Georgia Tech’s new coach: Unsexy-yet-solid Brian Gregory
Talkin' 'bout the new man in town: B.G. of GT (AP photo)
On Friday night Georgia Tech denied it had made an offer to Dayton’s Brian Gregory. By Monday morning Tech apparently had. The Dayton Daily News reports that Gregory has accepted the job.
And I know what you’re saying: This isn’t the sexy hire. This is actually the anti-sexy hire. Gregory is neither hot not particularly young. (He’s 44.) His teams haven’t made the NCAA tournament since 2009. But sizzle is no longer the issue. The question now: Can the guy coach?
The answer: Yeah. He did good work — not great work, but good — at a mid-major that takes roundball very seriously. (Check back and you’ll note that the Dayton Flyers were the NCAA runners-up in 1966-67, Year 1 of Lew Alcindor’s reign at UCLA.) He learned under Tom Izzo, who’s among the very best, and his teams bear that signature Izzo toughness. This is not a terrible hire by any means.
Neither, it must be said, is it a slam dunk. Gregory’s last Dayton team fell short of the NCAA tournament — it was beaten in the Atlantic 10 final by Chris Mooney’s Richmond — with a talented roster. Indeed, freshman point guard Juwan Staten had already announced he was leaving, owing to differences with Gregory. If you’re hearing sighs of “good riddance” regarding Gregory emanating from southern Ohio, there’s your reason. His last team was a relative dud. But it still went 22-14.
Gregory has a chance to make Tech a habitual winner, and that would be a departure. Not since 2005 have the Jackets had back-to-back winning seasons, which is the reason there was a job here for Gregory to take. He will bring a consistency that this program, for reasons unclear, had come to lack. Indeed, the greatest criticism of him in Dayton was that his teams played the same way all the time. After years of wild mood swings, that sort of sameness could become a blessing at the Flats.
Could the Jackets have waited on Gregg Marshall of Wichita State or even Shaka Smart of VCU? Sure, they could have. But there would have been no assurance either man would have taken this job, and to have gone deep into April without a coach would only have devalued Tech’s position. And clearly money was an issue; Tech could never have outbid North Carolina State or Oklahoma or Missouri for the last Hot Coach standing.
We’ll discuss this more as the day goes along, but for now it’s enough to say: Tech has a coach. He might not be the hottest or youngest coach around, but he’s a pro. And now the Jackets move forward.
By Mark Bradley
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266 comments Add your comment
Dollar Bill
March 28th, 2011
11:23 am
No. 21 Dayton rallies past No. 19 Georgia Tech in Puerto Rico
The Yellow Jackets (1-1) trailed the Flyers 31-22 at the half, but rallied with a string of dunks and layups by Derrick Favors and Gani Lawal.
A 3-pointer by Brian Oliver gave Georgia Tech its first lead of the second half at 49-47 and a layup by Zachery Peacock on an offensive rebound with 4:37 to play gave them a 57-50 lead.
Georgia Tech coach Paul Hewitt said Dayton’s energy was the key to its comeback.
“We had a little flow going and then we got a little frantic, gave them some life,” Hewitt said. “The turnovers really hurt us, but you have to give credit to Dayton’s energy.”
Yurtle_the_turtle
March 28th, 2011
11:24 am
I hope so….nothing in this hire is “sexy”. Gregory’s resume eerily mirrors that of Hewitt, with criticism’s like “players not being coached up in their years at Dayton, a good recruiter, a bunch of 7th or 8th place finishes in the conference, only 2 NCAA Tournament appearences in 8 years, and under-achieving team…Ouch! This may be the “poor man’s” version of Hewitt! Double Ouch!
IL Jacket
March 28th, 2011
11:25 am
Welcome to the Flats, Coach Gregory. We are all wishing you the best of success as Tech’s new coach. Go Jackets!!!
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
11:27 am
Solid hire. Not a Calipari or a Pearl. Hopefully won’t pursue the prima donna one-and-done, AAU-pimped “me” players.
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
11:28 am
@tech guy
Here is the difference…DRAD came out in public and LIED!! He told GT fans that money WAS NOT an issue!!! He said the hewitt buyout won’t effect a new coach! He said we can hire an ELITE COACH! False!!!
A) Gregory is not elite!
