February 2010
TODAY'S REPORTS |
| OSR 11/13/2009 | | Yellow Jacket NFL Alumni Update | | Week 9 NFL Updates - Georgia Tech AlumniVance Walker (DT) - Atlanta Falcons3 tacklesFalcons Won 31 - 17 vs Washington RedskinsDawa... |
| | | | OSR 11/13/2009 | | A Form of Friendly Fire | | ATLANTA – Jonathan Dwyer was named a Doak Walker Award semifinalist Thursday, and with quite a bit of football left to b... |
| | | | OSR 11/13/2009 | | Jackets' Home Hell on Visitors | | ATLANTA -- O'Keefe Gymnasium is the kind of place you either love or hate.Georgia Tech volleyball Coach Tonya Johnson should know.... |
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| UPCOMING EVENTS |
- Wednesday -- Men's Basketball at Miami, 7 p.m.
- Friday -- Softball vs. Long Island (Clearwater, Fla.), 12:30 p.m.
- Friday -- Softball vs. Florida (Clearwater, Fla.), 4 p.m.
- Friday -- Women's Tennis vs. California (ITA National Indoor Championship, Madison, Wis.), 4:30 p.m.
- Friday-Saturday -- Track & Field at Tyson Invitational, Fayetteville, Ark.
- Saturday -- Men's Basketball at Wake Forest, 8 p.m. (TV-Raycom)
- Saturday -- Softball vs. Canisius (Clearwater, Fla.), 12:30 p.m.
- Sunday -- Softball vs. Florida Gulf Coast (Clearwater, Fla.), 9 a.m.
- Sunday -- Softball vs. South Florida (Clearwater, Fla.), 11:30 a.m.
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| As good as B-back Jonathan Dwyer has been, and he's been pretty darned impressive lately, this guy -- quarterback Josh Nesbitt -- might stand in Dwyer's way in a bid to repeat as ACC Player of the Year. What a great problem for Tech fans to have, huh? |
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Official Sports Report: November 13, 2009
A Form of Friendly Fire
Dwyer's bid to repeat as POY has hurdle: Nesbitt |
by Matt Winkeljohn, OSR Managing Editor
ATLANTA – Jonathan Dwyer was named a Doak Walker Award semifinalist Thursday, and with quite a bit of football left to be played it is quite conceivable that the junior could win the award for top running back in the nation.
Yet he might not end up MVP of his own team, or even the Georgia Tech offense. That award could go to quarterback Josh Nesbitt.
And you wonder how the Yellow Jackets got to be 9-1, ranked No. 7 in the BCS standings?
Players, players, and players (most key members of the team coming from the 2007 recruiting class). Oh, and an attitude to go along with a distinct offensive personality.
When Dwyer rushed for just 7 yards on five carries in a 33-17 loss at Miami, it was his second sub-par game in as many weeks for the 2008 ACC Player of the Year.
Regardless of the fact that he suffered a shoulder injury, it was not difficult to find pundits who believed that his overall numbers were down in large measure because opponents were doing a better job defending Tech.
Through three games, Dwyer was averaging 56 yards per game.
Some folks didn't bother looking at the fact he was averaging just 10 carries, let alone consider the injury.
The "Blue printers," who may be akin to the "Birthers," out there, were convinced the grid was set against the Jackets; the template was in place, the offense cased.
But Nesbitt and Dwyer have proven otherwise.
The more damage Nesbitt does (he has rushed for 604 yards and a whopping 14 touchdowns in the Jackets' seven-game winning streak), the more space Dwyer finds in turn as defenses have to guess which player to set keys upon.
Dwyer has rushed for career-high yardage in back-to-back games, going for 189 last Saturday against Wake Forest, and 186 in a win at Vanderbilt before that. In the past three games, he's rushed for 500 yards and four touchdowns. He now has 1,093 rushing yards for the season, 11th-most in Tech history.
Yeah, defenses have figured out Dwyer and the Jackets.
With two more touchdowns (he has 31 in his career); Dwyer will tie Joe Burns for second-most in Tech history. Burns scored 34 between 1998-'01.
Robert Lavette scored 46 between '81-'84.
Dwyer's 2,924 career rushing yards are sixth-most in history, and he's just a junior.
Never mind the internet chatter about him or other junior Jackets possibly turning pro next spring; we'll get to that another day.
Imagine what he's doing, 1,093 yards, nine touchdowns, and he's still perhaps well behind his own teammate in the race of ACC Player of the Year.
Nesbitt's 817 rushing yards are the most every by a Tech quarterback. His 1,849 career rushing yards are most ever by a Jacket signal caller. He's a junior, too, and didn't play much as a freshman.
Quarterbacks get the most attention, as recent Heisman Trophy results clearly indicate, and even though Nesbitt has some pedestrian passing numbers in terms of yardage (1,223) and touchdowns (six), and he's completed a very modest 45.2 percent of his passes.
One of his predecessors, Reggie Ball, caught untold grief for completions percentages like that even though he was noted more for running the ball, too.
One of the key differences between Nesbitt and Ball, though, not to mention Dwyer, is the prevalence of signature plays.
Nesbitt not only converted the do-or-die fourth down in overtime last Saturday, but scored the game winner after that. Against Florida State, he not only stripped an FSU defender after a turnover to steal the ball back for the Jackets, but moments later scored the clinching touchdown (one of three on the day).
He already has nearly 400 more career rushing yards than Ball had, and his 22 rushing touchdowns are twice Ball's career total and easily a school record for quarterbacks.
Nesbitt has accounted for 12 touchdowns this season (15 rushing, six passing), and even though Dwyer has averaged 19.9 carries in the seven-game winning streak, Nesbitt's been the workhorse.
He's had games of 32, 22, 27, 23, 21, 16 and 21 carries in the winning streak.
His yards-per-completion (23.5) is almost unheard of 10 games into a season, and his per-attempt average (10.6) would cause most NFL coordinators to salivate.
And you wonder why the Jackets are 9-1, and ranked No. 7? Well, you probably don't, but you may know someone who does. Tell 'em.
Matt Winkeljohn is managing editor of Sting Extra OSR. Reach him at gtstingx@gmail.com.
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