Looking back to Dec. 2006, hiring Butch Davis and Tom O'Brien seemed like the right move for UNC and N.C. State, respectively, but the coach they passed on, Paul Johnson, has made some hay at Georgia Tech.
GT lost Tuesday's Orange Bowl to Iowa, after a dismal first-half performance on offense and super soft zone defense the entire game, but Johnson's success is difficult to ignore.
Editor's note: Stephen Allan will provide updates from the ACC Kickoff in Greensboro today. The head coaches from each team met with the media this afternoon.
There are some who doubt whether the spread-option offense used by coach Paul Johnson can be as effective in his second season at Georgia Tech as it was last fall when the Yellow Jackets won nine games, including a regular-season finale over Georgia.
Running back Jonathan Dwyer, the ACC’s player of the year after rushing for 1,395 yards, expects it to only get better.
Georgia Tech quarterback Josh Nesbitt will play against UNC on Saturday, at least according to the Yellow Jackets' nebulous injury report.
First-year coach Paul Johnson provides the minimum information under the ACC injury guideline. (Note: it's a guideline not a policy, hence there's no policing of the injury report.)
"The guys who do the games, they're morons."
That was first-year Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson's take on the second-guessing by ESPN announcers of Johnson's decision to go for it on fourth down late in GT's 20-17 loss to Virginia Tech.
We are nothing if not fans of candor in the media so when Johnson calls anyone a moron, that's good copy. But how quickly do you think Johnson was scolded by Greensboro for his frankness?
GREENSBORO, Ga. - The most hotly debated subject at the ACC preseason media kickoff has been whether first-year coach Paul Johnson's option game can work at Georgia Tech.
Opposing coaches seem concerned about the offense that helped Navy average 39.9 points per game last season. But the option has seldom been used in BCS conferences over the past 10 years to the extent that Georgia Tech will use it.
