5 legit reasons Georgia Tech might disappoint in 2009
Jaybo Shaw with his collarbone intact. He'll be missed. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
1. Jaybo Shaw broke his collarbone in practice. Losing your backup quarterback is a big deal when you run the spread option. Josh Nesbitt is going to get hit 30 times a game, and Shaw — who started a game and won it in Nesbitt’s stead last season — is fully capable of doing it again. Or was capable. Now there’s no telling when he’ll be back.
2. The special teams aren’t exactly special. Georgia Tech missed eight of 20 field goals last season and two PATs. It lagged its opponents in punt return average, kickoff return average and net punting. The kicking game essentially lost the Chick-fil-A Bowl. A team that wants to play in a BCS game will have to make a big kick of some kind along the way.
3. There are trap games on the card. Tech plays at Miami on Thursday night a week after it plays host to Clemson on Thursday night, meaning the manufactured emotion inherent in any ESPN production will be on the other sideline. And Mississippi State and Vanderbilt might be the two worst teams in the SEC, but the Jackets must go on the road to meet both a week after major conference games (North Carolina before Mississippi State, Virginia before Vandy).
4. Nesbitt completed 43.9 percent of his passes in 2008. That’s not a good number for such a talented player, and it’s even worse because roughly half his throws had the element of surprise working for them. He has a great receiver in Demaryrius Thomas and an A-back capable of catching the deep ball in Roddy Jones. As we saw last season, Tech doesn’t need a slew of passess to keep moving — its only completion against Georgia came on the game’s first snap — but Nesbitt does need to be more precise.
5. Paul Johnson is so self-assured it could work against him. Nobody outsmarts everybody else forever. Johnson has a splendid system and is justifiably proud of it, but what if Tech loses a game it shouldn’t and the second-guessers emerge for the first time in his tenure here? Will he develop rabbit ears? Will he snap at the media? Or will he act presidential and simply keep coaching his men?
(For our companion list of 5 bogus reasons Tech will fall short in 2009, please click here. Finally, we present defensive end Derrick Morgan’s upbeat take on the Jackets.)
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150 comments Add your comment
dd
August 26th, 2009
2:22 pm
Saint Simons, you’re setting yourselff up buddy every time you post.
Lee`
August 26th, 2009
2:23 pm
JD’s goin to lower his shoulder and stright run defences over like a bulldog that fell out the back of a truck on I-20 an got plowed by every car in site till its just a spot
Ramblin Yech
August 26th, 2009
2:25 pm
Virginia will destroy the bees; always have, always will.
UGASlobberknocker
August 26th, 2009
2:26 pm
There are some of us on this blog who would not consider any of those 5 worries as disappointments, but merely potential happy events.
Lee`
August 26th, 2009
2:30 pm
an yes mb i must have missed it cause this crap is what im reading. who was jaybo shaw till he proved himself i think that these things are taken into concideration an the backups will step up an get the jackets through. there are def more strengths than weakness and a winning feeling back in atlanta that has been missing for quite some time as well as the falcons. its a good time to live in the atl tech an falcons will win alot of games this year and i can wait to be at the games
buttcutmutt
August 26th, 2009
2:31 pm
How obvious is it from this piece and a few others Bradley has written in the past that at some point Paul Johnson snapped at him. This is about the 3rd or 4th time I have seen Bradley refer to Johnson in terms of getting testy with the media.
I am not sure when you got your feelings hurt Bradley but get over it.
Maybe he doesnt have a problem with ‘the media’…maybe he has a problem with Mark Bradley. Maybe you could subtly remind him that you think you coined the term ‘evil genius’ for Spurrier and he will respect you?
Green Tea
August 26th, 2009
2:41 pm
Mark, you know why there are more DAWGS on this blog than nerds?? It’s because they are all surfin’ this page…
http://www.pojman.com/PP/pocket_protectors/pocket_protectors.html
BWAAHAHAHA!!!
