Change is good: WE'RE MOVING!

The summer has been great over here on TheLegacyx4. But now it is time to move onto bigger and better things. We are now "From the Rumble Seat". If you are not automatically redirected click here to check out FromtheRumbleSeat.com! Over on the new site you, the readers, can interact more than you have before. Instead of just commenting you will be able to generate your own discussions and post your own information. Come on over!

But don't forget to update your bookmarks, RSS feeds, and links!

Countdown: 43

Main Event: Dwyer v. Spiller

As the ACC's only fringe Heisman hopefuls, Jon "D-Train" Dwyer and CJ Spiller are arguably the best two returning players in the ACC. A look at their numbers reveals their primary differences in style. Dwyer is the fullback in Paul Johnson's run, run, and run some more offense while Spiller is the speed back and primary returner for Clemson's fire-another-offensive-coordinator-offense:

Obviously, the stats are affected by schedules, coaching staff changes midseason, injuries, etc.. but diving deeper, I've pulled out Dwyer/Spiller's offensive touches broken down by end result. I didn't factor in returns 'cause Dwyer isn't a return man, which gives Spiller a huge advantage in Heisman voting:
_{Note: Dwyer is the yellow bars while Spiller is the orange bars.}

What the charts tell me is that Dwyer is running up the middle a lot (DUH) and Spiller is taking sweeps, tosses, etc. to the outside. Dwyer will almost always gain yardage and if the safeties get burned he will score. Spiller will eventually get forced out of bounds but his plays are more likely not to yield positive yardage. I think the two backs are an excellent example of the different styles of RB play.

Questions for Discussion:
1. Could Dwyer/Spiller fit in the other's offense?
2. Who will have the more successful year?
3. Who has a shot at ACC POY, national position award, or Heisman?
4. Who could eat more hot dogs?

T-Book Tutorings: Clint Castleberry and Leonard Wood

Today, T-Book Tutoring will showcase two individuals from Georgia tech whose names are familiar but backgrounds could be hazy to the public.

Clint Castleberry

Called “the most dangerous runner in the country” as a freshman, Clint Castleberry left more than just an athletic legacy. In 1942 he placed 3rd in the Heisman voting behind two seniors. This finish is still the closest a freshman has ever come to winning the coveted trophy. The following year, Castleberry left Georgia Tech to fight in World War II with the intention of continuing his football career after completing his service. During the war he was stationed in Africa, where he co-piloted a B-26 Marauder known as “Dream Girl.” In the early morning hours of November 7, 1944, Lt. Castleberry took off from Roberts Field in Liberia to continue a ferrying run up the coast towards Senegal, accompanied by another B-26. Neither of the two planes were ever seen again, despite an extensive six-day search involving American and British search crews. On November 23, 1944, all crew members were officially re-classified from “Missing In Action” to “Killed, No Body.” His number, #19, is the only number ever retired for Georgia Tech football.

As a special bonus, we'll profile Leonard Wood today as well.

Leonard Wood was one of the earliest famous alumni of Georgia Tech. Initially a graduate from Harvard Medical School, Wood immediately joined the United States Army, was sent to Arizona, and was instrumental in the capture of the famous Geronimo. Due to his valiant service, he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor. In 1893, Wood was transferred to Atlanta to serve at Fort McPherson . While stationed in Atlanta, he enrolled at the Georgia School of Technology to receive his Master's degree. While he was at Tech,Wood became the captain of the football team as well as the acting coach of the squad. He led the team to Tech's very first victory, a 28-6 triumph over the Georgia Bulldogs. Following the rout, the ever-classless Georgia fans began throwing rocks at the team as they made their way to the train back to Atlanta. Wood was injured during the attack, receiving a large gash on his forehead. In a display of his mettle and fortitude, Wood cleaned his wound and sutured and stitched his own face.

After his time at Georgia Tech, Leonard Wood served as the personal physician to Presidents Grover Cleveland and William McKinley. Once the Spanish-American War broke out in 1898, Wood, under the direction of Teddy Roosevelt, helped form the legendary Rough Riders. Wood was promoted in the field to Brigadier-General and led successful engagements in the Battles of Las Guasimas, Kettle Hill, and San Juan Heights. At the conclusion of the Spanish-American War, Wood was appointed military governor of Cuba from 1899-1902.

During his later years, Leonard Wood's life was just as busy and full of adventure. After leaving Cuba, he was promoted to Major General and was transferred to the Phillippines. There, he became commander of the Philippines Division and eventually served as commander of the Department of the East. In 1910, Wood was appointed as Army Chief of Staff - he remains the only medical officer to ever hold a position on the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Leonard Wood died in 1927 from complications during surgery intended to remove a brain tumor. He is buried in Arlington National Cemetery, and Ft. Leonard Wood in Missouri is named in his honor.

Two thoughts: 1. You can view Castleberry's RAT Cap in the Georgia Tech Alumni Association and 2. Was Leonard Wood a badass or what?

"T-Book Tutorings" is brought to you in anticipation of the 2009-2010 T-Book, the ultimate guide to the history and traditions of Georgia Tech. The book is published by the Ramblin' Reck Club.

Countdown: 44

Deepest apologies for letting this get away from me....

Dream Neutral Site Matchups

Notre Dame is set to play Army at Yankees Stadium in 2010. Notre Dame is also slated to play Navy in Ireland in 2012. Rumors are abounding that Tech will play Notre Dame at the GA Dome in the near future.

