ACC to Add New Bowl!

The ACC added a new bowl today. The Congressional Bowl will be Dec. 20 between Navy, if it qualifies, and an ACC team. This will be the 1st Bowl played in our Nations Capital.



This will be the 9th Bowl game with an ACC tie-in!



http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2008/04/30/bowls_0501.html





sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story

News & Notes

I just wanted to update everyone on our new NFL Yellow Jackets. We have had a few changes in the Free-Agent signings. Here is who has signed a free agent contract this week:



Mike Cox - Kansas City Chiefs



Gary Guyton - New England Patriots



Nathan McManus - New Orleans Saints



Kevin Tuminello - New Orleans Saints



Darrell Robertson - Dallas Cowboys



Waiting to hear about Travis Bell, Jamal Lewis and Adamm Oliver. There is word that several teams are interested in their services.



In the last few years, Georgia Tech has had tremendous success with Free-Agents! Just last year alone we had (2) guys start for the Super Bowl Champion New York Giants, James Butler (FA '05) & Michael Matthers (FA '07)





James Butler #37





Michael Matthews #88



Also, Chris Reis was a Free-Agent with the New Orleans Saints. Chris was a Special Teams force for the Saints as well as the "5th" DB for them in 2007.





Chris Reis #39





Chris Reis #39



We hope that the Free-Agent class of 2008 makes an impact like their GT predecessors!

A few more!

Here is an article on Philip Wheeler from the Colts Website:



http://www.colts.com/sub.cfm?page=article7&news_id=db994cd9-173e-49b5-8a9c-eeed11fc06db



Here is the Washington Redskins recap of their 2nd Day Picks:



www.redskins.com/news/newsDetail.jsp



As far as I know this morning a few more Yellow Jackets were picked up as Free-Agents last night / this morning.

Gary Guyton - San Francisco 49ers

Mike Cox - Kansas City Chiefs

Darrell Robertson - Dallas Cowboys

Durant Brooks - 6th Round

Durant Brooks was drafted by the Washington Redskins in the 6th Round with the 168th Pick. 3 down!



Three former Jackets selected (AJC)



http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2008/04/27/techfoot_0428.html

Tashard Choice - 4th Round

Tashard Choice was drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in the 4th Round with the 122nd pick. Congrats Double-Duece!

Philip Wheeler - 3rd Round

Philip Wheeler was drafted in the 3rd Round by the Indianapolis Colts with the 93rd pick. We wish him all the best and hopefully will have some of his teammates joining him on the draft board today.

NFL Draft

Tomorrow is the NFL Draft!! Check out the bio's of our NFL Draft Prospects! We are all proud of these guys and all that they have done for Georgia Tech. Please check out the Draft tomorrow on ESPN and support our Yellow Jackets.



Durant Brooks - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7454



Tashard Choice - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7469



Mike Cox - 

http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/mike-cox?id=4235



Gary Guyton - 

http://www.nfl.com/draft/profiles/gary-guyton?id=1722



Jamal Lewis - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7605



Adamm Oliver - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7388



Darrell Roberston - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7389



Philip Wheeler - http://stats.ajc.com/merge/tsnform.aspx?c=ajc&page=nfl/draft/2008/bio.aspx?p=7588

News and Notes

Just wanted to add this link today. One of the greatest players in Georgia Tech history will be joining the staff here. Joe Hamilton was the Heisman Runner-Up in 1999 and 1st Team All-American QB. We are very excited to have him here and we know the players are excited to have him aboard as well.

www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2008/04/24/techfoot_0425.html

It has been pretty quiet here around the football office the last few days. Our players have been finishing up their post spring interviews with Coach Johnson. Our staff (7 of them) has been on the 'road' recruiting for the spring recruiting season.



The NCAA allows football coaches to go out for 4 weeks in the spring starting April 15. Also, the NCAA allows 1 phone call to a Junior prospect (Class of 2009) during that time. The only change to the recruiting process this spring has been that the head coaches have not been allowed out to the high schools.



It has been a few days since we finished spring practice. I am going to post a link to the highlights from our T-Day game. Hope you all enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOQzxzpaXEE&feature=related

 

T-Day Game - A Great SUCCESS!

WHAT A DAY!!!!!!

THE LARGEST CROWD EVER FOR A GEORGIA TECH SPRING GAME!!!!



Our team finished spring practice today with an energetic performance before a large crowd. Coach Johnson sat behind each team's offense today and watched the game as a neutral coach. The staff was split in two and did a great job coaching the Blue and White teams.



The Blue team defeated the White, but in the end Georgia Tech's T-Day game was a victory for all. Everyone had a chance to contribute today which will allow the coaches to evaluate the team thoroughly.