Melinda
August 26th, 2009
2:42 pm
PJ’s teams have lost games they should before. Virginia at homecoming, close against GW (after which he said he was embarrassed and took the blame for not getting the team ready mentally). Most teams lose games they shouldn’t. Florida lost to Ole Miss last year. Michigan vs. Ap State 2007…
PJ usually tells it like it is. If it is his mistake, or an execution mistake, he’ll admit it.
GT4Ever
August 26th, 2009
2:48 pm
That only thing I’m worried about it the kicking game.
Gary
August 26th, 2009
2:55 pm
I want to know how the Jackets will respond to losing to that “inferior” Vandy team? You know the one who played in a bowl game last year and beat an ACC divisional champion? You heard it here first – overlook that Vandy team and it will result in an L.
And remember about expectations at Tech. Each time you are “finally” supposed to beat the better teams and play for a championship, Tech (like UGA) unfortunately finds a way to wet the bed. The hype going into this season is the same hype of the 2001 Tech team and just where did they end up playing their bowl game at?
SWFLJacket
August 26th, 2009
3:00 pm
Gators 47-UGA 0
Go GATORS!
BR
August 26th, 2009
3:02 pm
Reasons #1-100 that Tech will flop—they are TECH!
buttcutmutt
August 26th, 2009
3:11 pm
Gary- you should never end a sentence with a preposition. vandy is a good school. you should know that.
i agree that vandy is a trap game. if we take the ‘dores’ light we could be in trouble. they are are well coached, no doubt.
if we dont take them lightly, however, and things happen like they should, we will beat them soundly on their home field. its just the natural order of things.
in terms of wetting the bed, how yellow is your mattress after that 6-0 start last year. other than that, i cannot remember a vandy bedwetting because they have never had a bed to wet. they have had zero expectation on them because of their play since the inception of their program.
Hey Dogtards
August 26th, 2009
3:11 pm
“I want to know how the Jackets will respond to losing to that “inferior” Vandy team? You know the one who played in a bowl game last year and beat an ACC divisional champion?”
You mean the team that was no. 5 in the sec but lost at home to ACC cellar dweller dook? They aren’t gonna beat us.
Ramblinwreck83
August 26th, 2009
3:15 pm
TheDawgPound
Quite a few games that UGA played last year near the end could of ended up losses. Do you remember the UK or AUB games. I do believe they were a pass away from giving you two losses. Also, UGA could of easily lost to MSU. I sure it was a close game until the very end.
San Francisco Dawg
August 26th, 2009
3:17 pm
This is laughable! Tech fans, you can not honestly believe you can win the ACC, beat Georgia this year or even make it to a bowl game…this is a program that had its best years in the 50’s and its downhill ever since! Try concentrating on selling more tickets, building a new stadium or simply fixing those backed up toilets you have ignored all of these years! Calling Paul Johnson a great coach is ignorance…for god sakes, he coached Navy…wow, powerhouse! Celebrate the win over Georgia all you want, but keep you over the top expectations to yourself….please, again, fix those damn toilets!!
Just the facts
August 26th, 2009
3:18 pm
All this talk about TECH…GOOD! But the outcome will be different. TECH SUCKS! It will not be TECH that wins the ACC this year!
Just the facts
August 26th, 2009
3:22 pm
Don’t forget UNC coming to Atlanta 9-26-09!!! Go HEELS baby! Tech sucks and will be out of the top 25 SOON!!
Ramblinwreck83
August 26th, 2009
3:39 pm
San Francisco Dawg
Downhill since the 50’s. We’ve got a NC to show in the last 20 years. Does UGA? Nope. We’ll celebrate over the UGA this year too. Go Jackets.
uuugh...
August 26th, 2009
3:42 pm
Holy cow! You kids really do have your own Tech Blog. Good For you…I was beginning to think you clowns trolled the UGA blog because nobody cares about Tech Football or their Basketball Conference. Apparently there are a dozen or so out there…good for you!
