A canny loss to UGA leaves Tech fans giddy about their coach
Paul Johnson thinks of something. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
This we know: Georgia Tech folks obsess over Georgia. (An unkind reference to UGA is included in the song “Ramblin’ Wreck from Georgia Tech.”) And it’s beyond dispute that the Jackets lost to the Mutts (another unkind reference) in Athens on Saturday. And yet …
Tech people walked away from that game feeling good about themselves, which never happens when Tech loses to Georgia in any sport. But it happened this time. It happened because Techies, who pride themselves on brainpower, were tickled at having outsmarted Big Brother.
OK, I know what you Bulldogs are saying. I’ve read the responses to this little missive from late last night. To paraphrase the stance of (some) Georgia folks: “If Paul Johnson is such a genius, how come he lost to Mark Richt again? Isn’t the name of the game to win?”
Well, yes. But there can be honor in defeat, especially when the defeat is so hard-fought and cleverly wrought. There can be no denying that the Jackets were the aggressor throughout and the stronger side up front. Those 411 yards rushing weren’t wisps of smoke. (Fun fact: The Jackets ran for two more yards against Todd Grantham’s million-dollar defense than they had against the one misguided by Willie Martinez in the epic upset of 2008. And this time they did it, as I’m guessing you’re aware, without Joshua Nesbitt.)
Urban Meyer, my role model in all things, believes the measure of a coach is how his team fares “when the checkers are equal.” The checkers weren’t anywhere close to equal Saturday night — even Tech people fully expected their team to get blown out — and the Jackets were a PAT from a tie inside the final five minutes. Georgia made three mistakes (two turnovers and a botched kickoff) that yielded no Tech points, while three Tech fumbles spawned three Bulldog touchdowns … and still the Jackets kept coming.
Full credit to the Bulldogs for making the requisite plays at the end, but fuller credit must go to Johnson and his Jackets: They got nearly the maximum from their diminished resources on a night when Georgia’s best player, the sublime A.J. Green, could be seen running out of bounds three yards short of a first down when the score was 0-0. (Georgia scored on the next play, Kris Durham’s catch-and-run, but still.)
And when the careening game finally seemed lost, that rascal Johnson conjured up one last way to make it winnable. He ordered cornerback Jerrard Tarrant to tell the other Jacket defenders, “Let ‘em score.” A Tech employee standing on the sideline heard this exchange and was terrified the Bulldogs would catch on to this strategic bit of jujitsu, but they didn’t. Washaun Ealey burst through the line and kept going and everyone in red and black got really excited — for five seconds. Then they realized they’d been snookered.
Said Richt: “We didn’t coach very good there. We got outcoached right there. It was good strategy by Coach Johnson. I thought [when it happened], ‘He got us there. He got me.’ ”
Said Johnson, almost shrugging: “It was the only way we could win the game.”
In the end his team lost, but the same Tech man who’d told me after the Jackets’ uninspiring defeat of Duke that he fully dreaded Saturday night in Athens was positively giddy in this losing aftermath. And another Tech man, the former captain Taz Anderson, sent this e-mail 18 minutes after the final whistle: “Tonight you saw a great football coach take a group that has little talent and keep them in a game where they were clearly overmatched.”
OK, I know what (some of) you Bulldogs are saying to that: “They’re Techies and they lost– who cares what they think?” And under other circumstances I might agree. But after this wild night I’d suggest both sides saw the same game, which is to say an on-paper mismatch that became an on-field white-knuckler. And I’d also ask this: When was the last time Georgia’s coach worked a game that good?
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791 comments Add your comment
meh
November 29th, 2010
8:53 am
just because Tech ran the same play over and over again and Georgia couldn’t stop it doesn’t make CPJ a good coach. I think the credit has to go to Anthony Allen for getting good yardage out of each run.
Chuck Allison
November 29th, 2010
8:57 am
Sorry, Mark, but Tech fans don’t want or need any feelgood “good loss” articles. CPJ needs to feel the pressure and man up to do his job. We can find another loser for less than 2 1/2 million per year. He has to get the good recruits, motivate, and select recruits who are disciplined and coachable.
Sea Island Dawg
November 29th, 2010
8:57 am
I watched the Tech game from my house overlooking the ocean. I love being a very rich BullDog.
The Chokemeister
November 29th, 2010
8:58 am
411 yards? Really?
Embarrassed Dog.....
November 29th, 2010
8:59 am
Richt should continue to be ashamed. First, the Tech game…poorly coached again, crappy defense, and the TD at the end of the game instead of running out the clock…Richt was caught off guard by that gambit???? Story of the whole year…no imagination from coaches…same ol’ staleness. Then the 6 “wins”…. 3 against the dregs of the SEC, 2 high school teams, and one against a worn out Ga Tech…have some dignity and turn down the Toilet Bowl that will be offered…… unless it gives us a chance for another loss and a yet another reason to fire CMR!
