Thanks to our new sponsor Inteleca for helping bring back Q's Take my weekly look at things around GT and college sports from my vantage.
I've covered a lot of bad football both here and with some other programs I've covered and Bowling Green entered my bottom five all-time with the Independence Bowl in 2010, the MTSU 2012 sign stealing game, the Citadel loss (still the gold standard of shit shows) and the loss at Temple in 2019 (Collins horrible reaction colored this more than than the awfulness of the game). Honorable mention to the 2010 game at Kansas as well who were way worse than this BG team, but that was on the road at 11 a.m. local time.
Georgia Tech showed what they can do when they are locked in as a team, playing complimentary football and playing well at Wake Forest. That wasn't a fluke, nor were some of the performances in the Ole Miss or Louisville games. However, the second half of the Bowling Green looked like the worst moments of the Collins era.
It is Brent Key's job to fix it.
I mentioned some of the games above because CPJ who is a HOF coach had some real clunkers during his tenure here too and he would tell you that himself.
Watching the defense I feel like I am having deja vu from my first season on the beat when Paul Johnson spent many games chewing on Dave Wommack's ass. Wommack like Andrew Thacker was a thoughtful coach and not the most demonstrative coach and there was a clear disconnect in that working relationship. Wommack ended up with some redemption at Ole Miss including beating the Jackets in a bowl game in 2013.
Something is not working defensively and the team cannot tackle and they are not covering well and not tackling well either. What is weird about the defense is each week there is a different weakness. K.J. Wallace played really well in some games this year and was bad in this game and the Ole Miss game. Jaylon King played well against Wake Forest and had a bad day. Kenan Johnson still can't tackle but covers better than the other CBs. Bralen Oliver had a rough day as well.
The defense just looks fundamentally unsound at times and I could run through the middle of it because there is no one in the middle of the defense to stop the run half the time.
The third-down defense was abysmal.
Here are the third down and distances BG converted on 10 of 17 attempted yesterday,
1st QT- 3rd and 9 at the BG42, 14-yard RB run
1st QT- 3rd and 1 at the BG34, 8 yard pass
1st QT- 3rd and 10 at the BG26 10 yard pass TD a few plays later
2nd QT- 3rd and 1 at the BG45 27 yard pass
2nd QT- 3rd and 1 at the GT19 1-yd run FG later
2nd QT- 3rd and 9 at the GT26, 9 yard run
2nd QT- 3rd and 10 at the GT 14-yard TOUCHDOWN made it 17-14
3rd QT- 3rd and 8 at the GT12 10-yd pass TD a few plays later to make it 24-14
3rd QT- 3rd and 16 BG8, 17-yard QB draw drive yields a TD to make it 31-14
If they stopped three of these GT would've had a 14-13 lead at the half and they would not have scored two other touchdowns. They were all ridiculous plays as well except for the 14-yard TD which was one of the best catches I've seen in person by Hogan Finn. When he caught that ball I knew GT was in deep shit.
The defense has major problems at LB and in the secondary overall. The linebacker issues I think are as much talent-based as anything. I think the secondary is performance and coaching. They do not lack talent at all back there and there is no excuse for the poor performances from that group. Where are Rod Shelley, Kenyatta Watson, Sirad Bryant, Taye Seymore, and Omar Daniels? LaMiles Brooks has disappeared in the run game probably because he is not 100%. Find guys who want to tackle and make contact and play them back there. That is the group with the most talent and where they should be making the plays on the defense and did a year ago and the safeties other than the WF game have done nothing this season and the CBs have made almost not plays except for Kenan's late pick against Wake. Bowling Green led the nation in turnovers and the only guy close to making a pick or a big play was Paul Moala who batted a pass forward instead of intercepting it for unknown reasons.
