Are you surprised the AJC is going after UGA? Tell me what you know lol

KQ- I actually don't know anything about it nor do I particularly care. I know the guy writing the stories is the same asshole who gave that piece of shit Ron Bell a platform despite him being a criminal and a liar. He spent a lot of time dragging Josh Pastner so I have no love for that dude either. The guy writing it strikes me as some wannabe NYT expose writer without the chops. So having him do it makes me feel like there is less to it and not more. I think very little of the guy.

When you first mentioned CBK redoing his office I asked if when finished could you do a story about it. So now that it is finished I am reminding you. Even some of the recruits have mentioned it.
I think he said the focus was on being the “closing” place. Would be neat to understand what that entails. Maybe even a video of the office, the technology involved and how he intends to use it.
Thanks for all you do. Much appreciated.

KQ- When Coach Key is back in two in a few weeks I'll see what I can do. He is on vacation right now as is most of the staff so I don't want to bother people until the middle of the month.

Follow up to that. If it this all turns up as bad as it smells, what do you think the NCAA-holes will realistically do to UGA? Or what measures does the school take? Does UGA fire the tough POS from Bainbridge?

People are getting killed here due to gross negligence and now multiple allegations of abuse targeting players in the program. Doesn't sound like a very controlled program, IYKWIM.

KQ- I'm not a fan of Kirby Smart or the way he treats people in my business so I'll say that up top. I think there is almost no chance short of him personally committing a crime or covering up something directly that will end with him getting fired. He would have to have very dirty hands for that to become an outcome of any of this and he is way too sharp to ever do anything directly.

What is the general consensus among Brent and the staff about how recruiting is going?

KQ- They are pleased but not satisfied. That is the way I would put it. There are some guys they'd like to have right now they didn't land, but they've made good progress. Here is the thing with Brent, he is like Saban or GOL or PJ, he is it about the marathon toward winning championships and not about celebrating a lot of small victories. Brent is not satisfied and won't be until they have some hardware and even if that happens I could see him only enjoying that momentarily.

If you talk to someone like CPJ he will talk about the ones that got away like 1998 at Georgia Southern or the two ACC Championship losses or the 2009 or 2010 UGA games more than he talks about other great moments. That is what eats and them and drives them.

How excited are they to get fall practice going and get this season started?

KQ- I think everyone is ready to go. I know the players are. I think they want to see how they matchup.

Batt surprised us all by making Georgia’s Own a partner after years of embarrassment with their signs in view. Anything you know of he’s working on?

KQ- Was it years of that sign? I thought that was like last year only. Anyway, he is pretty focused on multiple projects including improving the gameday experiences for football and gearing up for the Edge project as well as doing his normal AD stuff like fundraising and staff evaluations.

Have you ever seen the GTAA in this good / positive of shape and did you think this was possible?

Never, in my life, did I envision the school President intervening like this. What have you heard from boosters as well? The admin? Did they realize this is fork in the road time and we have to do something or go ahead and reserve our lot at the kids' table for the future?

KQ- I think Cabrera always had some interest in it, but I think the gravity of what was happening was made very clear by key people around him and now he has some skin in the game and has put his neck out the slightest bit so that is encouraging. I think Batt is a sharp guy and has some very solid people he has brought in around him as well who are very driven. I feel like there is proactivity for the first time in a while across the GTAA as opposed to having little pockets of things in the past and a lot of pivoting to deal with new challenges like NIL for example or COVID. It has also been a really tough few years because of COVID, GC3 and some rudderless leadership with a ton of ideas but not as much execution. Batt is a details guys, that is what was needed so hopefully it works out well.

Do you & Russell ever just stop and "tailgate' with the fans? If so, there's always an open invitation.

KQ- I will sometimes stop by after the game and have a beer and watch the later games. There have been a few people kind enough to offer that up from time to time. Usually I'm pretty busy on gameday though. RJ sometimes is at the games but often is at home working on recruiting stuff. Blake my photographer is usually with me.

To follow up on the previous question regarding the GTAA, it seems the administration for once in my 50+ years of affiliation with GT is serious about supporting and promoting GT Athletics. Aside from President Cabrera and J Batt, what do you think has initiated this transition in investment and attitude towards making athletics a priority? I still have to think there are those board members who still are not bought in, but it sure seems like for once we are serious in getting this turned around.

KQ- There were key people who made a point of pushing and pushing and getting in Cabrera's ear. I think also some events like the UGA takeover of the stadium and the embarrassment of that was a motivating moment. Cabrera has always been interested in GT athletics from day one though. HIs job is very difficult and hard to navigate and the politics of it are usually what kept previous presidents from getting too deep in the athletic waters from what I've gathered even though they may or may not have cared.

which of the freshmen look the most ready to play this season and which of them are going to stay on the bench for now?

