ESPN: Tech is the second-worst at keeping in-state talent
Jonathan Dwyer: One of the exceptions who proves the rule. (AJC photo by Johnny Crawford)
One of the charms about ESPN is that the Worldwide Leader has enough correspondents to satisfy every viewpoint. Just yesterday, ESPN recruiting correspondent Jamie Newberg was lauding Georgia Tech for its success in finding prospects of lesser portfolio. But now comes LaRue Cook of ESPN the Magazine to serve as the bad cop.
Georgia Tech, Cook writes, is the nation’s second-worst program at attracting high-end in-state players. (Only Arizona keeps Tech from being No. 1.) Cook’s rationale: Over the past five years, the Jackets have landed only two of the 74 Georgia recruits ranked in ESPN’s top 150.
Wait. It gets worse.
Neither of the two — Jonathan Dwyer and Morgan Burnett — was landed by Paul Johnson and staff. Those two were signed by Chan Gailey, who last coached Tech in 2007. Only one Tech signee under Johnson, Cook writes, has cracked the ESPN 150, and that was Vad Lee of North Carolina.
More from Cook (link requires registration): “Over the last five years, Alabama and Auburn have combined for 10 blue-chip preps out of the Peach State, while Florida and Florida State have combined to sign nine.”
As has been noted a time or two in this space and others, Tech under Johnson hasn’t been shopping at the same ritzy store as do the big SEC programs — so we can’t say Cook’s findings are a shock. Still, there’s something about seeing the chilling number (2-for-74) that drives the point home. Thank goodness for Arizona, huh?
By Mark Bradley
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746 comments Add your comment
1 4 GT
February 1st, 2012
12:24 am
I will close for tonight with a hearty thank you to Mark Bradley for this wonderfully insightful HATCHET JOB of commentary on GT recruiting (you should have simply cut and pasted their story instead of wasting your valuable time coming up with you words) less than 24 hours before the beginning of NSD. THANKS MB!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wreckmaniac
February 1st, 2012
12:24 am
Thanks a lot Mark. The day before committment day ? Do you wait until your wife’s birthday to tell her she’s fat ? Thank goodness you and your UGA riff-raff are irrelevant. Georgia Tech will be fine. Go report on Young Harris or Bernau or Agnes Scott.
Wreckmaniac
February 1st, 2012
12:26 am
I know Mark, you’re just ” reporting the facts”.
1 4 GT
February 1st, 2012
12:29 am
Enter your comments here
1 4 GT
February 1st, 2012
12:33 am
Well, I too tried to thank MB but the )(*&^%$^&*()*&^*()&^%$#@$%^&*()_(*_(*&^%$^$% filters ate it. I’ll try again. Thanks for a terrific hatchet job less the 24 hours before the start of NSD. You did no journalistic research at all. Just more or less plagiarized ESPN.
Wreckmaniac
February 1st, 2012
12:39 am
Mark: You, of all people, after seeing the futility of associating recruiting with results
at UGA, should realize that this topic is meaningless. I expected more from you.
Wreckmaniac
February 1st, 2012
12:47 am
Any school that can recruit Calvin Johnson can recruit any football star. Calvin’s only problem at Tech was that his coach was Chan Gailey. In other words, A J Greene ( who abandoned his home state) can only hope to be the NFL receiver that Calvin is. Stated in another way, it is the school that recruits the player, not the coach. Does anyone agree ?
Supersize that order, mutt
February 1st, 2012
1:05 am
Wreck, to some extent, yes, but the coach still has to “sell” the school
Supersize that order, mutt
February 1st, 2012
1:50 am
Everybody should read the article about Denzel McCoy and Antonio Wilson. There is much wisdom to be gained from those two kids. THAT is what the college experience really SHOULD be about. They may have never played football, but they are probably better men for what they went through, and I bet that both are great successes in life.
A person SMART enough to know......
February 1st, 2012
4:10 am
what
Still@theKool-aidBAR
February 1st, 2012
4:11 am
me
Still@theKool-aidBAR
February 1st, 2012
4:14 am
SuperSize the MUTTs think all their players are going to the NFL. Dwag players don’t need a Degree in anything more than P.E. or Turf Management/How not to run out of dope over the weekend.
51
February 1st, 2012
4:14 am
Party
Still@theKool-aidBAR
February 1st, 2012
4:17 am
Why no FAX already rolling in? The players are wanting the CAMERAS turned on I guess. Hell, I would have faxed mine over at 12:01.
john
February 1st, 2012
5:50 am
And Mark Bradley continues to post articles to help UGA’s recruting at GT’s expense.
