Charlotte, N.C. – Georgia Tech freshman Naithan George and graduate senior Carter Murphy have both been named to the All-Atlantic Coast Conference Academic Men’s Basketball team, the conference office announced Thursday.

A total of 63 ACC men’s basketball players were named to the team. Candidates must have a minimum 3.0 grade point average for their career as well as a minimum 3.0 GPA during the most recently completed semester/quarter. Graduate students must have an undergraduate and graduate career minimum grade point average of 3.0 as well a minimum 3.0 GPA during the most recently completed semester/quarter. Athletic criteria considered includes participation in 50 percent of his team’s scheduled games.

George (Toronto, Ontario) and Murphy (Phoenix, Ariz.), who transferred from the Air Force Academy, both earned perfect 4.0 grade-point averages in the fall semester (the spring semester is not yet complete). George is enrolled in business administration, while Murphy is in Tech’s graduate operations research program as he fulfills his 5-year obligation to the Air Force.

A 6-3 guard, George did not play in the Yellow Jackets’ first three games, but entered the starting lineup in game 4 and remained there for the remainder of the season. He averaged 9.8 points and 4.7 assists per game, ranking No. 2 in the ACC in assist average and seventh in assist/turnover ratio. Murphy, a 6-4 guard, missed significant time with an injury but played in half of the Jackets’ ACC games, and averaged 1.8 points while connecting on 36.8 percent of his three-point shots.

ATLANTA- Georgia Tech continued preparations for the annual spring game on Wednesday with a two-hour practice session and after practice receivers coach Trent McKnight met with the media for the first time since arriving on the Flats and a trio of his receivers, Eric Singleton Jr., Chase Lane and Malik Rutherford spoke as well.

"It has been a really good camp and it has been fun to work with this group of coaches and players. It is fun seeing guys get better and we've got a great receivers room that is hungry to go out there and get better," McKnight said. "It has been fun and I've been learning a lot with this offense."

McKnight was the offensive coordinator at Georgia State until Shawn Elliott quit in the middle of spring camp several weeks ago. That created a ripple effect that sent Dell McGee from Georgia to Georgia State and then Tech receivers coach Josh Crawford to UGA to replace McGee. McKnight was picked to replace Crawford on the Flats giving the new Tech coach a rare win for an assistant coach. He didn't have to move his family or anything to take another job. He simply had to pack up his office and move up the road to Tech.

"Well, it worked out great for me. I'm thrilled to do death to be over here," McKnight said when asked about the unusual timing of the move to Tech. "The thing I love most about being here is the people, from Coach (Brent) Key to the offensive staff to the receivers room and the entire team. It was a whirlwind of what happened over there, but the good Lord took care of us and got us over here. I've been lucky this is going on year eight living in Atlanta and we love living here. I was blessed with my kids, nothing has changed for them. Same schools, same baseball teams, same friends, and you are not always going to go through a transition like that. They just have to learn a bunch of new players here."

The small world of coaching helped McKnight land at Tech because he had connections to Buster Faulkner through the coaching world and knew Key a little from the road.

"I've known the staff from being right down the street from camps or whatnot and Buster and I have coached with some of the same people so that was part of the relationships and with Coach Key, I would see him on the road and get a chance to interact with him, but I think this always comes down to relationships and I think some of the success we had with receivers over there," McKnight said. "We've been at camps and other things where I've got to know them a little bit better, but it is a lot of fun to be where and work with this group on a daily basis."


McKnight said there was a good learning curve for him picking up the offense and the NFL terminology and high volume of stuff. He said he told the WRs when he got hired they would know the offense better than him being in their second years in the system. He said that DeAndre Smelter has done a great job of helping him in that room and going through stuff with him and the players. He has been in the same place for seven years and the same offense for five years at Ga State so it is cool for him to be uncomfortable for the first time in a while and learn and grow as a coach.

McKnight said he wanted to give every receiver a clean slate so he didn't really study their film and he will do more of that in the summer to look at what they need to work one, but he had relationships with a few players who he recruited out of HS already.

McKnight said that he wants constant improvement in little areas like releases, route running and staying on top of blocks and those are things you can always get better at. Lots of details and techniques and all his evals are done based off this spring spring. He thinks a lot of times WRs are under coached and underdeveloped and that is something he tries to fix and they watch a lot of NFL tape as well with guys who are very good at specific techniques.

I asked about Leo Blackburn and Chase Lane coming off their injuries and he said both were making plays today and they are getting their confidence back and that is big coming off an injury. Leo is a big target and there are not many WRs in the country with his size that can make plays. On Chase, he said that he was the leading receiver before he got hurt last year and he is growing his overall game.

McKnight said that Zion Taylor is having a good spring and he is pushing him and he keeps making plays. He came in the night before the first scrimmage to get extra work. You can tell Zion is hungry and he wants to do well.

McKnight said that Malik Rutherford has done a great job loves the game and getting better every day. Bailey Stockton has done really well in his role and there is a lot of competition in the WR room.