Before I head back to my blog, I’ll give y’all two reasons Tech won’t beat UGA this year. 1) Bobby Dodd will look like the coctail party and be half full UGA fans, providing no home field advantage. 2)You idiots had the score of last year’s fluke victory engraved on rings for the players…I think the only thing that woudl fire our dawgs up more is if one of your players went over and kicked UGA during the game. That was just silly.
Heading out…I’ll stay off of your blog if you stay off of mine!
GatorNation
August 26th, 2009
3:52 pm
You UGA fans are amazing. Cheap talk from a bunch of whiners. You are a second rate team and until you can actually win a NC besides 29 years ago then be quite. GT will beat you this year and on and on and on. Oh I meant UF will!!!!!!! Well, GT too!!!!!!!
toh3llwithgeorgia
August 26th, 2009
3:55 pm
To be honest the only one I’m worried about is the third one. The other three are fixable, or manageable.
Go Jackets, and to Hell with Georgia.
Ramblinwreck83
August 26th, 2009
4:00 pm
uuugh…
i doubt you stay off our blog. Yeah that home field advantage really made a difference last year. 92,000 crying UGA fans. It was music to my ears.
GatorNation
August 26th, 2009
4:05 pm
Funny Ramblinwreck83. They’ll be crying a lot this year, won’t they!!!!!
W.R. Jacket
August 26th, 2009
4:10 pm
1. 2. and 4. ….agree
3. Don’t think they’ll have any trouble getting up for Clemson or Miami with an ACC title on the brain…or any SEC team.
5. You must’ve ran out of reasons or havn’t followed PJ very long
Herschworld
August 26th, 2009
4:13 pm
this article should have been called seinfeld because it’s really funny and it’s about nothing
Jackets
August 26th, 2009
4:29 pm
14-0 baby!!!!!!
BLAZER
August 26th, 2009
4:39 pm
lsu did not shut gt down-we out rushed them!!
turnovers- and it is still45-42 and 49-10!!
Stinger
August 26th, 2009
5:01 pm
Tech will stomp the Dawgs 56-6 this year. Make no mistake about it the Dawg fans are worried. They know that they have another AZZ whipping coming this year. Losses will be to South Carolina, Florida, Arkansas, LSU, Okie St., and the ACC Champs (GT). At least 2 and perhaps 3 of those loses will be by 50 pts. or more. Long live Willie Martinez.
This article is mostly garbage
August 26th, 2009
5:04 pm
#1) Tevin Washinton is wayyy better than Jaybo was this time last year..The qb’s at Navy and Southern were healthy for the majority of the careers..
#2)Jerrad should solve the return problems as well as the coaching staff doing a better job on blocking during the returns. However, kickoff and punt teams could be a problem but maybe not…
#3)I dont know about “trap games”…but the schedule is ridiculously hard..we will have a better team but maybe a worse record. However, if Tech beats Georgia and has the same record..it will be an improvement due to the gardner webb game and tougher schedule.
#4)Nesbit was known for his passing not his rushing in high school. However, his passing percentage does need to increase dramtically. I think the experience from last year is bound to increase this as well as other teams will be respecting the run not the pass…
#5) Ridiculously dumb…you write about him like its his second year of his career coaching!! You are dumb!!!!!!!!!
This article could have been decent…but you just tried to hard by making scenarios up like # 5….AJC must be desperate for stories
Pensacola dawg
August 26th, 2009
5:13 pm
Amazing what beating UGA will do for a nerds ego! No way tech wins acc, Miami, FSU and VA tech and maybe North Carolina will hand them thier hats and they will have another 3 or 4 loss season (after getting smoked in a bowl game again) but hey if you tech thats a good year.
Paddy
August 26th, 2009
5:42 pm
My prediction of U. Miami this year to be the flop of the ACC just got better. This afternoon both back up QB,s quit the team. They hope to transfer to schools that need qb’s this season. Div 1-AA. That place just gets more strange every day.
NYHokie
August 26th, 2009
6:20 pm
@SimpleDawg
“2. Poor special teams spell disaster. Va. Tech has parlayed great special team play into success with a bunch of thugs and morons.”
