna HAVE to do better representing. There’s plenty of time to get our act together…UNC is gonna come at us with their ears pinned back! GO TECH!!!
ACC LOL
September 11th, 2010
7:46 pm
Ut OH!!!!! It seems the CPJ lovers are turning on him. I said it when he was hired, “teams will figure out that triple option”. If teams force Tech to pass they will win. ACC is the best high school football in the nation.
The acc SUX!
September 11th, 2010
7:47 pm
Year after year its the same old story.
The acc SUX!
CrackDaddy
September 11th, 2010
7:47 pm
I’m seeing reports that UNC’s no. 1 RB and top D-back have been declared eligible for Tech. They will probably get several more back as well. Tech will most likely have to play its best game. UNC has a chip on its shoulder.
Tech Man
September 11th, 2010
7:49 pm
If we don’t get the d on the right path, we are going to lose a lot of game this year!! This was very stupid lost. We were just standing around and very poor tackling. I am shocked of how we played!!
BehindEnemyLines
September 11th, 2010
7:52 pm
“Fantasy football” = thinking there’s anywhere near enough D1-caliber talent or heart taking the field defensively for GT. Or adequate coaching to overcome those deficiencies.
reality
September 11th, 2010
7:56 pm
GT will be OK.They will still win the ACC.
and tech signed who?
September 11th, 2010
7:58 pm
Annapolis South
reality
September 11th, 2010
8:00 pm
hello? Does that make you feel better? You will be 0-2 when you lose to Ark. Then how will you feel?
Mark Bailey
September 11th, 2010
8:02 pm
reality…you’re hilarious! Based on what?? GA Tech will lose to UNC, Miami, Clemson, UGA and probably one other. That’s 7-5 and a Humantarian Bowl bid. Have fun with that. Your season is over. The gimmick is up.
ACC rules the day .........not
September 11th, 2010
8:04 pm
Based on what I have seen from the ACC lately GT has a chance to run the table – the conference is that weak.
Sadly that will lead to retaining the two Grumpy old men CPJ and CAG.
We can then continue our march to mediocrity.
reality
September 11th, 2010
8:05 pm
Mark…how do you realy feel about getting your A** kicked in Columbia. The reality is that UGA is a 3rd tier SEC team. Enjoy your 7-5 season.
Dontavius Supremo
September 11th, 2010
8:09 pm
Tech was beaten by a fourth rate team. This is not good for the stingers.
Mark Bailey
September 11th, 2010
8:10 pm
HAHA…I’m not a Georgia fan, not even kind of! Nice try though! Please try to back your rediculous statement with something better.
Mark Bailey
September 11th, 2010
8:11 pm
Reality….HAHA…I’m not a GA fan. Not even kind of. Nice try though. Now, why don’t you try to back up your rediculous statement with something more concreat.
Mark Bailey
September 11th, 2010
8:13 pm
HAHA. I’m not a GA fan…not even kind of. Nice try though. Now try to back up your rediculous statement with something concrete.
Joshua
September 11th, 2010
8:17 pm
We seem to have a tradition of coming out flat in a lot of games going back to before Johnson. The attitude, mindset and ‘culture’ that’s supposedly being changed is obviously still mired in the same apathy in regards to playing on the field. The problem isn’t so much the offense or defensive schemes but simple fundamentals, execution and attitude. I saw it last year and I see it now: come out and smack Tech in the mouth a few times and they seem to lose interest and focus. With such basic issues continuing to exist it doesn’t matter one iota what offensive/ defensive scheme Tech runs. They will struggle.
@reality
September 11th, 2010
8:17 pm
You chumps caught a beat-down from a team that NEVER should have beaten you. BTW, did you see the highlights from the Wake/Duke game? Duke would have killed you guys today. Sit down and shut up.
jorge
September 11th, 2010
8:17 pm
The jackets are about a ready for the acc as the dogs are ready for the sec. NOT!! And speaking of gimmicks……how about those intense dogs?
Diablo69
September 11th, 2010
8:18 pm
The difference on offense this year is Bay Bay. Miss St. played us the same way last year under the same DC and we burned them for more passing yards than rushing.
The difference on defense this year is – not much…
jorge
September 11th, 2010
8:20 pm
Why don’t all you what if dogs shut the ++++ up. Even the acc champ of 1969 whipped your whiny butts today. Brag on blow hards.
Old School
September 11th, 2010
8:26 pm
Been a Tech fan for more than 50 years, so I’ve seen a lot of highs and lows. I don’t jump on and off the bandwagon, and I will not ridicule the players and coaches. But the disappointment and frustration with how they played and coached today are there, nevertheless.
I would be less than honest if I said I was hopeful for the rest of the season after the first two games. As Schultzie noted, the middle of the defense looked so “soft.” That was the exact word that went thru my mind watching last week and this week. They may be lighter than most teams– especially the interior three— but they also appear slow off the ball and slow to react. That’s a combination that does not bode well. And frankly, experience as the season goes on won’t help size and speed/quickness.
As for the new scheme, I am no coach but common sense says that you play the 3-4 you darn better have interior people who have some size and are not easily man-handled. So what do you do? Live with what you have? Go back to the 4-3? I dunno. I’m not paid the big bucks to make those decisions.