The staff have continued to work Avery Boyd as a flex playing some TE/WR/SLT and working with the TEs at times and WRs at other times and McKnight said that he is really fun to have around and he recruited him out of HS in Tally and he has a great personality and is doing a great job in the role they are trying to create for him.

McKnight said that Abdul Janneh is having a strong camp and he sits in the front in meetings and is very attentive to details and taking notes. They've worked him inside and outside and he does a really good job blocking on the perimeter with an edge to him. He has been the best blocker out there and continues to get better at his route running and playing with speed downfield.

Chase Lane spoke and said it was very frustrating last year starting out great and then getting injured and it was his first significant injury of his career. He said God had different plans for him and he is back and his mindset since January has been to attack everything because this is his last go around and his last chance to put up some good film and try to get to the next level. He feels healthy and like himself again and that has been a big confidence booster for him.

Lane said that everyone now in the receiver room has the chemistry he came in with Haynes King and that having so many receivers and skill guys back will push the offense to another level. Fans should get a glimpse of it on Saturday.

Lane said that McKnight has done a good job of putting guys in different positions throughout the spring like playing Janneh inside and him outside and that creates more competition and brings everyone closer as a unit.

Lane said that McKnight has been fun to get to know and his drill work translates more to the game and he can see it personally and McKnight pulls him to the side after every route and is in his ear with little tips and things to remember. He has been really impressed with McKnight and how he is building relationships so quickly after getting hired late in the process and he has been really intentional with trying to build up those relationships.

Lane said there are a lot of bad tastes in the offenses mouths after last year games like Louisville, BC and Bowling Green and this is year two and they have the whole group back who are more comfortable with Coach Faulkner's offense and they want to dominate each and every game.

Eric Singleton said he wants to do everything better than he did last year and needs better stats and wants to hit 1,000 yards receiving this season.

Singleton said he really likes McKnight and how he is so big on technique and he has really improved his technique and he has been impressed with how quickly McKnight picked up on everything and the playbook despite only being here at short time.

Singleton said he is a Jr. aka Eric Singleton Jr. so why not rock #2 so that is why he changed his number.

Singleton said playing last year and in camp now the game has slowed down a lot for him and he didn't realize at the time how fast everything was moving until this spring.

Singleton said he feels like everyone in the room is getting so much better and it is really good to have Leo Blackburn back.

Singleton said he is working to improve his route running and he has the speed, he wants the route part down pat.

I asked him about running track and he said it was a great experience and he loved having new teammates but isn't sure if he will do it again. Track shape and football shape are two different things, but he had fun out there.

I asked Singleton if he heard the noise of teams wanting him to transfer and he said that staying at Tech was an easy decision, "it was a no-brainer for me. I wasn't really caught up in all the pressure and all of that. I just come every day ready to play football and ready to work and go to class."

Malik Rutherford said that Coach McKnight has fit in well and they were comfortable right away with him and they love him and he is a great receivers coach teaching them everything they need to know.

Rutherford said the spring has been pretty comfortable with the offense and timing and his connection with Haynes King. He said that King knows all his receivers now, the routes and how fast guys are on them so they'll have a good connection.

Rutherford said he is five pounds away from his goal weight of 170. That has been an ongoing fight to put weight on for him since he arrived to GT.

Rutherford said he is happy to have Leo back and they came in together but Leohad his injuries and it is big getting him and Chase Lane back.

Georgia Tech hosted the annual coaches clinic and the sidelines were packed with HS coaches including former Yellow Jacket Embry Peeples. Peeples is now an assistant coach at Harvester Christian Academy in Douglasville. It was great catching up with him after not seeing him for many years.

Good morning. Your first JOL Class addition projection-

Four-star Rabun Gap OL Justin Hasenheutl.
Login to view embedded media
More to come.

Interesting lineup. Four true freshman!

Now

#GaTech redshirt sophomore TE Jackson Long has torn his ACL and will miss the 2024 season. Long was having a strong camp and it was a fluke injury last week.

Thanks to our sponsor Inteleca for helping bring back Q's Take my weekly look at things around GT and college sports from my vantage.



Every year I do a run through the camp circuit with Rivals hitting up most of our camps in places like Miami, Charlotte, Atlanta, and Dallas and I always ask players who have Georgia Tech offers or even some who have passed through about the Jackets. There are kids they are seriously recruiting who say great things, some who think they are above a program like GT and are dismissive and some who are not really clued into GT.

This Saturday was the first Rivals Camp Series event for me this year (2nd Rivals Camp overall after L.A. last month) and the first of four straight weekends where I will be seeing top Tech targets. It was interesting to see the temperature change in how recruits view Tech from a year ago.

Generally, kids fit into one of the three categories above and often there is sort of a blank look from the more unlikely kids whom I am often just asking so RJ and I can stop tracking them because the kid is going to Bama or UGA or Florida State and isn't going to OV or have serious interest. That was not the case today and it was really weird. There was only one kid who gave me that cold stare and that was one I was just running multiple schools by as a favor to someone else and threw GT in there just to make sure.