Interesting comment considering VT (not VaTech) hasn’t fielded the best special teams during recent years despite winning how many ACC titles? I believe their defense has been decent, but I could be wrong. Thugs and morons? Besides Marcus (Mike was fine in college), who would these be? Bryan Randall, ACC Player of the Year ‘04, culminated his college career in 2004, throwing for 2,264 yards and rushing for 511 yards. While excelling at several sports on a collegiate level, he managed to finish his bachelor’s in 3 years and went on to work on a master’s. Lee Suggs, an excellent RB who managed to set NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision records for most games scoring a touchdown in a single season (14 games in 2002), and most consecutive games scoring a touchdown (27 consecutive games, from Sept. 2, 2000 through Dec. 31, 2002; 57 touchdowns) was the son of a preacher. Tyrod Taylor, young guy who is doing well both on and off the field, attended the Manning Passing Academy in Louisiana, working with Peyton and Eli Manning and other top quarterbacks this summer. Shows some intelligence and a good work ethic. I could name many many many other outstanding scholarship athletes that have been or are at VT… Let’s not over generalize. I could say the same about UGA… seen a few headlines lately. I think one reporter said it the best, “In the SEC there are three seasons: football season, basketball season, and get-in-trouble season. The past couple of years, Georgia has excelled during get-in-trouble season.” I think you need to read up on UGA sports… UGASports.com for reference. Nuff said..
@AMG: Are you kidding me? Handily? Not likely. VT no longer fielding a full set of freshmen receivers (like last year), a QB who is the 1 and only (helps knowing you are “the guy” going into the season.. trust me), a back field loaded with talented runners (even with Evans injured.. go watch the JWC with Wilson… and Williams was the #4 RB in his recruiting class), and an offensive line that is much more experienced… and a defense that generally reloads regularly… much improved special teams… ehem… If you do not see any threats (not just from VT which I am bias about of course.. other teams should be of concern), you are just clueless… or more likely a victim of wishful thinking. Good luck with living in that bubble. lol. I hate ND, but they are probably one of the few teams who don’t have much to worry about schedule wise… its cake… even for them.
At any rate, here’s to a great ACC season!
Should be a lot of fun to watch with so many teams improving and bringing back experience. GT, VT, Miami, NC State, UNC, FSU, and Clemson should provide quite a bit of competition if all goes as planned. Hopefully Shaw’s down time will be as minimal as possible. Hate when players get hurt like that so close to the start of the season. I think Johnson will be fine if things fall short of expectations. Though intense, he seems to be a pro.
A Rob
August 26th, 2009
6:46 pm
Shaw’s injury is unfortunate, but the fact remains that he is not a legit D1 QB. The way he runs the offense, it is inevitable that he will continually be injured. Yes, he filled in admirably against lesser opponents. He almost lost us the FSU game after Josh was dominating, and got hammered against UGA for a series and thankfully wasn’t hurt. This gives Washington the chance to get some much needed experience, as he is more likely to be a playmaker at this level.
As for the special teams, that is a legitimate issue that remains up in the air. Unless improved markedly, it will again become an achilles heel. Let’s hope not!
No need to worry about Nesbitt’s numbers, as he was learning a new system last year and admitted himself he had no sense of timing with offense. Not to mention the fact that he had NO PROTECTION last year.
There are several teams on this schedule with the talent to beat us if we play poorly (FSU, MIAMI, CLEMSON, UGA), but we should handle the rest now that we have the experience and depth.
BUZZ SAWYA
August 26th, 2009
8:00 pm
AMG, I agree with you 100%. Mark Bradley after GT goes 12-0 you need to seek employment in ATHENS , Miami, or Blacksburg. ” YOU LOSER!”
Sandyspringsjacket
August 26th, 2009
8:40 pm
Bradley, why weren’t you laid off by the Athens Journal. You are so negative it is not cute. CPJ’s style won’t work in a major conferance is so worn out, pleasseee think of something worth while to say or shut up. your style is so ho hum, predictable, unnews worthy and boring! Face it the Jackets will be damn good this year and nothing you can do to discredit them will mean anything.
