New Volleyball Coach Announced/ Keep Nikki Meyer Here!

Tonya Johnson, a 6-year University of Texas assistant, has been introduced as our new volleyball coach. She is the 7th coach in GT Volleyball history and apparently she is a baller at recruiting.

So what is her first task? To take her balling recruiting skills and convince highly touted recruit Nikki Meyer, yes as in Urban Meyer's daughter, to stay here at Georgia Tech! I urge you Tonya, to get to it!

Ted Roof hired as DC at AU

First off, here's a quick history lesson on GT football lore. From 1984-1985, Bill Curry used a reward system to motivate his defensive players. Players that performed well on the field were awarded black stripes for their helmets and black GT stickers for the side of their helmets. Ted Roof, Pat Swilling, and Joe Harris were three of the prominent D players during this period.

Ted Roof was hired as the DC for Auburn a couple days ago. I hope Roof does well but I don't know if he will. I remember his defenses sucking pretty bad. Games that come to mind are the Woody Dantzler game and ugag in 1999.

So let's look at a breakdown of Roof's DC history:

1) Roof was a coach at Tech from '98-'01. He coached linebackers until being promoted to DC in '99.
2) He was DC at Duke from '02-'03 until Carl Franks got fired and Roof's first game as interim HC ended Duke's ACC record consecutive losses against Tech.
2) Roof HCed Duke from middle of '03 to '07 and got fired at the end of the '07 season.
3) Roof had a short stint at Louisville, then found a DC position at Minnesota last season.

Roof's Defenses:
1) '99-'01 GT gave up 23.8 ppg (26.7 in conference)
2) '02-'03 Duke gave up 29.0 ppg (32.4 in conference)
3) '08 UM gave up 24.8 ppg (26.3 in conference)

For reference GT has given up an average of 20 ppg since Roof's departure. Auburn since '05 has averaged giving up an amazing 16 ppg under three different DC's (Gibbs, Muschamp, and Rhoads).

So do I think Roof will improve upon this number...No. Do I hope he succeeds? Yes, unless they play GT.

Any thoughts on Auburn's hire are welcome.

Teixeira and Braves news

I'm sorry but I've got to post my thoughts about baseball despite it being ~40 days away. Teixeira goes to the Yankees. ATL Braves legend Smoltz to the Red Sox. I understand that people want money but geez Louise. I don't want Smoltz to pull a Brett Favre. I grew up 37 miles from Fulton County. I've attended at least 100 Braves' games in my life. I've always had a strong dispassion for the Twins, Kirby Puckett, the Phillies, John Kruk, and the Expos. The Expos mostly because they should've technically ended the Braves consecutive pennants but the Strike saved us. The Yankees/Red Sox fall into a special category in my dislike list.

Smoltz and Teixeira are basically going to the two biggest douchebag fanbases ever. They'll get mad hate for every little mistake they make because of their hype. Oh well. It's business. I hate to say it but I'd do the same. I hope Smoltz wins a ring and it'll be hard to root against him if the Braves interleague against the Red Sox. Teixeira...and the Evil Empire? Damnit.

Any thoughts on recent MLB transactions involving your local club or GT alums? Feel free to comment.

To Hell With Georgia - 67 to 62

Bird's Perspective:

I watched from SC on FSN. I found the first half to be disorganized and sloppy. I thought the second half was inspired and aggressive, which is why we won. We pressed the uga bastards when their lack of depth hurt 'em and it showed. Major props to Zach Peacock. Easily the player of the game. Play of the game was Lewis Clinch recovering the loose ball at the end. And I wish I could've listened to Wes Durham calling the game instead I got two FSN turds that kept talking about ugag's run to the SEC title in our house last year...BAH.

Winfield's Perspective:

I watched the game from the top of the AMC. The first half of the game sucked total balls. The total definition of a cripple fight. The 2nd half was our turning point (hopefully for the season as well). We came together as a team and worked the mutts into the pitifulness that they are. Bird is right when he says Peacock gets player of the game, but I will also send a shout out to Gani Lawal. Brought the pain in the 2nd half! And the best thing? Derrick Favors was in the building and was seen slapping hands with GT players at the end! To Hell with Georgia!

