UNC Football Game 1
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November 27, 2008
July 12, 2008
September 24, 2007
Thrashers Lose Preseason Home Opener
A very nice new addition to the Thrashers website is the "View From Upstairs". Where the Thrashers web staff highlights the game. It's pretty much the one place you want to goto after the game to get all of the info you want. Pretty much makes my job obsolete. Or maybe easier. Or Harder. Here is the link for the St. Louis game: View from Upstairs
Also, Kari is currently suffering from a minor groin injury. Hopefully it doesn't linger for too long.
I will be starting up a website to coordinate the push for an Atlanta Thrasher License Plate.
September 20, 2007
Update on EVERYTHING
So to say I've been slow lately is an understatement. I apologize for that. It seems that I have such big plans and just relatively little time to act on them.
A quick update on me (for those who care):
-Taking my final year of classes at GT and trying to boost my gpa to get into MBA school.
-Oh yeah-I am studying for the GMAT...not fun
-This is my last year working football for GT...which has been awesome
-I am in the process of starting up my own company...which takes a bit of time
So yes, I fail at this blogging game....miserably. I am working on it though...Hopefully I will get my brother on here to add in some of his insight/do daily updates.
So about Tech, we are leaving tomorrow at about 2:30....it will be an early game (12:00 pm on ESPNU)...I am honestly scared about this game, since it appears that BC may have exposed some team flaws in our game last week. Good thing is that we can work to correct it. Tashard Choice has healed and will be ready to play. Can we beat the curse (Haven't won at UVA since 1990) and come away victorious? Everyone knows we have a better team...it's just we have to execute. I am not even going to try to guess a score for two reasons: 1. I have no freakin idea and 2. I don't wanna jinx.
* GT has just announced that Big Boi will be playing at the GT-VT Thursday night game. Some people will love it, some people will hate it...we won't get into that discussion here. Main thing for me is that it will be sure to help recruiting and will give us exposure. Can't argue with that.
About the Thrashers, they have played in 3 preseason games and are currently 2-1...which means nothing. If it's anything like the NFL, the teams who do well in the preseason cannot carry it into the post-season while the teams who seem to struggle seem to play well once the season starts. I have been a little busy to follow it game by game, which I should, but it sounds like Little and Sterling are making every second of ice time count. I'd love to see some rookies on the team, mainly because I think the best teams are a good mix of young prospects and veterans. We were WAY too veteran last year and it reminded me of a lot of Braves teams. We need those players with the fresh-20-year-old legs to provide that spark when the holik's and the kozlov's backs are hurting. I'll try to get a better grasp of the roster situation, but with a test coming up tomorrow, Im afraid by the time I do it, everything will be done.
September 14, 2007
So the thrashers are about to begin their training camp
and although I was originally kinda disappointed in our preseason moves, I am now feeling a little better. We appeared to focus on one thing in the offseason: speed...and if sterling is as good as advertised and kovy, hossa, and kari develop and improve, and if we FINALLY have discreet, concrete lines for the top six, I think we will be better than last season. Waddell signed a ton of defensemen and its hard to tell who will be on the team and who wouldn't. The acquisitions make me wonder if we have little faith in enstrom and popovic or if we are signing all these players for depth.
In other news, they will be doing another video contest...and of course I will be entering. Wish me luck-Matt
September 5, 2007
Huge win
So I have been to every practice the last 5 years and I knew that we have the best team since I've been here, but I was still unsure of how we'd play in a game, especially one as high profile as Notre Dame. Before the game, walking the tunnel where they have all their national championship banners and beyond that is Touchdown Jesus, you finally realize that you are in the mecca of college football. When I was on the field (which by the way was one of the worst kept fields I've ever been on) it finally hit me that the season was about to start...
So the food in the press box was alright...chicken was pretty good but the highlight was the tomato ravioletti...WOW. Once I got up to my booth to set up a camera, we realize the camera was broken and would not record to a tape...which is NOT good, by the way.
Once the opening kickoff started it was evidently clear that we had the better, more talented team, but I was still worried when it was 9-0 and we had not been able to put the ball in the end zone yet. After the Tashard Choice direct snap, I felt that this game could really turn into a blowout, which it did.
