To all the "proud Reggie Ball apologists" from last season

thwg

thwg

Damn Good Rat
Joined
Sep 10, 2003
Messages
1,454
oh what could have been.
 
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Reggie was special (he is a Georgia Tech student athlete), and he was having a good year until he got hobbled during the Maryland game. His injury changed him from a dangerously athletic mobile quarterback into a short, inaccurate pocket passer. Should Tater have gone in? Probably. Am I a Reggie Ball apologist for liking the guy? No.
 
Reggie was probably the worst 4 year starter in BCS conference history, and wasted the greatest talent Georgia Tech has ever seen. The only saving grace is I think we should contend this year...Choice is going to have a monster season(could end up being mentioned in heisman discussions) and from all the action I've seen(Duke, West Virginia, spring game) Taylor can really put the ball on a dime. Also, we have nine starters returning on defense, so hopefully our secondary will be better too.

Whipping ND at South Bend would be a great way to catapult us into the nation's(and pollsters') attention and put the Reggie period behind us quickly.
 
CCG at Lunch Bunch:

"We have RB starting for the fourth year, and we are hoping some of the lights will turn on for him."

WTTE.

:eek:
 
1. Reggie Ball played behind a below average OL most of the time he was here. The OL finally became a pretty good unit at the end of last year--and Reggie was hurt from the Maryland game on.

2. Reggie Ball did not have the benefit of decent coaching. One of the OL said yesterday that the biggest change under Bond has been in the passing game. We ran a HS type passing game in sophistication under Nix. The very predictable passing game would have been tough for any QB.

3. Bennett is a better passer, but not a better runner. With the OL that Reggie played behind for most of 4 years, being able to run was important. Reggie took a lot of tough hits and got up from them and kept going. Taylor and Reggie each have a skill set, but very different ones.

4. Let's wait and see about Bennett. His second half performance in the Gator, after WVU made adjustments, was nothing special (and Nix did not have a counter). In the spring, he is playing against either a second string defense or a first team that is struggling at CB. I hope he wins the Heisman, but I am afraid that he will struggle at times. Unfortunately, the people who were so negative about Reggie will likely be the same ones who will boo Taylor when he struggles.
 
I am gonna miss RB like hemorrhoids.

Enough said about the past and lets look forward,
 
I think what's really funny (in the patheitc sense) is all the crap guys spout about Reggie on a message board when they'd actually piss themselves like a baby if they had to say the same thing to his face.

I've praised RB when he deserved it and, likewise, have been critical of him when it fit. Yet, I've always expressed BOTH in a manner that I could honestly feel comfortable saying TO him if I had the opportunity.

Obviously, the same can't be said by some fonts on this board (not truthfully, at least.)
 
Nice post BuzzFan and gtGreg.

But to a few others -

I'd like to know how many guys here who are beating on Reggie, played even high school ball, or ever stood tall in the pocket and took licks like Reggie did game after game?

I played through 10th grade. I did start at WR a couple of years, but I never played QB. It's one of the reasons I don't throw too many stones at the guys who are light years better than me.

How about you thwg? Did you play, and even if so - did you play college? Did you play QB? Or do you coach? If so - which college team?

I'm just trying to figure out if you could have done better than Reggie.

This is a guy that missed not one single game in 4 years due to injury, and only one with an illness that put him in the hospital. I don't know of many 4 year starters who only missed one game.

He acted like an idiot with the press and ran his mouth too much, but he is not Odell Thurmond. He did not represent us well at times, but the kid relatively kept his nose clean. I don't remember any off the field trouble. The worst thing he did was lose games - which, admittedly crushed me also at times. All of us wanted to wring his neck at times, but I sure don't wish the guy any ill will.

Unless you are a guy named Joe Hamilton, Shawn Jones, or George Godsey, I'd be willing to bet you could not do a single bit better, or ever could have. But you are fine trashing a guy who laid it all out there - but wasn't a good QB.

For any of you to relish when a GT player looks bad does not make that guy look bad. It makes you look bad.

Reggie stunk it up - and he stuck it up A LOT.

But it wasn't from lack of effort.

Taylor probably will be a lot better, but it's way too early to gloat as if we already know. We don't yet know. Also - by all accounts, Reggie was ahead of Taylor early in the season. Taylor came on right when we needed him midseason, but it wasn't Reggie's fault that Gailey didn't bench him.

Give the guy a break. It's time to move on.

It's ok to be insanely mad at how everything went down. It's not ok to blame all of it on Reggie.

Don't blame a guy for doing his best. Blame the guy who left a possible change on the bench. But it's also not Gailey's fault that the state Mr. Football, who played QB for SC (Logan), MS (Bilbo), Ohio (Camp), and a highly touted QB from Louisiana (Landry) 'all' couldn't cut it at QB, and had to move to other positions. Reggie played a position he could play, but not the one best suited for him.

We didn't have a ton of other options until the end of last year.

I don't really just love Reggie either, but I don't hate the guy, and I surely take no joy in anything except the best for him.

Most of you are the same guys that hated AJ Suggs and was absolutely sure that Reggie was the answer right after Auburn '03.