Offensively Buster has a great opening script but they cannot sustain drives at all and cannot run the ball effectively probably in part due to the reluctance of them or Haynes King to run the ball early in games. King really seems to only run the ball at the end of halves in two-minute offense. I know he had some foot issues coming to GT, maybe that is still an issue, but it is hard to run this offense if he won't run the ball consistently. King also cost the team -10 points thanks to his intentional grounding play where he should've just ate the sack and they could've kicked a medium-range FG instead of dancing out and throwing the ball away with his left hand and then the terrible pick-six. The second pick was not his fault though he probably put too much on the ball for the RB.
The offense was not good after the first two drives.
Here is an example of what happened after that, BG scores to make it 14-7.
GT ball at their own 29, Cooley rushes for one yard, pass for -5 to Cooley, false start on Singleton on third down to make it 3rd and forever, pass to Blaylock well short of the sticks.
The next drive after the defense actually gets a stop at the GT20, Haynes -1 run, two incomplete passes and a punt.
Next drive at the GT32, Haynes runs for 15 yds on first down, then 0 yards net play, two incomplete passes and then the bad snap punt fumble that led to a short field TD for Bowling Green to put them up 17-14.
Next drive is two-minute offense from the GT25, pass to Rutherford for 12 yards, Cooley runs on first down 2 yds, King runs three times for 25 yards plus a late hit on him to the BG21. King gets sacked because they don't account properly for an extra blitzer and leave someone in to chip, he misses going for Singleton in the end zone and then the horrid intentional grounding because they are not accounting for a blitz look by having someone block extra defenders. Just fundamentally unsound pre-snap. Cost GT at least 3 points.
The first drive of the 3rd QT they got stopped twice trying to pick up one yard and turned it over on downs trailing 24-14.
The drive after that King throws the pick six to end any realistic comeback bid IMO to make it 31-14.
Offensively they have to figure out how to run the ball. If that is using two TEs, three TEs, 2 RBs, 3 RBs, jet-sweeps, running King more or whatever. They can't run the ball 18 times in a football game by design and expect to win. Actually, the called runs were probably less than 18.
The special teams' gremlins struck again. That was a pretty speechless moment.
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Key has to figure out how to fix this and how to make his team look like they care. They reminded me of Maryland melting in black jerseys in the sun yesterday in 2011 when the Terps tried to wear fancy black UA jerseys and it was October 8th and still hot as hell. That didn't help either. The black jerseys GT used to wear back in the day were probably hot as hell too and a bad idea. I hope they burn the jerseys.
Fans understand being beaten by a superior opponent or having some weird game even like the sign-stealing game with CPJ many years ago, but clearly on here some folks either didn't know what happened or are opting to pretend that isn't why they lost that game.
Ironically the sign-stealing game was the last straw for DC Al Groh at Georgia Tech as CPJ fired him at the next bye week a game later after a loss to Clemson.
I don't advocate for coaching changes midseason, especially with coordinators, but there is something seriously wrong and dysfunctional on the defensive side of the ball right now. Bowling Green is a decent MAC team but GT had superior talent at every spot on the field that I saw except maybe that bowling ball of a running back and one receiver.
The offensive inconsistency is a little more understandable given the lack of a dynamic starting RB of the caliber GT fans are used to seeing here over the years that can break tackles and run people over like Jordan Mason, Dedrick Mills, Marcus Marshall, etc... I figured there would be growing pains and I've been impressed with Haynes King and how he as played most of the time. I thought he was not sharp yesterday and floated some balls and made some poor decisions that reminded me more of the guy at TAMU than the player he has been at GT. Hopefully, that does not repeat at Miami this coming week.
I also think the season is not over, but Key has a lot of work to do and he does not have a long rope. J Batt has shown he expects results and Key knows that. Josh Pastner's quick exit was a prime example of him being willing to make changes and not sit on his hands. I think Key is very capable of running this program and being a great head coach but he has to figure out how to both motivate his team and get the most of his staff and players. That is how he got the job in the first place and rallied the team a year ago. More games like this and you lose the locker room and lose the plot some. The schedule still sucks as well and they could really use an upset in Coral Gables next week, but I'm not overly optimistic unless the team that played at Winston-Salem shows up again.