Bob Leblah
November 29th, 2010
8:59 am
At least Tech fans know their place. Staying within 8 of UGA is a victory for them.
Sea Island Dawg
November 29th, 2010
9:00 am
To all you anti- Georgia Bulldog peasents, please quit blogging unless you’re as rich as I am.
About that scoring streak… | Get The Picture
November 29th, 2010
9:00 am
[...] against Tech and pushing that lead back out to fourteen would have made a difference. For all Mark Bradley’s chirping about it, Paul Johnson’s decision to waive Washaun Ealey in to the end zone wasn’t that [...]
GT77
November 29th, 2010
9:01 am
I have been a Tech fan since the 50’s and I don’t drink the Johnson Koolaid…MB couldn’t be more wrong. Johnson’s teams play no defense, have weak sp teams…can’t pass at all. They only run the ball well against less than avg teams like UGA. By the time he finishes recruiting players for his system we won’t have any bonafide Div 1 athletes left. Look at the incoming class…ouch. The future is here and it’s not going to get any better. He has turned us into Annapolis South. I think I am going to puke
Eric
November 29th, 2010
9:02 am
Paul Johnson’s core strategic decision, to run the triple option, is not considered smart. No NFL team runs it. Why? If your #1 QB gets injured runnign the ball, your season’s over.
Johnson played the low probability “option”. And got burned by using YET ANOTHER low probability strategy.
Eric
November 29th, 2010
9:03 am
Johnson chose strategically, to run a triple option.
NFL teams don’t run this offense, because the #1 QB is likely to get injured.
Johnson’s #1 QB got injured.
Due to poor strategy.
professor
November 29th, 2010
9:09 am
Who cares about ajgreen——if thats all you have on a team I think somewhere somebody ate too many mushrooms. You gotta get more speed on your team and harder hitting players—–in general—not just one or two.
Jim from Roswell
November 29th, 2010
9:11 am
Tech is giddy at 6-6 and UGA is angry about being 6-6. That about sums it up.
Falcsfan10
November 29th, 2010
9:12 am
If I’m Oregon in the Championship game I take out Cam Newton somehow. Hit him in the knees or whatever. Auburn is worse than UGA offensively without Cam Newton.
BirdDog
November 29th, 2010
9:20 am
Every coach that faces UGA knows to do the same thing: Run the ball up the middle, right at the UGA defense. They haven’t stopped it all year. So, please tell me why that makes CPJ a genius? If UGA cannot get some big, dominating guys on the D line they will not be any better next year. What’s the deal with Geathers? Is he just dumb or something?
Gdawg
November 29th, 2010
9:22 am
Todd Grantham sucks out loud. How many DC do you know that makes $750K annually that gives up 411 yards rushing to a depleted 6 and 6 team with a backup quarterback. I am disgusted and I am not looking forward to next year. It’s time for change in Athens. Mr. McGarity it is time for you to do your job, as Richt has already said that no changes are imminent, thus you must make them for him.
UGA wins...AGAIN
November 29th, 2010
9:24 am
If he was so genius why did he throw the ball on BOTH of their last possesions when they’d run on us at will? Heck, they could have run it the length of the field in a minute. I’m glad the Nerds keep their “genius” coach and his gimmick offense.
Junior Samples
November 29th, 2010
9:24 am
Message to Saint Simons: ((((((((((42-34)))))))))) hehehehehehehe
wiseoldawg
November 29th, 2010
9:28 am
The state of Alabama doesn’t have it’s foot on the neck of UGA, they just have deeper pockets.
UGA wins...AGAIN
November 29th, 2010
9:29 am
and their fan base is ecstatic that they hung in there with the worst UGA team in years. Good job GT…you’re making great progress. Bahahahaha!!!
BirdDog
November 29th, 2010
9:31 am
And I’d also ask this: When was the last time Georgia’s coach worked a game that good?
MB, I’d say 1 year ago when UGA beat GT who was ranked #7 in the Nation and UGA was 6-5 at the time. Stupid question.