Our coaches are going out on the road recruiting for the next month. This will be a great opportunity for our staff to meet and establish relationships with High School coaches from around the country.



Well that is enough of my recap here are some pics from T-Day!!!!





M. Harris, T. Bennett, D. Robertson





O. Billy, D. Bilbo, & Super Bowl Champion NY Giant Gerris Wilkinson





M. Harris, DJ Jones, J. Lewis, D. Richard, D. Robertson































































Well I hopefully will get some additional pics up tomorrow. 



Thank you for everyone that came out to support OUR Yellow Jackets, today was a great success.

T - DAY!!!

Well today IS the day - T Day!!!!



Just would like to start off the morning with some GREAT news, (2) of our players were named to the Outland Trophy Pre-season Watch List: Vance Walker and Andrew Gardner.



Here is a link to the article:



http://ramblinwreck.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/041808aaa.html

1 Day till T-Day Game

Tomorrow is the T-Day Game!!!! Starting at 1PM in Bobby Dodd Stadium the Georgia Tech Football team will play one final time before the 2008 season kicks off this August.

There is certainly a "BUZZ" throughout Atlanta about the game tomorrow. We here as a staff hope that we make it through without any injuries and have a chance top get everyone some reps.

The players, coaches, and support staff are excited about T-Day tomorrow. We hope to see everyone tomorrow!

NFL Draft Around the Corner

The NFL Draft is around the corner. What a year it will be for Georgia Tech as we have a large senior class working out and getting ready for the draft.

Our guys are excited about their futures in the pros and cannot wait to wear the uniforms of their favorite NFL teams. Here are some action shots of some of our NFL prospects:





#58 Gary Guyton (Fastest LB at Combine and Top Vertical Jump as well)











#90 Darrell Robertson (Robo)









#39 Durant Brooks (Best Punter in the Nation)





#22 Tashard Choice (ACC Leading Rusher)









#41 Philip Wheeler (Top 5 LB Prospect)





#4 Jamal Lewis ('06 1st Team ALL-ACC)





#42 Adamm Oliver (The Machine)





#40 Mike Cox (The Bull)





#87 Travis Bell (One of the Top Kickers in the Nation)



Well these are just some of the GT FOOTBALL ALUMNI that will be trying to make it at the next level. Good Luck to them all!!!!

Last Day of Spring Practice

We had a light practice in the stadium tonight. Coach Johnson had the team workout in helmets for just over 2 hours. There was a lot of fine tuning and depth chart maintenance (due to injuries) in preparation of the spring game.



It was pretty hot out there for practice. A far cry from the 40 degree weather on Monday. Here are some shots from today:





Team Stretch





They call this QB / Center Exchange





OL Drills





OL instruction







I would like to take a moment to give some credit to our student manager staff. Without these dedicated students, we WOULD NOT have a successful program. You will find these guys at practice setting up all the drills and recovering all the footballs throughout drills. They also manage the "clock" during practice which allows the coaches to follow an organized schedule.



THANKS GUYS!!!!!











Derrick Moore was out there today even though he is 'big star' with premier tonight on "The Big 4-0!" on TV LAND at 10:00PM. He sure is nervous for even Derrick has not seen the finished product!





Derrick with the Strength Coaches





Derrick with the Strength Coaches



Towards the end of practice, Coach Johnson called the team up and divided them into (2) teams. Our guys are extremely excited about Saturday! This will make for a great Spring Game!





Team 1





Team 2



What a great day of football it was! Only (3) more days until the Spring Game! 

Wednesday Notes

4/16/08 - 9:15AM

What a special day for Tech. Derrick Moore, our team chaplain, will be featured on TVLAND's "The Big 4-0!" tonight at 10:00pm on the TVLAND network. Derrick is a special part of our team and is a very influential person in many of our player’s lives.



From his Bio: "Derrick is a former NFL Running Back for the Atlanta Falcons. His career also led him to the Detroit Lions where he played alongside Hall of fame Running Back, Barry Sanders. Next, Derrick spent six outstanding years with the Arizona Cardinals. He was an All-American Running Back for Northeastern State University and was provided the unique opportunity of being the Keynote Speaker at his own commencement. His other collegiate honors included becoming the most valuable player in both the Hula Bowl and Blue-Gray All Star football classics."



Here is the video preview of Derrick's episode tonight at 10:00pm.

www.tvland.com/originals/thebig40/





4/15/08 - 4:00pm

CNNSI.com has a national story on Coach Johnson and his offense. Check out this link for this great article on the return of the option.



http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/writers/cory_mccartney/04/15/gatech.johnson/index.html?eref=T1

4/15/08 - 12:45pm



The AJC ran a story today on our great Linebacker tradition here at Tech. In the last 10 years, players such as Keith Brooking, Daryl Smith, Keyaron Fox, Gerris Wilkinson, KaMichael Hall, Gary Guyton, and Philip Wheeler have all had success not only here at Tech, but also in the NFL as players and future players.