Every other kid I spoke to had good things to say about GT. Most of the good ones have been on campus at least once on their own dime since Brent Key and his staff took over. That means they had elite underclassmen taking early visits last year and were scouting well a year ahead and it was the same with the 2026 kids who would've been sophomores last year. These are all kids 7-10+ hours away from the city of Atlanta who came on their own or with their team/7v7 team to visit the Flats and came away impressed.

I legit had a kid who I was interviewing about Alabama just throw GT out at me a possible school he has legit interest in and recently visited. That would be Wiregrass CB Graceson Littleton. Even guys who GT wouldn't take right now were talking up GT and talking about Atlanta and how much they love it up there and how impressed they were with Brent Key and his staff, etc.

I'm not going to knock the previous regime, but I'll add that both that crew and CPJ's staff never really had this kind of love at these camps and this is our 10th year doing it or something like that so they overlapped with some good GT seasons during that span under CPJ and the initial hype train from GC3.

What GT did in year one has caught the attention of kids and has them interested in Georgia Tech and monitoring the program. If Key can win over the next year or two, that can change perception quickly and turn GT into more of a destination.

You are already seeing a pretty strong start to the 2025 class and that was intentional by Key. They waited to take commits until they got the guys they were absolutely sold on instead of taking someone to get on the scoreboard.

Between the recruiting and Coach Key's reaction to the scrimmage on Saturday, I think it could be a fun summer and fall for Yellow Jacket Nation.

THE FLATS – Due to inclement weather in the area, Georgia Tech baseball’s game against Georgia Southern on Tuesday, April 9 has been postponed to Wednesday, April 10, it was announced today.



First pitch on Wednesday is set for 4 p.m. at Mac Nease Baseball Park at Russ Chandler Stadium.



Further weather updates can be found at ramblinwreck.com and on X at @GTBaseball.

from The Athletic...

The schedule for Georgia Tech has the Yellow Jackets heading into a big week with some newfound confidence.

After winning a road series at Pittsburgh, one of the bottom teams in the ACC and a wild comeback against Presbyterian in the mid-week, GT has created something they’ve desperately needed- momentum.

While Pitt is far from a power program in the conference, they are a program that has given Georgia Tech trouble in the last few years, and did again at times over the weekend.

With plenty of time left in the season, the results from the weekend could end up being a spot where fans, coaches, and players look back as the turning point of the season.

It could also just simply be a blip in the radar of another trying season, and a bright moment for a team that has been put together via the transfer portal piece by piece. Danny Hall compared the way they put together the roster to the Tampa Bay Rays. It is still unclear if that is the Devil Rays version who struggled to win more than 60 games, or the current Rays team that is a perennial contender.

The defining moments from the weekend series against Pitt weren’t by way of the one-year transfer bunch, but rather the youngsters-

Freshman OF Drew Burress has been a breakout player all season. In key moments, guys like C Vahn Lackey, 3B Ryan Jaros, IF Carson Kerce, and SP Tate McKee all showed Pitt and the rest of the conference why they were as highly-rated coming out of HS as they were.

With Indiana transfer Matthew Ellis showing an increased level of comfort and confidence when lining up as the DH, Lackey started two games over the weekend, and made the most of his chances. Ellis was having the best weekend of his Tech career, and Lackey was able to match that intensity defensively with his approach at the plate both as a battery-mate and as someone in the field.

Ryan Jaros was given a start on Sunday, and he paved the way for some big innings as he finished 3-4 at the plate, scoring two big runs. After struggling early in the season, Jaros has really begun coming into his own. Going 3-4 with two runs scored was big for the Jackets on Sunday. It wouldn’t surprise in the least if Jaros finds his way into the lineup as the season progresses. He’s made the most of his chance. and with the proven results, he could easily end up as the everyday 3B as Hall and Ramsey continue to shuffle things up a bit.

Sunday’s game was the best of his college career thus far.

Starting pitcher Tate McKee likely cemented himself as a weekend starter with his start on Sunday, striking out nine and giving up 1 run on 1 hit in 5 IP. McKee is now second on the team in K (33) despite being fifth on the team in IP with 22.1 IP.

Sunday was the best game of his career as well, as you could see the confidence growing for the freshman throughout his start.

This growing collection of young talent will face a big challenge this week, with matchups against a feisty Georgia Southern team that had a lead until the 8th inning in the matchup in Statesboro earlier this season and against a VT team that is coming off a sweep by a loaded Wake Forest that seem to be finding themselves.

Georgia Tech fans have already closed the book both on this season and on the career of head coach Danny Hall, but with a strong performance this week (3-1, even 2-2) the path to the post-season just might be back in-play.

Lose 3 out of 4, and the program will be right back where it started. The easy part of the schedule is now a thing of the past.