Jim
November 29th, 2010
9:32 am
Georgia won AGAIN, period!
fatboyslim
November 29th, 2010
9:34 am
Fire Van Halanger! He has these guys 9 mths out of the year. Our top 10 recruiting classes flat line when they get here. Other teams know they are stronger and tougher and have said as much multiple times this year. Van Halanger needs to go!!!!
high school offense
November 29th, 2010
9:35 am
*****Tech 2010 Goals(prioritized)******
1. Beat Georgia – No
2. National Champs – No
3. BCS Bowl – No
4. ACC Title – No
5. 10 win season – No
6. Nesbitt for Heisman – No(is that site still up)
7. Winning season – tbd
CPJ is a genius
longtimedawgfan
November 29th, 2010
9:38 am
what if Johnson had coached that well against the other 5 teams that beat him?
truth is, neither staff has gotten the most from ALL their talent….and, by the way, we need a running back in the worst kind of way…
high school offense
November 29th, 2010
9:40 am
run left, run right, run middle……when all else fails…run left again..or middle…or right
However, if run left, right or middle succeeds…try passing
CPJ is a genius
Billy Lothridge loves Billy Martin
November 29th, 2010
9:41 am
Neither Lothridge, nor Martin ( GT early 60s heroes of mine ) played in the GT/UGA game. For UGA, Catfish Miller nor Theron Sapp played for them. I could go on but will not. How about McWorter? He was UGA first all american player, back in the 20s.
My point? To argue that if so and so had played, is as DUMB as suggesting that one school lost because these old time heroes did not play. Nesbitt did not play and neither did Aaron Murray or Kris Durham, or AJ LAST year. UGA ALSO WON in 2009.
Dumb is CPJ. He must think that he is very strategic with his math …………..that is “8 is better than 1″, as far as a winning UGA margin. AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHHAHAHAHHAHA
9-1 over 10 and UGA looks forward to playing again in our second most favorite stadium …Grant Field.
UGA class of 71 & 73
SECWasteManagement
November 29th, 2010
9:42 am
Bradley with another head scratcher.
Gr8 Dawg
November 29th, 2010
9:42 am
SIC’EM!!!!
Laces Out Finkle
November 29th, 2010
9:43 am
Monday Morning and I still haven’t stopped laughing
42-34
BBBUUUUUHHHHHUUUWWWWAAHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAA
Nice Triple Joke – The prefect option- BUHHUUUUHHUUUUUUUWWWWWAAHHHHHAAAAAAA
The triple option is a bigger joke than Nesbitt for Heisman
The looks on the dorks faces in the crowd when the extra point was shanked was great
Reminded me of the douches with the “Kentucky, Really Kentucky?” signs last year who cried on camere then retreated to the local comic book store for a round of D&D when we whipped you last year
61-39-5
BBWWWWAAAAAAHHHHHAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
I can’t wait for the Dawgs to humiliate you in Basketball too – Again
Dbalcer
November 29th, 2010
9:44 am
I don’t know if I would call it better coaching since the results were a loss. If they had won yes it would have been the thing to do but he gambled and they lost. The DAWGS won and the W is what matters.
The Grinch
November 29th, 2010
9:46 am
Mark Bradley said “Tech people walked away from that game feeling good about themselves”. I’m glad the jacket fans are so happy with how things worked out, but what a difference a year makes. Last year:
1. CPJ said he wasn’t concerned about the loss to UGA.
2. CPJ said he WAS concerned about winning championships.
3. Many tech supporters posted sarcastic comments about UGA playing in an insignificant bowl like the one played in Shreveport.
BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!
The Grinch
November 29th, 2010
9:48 am
In all seriousness, if tech’s fortunes rest on the QB you played Saturday night then you’re screwed next year as well. My middle school daughter throws a football better than that guy.
The Grinch
November 29th, 2010
9:49 am
Hey Mark, what’s the difference between a loss and a “canny” loss?
46-40
November 29th, 2010
9:49 am
MrCFB says: “Could Auburn lose to South Carolina and STILL get to the SEC championship game?”
PRICELESS…
What a goob..
Blue Turf Committee
November 29th, 2010
9:50 am
Nerds,
So glad to have you back on our beautiful blue turf. Our boys are going to kick you girlie men up and down the field. You will be beaten like a rented mule…….
The Grinch
November 29th, 2010
9:51 am
46-40
November 29th, 2010
9:49 am
I wonder if Les Miles is trying to find a way for a 2 loss team who isn’t playing in the conference championship game to get in the BCS National Championship game?
Canny Loss
November 29th, 2010
9:52 am
MB is right….it is a canny loss. UGA fans expect to beat the geeks every year. If not then it is an “uncanny” loss for the Dawgs.
46-40
November 29th, 2010
9:52 am
BOTTOM LINE: RECORD BOOKS WILL SHOW 42-34.
GOOD DAY.
Eric
November 29th, 2010
9:53 am
Mark-
good questions for someone to ask Paul Johnson:
1) You elected to go for it on 4th down, in easy field goal position, you lost by 3 points. In hindsight, was that the best move?
1 for 3 on 4th downs. Do you have common sense?
2) Did your team anticipate Houston well? You first ran a pitch to his side, and got burned for 6. Then you go back to his side for a pass, and burned with an interception that ends the game. Why go against their #1 defender twice?
3) Do you think you abandoned the run too quickly at the end of the game, considering the ineffectiveness of your passing game?