Give this thing some time before talking all that garbage. Even if Taylor does well, (or if he doesn't) it would still be a mature and respectable act to show some appreciation for Taylor 'and' Reggie in the future.

You don't actually have to put any GT athlete down. You can actually appreciate all of them at the same time with no conflict at all.
 
and thwg -

I don't remember many of us 'ever' actually thinking Reggie was the answer. I know I didn't.

I just never felt the need to relish in the failure of another person.
 
Why rag on RB, he is gone, he wasn't good at all....

but the thing I still can't understand is why was he still starting, or even playing at all for that matter?


I am a Chan fan, but I still just don't understand his stubborness to play RB.
 
And here's to any idiot posting on this or any other board who thinks that the TB we're seeing now is anywhere close to where he was this time last year. Taylor simply was not ready last year. Take Reggie out of the equation entirely, and ask people who actually go to practice and watch these guys day to day and they will tell you that Taylor found "it" right before the Duke game last year.

Besides, as much as I hope TB has a break out year, why not wait until it happens first, before going overboard? Personally I think he will do well and our O will be much improved....partly due to his play and partly due to having a real OC for a change. But nothing is a sure thing yet.
 
techfowl said:
It's ok to be insanely mad at how everything went down. It's not ok to blame all of it on Reggie.
Click to expand...


I don't blame RB at all. I blame CCG for not giving TB a shot.
 
Reggie Ball was not the worst QB by a long shot. He was exasperating often. We had some great wins. We had some bad losses. His eligibility is up.

We ought to give the sharp criticism a rest. He played for us for four years. Tech fans don't want to be the kind that hate their players even after they graduate.

Let's move on to supporting TB and the other young QB's in the program. As for Reggie, best of luck!
 
First of all, I'd say to the credit of the GT fanbase, as far as I know we never actually booed Reggie.

Second of all, I'm one of the ones who thought Reggie could not get any worse after NC State and UNC and thought Taylor looked awesome, putting the ball on a rope during the Duke game(and was validated at the Gator Bowl). However, I also understand that it would have been a huge risk to take and I see how Reggie did have a good record and you'd much rather go with the proven winner, especially late in his senior season.

But saying that because I or someone else didn't play football means we can't judge how good someone is completely invalid. If it was that way, you could never have a head coach, because a lot of them didn't play quarterback. Just because you didn't do it yourself doesn't mean you can't judge performance relative to other players.

Anyway, it wasn't so much Reggie's play that made me hate him. If you are a good guy and give it your all, I can't be too upset if you stink it up. However, whether it was Reggie joshing it up on the sideline during the end of his fourth UGA loss, or his postgame press conference in which he completely embarassed GT with his quotes, or how he further embarassed us by failing out of school, Reggie did not give it his all and did not represent us well. You might be able to get away with it if you are winning, but if you play poorly AND you act disgracefully off the field, that is a combination that can bring hatred and criticism. When Reggie loses four times to our in state rival, then in the post game press conference calls a reporter "dog", I consider that a serious off-the-field incident. Same with failing out of school when we take such pride in our academics. With the spotlight of QB and being the face of the team also comes the burden of not making big mistakes, and that is something you take on knowingly when becoming the QB of a major team.

I also agree it's over and we don't need to be talking about it, but it's a message board and someone posted the thread so we might as well participate as long as we can keep it civil.
 
RB had a 9-2 season going into the GA game, with 3 comeback wins.
He was the 8th leading rusher in the conference at mid season (better than several running backs and all qbs of other teams).
Would you trade 6 to 7 percentage passing points for that? I would not.
Remember, this Tech team was playing WELL beyond the talent level of its rankings by the experts.

The UG and Wake games were a flip of the coin and we had bad luck against these quality teams. It could easily be argued that the defense lost the last 3 games of the season since we were up in the 4th in all 3 games.

Do any of you RB critics have a fear in the back of your mind that Tech will have one HUGE less dimmension in the offense without the QB keeper?
I remember many, many RB running plays that made first downs and set up passes to CJ and runs for TC.
The Gator bowl was different though. TB was hot. However a half speed WV (mediocre D and no S Slaton) made some adjustments and beat Tech. Tech's D lost this game. Does that not worry you JT Defense apologists and RB critics?
Yes RB's passing was eratic. But remember, other than CJ, the talent around RB was ranked FAR below most of the ACC for all 4 years.
And remember the '06 offense was 3rd in the ACC and the Defense was 6th in the conference.
Either our Defense was bad, or our offense was good.
ONE OR THE OTHER, RB CRITICS.
 
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Sorry BCWRECK, I'd have to call you out on that one. The defense let in less points than the offense scored against UGA, and also contributed by getting a turnover at UGA's 20 yard line(or thereabouts). Reggie went 5-22 with two interceptions and one fumble returned for a TD. I don't think it is very fair to say that the defense lost us that game.

With the ACC Championship, the defense let in three field goals while overcoming two interceptions. Reggie went 9-22 with two interceptions(as mentioned). Personally, I don't think you can ask the defense to do much more than limit the opponent to 9 points while taking care of two turnovers.