Following the series this weekend against the Hokies, the remaining weekend series for the season are as follows-

AT Virginia (#11)
vs. Miami
AT Clemson (#2)
vs. Duke (#7)
AT Florida State (#10)

No one is currently projecting the Yellow Jackets to make the tournament, and who can blame them given the inconsistencies of the team, particularly on the mound thus far this season.

As big changes potentially await the Jackets after the season, the big week upcoming will go a long way in determining the fate of many.

ATLANTA- On a rainy Tuesday, Georgia Tech held the 12th practice of spring ball on the Rose Bowl Practice Fields as the Yellow Jackets continued to prepare for the annual spring game Saturday in Bobby Dodd Stadium. After practice, the secondary took the spotlight with defensive backs coach Cory Peoples and defensive backs LaMiles Brooks, Ahmari Harvey and Clayton Powell-Lee taking turns speaking with the media.

Peoples was one of the final hires for the Jackets' staff as head coach Brent Key filled out positions this offseason in a massive defensive rebuild. Peoples made a short move across the city from Georgia State to Georgia Tech.

"I've been here for about three months now and I knew Coach Key from recruiting met him a few times and I knew some guys that knew him and we kind of kept that relationship and it came along after that," Peoples said of how he ended up on the Flats.


Peoples said that LaMiles Brooks and Clayton Powell-Lee are the top two safeties and they can play both strong and free and he likes to rotate them. Powell-Lee can also play some nickel as well. He wanted them to know both in case there are injuries and they need to move guys around in the secondary in a game. With the younger guys they are keeping them at strong or free safety. D.J. Moore made the move from WR to CB last fall during the season and has moved to safety and he has had a great camp and taken to the position. Peoples said Moore has been a big surprise for them and he is running with the twos despite making that hard move. Peoples has been impressed with how the guys have learned the new defense and how they've come along.

At nickel, it is a neck and neck race with Omar Daniels and Syeed Gibbs. Peoples said that Daniels is doing a great job and is a very smart kid that handles situations well and learned the playbook real well. Syeed transferred in from Rhode Island and he is doing a good job and they are duking it out sharing reps with the ones and twos every day at nickel.

They rested Brooks some in the scrimmage last Saturday and let Khari Gee take most of the one reps at SS last Saturday and Peoples said that Gee has been doing well with his recovery and gives them some depth at safety. He has been doing pretty good, had seven tackles in the scrimmage in 63 plays in the scrimmage and he is excited to see him in the spring game.

I asked how Taye Seymore is coming along at safety and he said he is starting to grasp the defense more and he is getting more comfortable as they get into the last week of spring ball.

Peoples said that he knew Powell-Lee before he came to GT because he recruited him out of HS at Westlake.

Peoples said that the CBs and safeties meet up a lot and they have to be on the same page and communicate well for the defense to work. He said that he has a good relationship with CBs coach Ricky Brumfield because he recruited Kyan Brumfield out of HS (he is a GA now at GT) so they had a prior relationship. He thinks it is impressive that Brumfield can coach WR/DBs and special teams at this level.

I asked Peoples about the learning curve for the defense and he said they spent 14 hour days when he first got here with DC Tyler Santucci from 6am to 8pm working on it every day so they would be ready to teach and install this spring and they have the majority of the base defense in now.

Peoples said he has been impressed with how the guys are improving his tackling and he said that he had Powell-Lee in his office the other day and was praising him for how much his tackling has improved this spring and that it is night and day compared to last year.

Peoples said that teaching tackling is totally different from when he played and now you have to keep your head up and it is more rugby now and those guys tackle with no pads and don't have injuries so they teach more of that style of tackling and understanding a force tackle vs a profile tackle (high tackle in the chest area with your head out of the way and following through).

Brooks said there is more communication with this defense pre-snap in the secondary and making checks after getting the call and looking at the final picture and what happens if the picture changes and alerting for motion.

I asked Brooks about coming back and how motivating a disappointing 2023 played into his decision to come back and play. He said it was absolutely motivating, last year was a down year with a few more injuries than he would've liked and production wasn't where he liked. He is embracing what happened last year, but he is now making this season about this season and not trying to look backward.

Brooks said he doesn't have a preference with free and strong safety and he is cool playing some nickel or even corner if asked to.

Brooks said it is fun going against the GT offense and all the eye candy and tricks that Buster Faulkner has in it because it really helps them prepare for what they'll see during the season and it is great preparation. It is possibly the hardest offense they will see all year and they embrace the challenge of going against it every day.

Brooks said that Santucci is very active and very high energy as a coach and he would run around with them if he could. He keeps everyone fired up and motivated in good and bad situations and he brings that energy to the meeting room as well and the guys feed off of it.

Brooks said the competition in the spring game should be pretty good.

Powell-Lee said that coaches are challenging them and it has been hard to learn the new scheme, but a fun challenge as well and they want them to understand why they are doing the things they are doing defensively.

Powell-Lee said he really critiqued himself with his tackling and it was something that Coach Peoples and Coach Key presented to him as a challenge to improve and he really wanted to step up and make those plays and tackles while having a stable mindset.

