Damage for Georgia Tech’s future should be limited
NCAA sanctions can't change this picture (or reality).
A few random thoughts while Georgia Tech fans try to wrap themselves around the fact the Yellow Jackets officially never won the 2009 ACC championship. (Yeah, whatever.)
1. Damage for the future should be limited.
It’s going to be painful when Tech returns the ACC championship trophy to the conference. But really, what does it mean? The problem with the NCAA forcing a team to vacate victories as a penalty is it’s just a symbolic gesture. The games have been played. The revenue has been generated (and spent). Tech beat Clemson 39-34 for the title and moved on to the Orange Bowl. Done. The NCAA put Tech on four years probation but is not stripping the football program of any scholarships, limiting recruiting or banning bowl appearances. Coach Paul Johnson can’t advertise his conference championship but it doesn’t lessen him as a coach to recruits.
2. More fallout isn’t likely
A few readers have asked if I believe athletic director Dan Radakovich is in trouble because of this and whether he may lose his job. I don’t think so. Radakovich fell on the sword on a little Thursday but he also denied that he or anybody at the school intentionally tried to obstruct the NCAA’s investigation, which is what led to most of the penalties. There was a strange mix of remorse and anger in the room at Thursday’s news conference. But I never got a sense that there was a division between Radakovich and Tech president G.P “Bud” Peterson, who ultimately signed off on wide receiver Demaryius Thomas playing the last three games of 2009. Tech’s general counsel (retired) and compliance officer (left) at the time of the infractions and investigation are gone. Peterson also alluded to a changes in the athletic department’s structure. I sense that will be the extent of the fallout.
3. Did the punishment fit the crime?
Repeating: It’s an oversimplification to say Tech lost the ACC title because one player allegedly received $312 worth of clothing. Dennis Thomas, who chairs the NCAA’s Committee on Infractions, conceded it might’ve been a secondary infraction if school representatives had acted more professional during the investigation. That said, there obviously are MUCH worse things going on in college athletics right now, and if the NCAA doesn’t slam programs Ohio State, Oregon and North Carolina for infractions far more blatant than what Tech did, something is wrong.
4. Something we’ll never know …
Radakovich is a competitive guy. Johnson is a competitive guy. The 2009 season was shaping up as one of Tech’s biggest in years. The Jackets maintain that they would’ve declared Thomas ineligible if they believed he might’ve committed an infraction but were convinced otherwise. Here’s the issue: At the time of the interviews with the NCAA, Tech had its three biggest games coming up: Georgia, the ACC championship and potentially a BCS bowl game. It’s reasonable to speculate they might’ve been more cautious if the stakes weren’t so high. Peterson only admitted that, in hindsight, Tech should’ve declared Thomas ineligible and immediately sought reinstatement from the NCAA, hoping for a quick resolution.
5. What next for basketball?
Could things possibly get worse for the basketball program? New coach Brian Gregory inherits a program that not only slipped under Paul Hewitt, it’s on probation. Again, the violation was minor: A grad assistant helped run an AAU tournament on campus. The sanctions: Two fewer recruiting days during the summer period; a limit of 10 official visits for two seasons; no complimentary tickets for high school coaches and individuals associated with recruits for the first home game of next season (self-imposed). The penalties are minor. But it’s not exactly the morale boost the program was hoping for.
By Jeff Schultz
♦
In case you missed . . .
– Punishment severe but Georgia Tech made its own mess
– Chipper Jones doesn’t want to let another October pass without him
– Is it good news that Tereshinski prompted Georgia player to quit?
Follow me on Twitter @JeffSchultzAJC; friend me at Facebook.com/JeffSchultzAJC
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
178 comments Add your comment
Reuban Houston
July 16th, 2011
1:52 pm
Anyone know where I can score 100 pounds of weed?
Me and Reggie was the man at Tech when we was there.
G CHIZIK
July 16th, 2011
1:55 pm
Pretty harsh for $312.
We’ve got the NCAA in our back pocket, but this still gives me a shiver.
Greenhulk
July 16th, 2011
4:11 pm
The ACC gave Tech no support. I bet North Carolina gets a way clean because that is the ACC poster child. Tech needs to return to the SEC and dump the NCC (North Carolina Conference).
No longer 9 of 10
July 16th, 2011
4:14 pm
One thing that seems to have escaped everybody’s notice here, although maybe the dawg fans are just ignoring it, is that the final 3 games of 2009 were VACATED. That means, win or lose, they were “never played.” So that means that the dawgs did not beat the Jackets in 2009. Pretty small consolation, but still…….
