All of a sudden, we can't get OL, why?

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GT Ace

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All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Last yr we got ONE pretty darn good OL in McHargue. This yr we've struck out on every major OL we've been after since getting a pretty decent committ from Parker. We've managed to get Tuminello, who the MAC was after, & Rhodes, which sent everyone scrambling to find out who he was. I'm sorely disappointed.
GT's done better getting DL, our usual achilles heel, than we've done getting OL. Last yr we got Pullen, Matthews & Brezina(who may move to OL as soon as Spring) while so far this yr we've engaged Oliver, Wrotto(who will surely get a look @ OL) & Newberry.
Thank goodness McWhorter stocked us up on some pretty good OL. In D'allesandris' 2 yrs of being OL coach & recruiting these OL, he has been a major diaappointment. D'al may be a top notch OL coach, I dunno, but most top notch OL coaches get big time OL to come play for them. D'al is not getting big time players &, in fact, is hardly getting any players at all. WHY?
This could be one heck of a criticle area in 2 more yrs & this worries me.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Come on Ace...You sound like the chicken littles we
had to listen to before the past big weekend.

We're going to get some commits we don't expect and
we are going to lose some we thought we had in the bag.

Don't panic quite yet.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Thanks CJ for slipping in the tranquilizer. I'm feeling a little on the Ace side of things also.
I love Joe D. from everything I have seen/heard. I would however love to hear about him bagging a couple of Hogs we may not know about yet. Sorry, I forgot....seems like a scolding came forth a while back for using terms like "big uglies" and "hogs". As you youngsters say, "My bad". Anyway us chicken littles get skiddish and easily
see thing in the sky that ain't necessasarily there. Keep picking up weaklings like myself. I need it from time to time. I'll also help you if you ever need anything I can offer.????????????I think sometimes I am the Vince Dooley of Stingtalk.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Cracker,
pointed out how we've gotten DL to be proud of &, previously on the front page here, have pointed out the speed @ RB & terrific athletes for QB. Does that sound chicken-littlish to you?
Now, it is time to point out a big, big disappointment so far. This IS a major hole in recruiting. It DOES HAVE 1 common link point--D'allesandris &, sooner or later, we will have to address this weak area.
Can't believe that you, being such an astute & knowledgable GT fan, do not even have a ? concerning this area. Show me where there is no concern with these only 4 OL committs we have so far in 2 yrs.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Ace, you need to calm down. We signed 3 OL in the '99 class (2 are left) and 6 in '00 t (all still on the roster)to go along with last year's small class. I'm not sure how many Chan really wants this year but we have 3 commits right now with several more we know about still looking at us. I would love to have 5 4-star guys too, but reaslistically that isn't going to happen at Tech for a lot of reasons.

Also, I'm not sure why you would put all this on the O-line coach. If you go back to comments made by earlier recruits they mainly talk about who recruited their area. Jeremy Phillips for instance mainly talked about Bill O'Brien, several mentioned O'Leary, etc. Obviously they do meet their position coach but it takes a staff to close. Mac is a good recruiter from all reports but he didn't just recruit linemen, nor was he the only one recruiting linemen.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Ace,
Very valid concerns. You tend to live or die with the o-line...especially if you have a sub-par QB.

No question we miss Mac...not only his outstanding coaching ability and tremendous recruiting ability...but also his postive can-do leadership.

Failing to promote Mac was a major blunder....becoming more clear every day.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Ace, I still think it's a way too early to panick over OL. We plan on getting more... just sit tight.

Also, do you have good information on Brezina & Wrotto going to OL? I SERIOUSLY doubt Wrotto is going there and it would surprise me if Breeze was b/c I've heard nothing about it yet (but not doubting it if you say you have good info on it). If both were true wouldn't that make you feel better about OL anyway???