Powell-Lee said that Coach Peoples has been fun and he challenges the DBs with the little details and having that football mind right every play otherwise you'll get beat. It makes them harp on the little details.


Ahmari Harvey was the last one to talk and he said playing down the stretch well last year really helped build up his confidence. He said that CB is a position where you have to have a lot of confidence as a player in yourself and that helped him build that when he had some successes.

Harvey said he doesn't have an issue flushing a bad play, he said he has been through some rough things in his life so it is easy to flush a mistake or a bad play.

Harvey said that Coach Key has really helped him a lot as far as being more disciplined on the field and helping his teammates out and maturing in life.

Harvey said Coach Brumfield was someone he already had a good relationship with because of his role on special teams last year and then him working with them some and they've always had mutual respect and they all respect him in the room and are trying to get better every day.

Harvey said since he was little he has always had a knack for big plays on both sides of the ball, just something comes out of him when his back is against the wall, he just claws out of it.

Harvey on his field goal blocking prowess, said he was a DE in middle school and he dips his shoulder like a pass rusher gets around and then he uses that to block kicks. He tries to time snap counts and on the second attempt he usually has it down.

So today I went to the bookstore to grab some new gym shirts. Was greeted by a crackhead violently losing his shit with his shopping cart directly outside since a wheel was broken or something so that was a good start. I walked in and was struck immediately by the lack of gold in there. It was unreal. The color population of the clothing in there went as follows:
1) Gray
2) Navy
3) Black
4) Gold
5) White

Same goes for the hats. I get that this probably makes sense for adidas from a materials perspective but it was just tough. No wonder we can't get on the same page. Paging Gold1.

P.S. I am convinced that some of the students at Tech now are Martians dressed up as humans. Was there during a class change and just...wow. Can't be real people.

THE FLATS – Eleven prominent Yellow Jackets, including quarterbackHaynes King, will sign autographs for subscribers to The Tech Way following Georgia Tech football’s White and Gold Game on Saturday.



In addition to King, DL Zeek Biggers, DB LaMiles Brooks, RB Anthony Carrie, TE Ryland Goode, RB Jamal Haynes, DL Horace Lockett, DB Clayton Powell-Lee, WR Malik Rutherford, TE Brett Seither and WR Eric Singleton Jr. will sign autographs exclusively for Tech Way subscribers after the conclusion of the game, which kicks off at 1 p.m. at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field.



To be a part of the autograph session, fans must be a Tech Way subscriber. To become a subscriber and receive more information on the exclusive autograph session, visit thetechway.com.



Admission to Saturday’s White and Gold Game, Georgia Tech’s annual spring game, is FREE. For more information, click HERE.



The Tech Way

The Tech Way leverages the collective power of alumni and fans to equip Georgia Tech student-athletes with the tools and resources necessary for them to excel both during and beyond their time in Atlanta. More importantly, The Tech Way seeks to help student-athletes maximize their name, image and likeness opportunities the right way, without ever compromising the values of the Institute and the legacy of those who have donned the White and Gold in the past.

Will give away one free parking pass for tonight. First come first serve. First person to put down their email address gets it.

It’s that time again. Sitting here at halftime of the F$U game. Hope we can maintain this and pull out one on senior day.

Cost is $10 per entry. Up to 2 brackets if you'd like. Please Venmo me when you join so I don't remove your bracket. My Venmo is in the yahoo league details when you join. All unpaid brackets will be removed when they lock at first game tip on Thursday 3/21.

Scoring is progressive with bonuses for early round upsets. It's all online so you can check your standings real time.

Private group created in Yahoo Fantasy.
Password is "Ekreb24!”

Edit: For those of you wondering, the field of 64 will be picked after all the tournament championships next Sunday the 17th. So you should be able to start your picks then or Monday morning. There will be then 3 days until the games start (Thursday the 21st around noonish). But if you want in, no need to wait.

Link to Bracket

THE FLATS – For the second time this season, senior third basemen Mallorie Black has been named Atlantic Coast Conference player of the week, the conference office announced Tuesday. Black dominated opposing pitchers all of last week, going 9 for 18 with five home runs, a double, 11 RBI and seven runs scored. The Cumming, Ga native now leads all of the Power 5 with 16 HRs and is third in the nation with 52 RBI.



This is the second ACC player of the week recognition for Black as she becomes the first Yellow Jacket to win the award twice in one season since Alysha Rudnik in 2013.



Black started her week last Wednesday against Troy, launching a home run to left field on the very first pitch she saw. That at bat would set the tone for the weekend as Black spearheaded the offense through three games in Auburn at the War Eagle Challenge. She connected for yet another first inning home run in the first game against Auburn, a solo shot that fueled a three-run first inning for the Jackets.



