Paul Johnson on Tech’s recruiting: ‘Ask again in three years’
Tech A-back Orwin Smith: A good player, yes, but is he an impact player? (AP photo)
Some folks live to follow recruiting. Paul Johnson, who makes his living in a business tied to recruiting, isn’t among them. Here’s the Georgia Tech coach on the sport-within-a-sport:
“It’s kind of been blown out of proportion a little. Certainly [recruiting] is important, but you’ve got people hanging on every word. I think crowning a guy before he’s played a [collegiate] down is a little premature.”
I know what some of you are saying: Easy for Johnson to claim recruiting isn’t a big deal, but would he feel the same if the Rivals.com rankings were reversed? If Tech’s class were rated the nation’s seventh-best and Georgia’s the 40th-best?
Being Paul Johnson, he would. He’s a pragmatist of the first rank, and a bit of a contrarian. When asked a question, he often begins his response with, “Oh, I don’t know …” or “Not really.” He’s a football lifer who has seen pretty much everything, and one thing he knows is that, in football as in life, things aren’t always what they seem.
Johnson: “We did a study about the ACC, and it showed that more teams teams ranked in the bottom half of the conference in recruiting played in the championship game than those ranked in the top half. And yet you’ve got people ready to cut their wrists [over recruiting].”
Also: “I don’t think anyone really knows how hard a guy is going to work. Some guys have reached their peak; some guys are just scratching the surface. And people talk about ‘impact players’: A very small number of guys are ‘impact players.’ Go back to last year’s [Tech] group, where we had two guys go in the first round. [Receiver Demaryius] Thomas was redshirted as a freshman, and [defensive end] Derrick Morgan didn’t have a great freshman year. But they became playmakers.”
The issue of impact, or the lack thereof, is a Tech hot button. The Jackets plummeted from a 2009 ACC title to an Independence Bowl loss because of an apparent absence of difference-makers. Would Johnson concede that, with the famous 2007 recruiting class assembled by predecessor Chan Gailey all but gone, his program lacks top-end talent? He would not.
“As good a football player as [B-back] Johnny Dwyer was — and he was a great player, the ACC player of the year [in 2008] — he really didn’t play much as a freshman after his first four games. I just think as those kids worked, they got better.”
Gailey’s 2007 class was ranked 19th-best by Rivals, marking the only time Tech has cracked the Top 40 in the past decade. With this class at No. 40, it would seem the Jackets have done well by their standards but not quite as well as they’d have liked. Johnson’s take: “I think it’s going well, but ask me again in three years … It’s like a coach once told me: ‘They all came highly recommended.’ But you don’t know how hard they’re going to work.”
Will work alone be able to lift Tech back above .500? Or has a post-Gailey talent gap developed that Johnson — whose first three recruiting classes were rated 49th, 49th and 43rd by Rivals — has been unable to close?
Johnson: “We’ve got some good young players. We’ve redshirted some offensive linemen. [A-back] Orwin Smith made an impact; he had some big runs. And [outside linebacker] Jeremiah Attaochu had a better freshman year than Derrick Morgan. I don’t know if he’ll be as good as Derrick, but it’s possible he could be. ”
If it wasn’t an diminution of talent that led to 6-7 after 11-3, what was it? “We didn’t turn the ball over as much the year before, and we didn’t lose our quarterback [Joshua Nesbitt] … But you have to make your breaks. We did the year before, like Josh snatching the ball back at Florida State. Anytime something happened last year, it went the other way.”
That said, a coach is paid his million(s) to win games, not say, “Gee whiz.” Paul Johnson is nothing if not a results-oriented guy. But you’ll pardon him if he doesn’t see Signing Day, in this or any year, as a true result.
“You want to judge recruiting?” Johnson said. “How many games did you win? That’s the best bottom line.”