B) Don’t tell GT fans one thing and we come to find out it was simply not true!
C) It’s clear that hewitts buyout has crippled us indeed but where were our alums and boosters at the end of the day?
Look, i can’t believe bradley writes an article claiming this is a strong hire because of izzo!? Gregory isn’t izzo no more than pippen was jordan! Mark, the validity here is gregorys own record and less about what coaching tree he came from! Look at his record, STRONG does not go behind his accomplishments mark! You lose that argument all day! You act like he might win at GT but half of his wins at dayton were vs inferior teams. That BS goes out the window in the ACC!
Gary williams, coach k, roy williams and hamilton will all clean gregory clock as this guy is nothing more than a bottom feeder from the atlantic 10. Even the damn dayton fans are excited today! Pitiful
Wesley Chandler
March 28th, 2011
11:29 am
Mark,
Will Neal or Price be asst. coaches?
Mark Bradley
March 28th, 2011
11:30 am
Who would you have hired, UGA Really?
T3
March 28th, 2011
11:30 am
Bill Curry is among the highest caliber individuals anywhere.
However, he had ZERO “BUSINESS” experience.
GT needed a SERIOUS “business” guy as AD.
Curry, for all his outstanding qualities wasnt that.
Mark Bradley
March 28th, 2011
11:30 am
I can’t imagine Neal will be, Wesley. Don’t know about Price.
Buzz me
March 28th, 2011
11:37 am
Wes just interviewed the guy who announces the Dayton games and he had high praise for Gregory. Said the first thing he did when he got Dayton job was reach out to former Dayton player to get them back in the fold and involved in the program. Let’s see if he reaches out to MArk Pricve, Kenny and D Scott. If he does, this could work
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
11:37 am
Remember friday that GT put out that basically the gregory thing was not true because it was so unpopular with the fans? They took the time to put out a statement. What makes them think GT fans would be anymore pleased with gregory on monday? The announcement on friday was greeted in the same fashion by which we would all treat mr hanky as we would flush him down the toilet.
They come out and deny it then hire him monday? Like i said, we punted on 2nd down here. Nobody is after this clown and we could have down better than this without question.
JM
March 28th, 2011
11:40 am
Most acket fans would be thrilled if a 22-14 season was considered a “relative dud”
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
11:40 am
Which “elite” coaches have their names in play for new jobs?
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
11:44 am
Boo-hoo. I wanted Thad Matta. Why didn’t Tech get Thad Matta? He’s elite. Woe is me!
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
11:45 am
@ mark
Why not look at dave rose at BYU who we could afford? Did we even look his direction? Why not wait until Wichita st is knocked out and shaka smart as well. Look, it doesn’t mean either of them come to GT but you can’t rush into this either! You do understand what punting on 2nd down means mark? How can you argue that GT didn’t panic? Why did they tell the press that money was not an issue and that we can hire an ELITE COACH? Would you call BG ELITE?
My point is that we could have WAITED a little longer and if drad felt we were striking out everywhere,he could hire BG anytime! Mark, who was gonna swoop in and take BG from gt IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS??NOBODY! We could have done batter than this and DRAD mislead the GT fan base also.
jojo sunshine
March 28th, 2011
11:46 am
Not excited. Wanted Brad Stevens for 3 years now. Have the opportunity to at least ask and we…don’t ask. Wow. I will get on board, but I am not excited. I hope this huy can turn me around and help me see why he was hired. I will remain hopeful until hope is lost.
Skeezix
March 28th, 2011
11:48 am
Huh? I am underwhelmed and disappointed. It’s like they went for the quickest option available. Look for Tech to end up having a season next year like Wake did this year.
Y3ll0wjacket
March 28th, 2011
11:48 am
Not sure about this hire, but willing to wait and see. I’m pretty confident that the other coaches being mentioned weren’t/aren’t as interested in Tech as we all seem to think they should be. Recruiting may be all that matters.
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
11:51 am
Call Brad Steven’ agent’s phone number. The message says, “Press the # sign if you’d like to speak to Coach Stevens with a job offer.” Click-click. “Goodbye.”
flyers
March 28th, 2011
11:51 am
HAHAHAHA you can have him! I’m a freshman at UD and I already know he’s worthless. No one here likes him and he hasn’t done anything for the team or the school. This is a down grade to say the least. But hey, maybe he can help you guys out to be a mediocre team like us. That’s what he’s good at.