Her bat stayed hot for the doubleheader on Saturday, beginning with a career high two home run, seven RBI game against Louisiana Tech. Black launched a three-run homer in the sixth inning against Louisiana Tech before coming back in the seventh with a grand slam, her second of the season. Black joins Madison Dobbins as the first Tech teammates to both hit multiple grand slams in a season since 2011.



Black followed that performance by hitting her fifth long ball of the week in the Jackets’ 10-9 victory over Auburn in the final game of the weekend, bringing her totals for the week to five home runs and 11 RBI, the most across all of Division I. She has now hit 16 HRs for the year, the fourth most in DI and the most by a Power 5 hitter. Her 52 RBI is the most by a Yellow Jacket since 2013 and her 16 HR rank 8th most in program history with still 12 games remaining on the schedule.



UP NEXT

Black and the Jackets will play four home games this week, beginning on Wednesday at 4 pm against Alabama State. Tech will get back into ACC play this weekend with a three-game series against Louisville (23-16, 4-8 ACC) beginning Friday at 6 p.m. For ticket information, visit ramblinwreck.com

The White & Gold Spring Game is this Saturday April 13th! Be sure to become a member of thetechway.com today to be able to participate in the members only postgame autograph session on the football field! See you all this Saturday! #stingem

Login to view embedded media

youre good my dude..
first off.. hey handsome
where do you see us landing in the football and basketball rankings these upcoming classes?
whats the word on Hall's retirement exit? if he does retire how do you see that affecting our baseball recruiting?

KQ- Bringing out the big guns. lol

What's the deal with what seems like a lot of basketball players wearing full length compression socks? Is this a medical thing or a style thing? It seems like a style thing with Angel Reese wearing a full length purple sock on one leg only.

KQ- So the theory is the compression increases blood flow in the legs or arms helping with recovery and hopefully helping mitigating muscle strains or the like. They have some that have little knee pads built in as well to help you from banging knees or hitting your knees on the hardwood.

When do you think the TE and DE holes will be filled? After college finals? (transfers after spring ball)

I would think we need 1 transfer at each position.

Most likely a Russell question

KQ- More of a me question. The portal opens April 16th and closes on the last day of April. So not before then. However you don't have to "sign" or get commits in any timetable other than August so you can add guys whenever they are ready to commit. I don't think they are going after a TE either despite Long's injury.

It is appearing there has been a real & accelerated transformation to a quality roster with depth on both sides of the ball (& with the staff) in the short time CBK has been at the helm…really optimistic & excited for the 2024 season & what could be a “special” season on the Flats…not really a question but…temper my expectations

KQ- The schedule is hard on paper and that is the biggest issue. I think it is 10 bowl teams last year on deck and you get Notre Dame and UGA non-conference so that sucks in terms of penciling a win in for a non-conference game. Ga State will be their Super Bowl playing GT so you will get kids playing out of their minds. Other teams improved as well in the offseason and the game in Ireland will be weird because it is game one and in a foreign country.

I'm sure it's nothing but we haven't heard much from LaMiles Brooks this spring. Is he pretty much locked in as the starter or is there competition back there? I was expecting to hear he was having a big spring

KQ- Not much to report on him at the moment. Taye Seymore would be a guy who could push there for some playing time. They do need a third safety and a fourth safety because Tyler Santucci is not in favor of playing starters 60+ snaps anywhere on the field.

Do the coaches have their eyes on any spring football transfers as the portal opens up again soon?

KQ- That would be tampering and that is illegal. There are a few kids in the portal right now who didn't sign or commit, but I expect everyone GT targets with the couple of spots they'll have will enter after the April 16th portal opens and that is going to randomly available talent.

I may have missed it but what happened to Billy Ward? Did he graduate?

KQ- Yes, he participated in Senior Day in the stadium before the UGA game.

What are some good player comps for our bball recruits from the Final 4 teams?

KQ- That is not really my realm of thinking. I don't know Purdue and UConn well enough or NC State to make comparisons. Bama is a different type of team compared to everyone else too.

Do you think Jacob Cruz can have a Jamal Haynes type breakout at his new position this year?

KQ- That is a large ask for a guy who has been at his spot for 10 days. He has a lot of potential and he is getting bigger and bigger. He is like Darren Waller in college sized now. That is why I was shocked he was still at LB when they broke camp. That kid is still growing.

CJ Gamble…related to former GT DT Pat Gamble?

KQ- Could be kin, I'm not sure. I'll have to ask one of them. They follow each other and are from the same area so I would assume they are related.

If you had to guess, what BS or tactics is the MoBS at UNC using to negatively recruit against us when a recruit is considering both UNC and GT?

KQ- If he were smart he would not say anything because Key can just have one of his former players on the team now tell them about him. I would guess he keeps that to himself.

What do you think of there being no cap on number of coordinators and analysts, how can we hope to compete under such a system?

KQ- There is an absolute cap on coordinators and who can actually coach in practice. As far as staff goes, go look at Clemson circa 2018, they had a huge staff back then so did Bama. This is nothing new, GT just wasn't in the game because they lacked space and money.