I've covered a lot of bad football both here and with some other programs I've covered and Bowling Green entered my bottom five all-time with the Independence Bowl in 2010, the MTSU 2012 sign stealing game, the Citadel loss (still the gold standard of shit shows) and the loss at Temple in 2019 (Collins horrible reaction colored this more than than the awfulness of the game). Honorable mention to the 2010 game at Kansas as well who were way worse than this BG team, but that was on the road at 11 a.m. local time.
Georgia Tech showed what they can do when they are locked in as a team, playing complimentary football and playing well at Wake Forest. That wasn't a fluke, nor were some of the performances in the Ole Miss or Louisville games. However, the second half of the Bowling Green looked like the worst moments of the Collins era.
It is Brent Key's job to fix it.
I mentioned some of the games above because CPJ who is a HOF coach had some real clunkers during his tenure here too and he would tell you that himself.
Watching the defense I feel like I am having deja vu from my first season on the beat when Paul Johnson spent many games chewing on Dave Wommack's ass. Wommack like Andrew Thacker was a thoughtful coach and not the most demonstrative coach and there was a clear disconnect in that working relationship. Wommack ended up with some redemption at Ole Miss including beating the Jackets in a bowl game in 2013.
Something is not working defensively and the team cannot tackle and they are not covering well and not tackling well either. What is weird about the defense is each week there is a different weakness. K.J. Wallace played really well in some games this year and was bad in this game and the Ole Miss game. Jaylon King played well against Wake Forest and had a bad day. Kenan Johnson still can't tackle but covers better than the other CBs. Bralen Oliver had a rough day as well.
The defense just looks fundamentally unsound at times and I could run through the middle of it because there is no one in the middle of the defense to stop the run half the time.
The third-down defense was abysmal.
Here are the third down and distances BG converted on 10 of 17 attempted yesterday,
1st QT- 3rd and 9 at the BG42, 14-yard RB run
1st QT- 3rd and 1 at the BG34, 8 yard pass
1st QT- 3rd and 10 at the BG26 10 yard pass TD a few plays later
2nd QT- 3rd and 1 at the BG45 27 yard pass
2nd QT- 3rd and 1 at the GT19 1-yd run FG later
2nd QT- 3rd and 9 at the GT26, 9 yard run
2nd QT- 3rd and 10 at the GT 14-yard TOUCHDOWN made it 17-14
3rd QT- 3rd and 8 at the GT12 10-yd pass TD a few plays later to make it 24-14
3rd QT- 3rd and 16 BG8, 17-yard QB draw drive yields a TD to make it 31-14
If they stopped three of these GT would've had a 14-13 lead at the half and they would not have scored two other touchdowns. They were all ridiculous plays as well except for the 14-yard TD which was one of the best catches I've seen in person by Hogan Finn. When he caught that ball I knew GT was in deep shit.
The defense has major problems at LB and in the secondary overall. The linebacker issues I think are as much talent-based as anything. I think the secondary is performance and coaching. They do not lack talent at all back there and there is no excuse for the poor performances from that group. Where are Rod Shelley, Kenyatta Watson, Sirad Bryant, Taye Seymore, and Omar Daniels? LaMiles Brooks has disappeared in the run game probably because he is not 100%. Find guys who want to tackle and make contact and play them back there. That is the group with the most talent and where they should be making the plays on the defense and did a year ago and the safeties other than the WF game have done nothing this season and the CBs have made almost not plays except for Kenan's late pick against Wake. Bowling Green led the nation in turnovers and the only guy close to making a pick or a big play was Paul Moala who batted a pass forward instead of intercepting it for unknown reasons.