If I had to choose 10 dream matchups in neutral sites, here's the list in no particular order:

10. Army (Yankees Stadium) -- Army still owes us a I-A game and I would love to visit the new stadium.
9. Texas Tech (Cowboys Stadium) -- We could help sell a chunk of the 80,000 seats but TTU would have to step up
8. Tennessee (The Coliseum) -- This place would be solid orange but it would be cool to visit Nashville for a real game...just kidding Vandy fans.
7. Navy (The Linc) -- Navy only holds 34,000 seats. This game would require more seating due to sheer interest from both parties, in my opinion.
6. Tulane (The Superdome) -- Notice a trend in visiting metro areas with accessability and night life?
5. Illinois (Soldier Field) -- Nothing'd be cooler than playin' the Zooker in Chi-Town.
4. ECU (Bank of America Stadium) -- A visit to Charlotte is never a bad thing.
3. Michigan State/Michigan (Ford Field) - Bring on the Michiganders. Hell, let's play both teams at the same time and then catch a Lions game the next day.
2. Notre Dame (FedEx Field) -- A modern football version of the Civil War fought on the Mason Dixon Line.
1. Bama (Legion Field) -- Reminds me of epic matchups with Bear in the 60's.

Tuesday Linkage

-+-Kyle Jackson injured his foot. Prognosis is not clear. Could be out a couple months.

-+-Following his British Open W, Stewart Cink will appear on Letterman. Based on the media's obsession with Tom Watson, will the crowd boo Cink?

-+-Currently, GT's roster is 67% instate. Paul Johnson is working to raise that figure.

-+-Mark Bradley critiques Heather Dinich's 3 Predictions about GT.

Jon "D-Train" Dwyer??

Jonathan Dwyer took part in a live chat today over on RamblinWreck.com. If you were like me and missed it, I have copied the chat from the original page for your viewing pleasure.

Timmy (Norcross): How do you compare yourself with Tashard Choice?

Jonathan: Good morning everyone! Our energy level is similar. Tashard is more of an elusive back. I learned a lot from Tashard and I'm glad he's doing well.

Derek Bloodworth Milledgeville Ga.: CONGRATULATIONS on last season and ACC PLAYER of the YEAR !! D-TRAIN ? DIESEL ? What is your NICKNAME ?

Jonathan: I like "D-Train". I know they used "Diesel" in the media guide, but I like "D-Train" better.

allen robinson (Atlanta): I know it is a while away, but haev you thought about the NFL and when do you plan to enter?

Jonathan: I think everyone who plays college football dreams of playing in the NFL one day. And I know this sounds cliche', but I am really just focused on this season and helping the team in 2009.

Ed, Atlanta: where is your weight and speed compared to end of regular season '08?

Jonathan: Right now I weigh 227. I probably weighed around 230, in the low 230s, at the end of last season. My speed has improved from last season.

Eric, Macon: JD, The sports media outlets are saying our Offensive Line has a lot of question marks, but Coach Johnson says its one of the most improved areas of our team. How do you think the OL will play this year compared to last year?

Jonathan: By being in the system for a second year, they have better knowledge of what's going on. I saw some real improvement this past spring.

JT (Charlottesville VA): Jon, do you or the other backs ever take your O-Line out for dinner? Feed the guys who open holes for you kind of thing? Good luck this fall. (And please win on Oct 24 up here)

Jonathan: I took them out to dinner once last season and they almost burned a hole in my pocket. I took out Claytor and Gilbert. They ate a tremendous amount of food.

K-Dogg: Hey Jonathan! Counting down the days until toe meets leather! What player who redshirted last year do you expect to make the biggest impact in 2009?

Jonathan: I would say its between Jerrard Tarrant and Richard Watson. Richard gives us another talented back who will really help us out, make us more versatile in the backfield.

Shubs Virk: Yo Jon as your friend since your senior of high school can I have your game worn jersey? PLEASE :) lol

Jonathan: No! (laughing) I think that might be an NCAA violation.

Allen (Atlanta): Jon, what are your personal goals this season? I know the team wants to win championships, but I am interested if you had any numbers, awards, or accomplishments that you had your eyes on.

Jonathan: To become a better leader and to be the best player that I can be; to help us win an ACC Championship.

Kevin (Smyrna): Hey JD! Following last year's ACC Player of the Year season, obviously expectations are higher for both you and the team. How are you guys dealing with the added pressure of being one of the preseason favorites in the ACC?

Jonathan: Honestly, we haven't thought too much about any pressure. We are just working hard to reach our goals this fall.

Scott (Atlanta): With so many options at A-Back and B-Back this year, what combination of personnel in the backfield are you excited about taking the field with -or- what combination do you see really causing problems for defenses and why? Really looking forward to watching y'all this season and good luck!

Jonathan: I don't think it matters what combination we have on the field, with the talent we have, any of those combinations can cause problems for the opponent.

Ben (Atlanta): So D-Train, what game has you most worried right now?

Jonathan: Not worried about any one game in particular, just excited. Excited about all the games, but especially our ACC opponents.

Drew (Loganville): What is your favorite memory from the past couple of seasons?

Jonathan: Probably our running back meetings from my freshman year. Why? We had Tashard Choice in those meetings. Enough said. Mike Cox was also in there. On the field, probably beating Georgia this past season.

John(lake lanier): Anything fans don't know about you that they should?

Jonathan: I sleep with my eyes open. Roddy (Jones) came and talked to me in my room one time and talked to me for 30 minutes, not realizing I was alseep. I've got time for one more question.

Jamie Wheeler Louisville GA: Is it true that we only saw about 40% of the playbook last year?

Jonathan: Yes. We'll see more of it this year, but I'm not sure how much. OK, one last question. For real.

