Will we ever hang a 2009 ACC champ banner or are we too scared to? I’d have some metalworker recreate the trophy and put it in the case too.
KQ- I certainly hope so. I've been pushing whenever it comes up around GT people, but I don't have the type of influence to make that happen. LOL
What should our Expectations be for Mr. Gideon? What would be a good measure of success for him?
KQ- Fair question, I would think a very solid defense that is aggressive and not getting the death by 1,000 cuts thing happening. I think markers are hard but top 60 nationally in scoring defense and total defense should have Georgia Tech in play for the ACC.
You mentioned Sark & CBK are friends…did that come from being on Saban’s staff together or is there more to it?…seems like the Sark-TC-CBK now Gideon connection bodes well for the Jackets (& maybe even vice versa though the longhorns don’t need much help)
KQ- I'm not sure when they first met, but they have a relationship to the point where he is someone in Key's feedback loop with coaching stuff along with others who have influenced his career or are friends like Pete Golding or his former bosses like Nick Saban or GOL. The OL coach and the OC are usually going to have a close relationship as well and working for Saban is probably a bonding experience. Key is also friends with Lane Train as well as much as coaches can be friends with Lane.
With Gideon now in the fold as DC-any names to keep an eye on that he was currently recruiting for 2026? Currently in the portal or players from TX that may enter?
KQ- I can't answer about the portal part, I'm not going to put tampering out publicly and honestly I wouldn't know because I still haven't even met the guy yet. As far as 2026 guys go, Blake Stewart at Woodward was someone he was helping recruit at Texas and had out there before he took the GT job though he wasn't a primary there and Jamar Owens.
How do the basketball assistants breakdown as far as responsibilities? (Is someone specifically working with bigs, on defense, etc)
KQ- It depends on the staff, I'd have to ask around to get the scoop on the GT way of doing it right now. I watch like 1-2 practices a year and don't really think about it as much because they have a much bigger staff than say Pastner or BG did with the rule changes. Nate Babock is really involved in a lot of the coaching before games and it seems like Greg Gary is as well.
Has any team been as injured/had as many losses to the roster as this years basketball team? I think we only had two players who could shoot jump shots on Saturday after Lance was injured
KQ- No one has. They had basically no injuries last year other than two that happened before the season with Baye's hand injury or wrist and then Lance Terry's injury. Baye came back in game four and played every game and really Deebo Coleman missed like four games and Ebe missed some but that turned into a benching anyway. Everyone else played basically every single game.
They were literally down to Baye being the third-best perimeter shooter left on Saturday at UVA and that is really bad. Hopefully Lance heals quickly.
When will we get the 2026 big board for defense?
KQ- Hopefully this week, I wanted to do some digging on what the plans are defensively a little before I finished that out and the whole JR Day stuff and then the Santucci leaving thing kind of pushed it to the side for a bit.
How do you expect Key to shuffle the coaches around with Gideon added? Will he hire a LB coach or move someone internally?
KQ- My gut feeling without having talked to anyone is that Kyle Pope or Gideon will coach the LBs (Pope has done this before) and if not they will hire a second old-head to work with Bill Stewart who handled a lot of the LB coaching duties during non-indy work as Santucci was coaching the overall defense and calling plays. Pope has coached LBs before so that could make some sense or Gideon/Stewart might work. I don't see him moving Cory Peoples or Jones who he just hired to LBs off my gut feeling nor do I see him sacking anyone to make room for a LB coach.
KQ- do you have conversations with Coach Key during this off season. I'd like to know his impression of the off season work outs. Are their new leaders emerging besides HK and KE? From some of the pictures posted, it looks like Big Red might be stepping up? What's the vibe?
KQ- LOL, yeah I talk to Coach Key all year about a lot of different things including just life stuff privately and keep those conversations private. I tend to get that type of overall info however from multiple sources. I like hearing what different people's takes are on all of that. It takes time to piece it together but that is normally something I'll do in the next few weeks before spring ball starts. GT has held very few or no media stuff really during dead periods like this between the end of the season and the start of spring ball.
Curious to know the plan for DL in the spring window. With Gideon's onboarding, I assume this is his top priority.
KQ- I've heard that Key and Jess Simpson feel pretty good about the DL situation going into spring ball. We shall see. They added Romello Height, Thomas Gore and brought back Jason Moore after spring ball last year and also added that commitment from JJ van den Berg during the winter period a year ago. So it is hard to say right now what it will look like.
Two guys who played in the spring game a year ago, Eddie Kelly and Jack Barton ended up in the portal in May, so weird stuff happens with the portal. You just have to see how it plays out.
Do you think we hire an additional LB coach or shuffle the current guys around?
KQ- I don't think he hires a new straight up LB coach who will replace someone currently in his core 10-man staff that can recruit if that is what you are asking. I think he will as I said above shuffle or bring in an older guy to help backfill.
Buster Faulkner isn't the TE coach for example, Nathan Brock is the TE coach. Faulkner sometimes helps out over there during Indy periods. They even have an H-backs coach now Dylan Dockery on staff.
Tyler Santucci was basically the co-LB coach with Bill Stewart because of the demands of being an DC.
Trent McKnight is the WR coach, but DeAndre Smelter is his 2nd in command and most of the positions have multiple guys like Quentin Jones and Tanner Cotman with the DBs or last year Allen Mogridge and Robbie Bell behind Geep Wade with the O-line.
The whole idea that one dude coaches a position group is gone. Even Chris Weinke has an assistant helping him with the QBs and there are only 5-6 of them at a time.
There are at least two guys coaching every position on the field and even two special teams people normally.