KQ- I have not seen all of them up close so I think it is unfair to answer that question. How they look and how they play are not necessarily overlapping concepts. The only true freshmen I'd put money on playing right now are Evan Dickens, Eric Singleton and maybe Bailey Stockton the walk-on receiver. Those are not the more impressive looking guys by any stretch.

Have you heard how ticket sales have gone and what the plan is to keep the red out the stadium this year?

KQ- Last time I checked a month or two ago, they were up (obviously that was easy to expect with GC3 gone). I don't know what the plan is for the UGA game.

Follow up to those: A few weeks ago there was a question about whether Smart would be asked tough questions by the national media at the SEC media days. I think you said that he might face some tough questions in Nashville. Do you now think the odds of tough questions has gone up from "might" to "probably"?

KQ- I was at the SEC Basketball Tournament and watched the grandstanding of national media against Alabama men's basketball, their coach and players by the national media, so yeah there will be people giving shit to Kirby Smart in big scoops at the SEC Media Days. I'll be curious to see how he reacts.

Once the dead period starts, who does a Recruit get in touch with if he wants to commit?

KQ- The dead period only involves being on campus or in-person contact with a coach. You can talk on the phone or DM or whatever anytime.

Just tossing out an idea for offseason content. You ever thought about getting a few former players and doing a big game re-watch on YT? Would be cool to hear their stories, insight, etc. Could pretty much pick any big win over UGA, CU, FSU, UM, VT in the last 25 yrs

KQ- Yes I have and that is something I would like to do.

If you're over 45 or so, you probably remember.

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Is GT still heavily involved?

Did Foster ever visit Ark?

Any timetable on a decision?

Just curious if anything has changed, especially after losing Carlon Jones.

I am running my 34th Peachtree tomorrow morning. Who else is joining me in the annual mosh pit of sweat & stink? If you are running, I suggest taking it easy. The weather forecast for tomorrow morning with temps in the upper 70’s and high humidity suggests it will be a day for survival rather than personal bests. Be safe and have a great run!

Happy July 4th to all!

Exciting times for GT football recruiting, even though you never win them all.

While I cannot count myself as a Key proponent from the jump, he quickly rose to #2 on my coach wish list last yr. Although I NEVER doubted him as a top notch OL coach (in spite of some sentiment to the contrary at the time) and someone who bleeds (and has literally bled for the) White & Gold, I admit not giving him the credit he deserved for the "how to run a program" experience he gained over his career (Saban, O'Leary, Scooter lol). There's NO WAY we'd be in the position we're in right now if my #1 guy had gotten the job. (Maybe ibeeballin and the overwhelming majority of GT lettermen knew a little something after all).

The staff Brent has put together has been nothing short of phenomenal. Y'all realize we even have a longtime NFL position coach AS AN ANALYST?!! No wonder we still got a puncher's shot at the Nigerian kid from TX.

Just had to get that out.

Now on to my reaction to last night's Q&A. I thought the following was very significant concerning some prospects committed elsewhere:
"Think a few may be regretting their early decisions. The real battles remaining now (other than Fox) are on the OL, DL LB, and DB."
...along with Russell's answer to Mattbrook22's question about potential flip candidates:
LB Pruitt (MIA)
OL Holmes (PITT)
LB/S Presley (UCF)
CB Goodwyn (CINCY)
WR Turner Jr. (LSU)
S CJ Heard (FSU)

Fellow Jackets, if we're fortunate with the injury bug, Brent gets us off to a good start and we're 4-1 headed to Mia, I'll be looking for some more of these as we head toward the holidays:

Who all is making the trip and where are you staying? I bought tickets and went to book a room but the places I see are outrageously priced. Anyone interested in splitting an AirBnB or something?

In conversations with sources close to the MLB scouting industry and GT baseball, I’ve learned that star Georgia Tech P Ben King plans to return to GT next season rather than entertaining the MLB Draft

Let's do this thing.

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.




It's funny sitting in the urgent care with my 14-year-old son who was born almost exactly a year after I took over this site I reflected on how much things have changed. That reflective mood was already stirring after seeing the mess that is going on with Twitter and the love/hate relationship I've had with something that has been at times a boon for my business and also the source of ripoff artists, aggregators and fake recruiting and team experts that clog media well beyond the borders of my sites.

Twitter has probably been my strongest advertising tool other than the fine people who already pay for this site sharing it with friends, but it also has led to a lot of nonsense and unnecessary grinding that is burning out half or more of my industry.