Tom, Roswell: Great season last year, and I'm looking forward to 2009. Has anyone asked you what the good word is yet? :-)

Jonathan: To hell with Georgia! THANKS to everyone who sent in a question today. You guys really asked great questions -- better than we get from the media sometimes :) I hope to see everyone in BDS September 5th when we open the season.

I return in glory

ERIN ANDREWS ERIN ANDREWS


ERIN

http://msn.foxsports.com/other/story/9822996/Lawyer:-Erin-Andrews-to-sue-over-nude-video?GT1=39002

ANDREWS

ERIN ANDREWS

40th Anniversary of THE Moonwalk

1969 was an interesting year for GT. Integration was sweeping across the Deep South and particularly the public school systems. Tech's President Edwin Harrison retired. Fulmer Hall opened as the first women's dormitory on campus. 1969 was also the first year women could enroll in all classes at Tech. Previously, they could only enroll in courses not offered anywhere else in the state of GA. GT Sports featured some prominent storylines as well during the year of the Apollo 11 moonwalk:

Football: Bud Carson was the coach. The team struggled to a 4-6 record but closed the season with a 6-0 win over Georgie. Carson recruited the first African-American scholarship athlete in Tech history - Eddie McAshan. Also of note, the now world famous GT was designed by a football player on Carson's squad and added to the helmet:

Basketball: John Hyder coached the cagers during the '68-'70 seasons. In games played in 1969, Tech was 16-11. The teams featured Tech's alltime leading scorer, Rich Yunkus.

Baseball: Baseball was coached by Jim Luck. The team started the season with a 14-5 record but finisheed 16-12. Tech goes 2-1 against Georgie on the season including a series finale win at Luther Williams Field.

And in case you were wondering, here's a list of GT alums that claim "astronaut" status.

Cink wins British Open!

Stewart Cink defeats 59 year old Tom Watson in a playoff to win the 2009 British Open Open!

The Legacy's UK Open Scorecord

The only guys that matter in the British Open (as of 1:00 PM EST):

1. Steve Marino: -5 -- finished for the day
T12. Stewart Cink: -1
T94: Matt Kuchar: +6 -- two strokes out from the 2nd day's projected cut
T108: Tiger Woods: +7
T108: David Duval: +7

Chapel Hill Women: The Girls of UNC

Dane is very busy getting the T-Book out the door to the publisher. He probably wishes he could post pictures of hot girls from rival schools. It's ok, I'll sacrifice my time.

Playboy Model Evelyn Gray

A little old-school action

Have a good day.

Football Countdown: 50

50 Days until football...

The Friday Random 10

Today's Random 10 is brought to you by the GTG's and their video "The Ratio". I ran into this video over the week and forgot how funny (and real) it is. Look for them again this football season!




And now on to the 10!

10. Ms. Jackson - Outkast
9. As Your Voice Fades - Emery
8. Strangers - The Kinks (video is of The Mighty Boosh, a weird but addicting British show)
7. Off the Grid - The Beastie Boys
6. Hot - Missy Elliott (Ratatat Remix)
5. East Bound and Down - Jerry Reed
4. Down on the Corner - Creedence Clearwater Revival (Concert cut)
3. Guitar - Cake
2. Ragged as the Road - Reckless Kelly
1. I Wonder - Kanye West

Gotta say, I do like Kanye West, way to close it out.

Ball Security Issue: Touches per Turnover

On slightly more negative note, I've decided to turn my attention to turnovers per touch or simply: How many plays does it take before a specific player turns the ball over?

My biggest concern and a lot of fans' concerns about the option we are running revolves around the sheer volume of fumbles increasing because our number of carries is increasing and/or the pitches are dangerous. I think it's a hotly debated issue and probably shouldn't be. I personally think our fumble rate is more dependent on the backs running the offense than the offense itself. A prime example would be Joe Burns the fumbling machine versus Tashard Choice, a man who hardly ever fumbled. So do not crucify me when you notice Nesbitt, Dwyer, and Roddy at the bottom of this list. Once again, same criteria of 100 touches during the CCG/CPJ Era.

Chart includes rank in this system, position played, name, total touches (returns, pass attempts, rushes, receptions), career lost fumbles, career interceptions, percentage of touches that resulted in a turnover, and average number of plays before a turnover.

I think Nesbitt is hurt by the transition period of CCG->CPJ. The other issue is that a lot of Nesbitt's fumbles are poor QB-center exchanges. And Nesbitt haters/Jaybo lovers can't find much solace in this chart. After tabulating all of Jaybo's stats, he has a very high 5.75% turnover rate.

I will admit several flaws in the system. It only penalizes lost fumbles not total fumbles. It also penalizes QB's for tipped interceptions. So goes life. The stats are in their names so they go down in history as their turnovers.

Winning Percentages through the decades

A friend of mine sent me this about 2 days ago. What can you pick out of these graphs?

Coaches

Bobby Dodd: 1945-1966
Bud Carson: 1967-1971
Bill Fulcher: 1972-1973
Pepper Rodgers: 1974-1979
Bill Curry: 1980-1986
Bobby Ross: 1987-1991
Bill Lewis: 1992-1994
George O'Leary: 1995-2001
Chan Gailey: 2002-2007
Paul Johnson: 2008-Present

From 1904-1966, Georgia Tech was a dominant force in college football. The Yellow Jackets had just three coaches during that span and looked to be the "Notre Dame of the South" (yes, that used to be a compliment). Since that time, the Jackets have gone through 9 head coaches in search for the one to bring us back to glory.

Joe Hamilton: GT Hall of Famer

On November 6th, one of the Institute's favorite sons, Joe Hamilton will be inducted into the Georgia Tech Hall of Fame along with 5 other GT athletes Coley Harvey has reported.

