What kind of season are you expecting out of Haynes King? I’m at the part of the offseason where I’m free basing hopium like a Wall Street broker on cocaine so I’m thinking he has a 3,500 passing season with 5-700 rushing yards and around 30 total TDs, and we are in the running for an ACC championship. If he hits those numbers could be be a Heisman finalist?
KQ- It is such a fascinating question to me, especially after watching King and Aaron Philo in the spring. King is throwing a lot better but Philo just spins that damn thing so well and Faulkner really knows how to dial it up for him. Do they mix Philo in some? That is the first question I wonder about and would that cut into King's numbers?
The second thing is just staying healthy for King. They have some bigger backs who should be able to take some of the shorter yardage workload, but they don't have a Zach Pyron or even a clear wildcat type QB so King will have to do more of that IMO than he had to last year. Can he stay healthy all year?
The third thing is his shoulder. That has flared up twice now in two of the three years he played significant snaps.
If I am betting man I expect GT to end up having to use both QBs and I'd take the under on the King's passing numbers, but I think he will clear that 500-yard rushing number.
Know it’s early, but what, do you think, are the chances of the Clemson game being prime time night game?
KQ- So here are the big ABC/ESPN games that week and there are a couple so that could help or hurt things.
1. Wisconsin at Alabama
2. UGA at Tennessee
3. Clemson at GT
Those are the three most attractive games. So the slots are 12pm, 3:30 and 7 pm on ABC, that game will be one of those. I'd assume that Wisky-Bama won't be the noon given the time zone bit.
Why isn't there more hate towards Bill Lewis. He was worse than Geoff Collins, just without the hype because social media, etc wasn't around yet. I think Bill Lewis needs more hate!
KQ- It has been over 30 years, so the hate usually starts to mellow. Hell our UGA site has Jim Donnan doing their YouTube show and they viewed him as basically the Chan Gailey of UGA football for years, but mellowed out on that. Lewis also didn't have social media to make an ass out of himself on. I also think Lewis didn't lose to the Citadel.
Still working on the post spring war room?
KQ- Yeah, I spent last week working on the merger business with our new overlords. That all got squared away in a very good way for this site last week and I have been in meetings and calls non-stop for almost two weeks getting everything squared away for the long term health of JOL.
Is there still expected to be new turf this may?
KQ- I am unsure about that, if I remember I will ask, but there are people who would know that are welcome to chime in.
Assuming King stays healthy, How do you think they will use Philo this year? Was some kind of package discussed to keep him on? It would obviously not be a run / wildcat package. Run and shoot package? Would be interested in your thoughts.
KQ- I think he will play some throughout the season, especially if King is off throwing the ball. The bowl game had it been a dry game and King was struggling to throw would've been one of those opportunities where it may have made sense to make that change or like the Clemson game in 2023 when he was just off from the jump. I also think they may have some scripted things for certain teams as the season develops to use each of them in unique ways.
I’m looking forward to the first 1/4 of the season. While the buzz for the opening game against Colorado will naturally be less hype than our Ireland clash with free shoes U, I believe we will also beat Colorado. Say we move to 2-0 after a nice opening win, similar to last seasons start, and now we look back at Cuse. One could say this week 3 matchup is similar in different ways bc Cuse was a road game and most likely not as good as Clemson will be week 3 upcoming, but we will have Clemson at home rather than playing away
When do we decide to fully open up the playbook? Do you see us being more aggressive with our play calls on offense early in the season to establish ourselves no matter what, especially with 2 of the first 3 being huge, or will we not want to show our full hand early on?
KQ- I think Key had a plan to keep things very contained and play ball control a lot last season and then when they finally opened it up some, King's shoulder thing flared up even more and that derailed things. The exact timing of when that started to bother King probably isn't anything well-known outside the locker room, but you could see his zip on his deep ball and touch was getting progressively worse during the season likely due to him dealing with pain and playing through it. King is a tough character and tried to ride it out until he could not physically throw anymore. I think it absolutely had an impact on the offense.
What was the final verdict on King’s shoulder last season? What was the issue and is it 100% behind him?
KQ- I guess you haven't seen the dozen or more times I've talked about it, but essentially, he sprained something inside his shoulder, for lack of a better description, and it wasn't the first time he had this specific issue. It happened once at TAMU as well in 2022, I believe. Everyone is fuzzy on the details, but it was something that just needed time to heal hence why he could suddenly spin it again in the UGA game after they rested him a good bit and let Philo handle most of the passing late in the season. I don't know the long-term prognosis on something like that. I'm not a doctor but what I kept being told was it would heal over time and he didn't have surgery or anything to my knowledge, so my expectation is he will be fine.
What is the proposed completion date for the Stadium upgrade?
KQ- Sometime prior to the start of the 2027 season, so they are probably shooting for the spring of 2027 but with overrun time for the summer.
And has the final design been completed?
KQ- We are pretty close in, so I would assume so since they just got the BOR to approve the renovation.
Is there any way for us to make a super regional?
KQ- Yeah win a game in Durham and then they should be locked in as a host and then you have the advantage in the regional.
KQ- are you writing the GT report for Lindys or Athlon this year? For me and many my age, I still look forward to buying the magazines and reading the outlook, the conference ratings by position, " what the opposing coaches are saying" and predictions. I also enjoy reading about our opponents. Correct me if I'm wrong, but are most team's write ups farmed out to local media people like you? If so, I would think the writers would be a lot more objective in a national magazine than when they write for a local audience?
KQ- I did the Lindy's write-up so that should be hitting the stands very soon. I wrote it right after the spring game maybe so I think the only additions have been the kid from Bowling Green and the OT from Princeton and that wouldn't have changed it too much.
One thing you mentioned before - hey, certain prospects really care about the tracker record of nfl picks, and GT hasn’t quite broken through in that realm. Can you describe how that is factored with NIL and other considerations for HS recruiting.
KQ- It is a recruiting tool just like having the soft serve machine in the dining hall used to be. If you are Kirby Smart or Nick Saban, you can throw out a wild percentage of the players they signed getting drafted. If all things are equal or close for a young person making that decision, that is when something like that comes into play. Or say a specific position has a tendency to get drafted from a specific school and there is a track record that is something you can really sell.