By Mark Bradley
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288 comments Add your comment
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:33 pm
tooee…tooee…if he takes that as a kids word then he should not have a problem with a kid getting a free weekend
Mike Smith
January 30th, 2011
7:35 pm
Lets face it, the idea that an odd offense like the triple option can line up with 2 star players and beat Va Tech, Miami, Georgia, FSU, etc. is a total myth. Every team that runs an odd spread type offense struggles without top talent. WVU declined badly after Pat White and Steve Slaton left. Florida did the same without Tebow, Harvin, and Cooper. Auburn struggled until Cam Newton and Michael Dyer showed up. Tech now is struggling without Dwyer, Nesbitt, and Thomas.
Sorry, but recruiting isn’t that overrated that a 40 ranked class is actually as good as a top 10 class. I agree you never know what you have got until they hit the field. Unfortunately, if you look at the teams that routinely appear at the top of the recruiting charts, you will find conference winners, BCS game winners, and national championship participants. Texas, OU, OSU, Alabama, LSU, Florida, USC, Auburn, and yes, even Georgia. Say what you want but Richt has 2 SEC titles and more BCS wins than the entire ACC conference combined.
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:36 pm
A FFFANNNNYYYY….I am sure you blogged your words of wisdom and ran…add up GA wins for the last 5 yrs… and divide it by games played you dammmmmath…expert
Atlantan
January 30th, 2011
7:36 pm
I stand correct – Ugag was the 2010 Fulmer Cup Champs! So those great recruiting classes do get the some notoriety.
ToeMeetsLeather
January 30th, 2011
7:41 pm
kral, I don’t think that would go over real well with the other 22 commits abiding by his policy.
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:42 pm
You should stand corrected..and I appreciate you mannning up..but recruiting classes is your dig….well TEX has had the best…fla also they lost 12 last year so what your point….Duke got beat soundly by ST. J…Fire coach KKKKKK Ugag is king of childish ATL
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:43 pm
king is kind
Gadawg
January 30th, 2011
7:44 pm
Recruiting them and coaching them up are obviously very different. We’ve proven that the last few years. I’ll take a Top 10 class any day….and a new coach!
FSUFalcon
January 30th, 2011
7:45 pm
Now that my beloved NOLES have an able head coach watchout…we dominated the 90s with the same type of recruits we are pulling in now…Our 90s teams would killed any tech team…Looking forward to getting a strangehold on teh ACC again…Coach, watch how the Noles run the acc again…it is done with NFL Type talent..watch and learn my boy..hahahahha
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:50 pm
well GDawg who ..who,,, who.. who,,I mean throw it out there you not what is best
ToeMeetsLeather
January 30th, 2011
7:51 pm
FSUF, the noles record against CPJ, 0-2, enough said.
TechRedNeck
January 30th, 2011
7:51 pm
Ralph; you are exactly right. It seems most of the great athletic players are a bunch of thugs. And I know I’m gonna start a ruckus but most of the big bar brawlers and future criminals end up somewhere in the SEC. And I beleive alot of coaches know that but they go after them anyway. Remember that slogan, “WIN AT ANY COST”.
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:54 pm
Let’s see QB- D. Greene signed pro…Matt S. no.1 pick in draft….AJ top draft pick…dammmmmmmmm we ain’t coaching those boys up …Moreno…
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:56 pm
So you personally know those kids neckiiee you arre amazing….wooowww!!!
kral
January 30th, 2011
7:59 pm
I do not condone any felony…but dude I got a speeding ticket 4 wks.. ago….and drank beer illegallly till I turned 18…ohhhh heelll I am a thug
northavenuealum
January 30th, 2011
8:02 pm
Rod Dangerfield I consider PJ a hypocrite because he practices hypocrisy i.e. The practice of professing beliefs, feelings, or virtues that one does not hold or possess; falseness. An act or instance of such falseness.
By that I think that Paul Johnson is a hypocrite when on the one hand he interviewed with Ga Tech while being employeed by Navy while expecting commits to not visit another school after “verbally”
commiting to Tech. A verbal commit is in no way a legally binding contract while PJ’s contract with Navy was legally binding.
