Georgia Tech needs about eighteen different things to fall into place for it to have a shot at playing in the ACCCG (aka, Jim Donnan’s “The World’s Smallest Outdoor Cocktail Party”), so it can get its arse whipped by FSU and finish up another five-loss season in a relatively minor bowl game. In other words, life is still Chantastic on the Flats.
But there’s still a chance to make chicken salad out of chicken shit, if you’re Paul Johnson. You can beat your hated in state rival for the first time since W was still in office. You’d think that would be a pretty big deal, no?
No.
So I asked Paul Johnson if beating Georgia would make this season special.
“I think that the Georgia game is a very important game,” he said. “Clearly, we want to win the game. But you need to get away from this (mindset of a) one-game scenario that it defines your season. It plays a part in it, but one game doesn’t define your season. I don’t care who it is. Do we want to win the game? Yeah, but I don’t know that it changes us wanting to win the ACC by wanting to beat them. You’re still disappointed if you didn’t do that.”
A long way of saying no.
This is why you can’t have nice things, Georgia Tech. Johnson’s not being asked if he’d trade a win over Georgia for a division title. He’s being asked if the Georgia game is a big deal. That he feels the need to hedge his answer says that he’s not willing to accept the cost of a loss in a rivalry game. Which makes him beaten before he’s started. And don’t think an attitude like that doesn’t filter down to the players.
Jeff Schultz says Tech wins Saturday, in part because: “While Georgia players are saying all of the right things, I’m just not sure this game is that big of a deal to them.” If he really believes that, then he doesn’t get the rivalry anymore than Johnson does. I guarantee you Mark Richt disagrees with both of them.
So he helped change the mindset that Army – Navy was not a big deal?
LikeLike
Right…
(note the picture up top)
http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/2010/08/09/techs-newold-defensive-coordinator-hell-groh-on-you/
LikeLike
Also, I find it telling that Johnson appears to see winning the entire Atlantic Coast Conference a more attainable goal than beating Georgia in any given year. He’s probably right (though certainly not this season).
LikeLike
Am I the only one that thinks we are going to take out a lot of pent up frustration with how the season has gone in this game?
LikeLike
You know the only way that happens is if our defense plays a much more disciplined game than they have all year. It’s hard not to see them scoring several TDs on us just doing what they do.
LikeLike
Schultz picked Tech? Stop the presses! This’ll move some AJCs, for sure!
LikeLike
So it was important enough to get rings when you won the game, and now that only Shultz is predicting a win, the game is just any other game? Riiiiiiiiight….
LikeLike
Know who else doesn’t think it’s a rivalry? The Sporting News, that’s who! They list Duke vs. NC, but not the game for The Governor’s Cup …
http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2013-11-27/week-14-picks-against-spread-alabama-auburn-michigan-ohio-state-florida-fsu-rivalries
LikeLike
And, they have Georgia-Florida as the #5 rivalry, but no Governor’s Cup (btw … I use this description because I can’t even stand to type the name of the school!), in another place:
http://www.sportingnews.com/ncaa-football/story/2013-10-06/10-spot—college-footballs-10-best-rivalry-games-alabama-auburn-army-navy/slide/5
LikeLike
Paul Johnson does coach-babble. I’d put that right in there with Paul Finebaum, Craig James, Brent Musburger (who some of you will get to listen to Saturday) et al.
Meaningless bullshit from a guy who comes a close second to Charlie Weiss in the schematic advantage department.
I just hope he can count to fity.
LikeLike
If he had said: “but for the first year my tenure has been an abject failure” would he be any closer to winning the game? I think he realizes that the imbalance is such that winning will be few and far between no matter what so if you put everything on the georgia game the perception will be constant failure rather than the pleasant mediocrity that he wants his fans to give him credit for establishing.
LikeLike
Oh its a big deal…trust me its a big deal…PISS ON THE NERDS!
LikeLike
tech sux.
LikeLike
Yellow is the color of p*** and cowardice.
LikeLike
I want to beat the living s#!t out of them. I think the team does too. Their frustration showed last week, and I dont think they are any less frustrated now. I would take Georgia -3 ALL DAY LONG baby. We run this mofo.
LikeLike