What are your thoughts on the TE room currently?

KQ- I think Jackson Hawes is pretty good and all-around a very solid TE. Brett Seither is going to be a 20 snaps guy again I would bet, his body isn't capable of playing full games without breaking down. Not sure what to make of Ryland Goede because he had a fluke injury that shouldn't carry over I think it was a hammy or something like that, but they like him and he looked good running around in shorts early on. Jackson Long was having a strong spring so that is a bummer he got hurt. With Luke Harpring and David Prince coming in help give them more depth and I'd bet one of them can play. I'm unsure if they will do anything in the portal because it would be hard to find someone to come in with Hawes, Seither and Goede on the team.

Zach Edey made the comment about not being able to make NIL money bc he’s on a green card? He full of it or is that legit? I know I’ve asked about that with our international players but would this call out in the national media about the situation bring those situations into the light and harder to give them NIL or easier?

KQ- There are limits on what international players can make depending on the type of VISA or how they are in the country. As I've said it is an issue for some kids. I'm sure he is taken care of somehow.

A question for the ill-informed. There must be hundreds of 5.5 3* QBs in the country. How does a staff in GA lock in on a guy like Grady? Not being judgemental on the rating as I trust the staff. More curious on the process to make this call. Tons of film watching? I know a guy that knows a guy?

KQ- Don't put a lot of stock in 5.5 rankings in April. He won't be a 5.5 in a month or two. Weinke went and watched every QB on their board throw live in person during the open period. They target kids early and then narrow the board down through film and interest and then go from there.

Any smoke to the apparel change rumors?

KQ- I expect a new deal. With whom I do not know because the dynamics of those deals have totally changed because of NIL and schools being able to make direct deals with SAs now instead of trying to build relationships just through the school. I have not heard much about what is going on other than there are negotiations ongoing.

Any names to keep an eye on from Kentucky roster/recruits that we have an inside path to for basketball?

KQ- It is all freshmen basically and most will be chasing money and starting jobs GT can't provide. The center from OTE is interesting, but I think they'd rather spend on a veteran guy.

Login to view embedded media
That's the guy. The UK roster being messed up is part of what got Cal pushed out.

Did anyone go? I was too young, but ARS Champagne Jam was one of my first 8 tracks.

Login to view embedded media

Georgia Tech held the second scrimmage of 2024 on Saturday in Bobby Dodd Stadium running around 120 plays. Head football coach Brent Key had the team simulate for a full half of football to open the scrimmage before moving to some situational football as the Jackets' prepare for the annual spring game next Saturday.

"It was the second scrimmage today and I was pleased with it. I was pleased with some of the improvements we've made over the course of a week," Key said. "That's really what we are looking at right now, were are not looking at the overall course of the spring or where will be at in the fall, we are improving each day, every week and we can sit down and access every Monday morning where we were the past week and if we improved individually to improve collectively."

The second scrimmage is traditionally a stronger scrimmage for the defensive side of the ball and that held true again on Saturday according to Key.

"I felt that it was a good effort by the defense out there and a lot more people tackling around the ball and a lot more guys showing up," Key said. "We basically played a half of football played the first and second quarter on the clock with a true clock to work on clock management and we finished that off with a two-minute thing. We got 13 drives in the first half total and of the 13 series we ran we had two touchdowns, three field goals, an interception and seven punts. I think that shows the strides the defense made this week in preparation and cleaning things up from the previous week. We still have a lot of things to clean up as far as run fits and penalties that extended some drives for the offense. We had two defensive holding penalties that you don't want, but when you are in spring practice and guys are playing the right way and guarding guys and you've got good receivers on the other side of the football that happens."


Key said other than the penalties it was a very solid half of football for the defense making some plays and getting some stops. Then they went into the red area and did some drives from the 35, 30 and 25 going in and six three-series from there with three TDs, two FGs and an interception that was really big. They worked on two-minute drives as well.

Key said that Josh Robinson had a really big scrimmage for them and they are very proud of how he is developing this spring. He is a great example of how guys can continue to develop even in year four or five and he has does his job every day and has been very consistent this spring.

Anthony Carrie at RB had a big day including a 70-yard touchdown run and he has really good vision and balance and made some good cuts per Key. He has been running the ball well and they just need to work on his pass pro and he thinks that goes across the board at RB.

Trey Cooley also had a good scrimmage and Key was extra impressed because Cooley was out last week getting a root canal and then played through that which he said is pretty impressive given how painful that is and he had a good week.

TE Jackson Hawes had another good scrimmage, Key said he was banged up week one, but has come back and played the first scrimmage and he is a big target in the red area at 6'5" 260+ sounds and when he catches the ball he always falls forward for extra yardage.

Key said Ahmari Harvey showed up again and is playing with a lot of confidence right now and he did a good job today and that is something Key has personally been working with him on, playing with the right emotion and focusing that energy on the field. He got his hands on several passes today.

Key shouted Omar Daniels at the nickel spot who made some good plays.

