Georgia Tech: Ramblin' On

Apologies for the late blog…spent the weekend down in Tampa with family…only my second missed home game in about a decade but well worth it.

The Good

• The Jackets are working off a three game win streak now…Clemson would make four.
• 42 points, 415 yards of offense (340 on the ground), and nearly 33 minutes of possession by the GT offense.
• Nesbitt looked good on most of his throws against the Blue Raiders and his backups played the entire fourth quarter.
• The GT defense continues to improve, allowing just 316 yards of total offense and 14 points (including a late TD against backups).
• The GT defense snagged four interceptions and two fumbles!
• The Jackets defense held MTSU to 4 of 13 on third down conversions.
• Poole punted only five times…placing four of them inside the opponent’s 20 yard line.
• Blair appeared to be booming his kickoffs…with three touchbacks on six kicks.

The Bad

• Penalties (5 for 45 yards) and fumbles (3 dropped and two lost) stalled the Tech offense at times, …

Continue reading Tech Rambles Past Raiders 42-14 »

Tech at the Half Way Point

I thought Doug’s mid season report was pretty much spot on.

• The Jackets have been able to run the ball with the a-backs taking up the slack from the b-back position.
• Scott Blair has been money on field goals.
• Tech is playing young guys at a variety of impact positions.
• The offense has stalled mostly because of fumbles and dropped passes.

I do think he missed one thing that’s important…the lack of a consistent pass rush and an ability to stop the run early in the season.

If the Jackets are going to survive the upcoming gauntlet of Clemson, Virginia Tech, and Miami the defense must continue to improve and sort out the issues that continue at both the inside and outside linebacker positions.  Nose tackle is pretty much what it is.  We have some good players there, but they’re a little under sized.  The inside linebackers have to take up the slack and the outside linebackers have to deliver more pressure.

ACC Coastal Standings down the Back Stretch

The …

Continue reading Mid-Week Thoughts & Did Richt Say That?!?! »

In a game that wasn’t as close as the score, the Jackets delivered a 33-21 Homecoming victory over the Virginia Cavaliers.

Defense Steps Up Early, Carries the Offense

The defense played great in the first half and basically carried the water for the offense as the Jackets were able to move the ball at will, but not crack the end zone.

In that first half, the Jackets had drives that ended with a bad pitch, a fumble, a failed fourth down conversion, and an interception.  Up until the very end of the second quarter, when Nesbitt dove into the endzone to cap a 59 yard TD drive, the offense was shooting itself in the foot left and right.  They were moving the ball, teasing the Jackets fans in attendence, but had nothing to really show for it except for a couple of Scott Blair field goals.  It was beginning to feel like Wake Forest all over again.

But miraculously, through all of the offensive mistakes, the Yellow Jacket defense pitched three three-n-out series plus a fourth at the …

Continue reading Jackets Dominate Hoos, Win 33-21 »

UVA & Homecoming

The Jackets and Hoos will kick off at 3:30pm EST this coming Saturday, as Tech celebrates its 2010 Homecoming.

Hopefully we’ll see a return of Paul Johnson’s offense to the Flats right along with students, fans, and alumni from across the nation.

Details on Homecoming can be found here…Forever Bold in White & Gold.

If you are able, the Ramblin’ Reck parade is highly recommended:

Ramblin’ Reck Parade
A tradition that began in 1932, the Ramblin’ Reck Parade rolls on! Be there to root for your favorite contraption and see how many make it to the finish line. Hosted by the Reck Club.
Date: October 9
Time: 8 a.m.
Location: Fowler Street

Spreading the Ball Around

On the last game winning drive against Wake Forest, Joshua Nesbitt completed passes to Tyler Melton, Roddy Jones, Stephen Hill, Orwin Smith, and Corey Earls.

That’s right…passes to five different guys in one drive.

And if you include the TD pass in the preceding drive to Embry Peeples you’re talking about …

Continue reading UVA & Tech’s 2010 Homecoming… »

According to one of the guys on the GT message boards, “Ugly doesn’t show up in the Ws and Ls.”

That’s true…thankfully.  It means we can put this game behind us and move forward at 3-2 even though there’s not much to feel good about.

I spent the first three quarters of this game wondering to myself if I might be witnessing the worst exhibition of GT football in the past decade.

On offense we couldn’t block anyone, we couldn’t run the ball, and we couldn’t catch anything.  Wake Forest defenders were in Nesbitt’s back pocket just about every snap and several catchable balls were dropped.  The offense looked lethargic and distracted.  It was obvious that something wasn’t right.

Luckily, defensively, the Jackets only had to face Wake Forest’s fourth string QB.   That allowed Groh’s unit to hold the Deacons to 11 first downs and a measly 268 total yards of offense.  It also allowed the Jackets to stay within striking distance as they slept walk through the first 45 minutes of …

Continue reading GT 24 – Wake 20…Ugly, ugly win! »

One of the great things about getting the opportunity to write this fan blog is the fact that it ocassionaly provides me with a soapbox and a voice that might otherwise get lost amongst the verbal flotsam that comprises a majority of the blog comments…

Bigger Bust?  Bobo or Groh?  Really…Seriously?