Offensively, I like Johnson’s office, but when you simply are not going to be able to grind it out and bust a big play on the ground down after down, series after series against an athletic, well-coached defense. You have to be able to throw the ball some for crying out loud. And not just the homerun ball. Tech’s short-mid range passing game is absolutely horrendous.
Nesbitt is a warrior thru and thru, and he is able to take a tremendous amount of punishment, Neither can anyone ever question his heart. He can rocket it long, but he seems to have little or no consistent touch, especially on out patterns. I just wonder how much they work on throwing the ball in practice, especially when it comes to timing routes.
I am still trying to be hopeful. I won’t give up on this team, players or coaches. But from what I have seen against a pair of teams which were to be— and nothing has changed my mind— two of the three weakest teams on the schedule, well, it’s going to be tough road.
Guess the main reason I have hope is that the ACC as a whole is weak with the possible exception of Miami which at least competed today against a strong opponent.
Oh yes, there was some good news today. It came out of Columbia.
Let's Go
September 11th, 2010
8:27 pm
GIve Kansas’s defense some credit. This was a well coached defense today who played their zones perfectly and made the tackles which forced Tech to try more pass plays than I think they would have liked. Tech did not look like a well coached defense or special teams today.
Phi Beta Kappa
September 11th, 2010
8:27 pm
Can we get a spell checker on this blog?
Old School
September 11th, 2010
8:28 pm
Sorry. I like Johnson’s “offense”, not his “office.” Although I hear it is very nice.
Mark Bailey
September 11th, 2010
8:29 pm
Reality…I’m not a GA fan…not even kind of! Nice try though. Now try to give some concrete information to back up your rediculous statement.
JSS
September 11th, 2010
8:33 pm
@ PBK…
A spell checker won’t correct a properly spelled that is misused.
By the way, Firefox and Google Chrome have spell check…
Robards
September 11th, 2010
8:36 pm
Sorry about your Dawgs, Jeff. Maybe next week.
MrDan
September 11th, 2010
8:37 pm
Cheer up Tech fans. You’re still in the ACC.
Look up and to the right............
September 11th, 2010
8:38 pm
Speel cheeker is on the tool bar dolt……………
Delbert D.
September 11th, 2010
8:44 pm
Unfortunately, Georgia Tech does look ACC-ready.
stan
September 11th, 2010
8:46 pm
i think we are in trouble with no passing game and no defence.
RAMBLINWRECK
September 11th, 2010
8:49 pm
Man, some real joke of GT fans out there! We did stink today guys and likely may not win our division given what i saw today. However, you still support your team..period!! I will take 8 wins if we can get it considering our talent level seems a bit depleted. We played so bad on special teams and defense that it was painful. I think Groh is a good coach but we DO NOT have the personnel to run that 3-4 scheme. UGA has better athletes than we do and can pull off that scheme better than us. We are to small up front and our linebackers are just not fast enough and just don’t have great skills i’m afraid. I am surprised a little that we have not improved on defense at. Same bad habits as last year with some of the same guys. POOR TACKLING!!!
A 13 yard punt and roughing the kicker and quarterback were the real killers. Stupid penalties and the combination of dropped passes and nesbitt struggling throwing, is tough to watch. I stand with the people who are upset about this loss, but it’s only our 2nd game guys and we can turn it around. It will be up to the players and coach johnson if he can get their attension to step it up on both sides of the ball. We are still 0-0 in conference play unlike uga who is 0-1 and have ryan mallet coming into town next. I think both teams could be in for a potential long season.
bighoo93
September 11th, 2010
8:55 pm
Good luck with Groh, folks. I actually feel bad for you because I hate Groh more than I hate GT. If you had been paying attention to how Groh dismantled UVA with his incompetence over the last four years or so, you would have been screaming bloody murder when you hired him as DC. Get used to Groh’s “testy” responses to any question he doesn’t like. He thinks he is smarter than everyone else, and is insulted that anyone would dare question anything he does. The worst part? By the time your coach realizes the 3-4 isn’t going to work, you’ll have a roster full of the wrong recruits slotted in the wrong place learning the wrong technique. And then you’ll have to waste another year transitioning back to the 4-3. In the meantime, try to love “read and react”. By the way, if you think you will get Groh to leave quietly, think again. He doesn’t take rejection well.
PS If he hires his son to coach the d-backs, run for the hills
canes1
September 11th, 2010
8:57 pm
OUCH! Not a good day for the ACC. At least we lost the #2 team. The Boise St win against VT doesn’t seem that good now.
Gonna be a lonng season
September 11th, 2010
9:06 pm
Sad when only enjoyment tek fans is whren UGA loses. Pretty pitiful. This is Spurrier’s best team at SC. They were ranked and favored by 2.5. We started a freshman QB and played without our best player. The dawgs will get better and better…. there is no hope for this tek team or the program and after today there is no hope for the ACC. They are going to be rplaced in the BCS by the WAC.
Reality you refuse to face reality so you should change your handle to delusional…. Tek will lose 4 to 5 including a good beating in Athens. But by then you won’t be blogging you’ll be hiding.