Paul Johnson if he had any scruple that so many deluded PJ fans seem to think he has should have asked to be released by Navy and then interviewed with Tech. He did not do this therefor the man is a hypocrite.
Gadawg
January 30th, 2011
8:04 pm
Nope…
kral
January 30th, 2011
8:04 pm
TNR if you really believe you recruits are holier than ours…your eyes are brown…your hair is brown…and you might want to get a napkin just in case something runs out your ears…
kral
January 30th, 2011
8:09 pm
alum…I understand your thoughts at 8:02…but…
We
January 30th, 2011
8:41 pm
I feel sorry for tech with this pompous windbag. If he loses 3 more to UGA he will be gone. This guy is such a blowhard.
gadawgs
January 30th, 2011
8:45 pm
northavenuealum…You are probably the most sensible Tech fan I have come across in a very long time. You summed up what I have been saying about CPJ for the last couple of weeks ever since he pulled Jackson’s offer while trying to flip Tuitt. The man is a hypocrite.
Goldenrod
January 30th, 2011
8:50 pm
GT has passed UGA by in not only basketball but football as well, heck just last year we played in a BCS Bowl while the Leghumpers were shipped to lowly Shreveport!
Atlanta's Original Team
January 30th, 2011
8:53 pm
There is a serious amount of envy going on with certain dog fans. If you really think CPJ is so lame why not keep your mouth shut and hope he stays at Tech forever so you can “own this state” as you like to say? Otherwise, me thinks you protest too much. I swear of all the blogs I read this is the only one I know of in which half the people commenting are not even fans of Tech but simply have an obsession with hating all things Old Gold and White.
TechRedNeck
January 30th, 2011
8:59 pm
You’re not a thug. You are a KRAL! Need I say more?
Frusturated GA Tech Sports Fan
January 30th, 2011
9:07 pm
The sad truth is that GA Tech has a football coach who can coach but cannot successfully recruit at this level. Furthermore, GA Tech is basically a one dimensional running team with virtually no passing threat. The triple option worked for a few seasons, but by now the opponents have figured it out. Perhaps no emphasis on the passing game contributes to the poor recruiting.
Many more losing seasons like 2010 and Coach Johnson will have to update his resume, as he will be out of a job.
Just as unfortunate for Tech sports is that it has a basketball coach who can really recruit, but sad to say is incapable of getting these recruits to play as a cohesive team. There are way too many “one and done” players whose only objective seems to be to impress the NBA scouts with their offensive prowess. They don’t appear to care whether Tech wins or loses.
GTBob
January 30th, 2011
9:17 pm
@gadawgs, you didn’t really fall for northavenuealum/FirePaulJohnson/WrecksNEffects trap did you?
Jacketman
January 30th, 2011
10:04 pm
We need to replace CPJ. Last year was the final nail in the coffin. I am hearing we can either bring in Charlie Strong, Les Miles or (the big one) Urban Meyer. Word out of the athletic dept is that Meyer is very interested and would work for much less than he did at Florida. Mark it down!
kral
January 30th, 2011
10:44 pm
ha ha ha I left..wish i had been there for that zinger techie red..I feel so wounded.. i feel so much pain from your blog ..youu sirr aree a joke
Dennis Green
January 30th, 2011
10:46 pm
If you wanna crown em, then crown their a$$!
STEINER
January 30th, 2011
10:57 pm
No Crying:
Seems like the last time Boise State came into Georgia they went back to Idaho with their tails between their legs….Talent does matter, and now the dawgs are working the hell out of the players on a weekly basis…Joe T and his guys in the weight room will help us greatly…
roger
January 30th, 2011
11:01 pm
pj can recruit ga southern talent and navy since they had no choice where to go! He is a poor judge of talent along with a personality that no one would like to play for. Has he ever recruited and NFL player? Im sure not a hand full.
