Recruiting

GT verbals are found throughout the AJC All State Team.

Class AAAAA
First Team Offense:
RB Charles Perkins, Collins Hill 6-0 195 Sr.

First Team Defense:
DL Shawn Green, Grayson 6-1 275 Sr.
DL Anthony Williams, Union Grove 6-4 235 Sr.

Class AAAA
First Team Offense:
OL Morgan Bailey, Loganville 6-4 285 Sr.

First Team Defense:
DB Ryan Ayers, South Paulding 5-10 178 Sr.
DB Isaiah Johnson, Sandy Creek 6-2 180 Sr.

Class AA
Offensive Player of the Year: B.J. Bostic, Jefferson County

First Team Offense:
QB B.J. Bostic, Jefferson County 5-11 175 Sr.

First Team Defense:
DL Catlin Alford, Adairsville 6-4 275 Sr.
DB Fred Holton, Thomasville 6-1 196 Sr.
DB Jake Skole, Blessed Trinity 6-1 188 Sr.

Interesting to see no mention of Denzel McCoy, arguably Tech's top recruit for this upcoming class.

Also Tech is in hot pursuit of several others on the list:

AAAAA
First Team Offense:

WR Quin Roberson, Colquitt County 6-0 175 Sr.
OL Thomas O’Reilly, Pope 6-3 315 Jr.
ATH Ean Days, Camden County 6-0 195 Sr.

Honorable Mention Defense:
DB Darius Robinson, Westlake

Injuries

I don't ever want to hear anything from Nebraska fans about injuries or lack of talent, especially on the OL. GT produced an 86 yard game winning drive with their 4th string tackle in the game. Players like Clyde Yandell are found all over high schools throughout the state and the kind of players Nebraska used to get to walk on and contribute. Offensive success is about putting your players in a position to be successful-something Shawn Watson knows nothing about:

Lost amid the 469 yards Georgia Tech piled up in its 39-34 win against Clemson in the ACC championship game Saturday night were the players on the offensive line that paved the way.

By the end of the game, redshirt sophomore Clyde Yandell was manning left tackle, which was being held down by Nick Claytor before he left in the second half with an injury. He was filling in for starter Phil Smith, who broke his leg in the first half. Smith was filling in for Austin Barrick, who was injured against Vanderbilt. Thin at tackle before the game started, coach Paul Johnson said he had no more available interior lineman left because of injuries.

"They did good. Nick Claytor and Clyde Yandell, they came through and held their own," quarterback Josh Nesbitt said. "We didn't miss a beat."

Guard Cord Howard, a senior, said he told Yandell when he jogged into the huddle: "It's your time man. Play. If you need anything ask me, as always. Just play, man. Don't leave anything out here."

He didn't. Jonathan Dwyer's 15-yard game-winning touchdown run came on the left side, where Yandell was lined up.

The Tigers had kept Dwyer mostly in check until the final possession, when he accounted for 33 yards of the 86-yard winning drive. Johnson said a few tweaks to the blocking scheme finally got Tech clicking on its last possession. Dwyer carried the ball the final four times on the drive.

"The last drive, I knew I needed to make a play and if the ball was in my hands, I was just going to give it all I had and leave my energy on the field, just give it all I had and try to make plays," Dywer said. He finished with 110 yards, including 51 in the final quarter.

More from Kevin Steele

Steele had some interesting comments leading up to the game yesterday.

Tigers defensive coordinator Kevin Steele knows a thing or two about option offenses, to say the least, having coached at Nebraska for six seasons under Hall of Fame coach Tom Osborne and having actually recruited legendary option quarterback Tommy Frazier.

According to Steele, the difficulty with Georgia Tech’s scheme is just when you think you’ve figured it out, Johnson actually has you right where he wants you.

“They say he watches film on fast forward. He’s just watching players, just watching players,” Steele said. “Because the way you line up in traditional games is not relative to him. And so, he gets so many different looks that I think they’re very conditioned to, ‘OK, what are we getting? What are they lining up in? And, how do we attack that?’”

And though the Tigers had a measure of success in the first meeting, at one point forcing six straight punts followed by an interception, Steele says that means very little going into the rematch.

“You can’t be a fastball pitcher at (Johnson),” he said. “I mean, we threw him a fastball the whole game last time, and he’s got it on tape. So, we’ve had to go back and scratch some things out, and we’ve got to be able to throw some curve balls and some knuckle balls. We can’t give him the same look. He’s too good a coach for that.”

Kevin Steele

Former Nebraska defensive coach Kevin Steele, who is now the DC at Clemson, saw his defense get run over, through and around last night. Steele, who broke his hand by punching a hotel room wall during a pre-game speech to his defense, had no answers for Georgia Tech and Paul Johnson. Tech didn't put one time the entire game and scored on all possessions but one.

Also, as I thought, Bay Bay Thomas told ESPN's Heather Dinich that he would be return for his senior season. But he may have been caught up in the emotion as well. We'll find out in a month or so.

So

ACC Champions-what a win over Clemson. My heart can't take much more of this. And Georgia still sucks-wait until next year. Great game plan Georgia to exploit the weakest part of the GT team, which is the undersized and outmanned (minus D-Morgan) DL. When Ben Anderson went down early, that pretty much sealed the defense' fate. When JC Lanier and some of the young studs get into the program, you won't be running the ball like that ever again.

As for Nebraska against Texas, it is what it is. Last week when Georgia Tech was in pretty much the same situation, down a touchdown towards the end of the game but seemingly in control of their destiny with the offense holding the ball, they couldn't cut it. Needing only to march down the field with plenty of time on the clock, GT didn't get it done. A dropped pass by one of the best receivers in the country sealed their fate.

NU fans and coaches (stop embarrassing yourself Carl Pelini) are whining about officiating but the Skers had every opportunity in the world to win the game. But they choked it away, pissed it down their leg etc. The reliable special teams makes a monsterous mistake by kicking it out of bounds and giving Texas the ball at the 40. The next play McCoy hits Shipley on a crossing pattern and Larry Asante, the most undisciplined player on the awesome defense, commits a horse collar tackle to add another 15 yards, which set Texas up for the game winning FG. So when it comes down to it, Nebraska was their own worst enemy. They had Texas right where they wanted and they shot themselves in the foot. Nebraska will be back but Bo has to fix the offense. The lowest offensive output in 25 years says something-that something is seriously wrong. It will be tough against Arizona and Stoops version of Desert Swarm in the Holiday bowl.