GT
March 28th, 2011
11:51 am
Yes, but can he beat Kennesaw State?
Flyer Fan
March 28th, 2011
11:52 am
You got yourself a great man and a very good basketball coach. As a UD fan, I’m very sad to see him go (much sadder to see him go then I was to see Oliver Purnell go). BG recruits well. His teams will always play hard, play good to great defense and be one of the best rebounding teams in the country. He brought the first NCAA win to UD in 19 years. It’s not easy to win at Dayton. Don’t listen to the Flyer fans bashing him. They are too unrealistic in their expectations. They expect Dayton to be Xavier, Butler and Gonzaga. UD is not those programs and probably will never be. Oregon and Iowa wanted BG within the past couple of years. I’m sad to see him go and it worries me as a UD fan. He’ll be hard to replace. You guys will be consistently in the NCAA tourney or on the bubble once he gets his guys in there. Georgia Tech will be just fine.
UD Fan
March 28th, 2011
11:54 am
Thank you Georgia Tech!!!
NoDawgsAllowed
March 28th, 2011
11:55 am
So we’ve hired someone who has developed a reputation for failing to develop players and for tanking in conference play. It’s hard not to wonder why they didn’t just keep the last guy with those problem & save the cash. Given the miserable failure of the Coach Paul Useless era It would have been virtually impossible to make a lateral switch … darned if DR didn’t manage to pull it off.
The most interesting thing about GT athletics at this point (other than the women’s basketball team success) is wondering who the new AD will be. With this hire, hope for the current one is all but doused afaic.
GT Dude
March 28th, 2011
11:55 am
This dude is OK with the hire…
He has statistically a better coach than Hewitt and appears to be a disciplinary which is what we need for the players on this team
GT Dude
March 28th, 2011
11:57 am
Oh and by the way
I would love to have an off year with 22 wins!!!
Veteran Fan
March 28th, 2011
11:57 am
Good coach, good program, good pedigree, Good Hire! This coach will work hard and put a tough competitive team on the floor every night! That is all this grad and soon to be season ticket holder is asking! This is why we stopped going to the games, Coach Hewitt’s teams did not compete every night! No, he doesn’t have to win the conference every year, just compete hard and when he has a good team don’t throw it away! We will be at every game next season and look for all true Tech basketball fans to join us!
UD91
March 28th, 2011
11:58 am
Hey Flyer Fan, why can’t Dayton be a Xavier?
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
12:01 pm
@Delbert
Ask DRAD in reference to who was elite, those were HIS words…not mine! I assume any coach that was not a bottom feeder in his career could be more elite than BG! Woe as you eh? That will be the rally cry when you enjoy watching GT not make the NCAA tournament and getting thumped around the ACC under this guy as we did with hewitt! You don’t seem concerned but maybe you were a hewitt homer to begin with. You seem delusional IMO. If we wanted a guy who could recruit well, not make the NCAA often, run a clean program, finish near the bottom of conference play…why fire hewitt then smart guy? Hewitt did that for us! Look at these records in the mirror between the 2 and i see a twin! If you disagree, write something with substance behind to back it up pal.
2 ncaa berths in 8 years of coaching? Hewitt did better than that! Hewitt put more into the NBA as well! How does this hire excite GT fans gomer…i mean delbert pyle?
Coach K and Roy Williams
March 28th, 2011
12:02 pm
Great!! Now we can count on easy wins at both Wake and Ga. Tech.
Veteran Fan
March 28th, 2011
12:04 pm
Good coach, competitive teams, and a good pedigree, Good Hire! We will be at every game next season and expect all true Tech basketball fans to be there! Watch him be above 500 his first season with the same players that Coach Hewitt had! He will bring toughness, rebounding, and competitive fire to our program and we will compete every night! No we did not want cheaters like Calipari, Pearl, and Sampson!
Hayseed Dixie
March 28th, 2011
12:05 pm
The bottom line with Hewitt: there was no incentive for him to do well.
You could argue there was a greater incentive for him to get fired. You actually could, with 7 million reasons.