Also I think you're doing a disservice to Tuminello insinuating that only the MAC type teams were after him. He's not what I'd call a blue-chipper but did have interest from Vandy, Cincy, Louisville, & Northwestern. Those schools can put out some good football players of their own. He has good potential due to his size but will probably take 2 years to develope. I think he's a solid get when planning for the future. You're right about Rhodes, he came out of no where but he too is big and intelligent. You should know by now that the recruiting rankings for OL are nearly worthless. This is a position where you get big, strong, smart guys with good footwork and turn them into hogs. As you said above, you believe Coach D'Al is a good coach, so I don't see why you're so worried. WAAAAAAAAY too early to knash teeth over OL recruiting IMO... but that's just me.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

It is a natural recruitng rule of thumb, you usually get the players where you need them the most for the coming year.

One of the main targets of a recruit is to get playing time as early as possible. If they see we are well stocked at a position they will tend to shy away from that school. The opposite is true. I have seen teams go 0-11 and have stellar years in recruiting because the recruits feel they can play immediately.

We will probably get the most recruits at the positions where we need them the most. That is good because it tends to even out the strengths of teams around the country. That is why it is so important the coaching staff is great at developing the talent they have and providing the offensive and defensive systems to match the talents of the kids.

wink.gif
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Originally posted by GT Ace:

Immediately after signing day in '01 I posted several times that TE Besirevich would be an OT. Every GT poster at that time pooh-poohed this thought.

Not true that every poster thought he was a TE. I KNEW when he was recruited that he was recruited as an OL.


Just letting u know that I think Bre & Wrotto are OL material &, yes, that would make me feel better.

I can tell you that there is NO PLANS right now to even consider Wrotto as an OL. He is being brought in to get into the DT rotation IMMEDIATELY. If he has the strength they hope he has, he'll play DT as a freshman. No guarantee that he wouldn't change sometime in his career if it wasn't panning out but right now... OL for Wrotto = no chance. I guess Breeze could play some OL, but I just don't see it. He is shorter than most OL we have and plays like a DT. He's quick and as far as I know, right now Defense is his future. I don't think it's impossible that he changes sides of the ball but I just really doubt it.


Would also answer the ? as to why the coaches aren't reeling in the 6-7 OL that Gailey publicly stated he's looking for.

Aren't reeling in 6-7???? What in the world are you talking about???? It's not even January yet and we have THREE. You're acting like yesterday was signing day. If we only have 3 by signing day then you can reasonably complain about it... and I'll eat my shoe.


No disservice whatsoever to Tuminello. He had offers from Toledo, Vanderbilt & could've committed there. Toledo is in the MAC. Heck, Pitt, Ind, Mich St could fall back on him later & we lose him. Ya never know.

I read as a bit of a cut at him but if that wasn't your intention then that's cool. I'm aware that Toledo is in the MAC but that's the only team of 5 or 6 that's he's been associated with that's in the MAC. All of the others I mentioned are NOT in the MAC, so I thought at minimun the statement was a misrepresentation and I just wanted to clear it up best I could.
Click to expand...
<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

BW, U tend to live or die with OL even with an above par QB. No mystery why Ga's O clicks with 6 Sr OL, 5 starters & 1 belly bumper:&gt;).

Master B,
As u know, large majority of OL get a rs yr. Next season Reilly, Hartley & Foshi will be Srs. Dorsey, Robinson, Wallace, Tidwell-Neal & Phillips will be Jrs. The gap after them is widening. Not panicking, but concerned.
Not good info on Bre & Wrotto, but they played as much, if not more, on OL than DL in HS. If not what coach wants on DL they will certainly get a look on OL. Immediately after signing day in '01 I posted several times that TE Besirevich would be an OT. Every GT poster at that time pooh-poohed this thought. Just letting u know that I think Bre & Wrotto are OL material &, yes, that would make me feel better. Would also answer the ? as to why the coaches aren't reeling in the 6-7 OL that Gailey publicly stated he's looking for.
No disservice whatsoever to Tuminello. He had offers from Toledo, Vanderbilt & could've committed there. Toledo is in the MAC. Heck, Pitt, Ind, Mich St could fall back on him later & we lose him. Ya never know.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Recruiting is not over yet. It also involves much, much more than just trying to land the **** star players listed by the recruiting services. Actually, that's not what recruiting is about at all.