Congratulations Joe!

Have a favorite Joe Hamilton memory? Post it in the comments!

I have two: 1. When Joe both passed and received for a touchdown in the Gator Bowl against Notre Dame and 2. When I was finally able to meet the man last year during the Miami game. Now I just got to drive him around in the Reck...

Touchdowns per Touch

I'm on a touchdown per play kick right now. I'm digging deep into ramblinwreck.com's data to pull out some more interesting information for all the GT fans. I had to truncate my data diving to CCG/CPJ Era players and players with a minimum of 100 touches. This means they played in 2002-2008 seasons and the data includes their 1999-present statistics. Even the non-stat people will like some of the basic observations about this list highlighted in yellow.

The data is broken down by rank in this system, position, name, # of touches, touchdowns (receive, return, rush, pass), and % of touches that result in a touchdown. I really don't want to do the negative version (turnovers per touch) but I think I might eventually.

Josh's stats seem rough compared to Reggie's because Josh doesn't get credit for good reads that go the distance while Reggie did get credit for good passes to Calvin that went for 6. An interesting comparison is the backfield comparison of Reggie/Tashard/PJ versus Josh/Diesel/Roddy. The Chan backfield trio went the distance 3.54% of their offensive plays while CPJ's backfield trio goes the distance 4.73% of the time. This doesn't account for the Cox Bros., Rashaun Grant, or Chris Woods but I think it's interesting.

I'd also like to note that anyone doubting Calvin's greatness can look at the stats. He took it to the house once every 6.67 plays. Greatness. And in case you were wondering, Calvin's average is one touchdown per 7.82 plays in the NFL.

As a supplemental group, here're some guys that I thought I could also provide data on. They were legit role players who didn't make the 100 touch limit I set for the first data grouping.

Football Countdown: 53

Getting closer every day...

News Blitz and Random Links

The AJC blows. Therefore the Macon Telegraph gets all my attention thanks to Coley Harvey. Here's what he's been talking about if you don't read him (which you should all be doing).

• Morgan Burnett is ready for the season. He also has a bad-ass tattoo that reminds him to be a leader.
• Brad Jefferson's toughtness, mentality, and ability
• Dave Wommack finally watches 45-42. There are some pretty interesting quotes in this link. He doesn't make excuses and responds to how we were a tad bit off defensively.

Random Georgia Tech Summer Thoughts:

• HT to Tomahawk Nation yesterday as he found this link from Dave Wommack discuss the rover LB position, AKA "The Wolf". He wrote this back at USM. Would strongly s
  
• The Ramblin' Reck is back on campus a few weeks of maintenance work in a local body shop. A pair of bright LED taillights has just been added.
  
• Nikki Meyer is on campus, though she has not been spotted. I will buy someone a Junior's chicken finger plate for whoever gets me a picture.
• Mickey Andrews talks GT Offense
• F4H at GobblerCountry tells a "journalist" to stick it and that offensive lines still DO MATTER
• cgb at CollegeGameBalls gives you 2004-2008 wins and losses statistics for every team in cfb over the past few years. Do you like statistics? I do! Click here to check it out. FYI, GT averages 7.8 wins and 5 losses over the past 5 years.
  

And finally, since Dane dropped the ball on the Girls of UNC on Friday (He's crazy busy with the T-Book), here's a little Longhorn Love. Apparently they got new turf for their football field. I'm not sure, I got a little distracted:

Expect the "Girls of...." series to be back on Friday. UNC will not be skipped. Rest assured of that my friends. Good day to you all!

Football Countdown: 54

54 Days....

Industrial Touchdown Complex and Guarantees

The ITC
I was looking at an interesting statistic this morning - Touchdowns per offensive play. What team in the ACC is a touchdown producing machine? Here's the ranking of the 12 ACC teams' percentage of O plays that go the distance:

12. UVA - 2.96%
11. Duke - 3.13%
10. VT - 3.38%
9. Wake Forest - 3.39%
8. BC - 3.92%
7. MD - 4.30%
6. NCSU - 4.43%
5. Clemson - 4.81%
4. GT - 5.00%
3. Miami - 5.11%
2. UNC - 5.45%
1. FSU - 5.66%

And in an even more interesting look, here's the breakdown of percentage of defensive and special teams plays that result in a defensive or return TD:

12. MD - 0.10%
11. UVA - 0.11%
10. NCSU - 0.31%
9. Clemson - 0.32%
6. GT - 0.33%
6. Wake - 0.33%
6. Miami - 0.33%
5. Duke - 0.35%
4. VT - 0.58%
3. UNC - 0.59%
2. FSU - 0.69%
1. BC - 0.83%

And finally, here's the breakdown of how often every ACC team scored per defensive/offensive/special teams play. PAT's and 2PT attempts are not factored in while FG's, safeties, and all TD's are:

12. MD - 1.96%
11. UVA - 2.47%
10. NCSU - 2.74%
9. Clemson - 2.82%
8. GT - 3.02%
7. Wake - 3.09%
6. Miami - 3.22%
5. Duke - 3.31%
4. VT - 3.47%
3. UNC - 3.61%
2. FSU - 3.66%
1. BC - 4.60%

So basically, because BC has such a good scoring D and special teams, they make up for having a below average offense. VT's offense needs to pick it up when their defense is kicking so much ass. Interesting numbers, in my opinion. Take what you want from them. I kind of think of them as a frustration factor. When you put up points, you're happy. Your team gets momentum. It deflates the other team. It affects the outcome of the game directly. Scoring quickly also affects the crowd.

