Clemson Over Georgia Tech Again.....and Again?

Tech Fans Howl as Tough Tigers Growl

Georgia Tech Athletic Director Todd Stansbury spoke with Ken Suguira of the AJC recently as to the current state of affairs with Tech football. Stansbury gave his support for Coach Paul Johnson, even as the Yellow Jackets have stumbled out of the gate in 2018 with a 1-3 record. Notably, Stansbury also spoke to the need for bigger and better support for Tech athletics to regain a competitive edge. Stansbury lauded Tech athletes for “fighting above their weight class” a clear reference to the fact that many of Tech’s opponents in athletic competition have distinct and growing advantages.

In the wake of Clemson’s total dominance of Georgia Tech in last week’s game, it’s enlightening to compare the two football programs–their history, their coaches and their current directions. Tech holds an edge in the series all-time 50-31-2, but that includes long-term success for Tech in the early years. The more recent trend shows growing dominance by the Tigers.

Dabo Swinney and Paul Johnson are the longest-tenured coaches in the ACC, each having begun in 2008. Johnson came to Tech from Navy, while Swinney ascended to the head Clemson job from coordinator following the departure of Tommy Bowden with 7 games left in that season.

Johnson followed Chan Gailey at Tech. Gailey had been turned out after 6 years. While he never had a losing season, Gailey also had only one year with more than 7 wins. That was 2006 when the Jackets went 9-5. In each of his 5 other seasons, he recorded exactly 7 wins. In other words, only a notch above mediocrity. Significant too was that he never beat Georgia. Tech’s decision to dismiss Gailey was akin in different proportion to Georgia’s decision to part ways with Mark Richt a few years later. Namely a nagging feeling that they could and should do better with available assets— and that the likelihood of improvement absent a coaching change was low.

A review of Swinney’s first few years shows a steady improvement. Clemson had an aggregate record of 19-15 fir Swinney’s first 3 years. The next 3 years that improved to 32-8, but with a tendency to seemingly underperform at critical moments. That tendency gave rise to the derisive slang term “clemsoning” meaning to underperform inexplicably in big moments. The term was most loudly applied to a game in 2014 in which Clemson snatched defeat from the jaws of victory against reigning national champion Florida State. At that point, Swinney was regarded as an affable, hard-working coach, a better recruiter than strategist who could not get over the hump despite good talent and strong program support.

That perception began to change in 2015 as QB Deshaun Watson progressed through his sophomore season, leading Swinney’s Tigers to the college football championship game which they narrowly lost to Alabama. Watson and teammates won the rematch over Alabama following the 2016 season, earning Clemson’s first national title in decades and officially taking the program and Dabo Swinney to a new elite level reserved for champions.

As such, Clemson finds itself in a hard-earned position as one of the very top 3 or 4 football programs in the country. With Florida State’s recent decline, Clemson looks to be the perennial ACC favorite for the foreseeable future. Noteworthy in this comparison is the move of Tech AD Dan Radakovich, the man who hired Paul Johnson, to the same post at Clemson in 2012.

Contrast Georgia Tech which has taken a definite slide in the past several years. Against Clemson, Tech has now lost the last 4, and 6 of the last 7, and the margins are significant. By comparison, Johnson’s Yellow Jackets beat Clemson in 4 of the first 5 meetings of his regime.

In the bigger picture, Johnson’s first 3 years at Tech produced an aggregate 26-14 record. The next 3 years that record slipped to 22-18. The most recent 3 full seasons have produced only a 17-19 mark. This tally excludes. Johnson’s best year, 2014, in which Tech finished 11-3 and won the Orange Bowl. Coincidentally, that season was the last time they bested Clemson. The grumbling among Techsters is growing louder that perhaps Johnson’s system and style are now holding back progress rather than promoting it. Tech fans wonder if the option offense has been ” figured out” by opponents and that a change is needed. And while Johnson is always dismissive if recruiting rankings, it seems that Tech’s talent level may be off a bit comparatively speaking and they are especially vulnerable with respect to depth.

It should be noted that Paul Johnson’s Yellow Jackets have beaten Georgia 3 times in 10 years and that Tech had won that game only 11 times in the 4 plus decades preceding Johnson’s arrival in 2008. The ability to beat Georgia, at least occasionally, is a key factor in the level of tolerance and patience that the Tech fan base, and brass, will be willing to extend to Johnson.

When comparing these two ACC schools with respect to the current status of their football teams, it’s easy to cite Clemson’s advantages in terms of enrollment size, overall program support, facilities, and momentum. Georgia Tech has to contend with academic standards different from much of the rest of the ACC. Perhaps more significant is the relative narrowness of the curriculum at Georgia Tech. Progress in football at Tech in the future will depend on whether the Institute wishes to hold a wholesale review of where they want to go athletically and how they wish to get there.

The world of big-time college athletics has changed greatly in the past 10 years. Larger state schools, most of them located in smaller towns, have decided to emphasize athletics. That situation is an uphill climb for Georgia Tech, regardless of what kind of offense is run or who is chosen to be the next defensive coordinator. Failure to adapt will mean more mediocrity on the field and in the attendance totals.