I hope you guys have learned that *incentive* plays as big a part in this as anything.
What’s Gregory’s incentive? What’s obvious is being competitive against Williams and K.
As far as the contract? As far as his *personal* incentive? I don’t know. But I’m willing to give D Rad the benefit of the doubt.
Mark: between Bill Campbell and Dave Braine- those two jokers left a swath of destruction in our fair city, didn’t they?
UD fan in ATL
March 28th, 2011
12:06 pm
I grew up in Dayton and have followed UD Basketball since the 70’s, the last 20 years while living in ATL. It was time for BG to move on. He can recruit with the best of them, but teams finished in the middle of the pack in A-10 play. Tech fans, sound familiar?
gte
March 28th, 2011
12:08 pm
why do the Delberts of the world as well as Jacket2011 and Full MetalJacket constantly on all these AJC blogs guarding all post and condemning all those that oppose them? Why not just make your points and get off and shut up.
No, you 3 cannot because you are cyber bullies. And not one of you could possibly attend any games even if they were in your backyards because you have to be on these blogs 24/7 in case someone says something that doesn’t agree with you people.
Guess this is your new profession. Makes you feel good about yourselves.
Nothing against Gregory even though most of the Dayton people seem estactic he is leaving, but why you 3 would bash Mark Price is beyond me. What did he do to any of you? Sorry bunch of losers
mrb
March 28th, 2011
12:11 pm
@Tech Guy-
First of all, “hot coaches” are over rated. I’m impressed by the run VCU is on, but does that mean Shaka Smart is the next great coach? Hardly!
Second, I love Bill Curry, but give me a break. Given that Bill Curry had zero administrative experience, I think it’s safe to say Tech would be in far worse shape were he our AD. You do realize it was the previous AD, not DRad, that signed the Gailey and Hewitt contracts, right?
Finally, and this is for all my delusional Tech friends, get off the Brad Stevens thing. Even if we had the kind of money it would take, he wasn’t leaving Butler for Tech. He may not ever leave Butler. Why would he? If he does leave, it will be to one of the traditional basketball powerhouses, probably in the mid west.
Come in off the ledge, folks. Get on board and let’s give the man a chance.
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
12:13 pm
You guys will be consistently in the NCAA tourney or on the bubble once he gets his guys in there
Dayton fan, this is not the standard ACC teams HOPE for in reference to being a bubble team! We always have talent at GT and have for many years! We had 2 1st round picks last year and ask me how many ACC road wins we had with them?
BG guys won’t be anymore stronger than what hewitt got as hewitt did recruit but couldn’t coach X and o’s! How can you say BG will lead us to the NCAA tourney but took you only twice and he did bring in some talent there i know! The record doesn’t match the verbiage that you are using to be honest. Sorry, finishing near the bottom of a conference that is much weaker than the ACC top to bottom, doesn’t excite me! Why are so many in your fan base excited he is leaving for GT on your Dayton rivals board? Man, they are living it up like the prince song 1999 all over again!! Given what he has accomplished, losing 2 top recruits as well, i could see why Dayton fans want him out. You remind me more of Hewitt fan on our blogs. BG is garbage man, sorry.
Mark Bradley
March 28th, 2011
12:15 pm
I get caught up in the “hot coach” thing, too. But let’s ask ourselves: How’d Todd Lickliter — he was the Butler coach before Brad Stevens — do at Iowa? How did Dan Monson — he was the Gonzaga man before Mark Few — do at Minnesota?
Peyton
March 28th, 2011
12:22 pm
I can’t tell the future, but this looks like a horrible decision, because DRad’s first goal should have been to energize the fanbase. With this hire, he’s done the exact opposite of that. Craig Neal would have done that, and I have no doubt that he would have recruited well too. Craig Neal hasn’t had an opportunity to prove he is a great head coach or even a good one, but why not give that opportunity to a beloved alumni rather than hiring a guy who has already proven he is mediocre?
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
12:23 pm
gte – Didn’t you detect even a little bit of sarcasm in my “boo-hoo” post? Okay, to the point: Who were the big-time coaches that were interested in making a move? Boeheim? Barnes? Dixon? Turgeon? Huggins? Calhoun? Forget about the $3 million+ guys. I think “elite” in Drad’s context meant guys who have a record of solid performance and would be a good fit. Ergo, the ones who were on his list.