Guarantees
Here are some guarantees that you can take to the bank:

5. The primary GT QB will not pass for 50% - Hasn't happened since Reggie's freshman year 5 seasons ago.
4. A GT rusher will rush for 1,000 yards - Has happened 4 of the last 6 seasons.
3. A Tech school will make the ACCCG - This has happened every year since the inception of the ACCCG. Both are preseason favorites in all the polls/magazines.
2. GT will make a bowl - The vast number of bowls guarantees GT at least a bowl birth at the end of the season continuing the 12 season post-season participation streak. At least 6 wins will come from our relatively favorable schedule.
1. Tech will win against GA in ATL - Tech is 21-16-1 following a win against Georgia. Tech is 12-8-1 in Atlanta following a W. Let's take hold of the momentum.

Intersting Monday News

Yahoo! or SI
Simon Fraser is the first non-US based school to enter the NCAA. Simon Fraser will participate as a Division II basketball school.

This is an interesting read by Seth Davis on the rules of releasing players out of their LOI's or running them off (e.g. Calipari). There are also some interesting tidbits about Isiah Thomas and his new position as FIU head coach.

Ex-Hurricanes Coach Larry Coker starts over at UT-San Antonio. He's pulling a Bill Curry and starting a football team from nothing.

Blog World
God hates NC State or at least YANCSSB thinks so.

Early release video of GT vs. VT from NCAA 2010 on College Game Balls. I don't expect to see Roddy throw a pass this season. Maybe Bay Bay.

Football Countdown: 55

Football Countdown: 56

We continue onward....

Football Countdown: 57

57 days until Diesel unleashes his fury....

Friday Random 10: 45-42

Today's Random 10 is brought to you by the 2008 Georgie/Georgia Tech Game. I watched this on my DVR Wednesday night and I am thoroughly stoked (even more) for football.







And now on to the 10!

10. What's my age again? - Blink-182
9. The Good Life - Kanye West
8. Tomorrow Never Knows - The Beatles
7. The Breaks - The Black Keys
6. She Came in Through the Bathroom Window - The Beatles
5. Alabama - Cross Canadian Ragweed (acoustic style!)
4. Get 'Em High - Kanye West (Ratatat Remix)
3. Secret Crowds - Angels and Airwaves
2. Hey, Say May - Reckless Kelly (awesome group)
1. She Loves You - The Beatles

Dane would like this mix. He is a Beatles groupie and even looks like John Lennon.
Yall know the drill. Whose in your random 10?

GT Student Tickets: International Flava!

International students at Georgia Tech no longer have an excuse as to why they don't go to football games. They can now read about it in their own language:


In actuality, this is a push to get students notified about the new ticketing policies and the $35 season ticket fee being added on.

All ticketing thoughts welcome in the comments.

Football Countdown: 58

58 Days 'til Glory...

ACC Media Day as a Predictor

Predicting an ACC Division Champion is like predicting the weather. You kinda think it's gonna rain because it's cloudy. There's a 90% chance it'll rain (BC/VT) but sometimes the rain gives way to blizzards (Wake) or sunshine (GT). Here's a quick breakdown of preseason picks from the ACC Media Days in July since 2005 (full expansion).



For historical and logical reasons, FSU and VT are typically the preseason favorites. What's fun is seeing the major blunders of the ACC Media and how their hype kinda destroyed our respectability last season. Who knew Clemson would suck?


The biggest jump in the black was Wake's ridiculous 2006 ACCC run while Clemson and FSU managed to blow themselves in 2008 and 2006, respectively. Interestingly enough, the media is fairly accurate averaging around 0.83 places off per team wth Wake being the least predictable team in the ACC followed closely by BC.


What's nice to see with the Delta is that GT is in the black. I'd much rather be sitting in VT's place where they average a 1st place prediction and average a 1st place finish every year but finishing above expectations is much better than constantly letting your fans down (we're looking at you Miami).

Notes:
^{1) Rankings are 1-6 for finish in division based on preseason ACC Media Polling or Postseason ACC Record.
2) ACC Champion after ACC Championship game not regular season champions (hence why started counting after 2005).
3) Negative Delta in 3rd graph means overrated, Positive Delta means underrated.}

My Personal Predictions
Atlantic
1. FSU
2. BC
3. NCSU
4. Wake
5. Clemson
6. MD

Coastal
1. GT
2. VT
3. UNC
4. UVA
5. Miami
6. Duke

I like Ponder and the FSU defense better than NCSU's Glassman Wilson. BC is up there 'cause of their annual ACC clinic on defense. GT-VT is the game of the year for the Coastal (in ATL gives Tech the edge). UNC is like NCSU in the Coastal and hinges too much on the health of their QB. By midseason, I see both both UNC/NCSU's QBs missing starts due to injury resulting in L's.

Thoughts are welcome. Preseason ACC Media Day should be late July.

Myrtle Beach ACC Tournament Open Discussion

In an interesting twist on Monday, the ACC recalled its decision to stage the next couple of ACC baseball tournaments in Myrtle Beach. The decision came down not necessarily from the ACC's head Swofford but from the national NAACP.

The national chapter of the NAACP isn't happy with the flying of the Stars and Bars in Columbia. The NCAA has an official ban of SC hosting post-season events due to the presence of the flag but the ACC initially did not adhere to this rule citing it as unfair to SC.

It kinda sucks though to punish a struggling Myrtle Beach for the ways of Columbia and the Midlands. I'm not saying this is totally analagous but it's similar to ATL being punished for the idiocy that occurs in the town 75 miles east of Atlanta. I personally think Myrtle Beach should've retained the host status of the games with some stipulations but so goes life. The backwards logic of "pride > revenue" never surprises me in South Carolina -- hence unemployment, refusal of stimulus money, and now the ACC tourney...