Here is a link to the article:



http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/gatech/stories/2008/04/14/techfoot_0415.html 

Monday Notes

4/14/08 - 7:50pm

What a cold day today. Temperatures dipped into the 40's during practice. It is usually not this cold in Atlanta in April, but the players, coaches; support staff braved the cold for 2 1/2 hours.



We had a spirited practice today. The players were 'flying' around and making plays left and right. Since this was the last 'full' padded practice of the spring, the guys gave it their all. Both sides of the ball had some impressive plays throughout practice.



The coaches are still evaluating everyone out on that field! Many players have made some 'huge' strides in showing the coaches that they are READY to play for the Yellow Jackets.



The group that really has to step up this spring is our young group of linebackers (LB's). Coach Brian Jean-Mary has been coaching them up all spring, demanding that they 'show up' to play every practice. Here are some pics of the LB's today:



Coach Brian Jean-Mary





Coach BJ watching the LB's from behind the drill





Walking away from the huddle





LB's getting lined up





Don't get CUT!!!





Sending the signal





Chasing the ball, don't stop till the whistle blows





Coach BJ never stops coaching





I think that hurt!

Up-Downs!

Talking to the guys, post practice



Well there are only (2) more practices left, Wednesday and the Spring Game on Saturday. The players are going to use this week to heal up and get mentally ready for Saturday. For many of our players, this WILL be their time to shine.



Stay Warm and see everyone tomorrow...

4/14/08 - 4:50PM



We had another big meeting today. The players had a chance to watch practice from Saturday and go over their "mistakes" and missed assignments.



Practice starts here in a few minutes so I am heading on out. Today is our last 'full' padded practice, so the coaches are expecting great effort out there.



See you in a little bit.



4/12/08 - 4:50PM



We had a spirited and 'big play' practice today. The guys too a lot or reps and there were plenty of surprises today.



Coach Johnson and the football staff was very impressed and excited about some of our younger players 'stepping up' today. There were all kind of TD runs as well as big sacks and interceptions.



We also had a big recruiting day as many top prospects joined us for practice today. We had a small program for them, but the majority of the day was spent watching practice.



With only a week left of spring practice, all our players will be on top of their game for each day of practice. Finishing strong in the spring will be a great lead into fall camp. We just have to keep working and practicing with a high intensity for the remainder of practice.



I have plenty of pictures from today’s workout. Hope everyone can get a feel for how intense it was out there today!

1 more week, 3 more practices! 



Have a great weekend!



4/11/08 - 7:30pm



Today is a tough day for the Georgia Tech Athletic family. One of our baseball student athletes passed away this afternoon. Everyone associated with our football program would like to send our condolences to his family, friends, and teammates. He will be missed by all.



Practice was a little bit of a break today for the players. We were in "uppers" or "shells" today. This means that our guys wore helmets, shoulder pads, hip & back pads, and shorts w/ thigh pads. 



The coaches developed a practice plan revolving around instruction and repetition of schemes and plays. Without hitting as much, the players can focus a little more on their responsibilities.



I was not able to take a lot of pics today. I was quite busy with prospects out at practice. Sorry for those of you who enjoy the pictures, I will have plenty tomorrow. Here is what I was able to do:

We have big practice tomorrow. Hope everyone can make it out. Just about a week left of spring practice! 



See everyone tomorrow.

4/10/08 - 5:00PM

Spring football here at Tech is an exciting time! With Coach Johnson and the new coaching staff shaping up the team, prospects, coaches, and fans have been really enthusiastic about GT Football and the direction the team is going!

Yesterdays practice was overall a good practice. As been the constant this spring, the energy level and intensity has been great.

There is one group on our team that does not gather as much attention as say the higher profile positions. That would be our special team. Last year we had 3 out 4 units in the Top 10 in the Nation with our Punt Team finishing #1 in Punting. 



Durant Brooks won the Ray Guy Award for the Nations Top Punter and will be drafted in the NFL Draft in a few weeks.

Durant Brooks #39





The Ray Guy Award (Just delivered to my office)





Well I took the liberty to get some shots of OUR specialists yesterday!





Punter





Punter





Punter





Long Snapper







Long Snapper





Punt Returner





Punt Returner

 

 

4/9/08 - 8:20PM

Practice was exciting and full of big hits today. Our staff did a great job of coaching up the X's and O's today, but the players did an even better job of maintaining a high level of intensity throughout practice.



The offense moved ball all through the team period today. It was a marked improvement over Monday’s performance. 



Many of the players were anxious to get back to the stadium so they could get changed for the baseball game tonight. It is a sold out game as the #10 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are currently taking on the #11 Georgia Bulldogs. Our players do a great job of cheering on the other sports here at Tech.