BG
July 16th, 2011
4:21 pm
Jeff, Tech cheated!
Mack
July 16th, 2011
4:24 pm
You could have reduced the title of this article by say: GT’s future is limited!
Jones
July 16th, 2011
6:04 pm
P. Bull Terrier @12:!5
No. It’s more like doing a great looking blonde who you thought was the homecoming queen only to wake up and find out it never happened
Actually P. Bull you would have had done a great looking blonde in your life to speak with any authority. Go back to ol’ lefty and your dreams.
Footballrules
July 16th, 2011
6:05 pm
BG….Tech cheated? Well, not nearly ENOUGH to get an invite to return to the SEC.
TECHREDNECK
July 16th, 2011
6:15 pm
Its all so silly and stupid. A. J. did not realize he was doing anything wrong. $312.00 of clothing. Give me a break. But as someone posted earlier a rule is a rule and I’m sure the rule does not specify any amount. Alot of fans care more about their football team than their family.I just am not impressed with GA. Tech or UGA this fall.
Jacket Man
July 16th, 2011
6:53 pm
As anyone who takes the time to read the final verdicts will read, as GA Tech claimed from the beginning, neither accused player was found to have violated any NCAA rules and there was NO need to have withheld either of them as the fruitless NCAA witch hunt went forward.
As GA Tech tried to explain to the “investigator,” suspending the players over such frivolous claims was unreasonable to the rest of the team which had worked so hard to try to win the ACC Chamionship and have a chance to play in the Orange Bowl. They also tried to explain they weren’t trying to be argumentative, but logical, reasonable, and fair.
Obviously the NCAA “investigator” didn’t like being called on his stupidity because the rest is history. Did GA Tech make mistakes in this matter? Sure. Did those mistakes warrant the results the innocent players have had piled on them by these childish adults? I think not…
Technophobia
July 16th, 2011
10:51 pm
“That said, there obviously are MUCH worse things going on in college athletics right now, and if the NCAA doesn’t slam programs Ohio State, Oregon and North Carolina for infractions far more blatant than what Tech did, something is wrong.”
No shift Sherlock, but are you actually naive enough to think they will????
The NCAA was pretty accurately portrayed by South Park.
sports
July 17th, 2011
12:41 am
when dis blows over, dey will start their scheming agin..dey be’s just that arrogant.
Chris
July 17th, 2011
12:56 am
What about any shame for playing players that were not eligible? What about integrity? What about reputation? Suddenly it is just about winning the game anyway, shouldn’t hurt our chances for winning in the future, we bagged the Orange Bowl already, everybody’s doing worse things. Tech cheated and got caught. It cost them a championship and will forever remove their ability to throw stones at others, something Tech WAS very good at. If they were playing Western CArolina, Duke and Georgia State the last three games, they would have sat those players. They knew it was a big deal that is why the had already banned the former players in question from campus. But they couldn’t make themselves give up a chance to beat UGA, Clemson for the title, and Iowa.
Bigger fish to fry
July 17th, 2011
6:03 am
A lot of wasted time concerning $312.00 worth of t-shirts.
Dubvee
July 17th, 2011
6:24 am
We need Bobby Dodd back. A friend of mine who played for Dodd used to tell of the speaches he made to his teams — and what would happen if anyone ever disgraced the name of Georgia Tech. Dodd would get so emotional about it that the veins would pop out on his neck when he talked. With his ethics and love of Georgia Tech, this never would have happened. We need to get back to the values that made Tech great.
Thomas Brown
July 17th, 2011
7:26 am
MORE FALL-OUT is most assuredly LIKELY.
Georgia tek STILL TODAY is defiant and compative toward the NCAA, rather than taking the right steps to insure that your AD doesn’t tell PAUL JOHNSON and interview the 2 top players of 2009 of that which they should and should not say in the NCAA investigation.
Bedford doesn’t get it. Perhaps because no college offered him a scholarship. None. Now, he is in another country playing football in Spain. Bedford says pry it from my finger, regarding the ACC Championship Game ring. Bedford offers to repay the NCAA $312 to keep his ring. And, he says that the NCAA is wrong making such a mountain out of a mole hill of $312.