Offensively Buster has a great opening script but they cannot sustain drives at all and cannot run the ball effectively probably in part due to the reluctance of them or Haynes King to run the ball early in games. King really seems to only run the ball at the end of halves in two-minute offense. I know he had some foot issues coming to GT, maybe that is still an issue, but it is hard to run this offense if he won't run the ball consistently. King also cost the team -10 points thanks to his intentional grounding play where he should've just ate the sack and they could've kicked a medium-range FG instead of dancing out and throwing the ball away with his left hand and then the terrible pick-six. The second pick was not his fault though he probably put too much on the ball for the RB.
The offense was not good after the first two drives.
Here is an example of what happened after that, BG scores to make it 14-7.
GT ball at their own 29, Cooley rushes for one yard, pass for -5 to Cooley, false start on Singleton on third down to make it 3rd and forever, pass to Blaylock well short of the sticks.
The next drive after the defense actually gets a stop at the GT20, Haynes -1 run, two incomplete passes and a punt.
Next drive at the GT32, Haynes runs for 15 yds on first down, then 0 yards net play, two incomplete passes and then the bad snap punt fumble that led to a short field TD for Bowling Green to put them up 17-14.
Next drive is two-minute offense from the GT25, pass to Rutherford for 12 yards, Cooley runs on first down 2 yds, King runs three times for 25 yards plus a late hit on him to the BG21. King gets sacked because they don't account properly for an extra blitzer and leave someone in to chip, he misses going for Singleton in the end zone and then the horrid intentional grounding because they are not accounting for a blitz look by having someone block extra defenders. Just fundamentally unsound pre-snap. Cost GT at least 3 points.
The first drive of the 3rd QT they got stopped twice trying to pick up one yard and turned it over on downs trailing 24-14.
The drive after that King throws the pick six to end any realistic comeback bid IMO to make it 31-14.
Offensively they have to figure out how to run the ball. If that is using two TEs, three TEs, 2 RBs, 3 RBs, jet-sweeps, running King more or whatever. They can't run the ball 18 times in a football game by design and expect to win. Actually, the called runs were probably less than 18.
The special teams' gremlins struck again. That was a pretty speechless moment.
----
Key has to figure out how to fix this and how to make his team look like they care. They reminded me of Maryland melting in black jerseys in the sun yesterday in 2011 when the Terps tried to wear fancy black UA jerseys and it was October 8th and still hot as hell. That didn't help either. The black jerseys GT used to wear back in the day were probably hot as hell too and a bad idea. I hope they burn the jerseys.
Fans understand being beaten by a superior opponent or having some weird game even like the sign-stealing game with CPJ many years ago, but clearly on here some folks either didn't know what happened or are opting to pretend that isn't why they lost that game.
Ironically the sign-stealing game was the last straw for DC Al Groh at Georgia Tech as CPJ fired him at the next bye week a game later after a loss to Clemson.
I don't advocate for coaching changes midseason, especially with coordinators, but there is something seriously wrong and dysfunctional on the defensive side of the ball right now. Bowling Green is a decent MAC team but GT had superior talent at every spot on the field that I saw except maybe that bowling ball of a running back and one receiver.
The offensive inconsistency is a little more understandable given the lack of a dynamic starting RB of the caliber GT fans are used to seeing here over the years that can break tackles and run people over like Jordan Mason, Dedrick Mills, Marcus Marshall, etc... I figured there would be growing pains and I've been impressed with Haynes King and how he as played most of the time. I thought he was not sharp yesterday and floated some balls and made some poor decisions that reminded me more of the guy at TAMU than the player he has been at GT. Hopefully, that does not repeat at Miami this coming week.
I also think the season is not over, but Key has a lot of work to do and he does not have a long rope. J Batt has shown he expects results and Key knows that. Josh Pastner's quick exit was a prime example of him being willing to make changes and not sit on his hands. I think Key is very capable of running this program and being a great head coach but he has to figure out how to both motivate his team and get the most of his staff and players. That is how he got the job in the first place and rallied the team a year ago. More games like this and you lose the locker room and lose the plot some. The schedule still sucks as well and they could really use an upset in Coral Gables next week, but I'm not overly optimistic unless the team that played at Winston-Salem shows up again.