Today I followed Coach Wommack and the Safeties. Coach Wommack is our defensive coordinator and he came to Tech directly from Southern Mississippi and has had career of working at some of the top schools in the nation.



Here are some pics of Coach Wommack and safeties in action:

Coach Wommack





Coach Wommack coaching up the defense





Safeties running through drills





Drive those legs!





Tackling





Had to put this in, a great shot!





1 on 1's





Lining Up





Post practice speech to the defense





Coaching up the safeties



Have a great night and GO TECH!!!!

4/8/08 - 7:50PM



Well today was actually a slower day here at the football office. The coaches spent the morning going over yesterdays practice film. I will say when they broke meetings; they were definitely pleased with the work effort of the team on Monday.



Overall, the players still are trying to learn both the Offensive and Defensive system, but for halfway through Spring Practice, they are really picking it up.



Also there is definitely a sense of urgency among the players. The majority of the team came in today to watch film as position groups.  They studied their mistakes as a group and worked through them together. This way they will be able to learn from each other and talk about why they made certain decisions on the field. I know for a fact from my playing days that this is one of the best ways of learning, going through tough times with teammates and relying on each other to get through and push forward.



I along with the coaches am excited about tomorrows practice!



To get everyone fired up for GT Football, here are some shots of the Best Stadium in the Country!



Bobby Dodd Stadium in the heart of Atlanta, GA!!!



Come play in the Big Time!!!!





















4/7/08 - 7:15PM



Practice #9! Just past halfway through spring practice! Today was a GOOD day for GT Football. Coach Johnson at the team meeting had a long discussion about what it means to be a "TEAM!" The players listened to what Coach said and really gave a GREAT effort out on the fields!



We were visited by a few former players:



GT #42 Adamm Oliver, GT #73 Nate McManus, GT #61 Matt hodes





The weather today was dryer than Saturday. The ball was on the ground a lot less than it was the other day. Our team is shaping up and really doing a great job of cutting down their "mental" mistakes.



Our Wide Receivers have been working their tails off all through spring. Coach Albert "Buzz" Preston has coached some of the best players in college football over the last 20 years and has brought that knowledge to our WR's. 



Coach Albert 'Buzz" Preston



I decided to follow the WR's today here is what they got into today:





Coach Preston in Action





Get up for that ball





Make the Catch #8!!!!





Coach Preston





Individual Period





Blocking





Getting off the Ball





1 on 1 - vs Corner





WR running a route!





Coach Preston doing "Up-Downs" with WR's!





Post Practice Coaching with WR's



The coaches were certainly pleased with the effort and intensity today. It was quite a step up from the weekend. Tomorrow will be a good day for the guys to rest their bodies. From here on out, our guys just need to rep all the plays and keep working hard to get better.



4/5/08 - 2:20PM



The GT Football team had a long and tough work day today. Coach Johnson had a long live drill situation and the players tried their best, despite the poor weather.



Our offense struggled at times today. With the ball being wet the QB's and RB's did their best to hold onto the ball. The offense scored a few TD's including a long TD's pass and a 30yd run by on of our B-Backs.



The defense improved from the last time we had a live situation. Every position was flying around the field and there are some bone crushing hits!!! There was one in particular that knocked the helmet off the QB!!!!



Although it was pouring out, Coach Johnson had the team work. Some of the coaches are still here in the office grading the film. I have not had time to speak with them, but I am sure they are excited by the player’s progress.



Here are a few pics from today:































Until next time....







4/3/08 - 6:45pm



Sorry for not getting a post up here earlier in the day. We are preparing for a coaches clinic and have been running all around the city collecting supplies.



With Coach Johnson being here at Tech, his "following" has filled our meeting rooms and practice fields the last 2 weeks. Coaches from all over the country including both High School and College have come here to watch Coach Johnson and the GT staff installs the new system.



With that, we have received hundreds of prospect film from all over the country. We log in every film and then distribute it throughout the coaching staff. Every film is evaluated. 



Here is a idea of how that process works. We have some students that help out here in the office for a couple hours a day. The student assistants handle the 'logging in' of the films and the mailing of the confirmation letter then distribute to the coaches. Once the coaches watch the film we 're-log' the film and store in our tape room. 



Here are the student assistants working hard:



Logging in the film and sending a confirmation letter





Working Hard!





Labeling the film for the coaches









Cataloguing the film





Carrying the 'bin' of film to the coaches





Georgia Tech Football Student Assistants



Tomorrow should be a good work day as the coaches’ say. We will fine tune everything as we rep out offensive and defensive plays. I know the players are going to get out there and bust their tails for a great practice! 



Time to eat dinner, have a great night!