The Gator Bowl was definitely a different story, though I'd have to question the motivation of much of the defense, especially after reading some of their post-WF quotes. Not saying it's right, but I can understand. The game meant very little to me as a fan too by that point.

Reggie definitely did well the first half of last season, then had an abysmal three games against Clemson, NC State, and UNC(winning two of those because NCSU and UNC were just that bad), and finished off by losing two of our three biggest games all season, going a combined 15-55 with 5 turnovers and no touchdowns. The defense let in a total of 16 points those two games. I think it would be tough to argue the defense lost those games like you said, unless you are expecting them to pitch a shutout every game.
 
gth816f -

I didn't mean to say anything about evaluation - just that it seems silly to criticize a guy who has already reached a level of success on the football field that none of us have.

I asked about former experience to make the point that the people who think Reggie was so bad, never could have done as well. Not that they couldn't tell when he didn't. ;)
 
techfowl said:
Nice post BuzzFan and gtGreg.

But to a few others -

I'd like to know how many guys here who are beating on Reggie, played even high school ball, or ever stood tall in the pocket and took licks like Reggie did game after game?

I played through 10th grade. I did start at WR a couple of years, but I never played QB. It's one of the reasons I don't throw too many stones at the guys who are light years better than me.

How about you thwg? Did you play, and even if so - did you play college? Did you play QB? Or do you coach? If so - which college team?

I'm just trying to figure out if you could have done better than Reggie.

This is a guy that missed not one single game in 4 years due to injury, and only one with an illness that put him in the hospital. I don't know of many 4 year starters who only missed one game.

He acted like an idiot with the press and ran his mouth too much, but he is not Odell Thurmond. He did not represent us well at times, but the kid relatively kept his nose clean. I don't remember any off the field trouble. The worst thing he did was lose games - which, admittedly crushed me also at times. All of us wanted to wring his neck at times, but I sure don't wish the guy any ill will.

Unless you are a guy named Joe Hamilton, Shawn Jones, or George Godsey, I'd be willing to bet you could not do a single bit better, or ever could have. But you are fine trashing a guy who laid it all out there - but wasn't a good QB.

For any of you to relish when a GT player looks bad does not make that guy look bad. It makes you look bad.

Reggie stunk it up - and he stuck it up A LOT.

But it wasn't from lack of effort.

Taylor probably will be a lot better, but it's way too early to gloat as if we already know. We don't yet know. Also - by all accounts, Reggie was ahead of Taylor early in the season. Taylor came on right when we needed him midseason, but it wasn't Reggie's fault that Gailey didn't bench him.

Give the guy a break. It's time to move on.

It's ok to be insanely mad at how everything went down. It's not ok to blame all of it on Reggie.

Don't blame a guy for doing his best. Blame the guy who left a possible change on the bench. But it's also not Gailey's fault that the state Mr. Football, who played QB for SC (Logan), MS (Bilbo), Ohio (Camp), and a highly touted QB from Louisiana (Landry) 'all' couldn't cut it at QB, and had to move to other positions. Reggie played a position he could play, but not the one best suited for him.

We didn't have a ton of other options until the end of last year.

I don't really just love Reggie either, but I don't hate the guy, and I surely take no joy in anything except the best for him.

Most of you are the same guys that hated AJ Suggs and was absolutely sure that Reggie was the answer right after Auburn '03.

Give this thing some time before talking all that garbage. Even if Taylor does well, (or if he doesn't) it would still be a mature and respectable act to show some appreciation for Taylor 'and' Reggie in the future.

You don't actually have to put any GT athlete down. You can actually appreciate all of them at the same time with no conflict at all.
Click to expand...
To answer your question,Ihad over fifteen years as a high school coach and I agree with part of your blog.Reggie should not have had the chance to take the heat but his coaches should have.Reggie did not make many mistakes with the press but most of us are not forgiving over the Ga game remarks last year or the fourth quarter episodes at Athens or Atlanta.If there is fault with Reggie it should begin with coaching staff for putting him in situations where he would have a hard time making progress.He was short and had trouble throwing from the pocket,had problems throwing over the middle etc.He could run the qb draw and rollout but he was never designed for a pure passer anyway.Now the big problem was Chan playing him with no backup.I think this kept him in the limelight even when he was having a bad game.Chan stayed too long with him but if fairness to Reggie,he was a good competitor and did not cause tech any embarressment with off the field problems.I would be willingto bet you if he hadnt thrown the bal out of bounds at ga,tried to start a fight with a ga strength coach and the interception last year at goal line folks would forgive and forget.Remember this from an old man ,folks want sucess especially when they play their state rival.No sucess means heat on the qb and the coaching staff.Good article.
 
The Reggie Ball days are over and done at GT. I was never a fan of his, from a QB perspective or from a person perspective, but I definitely pulled for him each and every Saturday (and Thursday nights as well).

Taylor Bennett will take over this fall. I personally would have liked to have seen more of him prior to the Gator Bowl and don't understand why we didn't, particularly late in the season. If RB was hurt in the Maryland game (I'm not buying that his injury affected his play that much, he was just not a good college QB) then TB should have been an option earlier than the last game of the season.

But you know what, that is in the past and the future is ahead of us starting at South Bend this fall.
 
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