Archive for January, 2010

Any reader who is confused by my title should check out Tony Barnart’s AJC blog from January 11.

http://blogs.ajc.com/barnhart-college-football/2010/01/11/images-of-a-season-well-never-forget/

I debated writing a rebuttal, but this is a GT fan blog…and I’ve been chewing on it for a few weeks now.

And sometimes things just have to be said…

With all due respect, I think Tony really missed the boat on the 2009 season.  This is especially the case when you consider the hometown Yellow Jackets.  This wasn’t just another winning season for Georgia Tech…it was a conference championship, BCS bowl season that included a ton of high drama and compelling storylines!  But nothing rated a mention on his 2009 memory lane blog post…

Not that I would expect all or most of the following suggestions to make someone’s list, but at least one might have let us GT fans know that Tony was paying attention to something other than Bama, Florida, or the SEC in general.  I mean…we’re in Atlanta …

Continue reading “Images” from the 2009 Season? »

I have some thoughts on the Al Groh hire which I’ll post up in another blog.  (I think its a great hire for a variety of reasons.)

UNC ramped up the pressure in the second half, outscoring the Jackets 43-31 and at one point completely erasing a nearly 20 point lead to take control with under two minutes left.

But the Jacket dug deep and answered the challenge, hitting free throws and playing just enough defense (without fouling) to regain the advantage and a 73-71 win.

At times, the Jackets seemed to lose focus on offense with Shumpert or Peacock trying to play 1-on-1 basketball to get points.  Combined with UNC’s Will Graves suddenly finding his three point range, it very nearly cost the Jackets their first win at UNC since…oh…about 1996.

In the end, Shumpert’s 30 points and 6 assists combined with Lawal’s double double (12 points, 12 rebounds) to secure a rare gut check win for the Jackets.

If the Jackets can continue to play like they did today, this team can be fun to …

Continue reading Jackets Blow Lead, Hold On To Beat UNC 73-71 »

Today’s game against Duke was the first time I’ve sat down and watched a complete hoops game this season.

It seems like I picked a good time to start eh?  The Jackets defeated the hated Dookies 71-67.

You might ask me…”How does a team lose to UGA on Tuesday night and beat Duke on Saturday afternoon?”

Well…my response at this point in the season would be, “Coaching…or lack of it.”

Any team that is skilled enough to beat Duke is skilled enough to beat a UGA team that may not even have a full roster of scholarship players.

So what happened against Duke?

Its simple…defensive hustle for 40 minutes and getting to the free throw line enough times to hit 22 of 28 attempts.

Duke was held to 6 of 28 behind the arc and were out rebounded 38 to 32.  The Jackets then nailed all their free throws down the stretch to hold onto a slim lead.

The final score tilted the Jackets way in spite of a late turnover that resulted from the fact that the Jackets had used up all their timeouts earlier …

Continue reading Defense & Free Throws Defeat Duke »

Fourth Quarter

This one is on the offense and on Paul Johnson for waiting until halftime to make any adjustments.

The defense played their hearts out in the second and third quarters, but buckled late in the fourth because the offense couldn’t stay on the field in the fourth.

The game was always within reach, until the very end…the offense just couldn’t reach out and take it.

And yes…kudos to the Iowa defense…its was as good as advertised.

Third Quarter

Johnson has made some obvious changes offensively and we are moving the ball finally.  The missed FG may hurt, but at least we are showing signs of life.

Defense played well again.  Only surrendered three points in the past two quarters.  If they can continue to gut it out, we have a chance to make this very interesting at the end…

Penalties are killing us though.  Gotta cut those out.

Half Time

The defense is actually keeping the Jackets in this game at this point.  To Wommack’s credit, the D locked down in the second …

Continue reading Orange Bowl Thoughts: Blame it on the O »