The hype is fun. CGC has certainly changed the culture here and in a good way. People are sitting up and taking notice.
Recruiting has improved as well, but it’s an uptick not a revolution. That’s ok at this point. He’s got people’s attention and doing a great job promoting GT.
However, he’s got to have a demonstratively upgrade to this season and next to make this hype turn into an elite program. That doesn’t necessarily mean a big W/L improvement, but being competitive in big games...moral victories, if you prefer. And it can’t be a one-off. Losing to Clemson, then getting blown out by UGag won’t help, but being in a position to win against 3 or 4 perceptively “superior” programs could put GT into a position to make yet another uptick in recruiting. Note, I’m talking only this year and next only.
Since Dodd (and including Dodd to some extent) we’ve made strides under Ross, O’Leary, Gailey (sorta) and Johnson only to prove unsustainable. If Collins can string together 2 or (omg)3 seasons of ACC championships (I’m talking about winning the championship game) with one or two playoff appearances, he may actually be able to make this into an actual elite program.
I’m excited and optimistic, but also trying to remain realistic... GT has a habit of chewing up and spitting out coaches.