I think Tuminello and Rhoades are excellent commits with awesome amounts of potential. These guys aren't 5 year seniors being drafted into the pros. They're still growing and learning the craft. It'd be great to take all the "blue chippers" away from UGAg but winning those kinds of recruiting wars are little more than that. When we talk about 4 star, 3 star, 2 star, UR, etc. recruits it's not the same as 1st rd, 2nd rd. They're all quality guys with all of their potential ahead of them and there's quite a few left out there and quite a few that won't ever be known of until they get passed over by the D1 recruiters and wind up becoming 1AA and D2 studs that go on to the pros.

Only a fool would not understand the lifeline to recruiting. If you just hang a sign out front that says "D1 SCHOLLYS AVAILABLE. APPLY WITHIN" you're doomed. It's a very BIG and important job and involves tremendous commitment, time and effort and, once you have your class, development. CG&co. are doing well for their
first post season and will continue to do well as they develop the scope and reach of the program.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Originally posted by gnats 67:
[QB]Recruiting is not over yet. It also involves much, much more than just trying to land the **** star players listed by the recruiting services. Actually, that's not what recruiting is about at all.

QB]
Click to expand...
<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">Good post. I was thinking about OL the other day and was getting a little worried about their recruiting. But the more I thought about it made me realize that we have 3 OL commits now(and they all bring size, smarts and great upsides). How many other OL are we looking at? 2 or 3 at the most probably. It would have been nice to get IYC and/or the OL from AL, but we are still in it for some more good ones. Next years class will be even better.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Thanks for the info. What OL are still on our list? David Price, highly ranked by rivals? Brandon Nixon? Who else?
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Originally posted by CrackerJacket:
Come on Ace...You sound like the chicken littles we
had to listen to before the past big weekend.

We're going to get some commits we don't expect and
we are going to lose some we thought we had in the bag.

Don't panic quite yet.
Click to expand...
<font size="2" face="Arial, Verdana, Sans-Serif">I agree with you Cracker Jacket.Good point.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Lets get real guys...we have missed out on blue chip OL's and DL's for as long as I can remember. Only Gathers and Dorsey were highly recruited.

We have made great OL's at Tech with discipline, coaching, and recruiting the type of kids that excel and fit GT.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Since MasterB jogged my memory on this post let me add an addendum, if ya'll don't mind.
Eddy Parker just took a visit to Arkansas & may not be a solid commit. This concerns me. We've NOT gotten what we wanted in this area last yr & this yr. It's nice to know that Brezina & Wrotto will get long looks this Spring & Fall on OL, but we will lose nearly all OL we have after '03, so we need one of those O'Leary classes of 7-8 big OL. Something is wrong in this area of recruiting.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

GTAce I hope by now you realize that the position coach is not always the one recruiting the players for his area of responsibility.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

We have historically had trouble landing the big name line prospects on either side...offense or defense. Dorsey, Wallace, and Phillips are the only big-time OL recruits we have now...although we have others that are working out fine. I would also like to add that we got onto Dorsey before he became a hot commodity.

I can remember coming close but missing on
Cosey Coleman, Shane Olivea, etc.
 
Re: All of a sudden, we can\'t get OL, why?

Texstinger, I hope by now u realize that any OL recruited by anyone WILL meet his position Coach to get a feel of who he'll be working with for the next few yrs. The player will want to know what type schemes are run, what weight he should be at, what position he'll get looked at 1st, what type weight lifting drills he should be using & a hunded more questions that is asked of the position coach.
If the player does not have a good repoire or feeling with his position coach, he'll will not come to that offense. He may like a lot of things, but the position coach & the head coach has to sell him that he will fit into our plans.
It does not appear that we are selling any top notch linemen on coming to GT & are now asking DL players to move. The only other option is that no one on the Tech staff can recruit OL. The coaches recruiting the areas seem to be getting visits from big time OL, but after the visit, the big timers are commiting elsewhere. What does it sound like to ya'll?
 
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