Tek's Daddy
January 30th, 2011
11:03 pm
Sounds like ol’ Triple Chins is planning another FISH FRY! Recruiting’s been blown out of proportion? What a hypocrite. He keeps pulling ’ship offers of kids that want to take advantage of a once in a lifetime situation and make visits around the country to other schools that have shown interest in them – but it’s ok for him to go after other kids committed to other schools? He needs to quit planning fish fry’s and start brewing coffee – AND SMELLING it too!
Tek's Daddy
January 30th, 2011
11:08 pm
Jacketman, put down the pipe. Ain’t any of those coaches you mentioned ever thought about coaching at a bottom tier ACC school when they’ve been at SEC schools!
rxdawg79
January 30th, 2011
11:46 pm
@GTBob: Just for the record, you might actually READ my post before commenting. I specifically wrote that I DIDN’T think that CPJ should be fired. Now, should he get fired later on down the road, as most all coaches do, it shouldn’t be over a recruiting class. As CPJ himself says, it’s all about how many wins. I would alter that slightly, though, to include not only how many, but whom. Donnan won about the same as Dooley, but couldn’t beat UF or Tech enough. Richt has done the job against Tech, but can’t close the deal on UF–it may cost him soon, Dream Team recruits or not.
1962 DAWG
January 31st, 2011
12:06 am
Say what you want about recruiting but, Alabama, past 3 years has had 2 number 1 recruiting classes. Florida has had 2 number 1 recruiting classes.
Out of those 4 years 3 National Championships have evovled.
Soneone above reemarked about UGA’s recruiting classes being in the top 10 since 2002.
We’ve finished in the top 10 several of those years too.
Recruiting does matter.
CPJ makes the 3 stars work harder. Gets more out of them,
Recruits today want to know 2 things.
1. When will i get to play??
2. When will i get to the NFL??
CPJ has a powerful offense, led the Nation in rushing. But to give an example, Anthony Allen hurt his draft stock by transfering from Louisville.
Why? At Louisville he caught more passes his freshman season than
Tech threw this season. He also was a 1000 yd RB at Louisville.
Lost a year for transfering. And now is projected as 4th or 5th round while if he had stayed at Louisville in the prostyle he would have went 2nd round probably.
Great back hope he does well at the next level,
Lots of difference in the TECH offense than the pros, lining up 3 yds back vs 7 yds back. big difference.
Kids coming in today want to play on tv for exposure and want to only play 3 years and bolt if their any good. {Stafford, Marino, Calvin Johnson} all left early,
It’s what college football has come to, very few have alliegence to their school and stay 4 years. After you start getting the big payday’s the thought’s of coming back to campus for a degree is hard to do.
Friend of mine played for the San Diego Chargers, neighbor up the street played for the Chicago Bears, neither went back and got degree’s and both have average jobs after footbal in the NFL.
should be a rule requiring a player on scholarship to graduate before entering the NFL.
$$$$$$$$$$$$$ Will never let that happen though.
College football brings in as much money as the NFL.
Read where Penn ST. took in 11 million per gameday.
University of Texas number one in revenue this season.
University of Georgia number two.
In 2009 alone UGA’s atheletic dept gave 11 million to the University to use for Acedemic scholarships.
NFL has this lockout in 2011 lots of players leaving early from college may be wanting to come back to get their degree’s.
Recruiting does matter though. just look at the past 5 championships. The year LSU won it they had 2nd rated recruiting class the year before.