Having a 365/24/7 news cycle isn't healthy for anyone to constantly consume. I am not saying I want to see a return to the dark ages when I would break a commit and another site of the AJC might take 6-10 hours to run their own thing or even post it. Those days are over, I get it.

It was just nice to unplug this weekend under the idea that I was saving my Twitter views in case something important happened.

Now to pivot it to GT, you are wondering that is a great story Kelly, but why are you writing about this?

Twitter, social media and the 365/24/7 lifestyle invaded recruiting for coaches who already struggled with time management and life balance and it is making everyone miserable. The portal has made things even worse for coaches.

Someone asked me what do coaches do in this downtime after the dead period starts and before it ends. They go to the doctor, dentist, DMV, and maybe take a week or two with the family, but it is almost impossible for anyone to truly unplug anymore whether you are the head coach at Georgia Tech or an assistant coach at an FCS school or the writers on a Georgia Tech site.

Having Twitter go sideways gave most people I know including coaches an excuse to exhale for half a minute and maybe reflect on all of this as I have.

I know it is not working in a coal mine or in a factory or a sweatshop, but everyone in this business grinds almost all the time without a break for years on end.

A tip of the cap to those of us in that world on this July 4th extended weekend is in order in my mind. Along with the true tradition of the holiday and I hope people think about the ways the world tries to put us at odds with each other and instead try to be kinder and more tolerant of our neighbors even if they are obnoxious fans of a team you hate. Take a deep breath and try to enjoy the little things, seeing my son get hurt today is a good reminder that things can change in a snap, and don't get too caught up in your own nonsense.

Happy July 4th JOLers and hopefully we will have a fun season to watch unfold in the fall.

Three of our top 5 commits are WR and Fox announces his choice tomorrow.

This could get interesting.

@Russell Johnson do you have a timeline on posting your projected class?

Also, out of the current commits, what current 5.7’s have the best chance to go to 5.8?

Same for the 5.5’s and 5.6’s, who has the best chance to go to a 5.7 or higher?

Your friendly neighborhood Russell has some updates today…

- Baseball war room will be posted this afternoon. A lot of information from several different directions, so don’t expect sunshine pumping or doomsday posting about CDH.

- I slept through the time of the Live Q&A last night. That will now take place on Monday night at the same time.

Projected class coming next week. Buckle up.

I had been traveling in mainland china for work the last week. When i got there last Sunday i logged on to check the lasted on here and to my surprise found out that Kelly and Russell have been banned in china for their propogandist views. I had to go the whole week without any access. Thank God I'm now in Taiwan where Kelly has the freedom in speech.

OK, in al fairness, it turns out that all of Yahoo is blocked in China, and since Rivals is owned by Yahoo, all of the sites are blocked. I just wanted to be an extremist.....

I had thought using my company's VPN would get around the censors, but still couldn't access it. Makes my wonder how secure our VPN really is.....

At the ER with my oldest who cracked his chin open and broke at least one tooth at the skatepark

Thought it may be of interest to others.

Now that a college player can transfer once without penalty, has this made it easier to cut a poor performer?

Kids can jump into the portal via free will or strong encouragement. Are coaches more likely to push players out?

There use to be a strong tie between employee and employer. Then it got easier and more common for employees to leave. The first thing a company seems to do during trouble is cut employees.

Is the same happening in college sports?

As promised during my video the other night here is the WAR ROOM this will focus only on FB team stuff.

I'll go spot by spot.

In an overview mode, Brent Key had a lot to clean up as things got a little odd prior to him taking over and there were academic issues and other things that needed to be cleaned up. The team's GPA took a significant jump in the spring. Some guys had to really buckle down and focus, but they have and the classroom piece is improving, which will help Key tremendously with his goals moving ahead.

At the QB spot, Zach Pyron is the leader in the clubhouse for the job, but Haynes King has been improving. Essentially the feedback from the TAMU transfers was a lack of player development from Jimbo and his staff overall. There were some shocking things that some of the players were unfamiliar with in terms of just base techniques and intricacies of their positions that should've been taught in year one on campus at any major school. I had someone tell me it was shocking how little player development was going on with those kids. So King is in that curve of having to learn QB fundamentals while trying to compete and learn a new offense. Pyron just had to learn a new offense because he already knows Weinke's coaching style and what he demands with things like footwork for example. I've sort of maintained for a while I don't expect them to name the starter for game one until after the second scrimmage in Fall Camp at the earliest and honestly given the unknowns of playing Louisville I would not be shocked if Key just said F-it and doesn't name a starting QB before the first game at all publicly. Brody Rhodes has made some significant strides a well despite being a walk-on and the staff are very pleased with how he has come along.