What are your thoughts on last night's game?

ACC coach departs and Tostitos Bowl

Well, crap. I can't believe BC got rid of ol' Jags. He was a damn good coach. I'm happy that he's gone for [any future possible matchups] but I'm sad for the ACC's coaching ranks. Looking at his background though indicated he was looking NFL all along. I can't remember the sportscaster that said this verbage but basically every coach wants to prove that their system works at the highest level. Coaching's a competition like the game of football itself. Coaches want to prove to everyone that they're the best. Transitioning from college to pros for coaches is a method of ego stroking but also self affirmation.

I watched a little of the Tostitos Bowl last night with a group of Ohionions. Enjoyable? No. ugag fans of the North. Period. How can people that went to Bowling Green, Toledo, Cincinatti, etc. all root for some random bean mascot more than their alma maters? I always ask, "Who do you root for when Ohio State is kicking the crap out of your college?" Answered with, "GO BUCKEYES!" Weird. I'm a different kind of fan than a lot of the "born and raised." My family had no Tech affiliation. I chose Tech because I liked the school's rep and then fell in love with the sports. So goes life. Everyone's different. Gotta appreciate the different types of fans. If all our fans were the same, we'd be ugag fans.

Thoughts on the Fiesta Bowl and Boston College are welcome. Or thoughts on the your favorite Tostitos/Doritos/corn chips are welcome, too. Got a favorite bird of prey?

GT Basketball: WTF?

Well football season was quite a ride and as many of you can attest, quite a lot of our emphasis was on the sport. We are now full into basketball season (*cough 45 days until baseball season *cough).

So, where do we stand as a basketball team 13 games into the season? Not on very solid ground that's where. Actually, we're sinking fast. Honestly, the worse thing to happen to Paul Hewitt was Paul Johnson coming to the Flats and bringing respectability to the football program. The fanbase now takes its frustration towards mediocrity and focuses it on basketball. That's where we are. We are a mediocre basketball team. Nothing more.

In watching the Alabama thrashing yesterday, I saw sloppy play mixed with a dash of laziness. Bad decisions ran the game. Hewitt can clearly recruit, but the product on the court is getting to be sad, very sad indeed. We are not calling for Hewitt's head (yet). I fully expect him to have at least one more year here at Tech because of the potential of the incoming recruiting class. But can he take the potential we have at Tech and develop the championship caliber team that we expect, yes EXPECT, to play at Alexander Memorial Coliseum? Really only time can tell but the ice is getting thin for Paul Hewitt.

Now on Tuesday we play the University [sic] of Georgia. It will be a cripple fight for pride honestly as neither team has shown really any type of quality on the court. But it is a win against a rival, a rival that we desperately need to beat on our home court. Tomorrow, let's hit some free throws and turn this damn season around.

Metric ton of debacle

Wow. We got beat down. What do we gain from this loss? Probably not very much. We didn't get to see any backup time. We regressed offensively. We played the same defensively that allowed our last 4 opponents to rack up 30 points per game. However, we didn't really lose anything. A lot of people say we lost momentum, pride, respect, and whatnot but I don't really feel too bad about the game. Bowl games, to me, mean about as much as an exhibition basketball game or spring scrimmage. I like to win and don't mind losing bowls...unless it's for an MNC.

Maybe everyone's pissed because we all shelled out a little dough to see the game. I picked up some tickets for the 'rents, myself, and little bro to the tune of 270 cold ones. I generally had a good bowl experience but we ended up leaving earlier than I've ever left a Tech game.

I left because we fired a coach who "did not "motivate his team" or "prepare his team for big opponents" yet on that GA Dome field, I saw a team that was not prepared to play LSU and lacked any real motivation. Sorry to be a negative nancy but did we win a big game this year? Or did Chan's talent win 9 games by default? VT win would've sealed coastal. Came out flat against UNC. Dropped big egg against a terrible UVA team albeit they were hot at the time. And LSU destroyed us. The only big games were losses. We won the two games that went beyond the football field (ugag/FSU) but couldn't win the ones that we needed on the field (coastal games). We'll see next year, eh?

Any thoughts on this rant? Feel free to roast me.