Butts Wagner
January 31st, 2011
1:28 am
The recruiting is such a poor tool to use to judge a coach at GT after 3 seasons. GT is not a school that can get good recruits just because of the school it is, unlike Uga which will always recruit well. There’s only a handful of schools, 10-15, that will always recruit well due to them just having a D1 football program. They are big state schools in football rich states, like Florida, Georgia, Texas, Ohio State, Michigan, Oklahoma, LSU, Alabama, and then we can argue if there are others. Then there are the private schools that are either lucky to be where they are or have poured money into their programs, and that’s Notre Dame, USC, and Miami, and I can’t think of any others. And then there are state schools in football rich states or they have a really strong program currently, like Penn State, FSU, VT, Auburn, and maybe a few others depending on the current success of their program. Penn St, FSU, and VT got to their current level by having the same coach for many many years. This is the level GT can aspire to. Because of this, GT has to build a program rather than look at short term results. GT has to look at their head coach and know that he won’t leave and also wonder who he is hiring that will be ready to takeover when he retires. Navy kept a Paul Johnson protege and Navy is doing as well as Navy can do. Navy kept the program in tact rather than try to hire an up and comer from outside the program. Under Chan Gailey, the possible successors were Nix and Tenuta. Nix had left the year before Gailey was fired and Tenuta apparently doesn’t appeal to ADs as a head coach. The options with Gailey were to keep him or start a new program. Gailey’s recruiting had taken an uptick, and his 2008 class was in good shape to potentially be a top 25 national class. On the other hand, Gailey had lost no less than 5 games every season. The question was: Would Gailey’s increased recruiting power lead to better than 5 loss seasons? And secondly, would the increased recruiting power carry over to a Gailey staff member who would take over? Obviously, Radakovich felt that a new program was needed. Paul Johnson was a gamble because of the triple option, but Paul Johnson appeared to out coach Gailey his first two seasons. This last season is only one game worse than Gailey’s worst season. Now the questions are: Did Paul Johnson just win with Gailey’s recruits? and Would Gailey have had Johnson’s success had Gailey been allowed to stay? Unfortunately, as we saw with Gailey, it takes six years before there is a recruiting uptick at GT with a new coach. If GT changed coaches every 3 years, recruiting would likely always be in the 40-60 range nationally. The only coaches who can drastically change recruiting rankings are guys like Saban or Pete Carroll or some other big name coach and GT is likely not going be getting those coaches. For GT to be a top 20 recruiting college, it needs to hire coaches it expects to keep for 7-10+ years and expect that coach to develop a successor who will continue the program. If GT can sustain a strong program for 20-30 years, then, and only then, will GT have the power to go outside of the program for future hires and expect to continue to have strong recruiting classes. For this reason, Paul Johnson deserves, at a minimum, 2 more years before his status at GT can be evaluated. And that’s how many years it took for Gailey to have his great leap forward in recruiting.
Regarding impact players, I think Izaan Cross is an NFL prospect. Julian Burnett is an impact player, no matter how undersized he is. There is still time for Stephen Hill to blossom like he has the potential to. Orwin Smith needs to keep improving and he may become an impact player. BJ Bostic could breakout next year. Isaiah Johnson looks like the real deal. If TJ Barnes takes another step forward like he did this year, he could be a breakout star. Unfortunately, the one place that GT appears to be lacking in talent is QB, which is the one position that might define Paul Johnson. Tevin was better than I expected this year, but I don’t know if he’s capable at an ACC level for a full year. But if anyone is pining for the Chan Gailey years, let me remind you of a QB named Reggie Ball.
Bradley, Can you write an article about the success of mid-level BCS teams who kept a coach for more than 5, 6, 7 years during the past 30 years? I think that’s the blueprint for GT as opposed to the idea that a new coach will have an immediate impact, especially on recruiting. I can tell you who the outliers are: Bobby Petrino at Louisville, Butch Davis at UNC(recruiting mostly, so far), Brian Kelly at Cincinnati, and that’s about it that comes to mind. And I don’t think Petrino and Kelly were racking up the recruiting awards.
Whopper Dawg
January 31st, 2011
3:37 am
OK, I get it now -
Tech can’t pass, but that is OK. Tech can’t play defense, but that is OK. Tech doesn’t win, but that is OK. Tech can’t win a bowl game, but that is OK. Tech can’t recruit, but that is OK.