At RB, one interesting tidbit I keep hearing is that a lot of people would not be shocked if Evan Dickens either ends up as the starter or the #2 running back before the season ends. His development has been rapid and his body just needs to catch up with the mental side of things (he needs to put on some good weight). Dontae Smith is likely the #1 guy going into the season, the key for him will be staying at 100 percent as he was not at times last year and still played really hard, but was clearly not his usual self. Jamie Felix and Tre Cooley are battling for that second spot at the moment. Both of them have things they need to work on, but Felix is very talented as well. The staff moved Jamal Haynes to running back as well to give them another weapon out of the backfield and to help him contribute on the field this year possibly as the slot position is stacked at the moment.

Speaking of slot receivers that might be the most interesting position to watch as the talent has really ratcheted up in that room with Malik Rutherford, Christian Leary, and newcomers Eric Singleton and Bailey Stockton. Rutherford is rock solid and is very dynamic. Leary is more of the jet-sweep, screen-type guy, but SIngleton is really interesting because he is insanely fast like Ahmarean Brown fast and can fly down the field like AB did to take the top off the defense and it is not like Rutherford or Leary are slow. I would not be shocked to see Singleton line up at outside receiver either and his hands are solid, he just needs to improve his route running, but on a go ball, it will be very hard to contain him. Stockton came to GT as a PWO, but I am going to bet he ends up on a scholarship if he continues to develop. He can play inside and outside and the other guys working out with him this summer have raved about him.

The biggest news at WR is Leo Blackburn is ahead of schedule with his rehab. There is a decent chance he plays this season probably more toward the final 5-6 weeks of the season, but he could be cleared in October if his rehab remains on schedule. Chase Lane has come in and worked very hard and impressed everyone with his desire and skills. I was a little bit underwhelmed by the addition, but if he can translate that to the field he could be a steal of a pickup. Abdul Janneh continues to improve and he is a very solid outside guy. Dominic Blaylock is the big X factor guy in the room and he will be playing the X receiver spot for GT. He is an elite talent but hasn't stayed healthy in his career. DJ Moore is having a good offseason and he is a guy I think could break out. Right now he needs to add some more weight to his frame and stay healthy. Zion Taylor is in freshman land right now just learning the playbook and what to do, but they really like him as well.

Sliding over to TE, Luke Benson has been the guy everyone has spoken about from offseason workouts. Benson missed the spring recovering from an undisclosed injury, but he is a very dynamic guy in the passing game. Apparently both Benson and Dylan Leonard didn't enjoy their Chip Long experience and that may have impacted their performance on the field last year. Leonard had a strong spring and both have traditionally been known as sure-handed receivers, but both had drop issues last year. Hopefully, that goes away. Leonard just needs to stay healthy, he has had tremendously bad luck with injuries and has played through significant injuries the last two years that hampered him on the field. Brett Seither is the other guy who the coaches are very excited about. Seither sprained his ankle ahead of the spring game and basically pushed his way onto the field in the spring game and then reinjured the ankle in the spring game and they had to take his helmet away because he wanted to go back in. That kid just wants to play ball and that is a welcome change. The staff are very excited about Jackson Long as well, he just needs to develop his body.

Upfront on offense, Corey Robinson II is having a strong offseason at a key time for him as the staff was actively shopping for someone to compete against him for the starting job. He is benefitting from working with coach AJ on his S&C and he is seeing results. If he can hold off the competition that will allow GT to keep Jordan Brown inside at guard. The transfer from Charlotte missed spring ball but he is a massive guy and he can help fill out the guard rotation that is suddenly deep with Joe Fusile and either Connor Scaglione or Paul Tchio as the starting two guards plus Brown and Jordan Williams if necessary. They are putting Williams back at right tackle for the upcoming season where he is competing with Jakiah Leftwich and Robinson/Williams/Leftwich would be the three-tackle rotation with Brown as a fourth option if necessary. Scaglione can also play all five OL positions if necessary so that is a cool depth piece. At center, Weston Franklin has really stepped up his leadership piece and they have an interesting future group there with Brandon Best and Gabe Fortson now as well. Tyler Gibson who I thought would be in that tackle rotation has not progressed much yet. The newcomers all look the part as well, I do not expect any of the true freshman OLs to play a role this upcoming year and that would be a welcomed change.

Ernie's a UGA grad, but one I really respect. Just one of the nicest guys ever and absolutely deserves this.

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Kelly and RJ entered future casts yesterday for ND WR Isiah Canion to flip to us since his recent decommit from ND. 👍

One of my favorite stupid moves of all-time

Woof.

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Thank god Waffle House boy didn’t go through with this…. 🤢