With all due respect to Jeff Shultz, how can you compare Mike Bobo and Al Groh?

This is not even comparing apples to apples.  Its not comparing apples to oranges either.  Its more along the order of comparing a grape to a watermelon.

I’m not going to assign a name to either fruit.  I’m just going to say, hopefully very succinctly, the following:

• One coach has been an offensive coordinator in his current program for four years while the other coach is a newly hired defensive coordinator who just coached his fourth game with his new program.
• One guy was the QB coach within his current program for five years before ascending to offensive coordinator while the other guy was running his …

Continue reading Week 4: Bobo vs Groh & Missing #8 Badly… »

A few thoughts after a long, hot afternoon on the Flats.

The Good

• Nice tailgating scene…lots of people and families out before the game enjoying a sunny afternoon.
• BJ Bostic looks good and needs to play more.
• Orwin Smith looks good and needs to get more carries.
• Kick off returns looked good, with the returner often getting into the second level of coverage.
• Tarrant’s pick-6, drawing the Jackets within three points, was an excellent play.

The Bad

• We still have some guys on defense who can’t tackle.
• We still have some guys on offense who can’t block or catch.

The Ugly (a product of not tackling, catching, or blocking…)

• A blocked GT punt that was recovered for a NCSU TD.
• 45 points, 27 first downs, 527 yards of total offense, and a seven minute TOP advantage to NCSU.
• The Jackets were 4 / 14 on third down conversations and 1 / 4 on fourth down conversions.
• Four fumbles for GT, two of which were lost.
• After pulling within 3 points at 31-28 with about 12 minutes left on the …

Continue reading Offense Stumbles, Defense Crumbles in Loss »

A Mixed Bag

Week Three of the 2010 NCAA football season was a mixed bag.

The ACC looked alternately strong and weak as OOC wins by FSU, VT, and NCSU were offset by Maryland, Duke, Clemson, and Wake Forest losses to OOC opponents.

Wake and Duke both managed to give up over 60 points in their losses.  So maybe their recent 54-48 shootout isn’t so impressive.

Tech and UNC were the only ACC teams with a conference game this weekend.   The end result is that the Jackets 1-0 conference record puts them atop the standings going into their showdown this coming weekend with the Wolfpack from up the road in Raleigh.

The Wolfpack will come into Bobby Dodd Stadium with a 3-0 record that includes an impressive win over Cincinatti in their last outing.  Looking at the stats, its obvious that NCSU dominated…491 yards of total offense and almost 35 minutes of time of possession.  A near 50/50 split between the run and pass on offense and stingy defense that only allowed the Bearcats 2.4 yards …

Continue reading Week 3 Ramblin’s: A Mixed Bag Week »

After giving up three long scoring drives and 17 points in the first half, the Georgia Tech defense rallied with adjustments and youth to stiffen up and hold the Tar Heels to just seven second half points in a tough, gritty win.

The Good

• The Jackets secured a crucial ACC conference win on the road in Chapel Hill…a location which has been a house of horrors for GT in the past.
• The Jackets gained 372 rushing yards en route to a ten minute advantage in time of possession (35 vs 25 minutes).
• Anthony Allen played an active role (20 carries for 115 yards) in this win, as the Jackets were able to gash the Heels on the dive play.
• The patented Paul Johnson Death March to end the second quarter…20 plays, 87 yards, 10 minutes and 32 seconds…awesome!
• The GT receivers caught the balls that were thrown to them, forcing the UNC defense to at least respect the prospect of a pass.
• Perimeter blocking by the a-backs and wide receivers was excellent, allowing for good yards on the edge.
• Brandon …

Continue reading Defense Delivers, Jackets 30 UNC 24 »

The ACC

The ACC made it through the first week of the season with a 10-2 record, losing only games in which they were the underdog…only to completely fall apart in week two.

Obviously,  Georgia Tech squandered away a road win over a BCS out of conference opponent.

But that was just the beginning…FSU got punked 47-17 by Oklahoma in a game that never looked competitive, Miami turned the ball over four times en route to a 36-24 loss to Ohio State, and Virginia Tech lost 21-16 to a James Madison team that outscored the Hokies 14-3 in the second half.

The only true highlights were Wake and Duke’s 54-48 shoot out (49 points in the second quarter must be an ACC record) and UVA putting together a scrappy effort in a 17-14 loss to Southern Cal.

When the best moments of the weekend are delivered by Wake, Duke, and Virginia…well…pickings are slim!

The ACC deserves to be ridiculed this week…mercilessly…

Tech’s Defense

The Jackets defense gave up 320 total yards to Kansas.  That’s not bad, …

Continue reading Week 2 Ramblin’s: ACC, Defense, Toughness? »