By the way UK basketball will get what it deserved with John Jail Bird as your coach, so go cover them.
Mark Bradley
August 26th, 2009
9:05 pm
You know, I haven’t seen a good pocket protector in a long time. Just sayin’.
Matt
August 26th, 2009
9:25 pm
Talk about a homer for UGA, or anyone but Tech. I’m sorry, I must have missed Mark Bradley’s “why UGA will not reach expectations” column last year, when the Dawgs were number one.
Sandyspringsjacket
August 26th, 2009
9:56 pm
Bradley,
Pocket protector? Very clever. That is so funny and original, never heard that one. Did you steal that from Clarance Moore’s files before he got canned.
We will just play out the schedule and see who has the last laugh, we know you are never correct and only write to be controversal, no real journalistic creative thinking ever comes from the AJC which is why readership is down.
Limpbuzzkit
August 26th, 2009
11:15 pm
If that’s all you can come up with we’re gonna win the BCS
macrotech
August 26th, 2009
11:39 pm
Who Cares, you’re confused….we celebrate our victory over the pups…. we rate the success of our season due to the whole new coach, new offensive system and the ‘obvious’ low expectations thing. Not expected to win more than three to four games and winning nine….the mutts were just icing on the cake! You’re a dawg…feel free to take a bite!
macrotech
August 26th, 2009
11:42 pm
Pensacola dawg, it’s kind of funny that your ‘prediction’ doesn’t include room for the dogs beating Tech! THAT may be the ONLY accurate thing you shared!
Twitter Trackbacks for 5 legit reasons Georgia Tech might disappoint in 2009 | Mark Bradley [ajc.com] on Topsy.com
August 27th, 2009
4:47 am
[...] 5 legit reasons Georgia Tech might disappoint in 2009 | Mark Bradley blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/2009/08/26/5-legit-reasons-georgia-tech-might-disappoint-in-2009 – view page – cached Mark Bradley of the AJC lists five reasons Georgia Tech might indeed disappoint in 2009. — From the page [...]
Not Disappointed
August 27th, 2009
10:12 am
Jackets are 10 – 2 this year, but wins the acc. Ramblin Wreck!
GT4Ever
August 27th, 2009
1:10 pm
Granted Jaybo did well at times last year but he did have some trouble at times. He was a freshman and that’s expected. I’m too worried at Washington backing up Nesbitt. Washington had a great high school career and was an excellent running QB. He should be an adequate bcak up for Nesbitt if need be. We should be able to see his talents in the JSU game. Nesbitt should be out of the by the start of the second quarter.
Hal
August 27th, 2009
2:37 pm
Injuries scare me more than the talent on the other teams. I would rather be lucky and stay healthy and live to fight another day. I think the schedule filled with tuff defenses that would be hard to beat with an inexperienced QB. If Nesbitt gets hurt with Jaybo still out of action …all bets are off as to where Tech will be at the end of the season.
Mutts-R-Stupid-especially-journalism-majors
August 27th, 2009
4:19 pm
Are all UGAY people as dumb as their former quarterback, who could not remember the plays in the NFL??? OK, lets make it easier, how many of the faculty at UGAY could remember the plays in an NFL playbook? The correct answer is NONE, cause UGAY and ALL its people are IDIOTS.
JawjunY'all
August 27th, 2009
4:31 pm
Couldn’t tell whether GA fans were less obnoxious after winning or losing – - but in either case they’re obnoxious any time.
the real Old Gold
August 27th, 2009
11:34 pm
Not worried.
Twitter Trackbacks for 5 legit reasons Georgia Tech might disappoint in 2009 | Mark Bradley [ajc.com] on Topsy.com
August 28th, 2009
3:23 am
[...] 5 legit reasons Georgia Tech might disappoint in 2009 | Mark Bradley blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/2009/08/26/5-legit-reasons-georgia-tech-might-disappoint-in-2009/ – view page – cached Mark Bradley of the AJC lists five reasons Georgia Tech might indeed disappoint in 2009. — From the page [...]