I'm kinda pissed 'cause I only get to see the Jackets maybe once or twice during baseball season. Myrtle Beach is literally 45 minutes away. So now, after teasing me, the ACC goes and rips out my heart. Damn them.

Seeing as this is a pretty uncensored blog, any political/economic/social thoughts are welcome...

The Football Countdown: 59

59 Days my friends.....

T-Book Tutorings: Shirttail Parades

For today's T-Book Tutorings, we talk about "Shirttail Parades":

One of the many traditions that freshmen were required to participate in, shirt tail parades were always quite the spectacle for onlookers to witness. Freshmen would form a tunnel after every game for the team to run through while departing the field. Then, if the team was victorious, the freshmen would parade around the streets of Atlanta, many times ending up downtown at Five Points for a pep rally. These parades were sponsored by Ramblin’ Reck Club and Georgia Tech cheerleaders. Participation in the shirt tail parades was taken very seriously, and if freshmen were caught skipping, they would be taken to RAT Court and put on probation. One of the most notable shirt tail parades occurred in 1956 before the game itself was ever played. Governor Marvin Griffin sought to disallow the Tech football team from competing in the Sugar Bowl as the opposing team fielded a black player. When students discovered the governor’s stance, they decided to take action. The shirt tail parade set off towards the Capitol, located just a short distance from campus, only to discover that the governor was at his residence, several miles away. Undeterred, they continued their march to the Governor’s Mansion, where they burned and hung him in effigy. The governor finally conceded to the students’ demands and allowed the football team to make the trip to the Sugar Bowl.

The organization of the parades is pretty crazy to think about. As we all know, we won that Sugar Bowl and you can view the trophy in person at the Edge Center.


"T-Book Tutorings" is brought to you in anticipation of the 2009-2010 T-Book, the ultimate guide to the history and traditions of Georgia Tech. The book is published by the Ramblin' Reck Club.

Any good shirttail parades or any good parade stories out there?

Let the countdown begin!

60 days until Georgia Tech Football......

2009 CFN Preview for GT is Up

CFN Preview
College Football News has posted their annual review of GT. Previews for the offense, defense, and depth chart are also up. Same basic stuff you always hear. I like reading about the OL, corners, and DL since those are really the only position battles we'll probably see this year.

Player News
Roddy says he'll be ready for football season. Austin Barrick talks about the 3 feet he couldn't get.

Facebook Message of the Year
I posted this on my brother's facebook yesterday 'cause he works at a pet store part time: "Do y'all have any indestructible dog toys? [My girlfriend's] got covered in glass when a drive-by shot up her house. She has two Jack Russells." Totally true and totally weird in retrospect. So now my car windows have been busted out and my gf's house has been shot up. What's next South Carolina?

Thoughts on the CFN Preview are welcome. Any glaring criticisms of an otherwise blah preview?

College Football Midmajor Stars

I thoroughly enjoy college football. The sights, the sounds, the glory, the defeats. Not much better. I really enjoy the little guy climbing to the top. I'm also a little pretentious when it comes to college football trivia. I like reflecting on obscure midmajor stars of yore that had brief moments of glory on ESPN like Bowling Green's Omar Jacobs (2), LA Tech's Ryan Moats (2), and of course my personal hero in Hawai'i's Timmy Chang (2). For me, the best part of these guys' stories are the particularly heroic performances against insurmountable odds (e.g. Omar Jacobs versus Wisconsin or Chang's bowl game shootout with Houston's Kevin Kolb).

They're the random no name guys that are 90+ overall on your X-Box's version of NCAA. And they are heroes to the little guys: the Idahos, the Colorado States, the FIU's. Teams with little to no winning tradition (thus excluding the BYU, Boise States, or Utahs).
This year I'm looking for the next midmajor superstar. I'm thinking Case Keenum of Houston will have a great shot. For being the C-USA Offensive POY, Case was relatively silent on the national stage. This year, he's got two back-back big time opponents right at the start of the season to get the hype train fired up (OKSU on 9/12 and TTU on 9/26).

Any other midmajor stars we should watch for this season? Maybe the CMU QB Dan LeFevour?

Post-July 4th Post

Let's start with some American-style quotes:

We already run the misfits outta our country. We sent 'em back to England. -- Tom Selleck in Quigley Down Under

Good morning. In less than an hour, aircraft from here will join others from around the world. And you will be launching the largest aerial battle in the history of mankind. "Mankind." That word should have new meaning for all of us today. We can't be consumed by our petty differences anymore. We will be united in our common interests. Perhaps it's fate that today is the Fourth of July, and you will once again be fighting for our freedom... Not from tyranny, oppression, or persecution... but from annihilation. We are fighting for our right to live. To exist. And should we win the day, the Fourth of July will no longer be known as an American holiday, but as the day the world declared in one voice: "We will not go quietly into the night!" We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive! Today we celebrate our Independence Day! -- Bill Pullman in Independence Day

Men, all this stuff you've heard about America not wanting to fight, wanting to stay out of the war, is a lot of horse dung. Americans traditionally love to fight. All real Americans love the sting of battle. When you were kids, you all admired the champion marble shooter, the fastest runner, big league ball players, the toughest boxers. Americans love a winner and will not tolerate a loser. Americans play to win all the time. I wouldn't give a hoot in hell for a man who lost and laughed. That's why Americans have never lost, and will never lose a war... because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans. -- George C. Scott in Patton

I went to ATL this past weekend to relax and forget about my current homestead in the Cackalack. It was a relaxing sports weekend other than the Tennis stuff (that I don't really care about) and McNair's shooting, which I actually am interested in.