Same story, different year…..yawn…..
peppr
February 1st, 2012
6:41 am
Would any of you brains please tell me what teams in this country could out recruit the likes of Alabama, uga, when it comes to ga.players. Gt is in high cotton, when superman comes calling to georgia. No one could out do superman. the ones superman does not waqnt uga gets, and they get their share. TECH does ok, considering.
WnE
February 1st, 2012
6:59 am
15 pages of Responses and counting…………
Much of what is being said now was said by me back when everyone thought I was crazy back in Dec. 2007 when CPJ was hired, I talked back then how GT’s Recruiting would suffer under CPJ since he had never had to Recruit at this level before.
I talked about how his Offense would hurt us trying to Recruit OTs, QBs, WRs, and RBs.
I’m sure about the ESPN top-150 Recruits that come from Georgia, but I do know that during CPJ’s Era at GT, the State of Georgia has produced many MORE Top-50 Ga. HS Recruits that are also full Academic Qualifiers for GT.
I can remember the days of Curry & Ross where the Top-50 FB recruits in Ga. would only produce 5-10 guys that were Academically qualified for GT, and now in the Ear of CPJ it seems that 30 or so of the Top-50 every year are full Academic Qualifiers for GT.
In summary, CPJ theoretically should have an EASIER time Recruiting, but since he is so poor at Recruiting he has had a worse time than other recent GT HCs.
Most BCS-AQ-Level HCs will tell you that RECRUITING is 70-80% of what makes a HC at that level SUCCESSFUL, the PROBLEM is, is that GT /The GTAA/DRad tried to “out-gimmick” the rest of CFB when they hired a HC that they “knew” would be such a poor Recruiter in hopes that he “could do more with LESS”.
If Recruiting is 70%+ of what makes you successful at your JOB and you’re in your mid-50s and won’t likely get much better at it (Recruiting), then basically the GT FB Program is “stuck” with a poor BUSINESS MODEL that won’t allow GT to get to the level it needs to.
WnE
February 1st, 2012
7:00 am
I’m sure ….
should be:
I’m NOT sure………..
This is Georgia Tech recruiting. | Get The Picture
February 1st, 2012
7:50 am
[...] “Over the past five years, the Jackets have landed only two of the 74 Georgia recruits ranked in ESPN’s top 150.” And both of those were signed by Chan Gailey. [...]
papadawg
February 1st, 2012
8:06 am
The truth is all these recruits have the NFL dream in mind and are choosing the schools where they think the have a better chance. GT has a one demensionall offense and won’t have much of a chance with 4 or 5 star Receivers, QBs, RBs and even offensive linemen when they are only run blocking and hardly any pass protection. Well you GT guys love CPJ so it is what it is.
gt45
February 1st, 2012
8:13 am
Wonder what Newberg said? Piling on already. You are a worthless writer.
Strange Murphy
February 1st, 2012
8:13 am
Tech Lies! Tech Cheats!
gt45
February 1st, 2012
8:14 am
Your too dumb to come up with that on your own!
gt45
February 1st, 2012
8:15 am
You’re
Oscar
February 1st, 2012
8:47 am
So how did Georgia State do?
NCJACKET
February 1st, 2012
9:02 am
Yep our recruiting looks bad to some. Not very many blue chippers are true student athletes.We get good athletes who are good kids and good students. That’s what makes us good and not great. I and most other GT grads are perfectly fine with that. We have no desire to be a football factory baby sitting thugs. Thank you very much.
ForeverJacket
February 1st, 2012
9:09 am
What do you expect when you combine a top 10 public university academically with the #47 state in the nation in terms of education?
Falconnot
February 1st, 2012
9:27 am
The skinny mate is that kids dont really want to go to a system where they are running the option. It kind of deflates both sides of the ball when it comes to recruiting. CPJ has to do a better job!!!!
Hoopster
February 1st, 2012
9:59 am
Seriously, do you guys understand how flawed that study is?
YourGTBoss
February 1st, 2012
10:53 am
GT is 2nd worst in keeping in-state talent.
GT football players have the highest average SAT score in the nation among FBS public schools.
These statistics are not unrelated. But I guess it’s too much to ask a sports writer to understand that.
GT Bob is a butt
February 1st, 2012
11:55 am
tech is a c*usa team at the most
Delaware Jacket
February 1st, 2012
12:33 pm
I think we only need to look to Athens as to see how those so called “Blue Chippers” work out in the long run. It appears they have have RB that was very highly reguarded last year, what has he done?
Also lets look at the last 5 to 7 years with UGA’s top 10 recruiting classes, how many SEC championships have they produced? I know last years title game was close; well the first half any way. How many blue chippers were on the ‘90 National championship team? Did that (87, 88,89 )class even rank in the top 20.