And Johnson is a genius.
To touch on recruiting specifically – you never know how a kid will turn out, but you can’t teach speed, you can’t teach size, etc, etc.
Mark Bradley`s Booster
January 31st, 2011
4:30 am
Jacketman: Are you a GT insider or you just dreaming? No way Les Miles or Urban Myer would ever coach at GT.
JASon
January 31st, 2011
5:16 am
Coach Johnson lost to a 3-9 Kansas team last year. That’s really all that needs to be said.
Jesse Stone
January 31st, 2011
6:13 am
Thanks Mark.
dawgfan
January 31st, 2011
6:30 am
LOL. More cowboy John Wayne tough talk out of Paul Johnson. It just all sounds so silly after a 6-7 season. Wasn’t this clown giving us the usual Techie excuse a couple of years ago about how his joke program can’t recruit like “the other state school”? I’m pretty sure he was. Now that he’s looking down the barrell of another underwhelming recruiting class recruiting isn’t such a big deal? LMAO @ this flip flopper.
This guy fits right in at Tech. Is just as full of **** as his fans. Unbelievable.
Relax everybody – A word on recruiting « Jean Shorts Torture
January 31st, 2011
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[...] a guy before he’s played a [collegiate] down is a little premature.” -Paul Johnson (via Mark Bradley of the [...]
Nutt cutting time, and other recruiting tales of woe | Get The Picture
January 31st, 2011
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[...] Georgia Tech just lost its fourth recruit in less than two weeks (by the way, nice timing with this puff piece, Mark Bradley) when defensive end Trey Rollins switched his verbal commitment to Arkansas. In [...]
J and J
January 31st, 2011
7:24 am
I have a very important announcement: FISH FRY [jump into the pool...splash]
Stopped Clock
January 31st, 2011
7:26 am
PJ will not be here in three years. Typical AJC defense of a bad hire. You can’t make a silk purse out of a cow’s ear. No one wants to play this type of offense
Hal
January 31st, 2011
7:53 am
What upsets most Tech Fans is Tech can win the ACC and it means nothing to the states top recruits. Why don’t you do an article from the other side. After signing day ask the top 5 recruits on the AJC list why Tech wasn’t on their list. Tech is not even in contention for these players and we are suposed to be concentrating on recruting in our home state. Its hard for fans who watched Dwyer run up and down every field he was on and wonder why a top rated back would not want to play for an offense like Tech’s.
jfreak13713
January 31st, 2011
8:13 am
Johnson will spin recruiting because he knows with his offense I will not be able to get top recruits to come play for him. I have no problem with Johnson and love his offense when it works but I have doubts it can work in the ACC or on a national level because he won’t be able to get good enough players to execute against college very best. Sorry Coach but recruiting will be an issues for you whether you believe it or not. You have not won with your players, yet?
Jesse Stone
January 31st, 2011
8:16 am
GTBob: You might have fallen for the gadawgs/northavenue alum/FirePaulJohnson?WrexNEffex trap
black bee
January 31st, 2011
8:45 am
This recruiting year was brutal for GT! But some at Tech will try and make a positive spin on it or declare everyone else don’t know what they are talking about. The whole recruiting program needs to be looked at with a fine tooth comb. Tech has to recruit a larger National area, have more of a presence with touching States, especially Florida. Some Tech people say that Ga. has more then enough prospects, that is true but when you only get 4-5 of the Top 50 kids in the State then is this working for you? CPJ has to stop being so stubborn, examine this no vist policy, create a lil more splash into the offense. Redcruiting won’t get easier in Ga. with evrybody recruitng here now. To cure a problem you have to admit there isd a problem and then correct iot. CPJ impressed me as a man who wouldn’t go down without a fight. Now he seems to be an ole man to set in his ways, too stubborn to look at change.
Pauly
January 31st, 2011
8:55 am
Thank you for not writing “stylized offense.”