I followed the Titans inaugural season in 1999 with the likes of Eddie George, Derrick Mason, Frank Wycheck, Jevon Kearse, Yancey Thigpen, and more. I followed them 'cause the Falcons dropped to 5-11 in 1999. The Titans were the second closest team to ATL and had superstar Air McNair leading the way. I watched the Music City Miracle live on a small antenna-fed, black/white tv. We lost power after an ice storm right before the AFC title game so I had to hook up a A/C power converter in my dad's Suburban to watch the Jacksonville game.

Needless to say, Air McNair has a special place in my sports maturation. McNair and the Titans kept me interested in pro football as the Falcons proceeded to go 16-30 from 1999-2001. I would attribute a lot of my current fanaticism to McNair's stay in Nashville. Either way, I put away a few lagers for America and McNair on Saturday Night.

Monday News Links

Mark Teixeira made the MLB All Star team, catching and surpassing Kevin Youklis in the fan voting. I understand the voting for Mark. He had more RBI's and homers. Fans want runs and Teixeira produces runs.

Here's an interesting article about former GT Athletes and their TV/Radio ventures. Players to note, are John Salley, Ryan Stewart, and Dorsey Levens.

Independence Day Random 10

Today's Random 10 is brought to you by two local fraternities and their annual fireworks battle.



And now on to the 10! Yall know how to play by now.

Dancing Days - Led Zeppelin
Shorty Wanna Ride - Young Buck (Ratatat Remix)
Fixing A Hole - The Beatles
Ramblin' Man - The Allman Brothers
Peggy Sue - Blink-182
Darlene - Led Zeppelin
Next Year - Foo Fighters
Gasoline Drems - Outkast
A Day Late - Anberlin
If You See Me - The Black Keys

Pretty good mix to start my day off...keep the lists comin'!

Athleticism leads to financial failure

After yesterday's post about the super rich GT athletes, I started looking around for additional reading on athletes' finances. I found a very interesting line from a great SI article about the financial failures of pro athletes:

When former NBA guard Kenny Anderson filed for bankruptcy in October 2005, he detailed how the estimated $60 million he earned in the league had dwindled to nothing. He bought eight cars and rang up monthly expenses of $41,000, including outlays for child support, his mother's mortgage and his own five-bedroom house in Beverly Hills, Calif.—not to mention $10,000 in what he dubbed "hanging-out money." He also regularly handed out $3,000 to $5,000 to friends and relatives.

Holy Crap... 60 million down the tube. I can't even fathom that much money. I don't necessarily pity the guys that lose that much money but I am definitely jealous. I think about what I could've done with 60 mil or someone with more forethought in a similar situation.

Another link provided by the same article shows the very interesting Championship Rings.NET. I searched specifically for GT rings and found several baseball rings that had already been sold. Apparently, this site has seen a jump in 30% sellers since last year. Whether that's increased exposure or simply a downturning economy is another discussion but I still find the site intriguing. Seeing athletes' prized possessions up for sale. Reminds me a little of the OJ hostage situation.

Just thought I'd share the linkage.

The Director's Cup: ACC-ANALyzed

The National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics of American Athletics of America releases a rating system every year ranking every athletic program by the number of bullshit sports by the quality of the athletic teams competing in NCAA sanctioned sports.

This year the NACDA announced the winner as Stanford (again) and runnerup UNC. However, upon further investigation I have found that the system for crowning a champion is designed strictly for big ass athletic programs like Stanford to win rather than smaller more efficient programs such as FSU or Wake (small as in # of teams small).

First, let me explain the scoring system. The NACDA uses an exponential function to assign points. The input is final standing in the NCAA tournament (or CFB polls) and the function is based on the total number of postseason teams. The output ranges from 100 points (Champion) to 25 points (making the tournament). Certain sports with odd numbers of teams or non-tournament systems have special scoring systems.

The scoring system only accounts for the 20 best teams fielded (10M/10W), which automatically puts 50% of the ACC at a disadvantage as only UNC, Maryland, UVA, Duke, BC, and NC State have 20 or more teams.

The final overall tally:
2. UNC - 1184.25
8. UVA - 1059.00
15. FSU - 945.00
17. Duke - 891.80
28. MD - 668.80
37. Wake - 580.25
43. Miami - 491.00
46. VT - 459.25
48. GT - 452.38
53. CU - 397.00
74. NCSU - 265.30
75. BC - 262.00

This is merely a total of the 20 best teams so schools like Stanford and UNC with 30 or so teams can dominate especially in sports with smaller postseasons where Final 4 or Elite 8 status is almost guaranteed. For example, you have to beat 6 teams to win March Madness but you only have to beat 4 teams to win the Frozen Four. So schools in less-popular sports are automatically racking up big time points.

A breakdown of actual efficiencies shows a slightly different ranking of the ACC teams. If the teams were ranked by actual teams earning points in the NACDA system, FSU would win as 100% of their teams earned points (earned postseason births). UNC was second with 82% of their teams. The worst was BC with only 26% of their teams earning postseason births. The ACC received points by 59% of their competing teams for comparison's sake.

This BC fact is particularly disturbing in that they've also got the most NCAA teams of the ACC with 31, placed the lowest percentage of teams into postseason play, and got the least amount of NACDA points out of the entire ACC (despite their voluminous team advantage). I know their hockey team normally kicks ass but they've gotta do something with the rest of their dead weight programs, in my opinion.