Some of these (Cromwell) are a crapshoot, you just never know what you are going to end up with.
Delaware Jacket
February 1st, 2012
12:39 pm
Why is Bradley even writing about Football recruiting, I know Kentucky has basketball game this week!!
Mark Bradley
February 1st, 2012
12:40 pm
I believe the heralded running back Georgia signed in 2011 became the SEC freshman of the year.
Stumpknocker
February 1st, 2012
5:39 pm
It would be interesting to know how many of the ESPN top 150 can even read and write at a 5th grade level . NO problem for Ga where they always have Leisure Arts/ Housing and Basket weaving to fall back on.
Stumpknocker
February 1st, 2012
6:05 pm
Bradley, looks like you could be a little more objective with you articles. Like I mentioned before, not many of these 150 are academically suited for GT……Of those that are, only a small percentage are interested in an Engineering school…….So that leaves very few to recruit. Seems like if you were fair and unbiased you would also include how a school like Ga will sign a student so illiterate he gets stuck in Jr College for a couple of years of remedial courses just so he might be able to qualify at the University ………Bottom line is your just a “Dyed in the Wool” Dawg Homer……..Isn’t that right Bradley?
Supersize that order, mutt
February 1st, 2012
8:32 pm
Sorry I’m acting a little schizophrenic, guys. I appreciate you guys still being my friend, even when the team is playing bad. I only act tough so the Dawg fans won’t bully me over the Internet. Let’s all be good buddies, ok?
Jacket82
February 1st, 2012
9:05 pm
Its not rocket science. Georgia ranks 49th out of 50 states in education. Tech is one of the toughest academic schools in the country. Finding D-1 players who can handle the academics at Tech is like finding a needle in a haystack. CPJ is doing a great job recruiting the right kids for Tech.
Send the Yellow Jackets to a Watery Grave
February 1st, 2012
9:12 pm
Too bad the right kids can’t play football. And a shame they don’t put their GPA’s up on the scoreboard.
Gtjohn
February 1st, 2012
10:36 pm
I, for one, would rather have GTs players than UGAs and all the problems that come with the prima-donna attitudes. Just look at what they went through last year.
JacketFan
February 1st, 2012
11:12 pm
@Bradley – you can’t be serious. Crowell – ‘I gotta come out, coach” Crowell. That kid is a disgrace. How he won FOY honors over Hilliard is beyond me, but his under-1000-yard rushing season was hardly impressive. I’ll bet your pathetic salary against mine that he doesn’t last another season at U(sic)GA. I see him putting the mutts over for their 2nd Fulmer Cup this offseason.
J'boroJacket
February 2nd, 2012
5:53 pm
In related story, player signs with Auburn over Clemson because there is not ChicFila nearby. I love my Chic… as well but really, with thinking like that, I say go to Auburn. Its evident watching the signings yesterday, many are making a football decision, not a life decision. First, with all the talent that some schools sign, many 4 star players will not get to play because the competition too high on their own team. Secondly, this is as far as they are going.
Choose a school that will provide you with the best future-for school, then football.
Wal-Mart Retards
February 2nd, 2012
6:35 pm
Does Tech have a Chick-Fil-A on campus? That might be the problem!
01HAWK
February 5th, 2012
9:39 am
Almost as bad as BAMA vs. AUBARN FIGHTING……………….It can not be that serious.
Forget recruiting ............here is THE problem for GT
February 5th, 2012
11:20 am
GT did play in the 1955 Sugar Bowl. Tha sort of capped a very nice run for GT. It was not until the 1967 Orange Bowl, did GT attend abother MAJOR bowl and lost it to so so Florida. Not until the 2009 Orange Bowl did GT attend anogther major bowl and again, they lost to Iowa who has not been seen since. Iowa stomped GT in fact with GT’s first half – yards by their two Heisman Trophy boys, Dwer and Nesbitt.
My point. In 56? years GT, counting the (NOT A MAJOR BACK THEN) old 1990 Citrus Bowl and these three MAJORS, has GT seen anything beyond a Chic Fil A , Sun or Liberty or Gator or Bluebonnet, etc
Most of the uper level SEC squads, have in this same era …………….been to tons and tons of Cotton, Sugar, Orange and Rose Bowl games but nothing close for GT or most of the ACC.
THIS is why GT struggles in imparting their football message. Most 4/5 star kids want to play NFL ball, not become Electrical Engineers or Civil Engineers or Ind. Managers.
This is why GT will always have trouble recruiting stellar kids. Did not the Henry County linemman bolt to Bama along with Mr. Adams to AU?? Hmmm??
merriln hog
February 6th, 2012
9:07 am
Maybe if we could get Mark Bradley as recriting co-ordinator we would be better.