4) Bet you wish you had 3 timeouts at the end of the game, huh Coach? Why did you burn them all so early–poor planning or lack of foresight?
5) You get criticsized for the triple option. No one runs it in the NFL. And Nesbitt gets injured. Did you make a wrong strategic move in going with the triple option scheme?
6) Did you practice ball protection? Your RB’s had 4 fumbles?
7) Did you practice fumble recovery? Your RB’s had 4 fumbles and lost 3?
9) Points off turnovers. You got none. Georgia got 21. Why?
NERDS
November 29th, 2010
9:53 am
((((((((((((((((42-34))))))))))))))))
Tickly Pile
November 29th, 2010
9:53 am
The pile is going to be cold in Boise…..can we get some seat warmers so our bums are nice and toasty?
collegeballfan
November 29th, 2010
9:54 am
“When was the last time Georgia’s coach worked a game that good?”
Richt at Tennessee in Greene’s first year.
Eric
November 29th, 2010
9:56 am
Here’s another one:
Coach, you got 500 yards, controlled the clock for 38 minutes, got 3 turnovers from Georgia, and went up against a line that was depleted with 3 DL gone to the NFL, and a Freshman QB, and a brand new defense, against a 5-6 team that got beat by lowly Colorado, yet you lost by 8. How?
Steiner
November 29th, 2010
9:57 am
BARK:
THIS YOUNG QB LOOKED AS GOOD AS NESBITT….JACKETS DIDN’T DROP OFF THAT MUCH WITH HIM AT QB….OTHER THAN AJ GREEN, WHO ARE ALL THESE TALENTED GUYS UGA GOT WALKING AROUND??? JUST WONDERING WHO GEORGIA HAS THAT TILTED THE FIELD SO HEAVILY TOWARDS THE DOGS……
Dadgum.....
November 29th, 2010
9:57 am
Let me begin by saying I like Johnson’s aggressive style. Sure it can bite him in the butt however I think the balance of his time that the wins will swing in his favor. Having said that I have to say that I was shocked that he did not take an easy field goal to open the game. All points are big especially after the UGA miscue on the kickoff. Not going for the fg was worse than missing the PAT. Fourth and a foot I can understand going for it but not almost two yards. Idiocy.
GT is an error-prone offense backed up by a weak defense. Terrible combination. What we saw Sat night was what we have seen all year. I don’t subscribe to the Taz Anderson feel good society platform. You can’t have a poor defense with this offense or the offense has to be perfect. We have been neither all year.
In fact GT has lost every game this year when playing a team with a winning record. Furthermore, only UNC ended up with a winning record (barely). Our other wins need I remind anyone came against UVA, Duke, Wake, SC State, MTSU. Weakest schedule I can ever remember GT playing and we still lose 6 games. Weaker than a WAC schedule.
I think Miami said it loud and clear when they fired Shannon. The days of being also rans are not going to cut it. 7-5 is not acceptable for a national program. If GT is ever to be considered a national program I think it wise to make sure Johnson heard the message sent by Miami and adhere to the same philosophy. It is one thing to be the new coach with the strange offense and be successful early on and quite another to be successful over a larger body of work. Give CPJ two more years to implement all his own players and Grohs 3-4 defense then take another look. For me I am not convinced he can get the solid recruits which will be key.
Eric
November 29th, 2010
9:58 am
Paul Johnson had to do a LOT of STUFF WRONG, to lose this game.
Genius Johnson?
November 29th, 2010
9:59 am
Mark you are losing credibility by the minute. You are giving Johnson credit for a close loss and not giving Richt any credit for the fact that he has miraculously kept his team from quitting this year even though their record is awful? UGA has been awful at times this year in alot of phases of the game and Richt has to fix it or someone needs to get a shot. But his team has not been blown off the field by anyone (Auburn got away late). That is a sign of a coach that has not lost his team. Remember your article after the Florida game? Richt got no credit from you for a close loss to UF. The 4 turnovers by Murray was the real reason for another loss to UF, but you used that occassion to do some more Richt bashing just like you are doing now. Johnson is a genius after losing to UGA’s second worst team in the last 10 years last year (And was ranked #7 and ACC champs) and he is still a genius after losing to UGA’s worst team in the last 10 years. Really?
mohop63
November 29th, 2010
10:00 am
Mark, I generally agree with most of what you say; but this is getting ridiculous. Two days of crowning a team a victor when they LOST by whatever means or manner. Tech fans should be ashamed for celebrating as if they won. It’s a sad state of affairs for Tech when a loss is accepted as a de facto win. Wouldn’t be the same if the results were reversed. Tech lost, Georgia won, enough said.
The Grinch
November 29th, 2010
10:01 am
Beware, tech fans, more Gailey signed players have finished their careers on the flats. Pretty soon all you’ll have left is Johnson recruits.