Another interesting way to look at the system is actual team efficiency or "How many points did each school earn per competing team?" Once again FSU won with 55.59 points/team wth UNC and UVA close behind with 44.97 and 42.36 points/team, respectively. BC had 8.45 points/team.

1. FSU - 55.59 p/t
2. UNC - 44.97 p/t
3. UVA - 42.36 p/t
4. Wake - 36.27 p/t
5. Duke - 34.20 p/t
6. Miami - 32.73 p/t
7. GT - 30.16 p/t
8. VT - 27.01 p/t
9. MD - 24.77 p/t
10. CU - 20.89 p/t
11. NCSU - 11.05 p/t
12. BC - 8.45 p/t

I like the idea of awarding points based on postseason appearances but my main problem is the over-valuation of smaller tournaments. It is much more difficult to earn a bid for the Men's/Women's Basketball tournament then it would be to the fencing tournament as there are a lot less teams competing in fencing. The system should account for tournament size and regular season competition field size (more teams = more points).

Otherwise, I find the system intriguing because it is good to have a uniform "objective" metric to evaluate athletic departments. I think it's also good because it adds "weight" to sports that normally get very little (if any) coverage.

Thoughts are welcome.

SI's 50 Richest Athletes - GT Represented...

Sports Illustrated released an article with the 50 highest paid American athletes of 2009. GT had Starbury and Teixeira represented on the the list at #17 and #14, respectively. I went through the list and broke down the players by college/conference. It's pretty interesting seeing the way sports pay their players as well. No surprise to me is that 22 of the 50 athletes are NBA guys, 14 are from the MLB, 9 from the NFL, 3 from the PGA, and Dale Jr. and Jeff Gordon finish the list off. The highest paid is obviously Tiger by almost double.

8 of the top 50 are from the ACC, which ain't too shabby. Especially considering it's three different sports. The Pac 10 has 6 of the top 50, the Big East has 5 all from the NBA, the SEC has 4, and the Big 12 and Big 10 both have 2 represented. This means that 20 of the top 50 highest paid American athletes didn't attend a four year university before going pro. Pretty interesting.

The most represented university on the list of athletes was UNC with 3. GT's 2 were tied with Tennessee, Syracuse, and Arizona. There were 19 Division I universities with only one representative in the top 50. No one from uga made the list...

I thought the article was interesting. Any thoughts?

T-Book Tutorings: Rat Caps and Drownproofings

This week's T-Book Tutorials involve some student participation. I give you RAT Caps and Drownproofing.


DROWNPROOFING
Often referred to as Drowning 101 by Tech students, Drownproofing was the infamous class taught by swimming coach Fred “Crankshaft” Lanoue starting in 1940. The water survival techniques taught by Lanoue allowed potential drowning victims to float and bob naturally in water for hours, even when injured. Students were required to float and swim with wrists and ankles bound, bob fully clothed for one hour, and use only their teeth to retrieve rings from the bottom of the pool. The class became a graduation requirement for all male students and remained so until 1988,when it was removed from the curriculum due to restructuring of the physical education department. The class reached national prominence in the late 1950’s when it was included in the U.S. Navy’s survival training and featured in the June 1960 Reader’s Digest article titled “Nobody Needs to Drown.”

Drownproofing completed. Photo courtesey of drownproofing.com

RAT CAPS

RAT caps first appeared at Georgia Tech in 1915. Freshmen were required to wear the caps everyday until the semester ended or Tech beat UGA in the Thanksgiving weekend football game. RAT originally stood for “Recruit at Tech” during the time when the military had a large presence on Tech’s campus; however, now many people describe freshmen as RATS or “Recently Acquired Tech Students.” In the past, freshmen caught outside without a RAT cap were subjected to various forms of punishment including the “T-cut,” where the student’s hair was shaved into the shape of a “T.” Enforced by the Ramblin’ Reck Club and other upperclassmen, all RAT’s were once subject to the RAT rules listed below:

RAT CAP DESIGN
RAT caps must be decorated in the following manner: In the center of the upturned brim, the acronym, “RAT,” should be written in large, bold letters. Directly above this should be the student’s first and last name, while their hometown and state should be written below the three letters. To the left should be the student’s major, and to the right, their expected year of graduation. On the back panel of the cap, the words, “To HELL with georgia,” should be proudly displayed. The phrase should be displayed with one word on each line. The words “To” and “with” should be written the smallest, and “HELL” should be larger than “georgia.” The word “georgia” should be in all lowercase letters because we choose not to recognize U(sic)GA as an institution of higher education. A circle around the top button of the cap denotes the student is in the Co-op program. Throughout the season, football scores should be added to the cap with all wins displayed right side up and any losses written upside down. Our team should be represented by the word, “TECH,” and should always be written above the opponent as read. The front panel of the cap should be saved for the score of the “georgia” game. All markings on the cap should be done with a black permanent marker.

Anti-hazing policies led to the end of any RAT rules, but freshman still receive a RAT cap at convocation out of respect for tradition. Donning the RAT cap is now completely voluntary, but freshmen are encouraged to show their Tech spirit by sporting their caps at home football games. The marching band is at the forefront of maintaining this tradition. No matter how often one decides to wear their RAT cap, a properly decorated cap serves as an excellent souvenir and reminder of freshman year.

"T-Book Tutorings" is brought to you in anticipation of the 2009-2010 T-Book, the ultimate guide to the history and traditions of Georgia Tech. The book is published by the Ramblin' Reck Club.

Anybody still have their Rat Cap? I still have mine. Crazy stories about Drownproofing are more than welcome.