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
12:27 pm
As to the anti-Price and “cyber-bully” comments against me, this is my final post on MB’s blog last night:
Delbert D.
March 28th, 2011
12:11 am
Neal-Price; I think it could happen. Price is not just window dressing. He has been committed to basketball for a long time, especially in player skills *and* character development.
I’m checking out for tonight, ‘bye all.
UGA REALLY STANDS FOR JOE DIRT
March 28th, 2011
12:29 pm
@ UD FAN IN ATL
You are right man! Any dumb a** can just look at the record it self and should conclude if they had more than mush between their ears…that BG is a terrible hire period! Heck, we got a journalist who things it’s a strong hire and some even with the proof staring them in the face, can’t comprehend that he has been near the bottom every year in conference play. Also, look at many of the inferior teams whom he has a large amount of wins against! He clearly can beat the cup cakes but struggles vs better competition without a doubt. There isn’t 1 solid post any GT fan can post to suggest that BG is much different than what Hewitt did at GT! It defies logic because once you look at how similar both coaches are and how they have failed more than breed success…you can’t deny with any legit reason.
We fired a guy who was more a bottom feeder in the ACC over the past several years to hire a guy who has been middle to bottom of a weaker conference than ours??? Drad has failed us on the “EXCITING THE FANS” claim he touted period! How stupid does he really think some of us are? I’m willing to listen if someone can explain all this in way that makes any sense.
chalkdawg4
March 28th, 2011
12:37 pm
Just heard the interview on 790 with Tom Izzo. He seems to think a lot of the guy. Ga. fan but I still support Tech as I grew up in Atlanta. Could be a good hire. Izzo says he is a hard worker with a lot of good ideas. At least is is a change.
headley lamar
March 28th, 2011
12:37 pm
http://www.ajc.com/news/atlanta/tech-baseball-player-skole-856270.html
Why is Matt Skole getting a free pass???
Can you imagine if this were a UGA football player?
Has Skole even missed a game?
Peyton
March 28th, 2011
12:39 pm
Mark, I certainly understand your “hot coach” point, but how many “average” mid major coaches have had success when they get a bigger gig? I guess it would be hard to find many examples, because “average” coaches like Gregory don’t usually get a bigger gig.
GT Alum
March 28th, 2011
12:43 pm
MB, “hot coach” is one thing, but a guy with a record of success is another thing. Yes, his teams have won 20+ games the past few seasons, but against what kind of competition? The fact that Dayton’s struggled only been above .500 in conference once in the past 6 years isn’t exactly encouraging. That’s exactly the kind of thing that got Hewitt fired.
The main high point to this hire is he should be cheap and easy to fire if he doesn’t have success. Maybe this is just a short term hire until we can finish paying Chan and open the new arena and get a few years of Hewitt’s buyout paid off.
Rickster
March 28th, 2011
12:43 pm
I only got one of four of the final four. Of course that’s one more than both Mark Bradley and our esteemed president.
YoungDawg
March 28th, 2011
12:45 pm
WOW! This is not an upgrade at all! They just brought in a different guy (voice) who runs a different system. Hewitt was more successful in the mid-majors so maybe this is even a downgrade! WOW! He was crumbling under the pressure at Dayton so your hiring him to coach in the ACC & recruit against a on the rise UGA & possibly GA ST?!? WOW! Right now I’ll have to say this hire is good for the Dawgs & frankly I’m more concerned about the new GA ST HC on the recruiting trail. Just WOW! GO DAWGS!
Ted M
March 28th, 2011
12:46 pm
I don’t know anything about Brian Gregory. I hope it works out.
Good Luck Brian.
Mark, how long is his contract?
UGA=YAWN
March 28th, 2011
12:47 pm
Dude 44 is young for a head basketball coach.
souppysales
March 28th, 2011
12:52 pm
Basketball is the ulimate in SEXY sports. Just ask ESPN, Sports Illustrated and this idiot writer guy. It’s all flash and jewelry, rapp and crap.
This is why nobody in the media talks about Hockey. Its too blue collar. Its an exiciting sports but when the game is down you dont have all the fireworks surrounding it. SI hasnt had a National hockey cover in at least year!