Mr. Bedford sir, a guy out of Gainesville, Florida : The NCAA put tek on PROBATION and REPEAT VIOLATOR because tek covered up and still tries to cover up what happened. Thus, PROBATION and thus your ring is meaningless. Keep it or not, tek cannot publish on the Internet and the NCAA cannot have pages that reflect that you won the ACC Championship Game. And, Paul Johnson cannot count the win in his total. Get it ? You lied and covered-up. Had you not the $312 would not have been an issue. Not at all. It cost your basketball program too.
Take it back up with The NCAA and expect The NCAA to come down real hard on Georgia tek and PAUL JOHNSON and your AD. You didn’t do it right. Compound the issue and appeal and it will be VERY UGLY for Georgia tek.
Bubba from the mall
July 17th, 2011
10:07 am
OK let’s clear thing’s up. It was me – I sold the cloths to an agent who gave them to a runner who gave them to someone else who gave them to a GT football player.
Stop whining about Auburn, OSU, N.C., Oregon etc. the hammer is still being raised and when it drops all of college football will say WTF and then smile.
Auburn = MAJOR SANCTIONS. Vacated games, vacated NC, loss of scholarships (at least 20 over 4 years), 10 year probation, $250,000 fine (possibly more), recruiting restrictions (no official visits).
OUS = Major sanctions. Vacated games (already self imposed), loss of scholarships (at least 10 over 4 years), 5 year probation, $250,000 fine, recruiting restrictions (no off campus visits).
N.C. = Major reprimand, 2 year probation.
Oregon = Give me a little more time.
Bubba from the mall
July 17th, 2011
10:08 am
Oops Not OUS – OSU
headley lamar
July 17th, 2011
11:16 am
One thing is for sure
Tech is now officially one of the dirtiest programs in college football
Two major violations in ten years
bk
July 17th, 2011
11:22 am
Why is it that you and the ajc missed this story until it broke? You seem to jump all over the negative stories of other schools even if they are minor violations. You also seem to hold some coaches to a higher standard than Johnson. I have my own opinion but would love to hear yours.
Tech Engineer
July 17th, 2011
11:39 am
DRad should have cooperated with the NCAA fully. Tech folks want a program beyond reproach. DRad doesn’t get it, as came from the SEC. He needs to GO!
still wondering
July 17th, 2011
11:53 am
Why does BuLL use another name?
Tech Forever
July 17th, 2011
3:47 pm
MARK MY WORDS!!!! Nothing will come from the Auburn situation, Ohio State will be deemd as “having suffered enough”, Oregon and UNC will get light slaps on the wrist.
It is the job of the NCAA to make blatant examples of the Georgia Techs, Baylors, Mississippi States, and Boise States of the college athletics word, i.e. non-cash cow programs.
FOR ONCE I’d like to see a report actually cover the news, do a little investigating, and bring these issues and facts to the doorstep of the NCAA ADN CALL THEM OUT on their hypocracy.
gt4ever
July 17th, 2011
3:52 pm
This is ALL so ABSURD!
Same old story
July 18th, 2011
8:52 am
11 young years into a new century and Yech as to yet again vacate wins? When will the NCAA dismantle one of dirtiest, if not the dirtiest, programs in the country?
Yech continues to humiliate the fine state of Georgia again and again.
Same old story
July 18th, 2011
8:52 am
11 young years into a new century and Yech as to yet again vacate wins? When will the NCAA dismantle one of dirtiest, if not the dirtiest, programs in the country?
Yech continues to humiliate the fine state of Georgia again and again.
The Truth
July 18th, 2011
12:44 pm
Jeff
Where was the AJC while all of this investigation was ongoing? The two beat writers were so busy being cheerleaders they failed to do their job. Had they been filing Open Records requests this story would not have been a “SURPRISE”. The AJC never fails to file Open Records requests with the Georgia Athletic Dept however for year’s the AJC has acted in concert with GT to “HIDE” the facts and what is taking place.
In addition to the embarrassment at Tech there should be equal embarassment within the Sports staff at the AJC for failure to do your job. When beat writers are busy cheering every move of an athletic dept there is a problem. Hopefully in the future the two guys who cover GT can trade in their cheerleader skirts and pom-poms for some big boy journalist clothes and do their job.
Paul Johnson slams NCAA for Georgia Tech’s probation | Jeff Schultz
July 19th, 2011
2:17 pm
[...] one saving grace for Tech is that NCAA didn’t take away scholarships or issue a postseason ban. Also, this whole ugly process might help Johnson’s cause in at least one area with his [...]