Key was pleased with newly minted Edge Jacob Cruz who they moved a week ago to that spot and he is starting to flash and make some big plays and show his length and speed. Key said he will be a guy who can help them this year at the Edge spot.

Two other guys he was really excited about today were Tah'j Butler and E.J. Lightsey at linebacker. This was Lightsey's first scrimmage at GT and he was around the ball a lot and is an impressive dude. A source told me he really stood out during the scrimmage and looks like he will be a weapon on defense. Key said that Lightsey is a big imposing guy out there than can run and bring people down and stop them in their tracks.

Tren Tatum also had a good scrimmage including sacking Haynes King per sources. Key said he has been pleased seeing his progression and how he is around the ball more.

They used music as crowd noise today stress communication work and test the helmet comms system again and some penalties showed up from that especially when they had some of the younger guys in the game on the O-line and the call was a little late coming in. He said they've got to get that into a seamless transition and defensively they still are giving up too many explosives for his liking, but the offense is also pretty good. They need to be able to pressure better on third and longs, but sometimes a misfit run or missed assignment leads to big play and Buster Faulkner uses a lot of eye candy that makes it hard on the D and that is why they work this stuff so hard in the spring so it is second nature during the season.

Next week they will practice Tuesday and Wednesday and a walk-through on Friday and then play the spring game on Saturday.

Key said that he likes what Coach Simpson and Coach Pope are doing with the D-line coaching and they have some really good players up front and they are playing with good technique now and understanding the big picture better and the understanding is important, they understand what the O-line is trying to do and different tweaks and are playing within the scheme. Key said the players really respect Simpson and Pope and the relationships they've built with that group already is great and they have fun together, but can coach them hard too. The response has been exactly what they wanted.

Key said that they mixed in Zach Pyron with the ones today some replacing Haynes King on some series and then mixed some of the O-line around as well and they gave Tana Alo-Tupuola and Harrison Moore some one reps. Jameson Riggs was the starting left tackle again as Corey Robinson is banged up and he is going to be a player too. With the defense amping things up with more complex calls it put some pressure on the offense when Weston Franklin and Jordan Williams were not in the game. He said they've got to build depth and chemistry on the offensive line because with injuries they could be in a spot where those young men need to play in a game.

I was told that King didn't have a great scrimmage, a lot of tipped balls and pressure on him. He reverted back a little bit to 2023 King with some throws into coverage and some overthrows on deep balls. Pyron had a good day considering the O-line he was working with when with the twos and was solid when he got one reps. King as better in scrimmage one.

Key said the secondary has been banged up but Warren Burrell has really impressed him at CB at 6'+ and 195 pounds and he is a true cover corner.

Key said that D.J. Moore has had a really good camp so far and he got banged up today on a tackle, but he has impressed them.

Key said at safety Clayton Powell-Lee has had the most improvement of anyone on the back end this spring and he made some impressive tackles today in space and some behind the line of scrimmage as well on some of the different calls they had.

Key was asked about the RB depth and he said they limited Jamal Haynes to a few reps today because they know what he can do and the younger guys need those reps and they need to be 5 deep in that room because you are a helmet on an ankle away from having your third guy be a starter in a game. He said they still need to improve on pass pro in that run.

Key said that Kyle Efford has been an overall leader on defense not just the LB room and football means a lot to him. When the alarm clock goes off he is thinking about ball and when his head hits the pillow he is thinking about ball. They repped the other guys today because they wanted to see Lightsey today get some work and Kyle took a lot of the plays early and then as it went on they sat him and let other guys get reps. He feels like they have a good group at LB with Kyle, Tren, Jackson Hamilton, EJ and Tah'j in there.

As posted elsewhere Jackson Long tore his ACL, Key said he was having a really good camp and it was tough having that happen. So far that is the only serious injury. They held out a lot of guys like Leo Blackburn today who had minor bumps and bruises coming off the first scrimmage, but if it was a game they would've played.

I asked about the hirings of Tim Salem and Allen Mogridge on the support staff and he said you can't replace experience and it is good to have some gray hair out there, they are good men and good fathers and in Tim's case grandfathers. They bring some wisdom and experience that is not replaceable. Both are really good coaches and they are tremendous recruiters. It big to have them in the building with the relationships they can build with kids in the program.

Key said this is a fun group to coach and they practice long and hard, but they are a good group that he is excited about. He thought they were a little sluggish on Tuesday, but by Thursday and Friday they turned it up and the energy is good and they are fun to coach and be around as is the coaching staff and they all work and that is what he is looking for.

Goodbye Kenny Payne, you managed to make Sidney Lowe, Jeff Bzdelik and Jim Christian look like winners in comparison.

12-53, somehow two of his wins came against GT, 18.5% winning percentage.

To put that in perspective, the worst coach in GT history from a winning percentage was Joe Bean (1920-21) who had a 28.6% win percentage.

Login to view embedded media

I forgot to post earlier this week and I’m having insomnia in a hotel so fire away.