Some key notes:
* Worst opening loss by Notre Dame....EVER
* -9 Rushing yards....9 sacks= total defensive dominance.
* Notre Dame tried 3 quarterbacks ....it didn't matter
* First time Notre dame did not score a touchdown since Charlie Weis became coach.
Next up: Samford....should be easy
August 5, 2007
So 2 Practices down, 4,207 left to go.
This being my senior year, I am totally pumped for the season to get going. Needless to say, our first 2 practices have done nothing but make my blood boil even more. We are GOOD...scary good....good enough to where I look at the schedule, go down the line and go 'yup we can beat them...and them... and them...' all the way down the schedule. Now I'm not calling for us to go undefeated by any means, BUT it sure does allow me to dream. I want a championship ring SOOOOOOOOO bad, and after coming so close last year, I cannot wait for another chance to get one this year.
Here is my position by position breakdown of players so far from the first 2 days of practice:
For now I will do Offensive backfield:
Quarterbacks
Taylor Bennett: Looks good in the pocket, will be a good leader...the question is still out there on his arm strength and his durability, but he will be smart enough to overcome it.
Calvin Booker: As a backup, is a very little dropoff from Taylor (more of a compliment to Calvin than an insult to Taylor...they are both just that good). Actually has a great pocket presence and increased athleticism. In one practice, pulled off a beautiful pump fake. The defense all blitzed on the left side, and the lone guy on the right side got through, and Calvin pumped faked and ran right by him for a 10-15 yard gain.
Josh Nesbitt: Has a cannon of a fastball, coach bond was saying 'wow! look at that fastball' during drills. Needs a lot of work on mechanics, especially footwork, but has a lot of potential.
Kyle Manley: Weak arm, but is smart....provides a good coach's mentality to the position.
Byron Ingram: Actually throws a beautiful ball, but still needs a lot of work before I feel comfortable with him playing.
Running Back
Tashard Choice: He doesn't have flashy speed, great moves, or is a cannonball to bring down, he's just good at all three. The one great thing he does, though, is just as important: his vision of the holes is second to none. And there will be plenty of holes for him to run through.
Rashaun Grant: Finally the coaches look like they will be getting him on the field apart from back-up running back duties. The guy is just an athlete and will be one of the quickest guys on the field. It is really fun to watch him run.
Jamaal Evans: A very solid backup option. I would be comfortable with the offense if he even had to carry the load.
Roddy Jones: Very quick, has some good moves...looks to actually be making a better impression than Dwyer at this point.
Jonathan Dwyer: The guy is big...maybe a little too big at this point...has a very awkward body, seems like he is very clumsy when jogging around, yet has an extra gear to get through the hole....something tells me that although he doesn't stand out in no contact practices, once the defense has to bring him down is when he excels.
Fullback
Mike Cox: Is a beast...Bond would prefer to run a single back set, but how can you with one of the country's best fullbacks in the backfield?
July 21, 2007
Only a couple weeks away until camp starts
Man, I cannot WAIT for football practice to start. We have finished the recruiting camps and now its a matter of really focusing our efforts on the guys we have offered. Our DL recruiting looks to be SICK this year.
Just got back from vacation
Saw that we signed Exelby to a multi year deal....which is VERY good. He is quickly turning into a fan favorite.
Cannot wait for camp to start!
July 12, 2007
Roster Almost finalized?
So according to the AJC, we are no longer looking for free agents. Barring trades, the roster is finalized.
Our roster, in sort of a depth-chart format:
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Now it must be noted that some of the players can play multiple positions, for instance because Schultz is listed as the second right winger on the depth chart, it does not mean he will be on the second line. I have highlighted in yellow the players who are locks to make the NHL roster. This leaves us with 21 roster players (12 forwards, 7 defensemen, 2 goalies)...thus we need two more 'healthy scratches' to finish the roster, most likely forwards. Remember Boulton and Thorburn are both considered to be pretty similar players, so I see one of them sitting on the bench as a 'helthy scratch' to be used in certain situations. Also one of the AHL players could find a spot on the roster. Guys like Lavallee, Haydar, Krog, and Little do have spots they could earn. Rucchin is another possibility of making the roster if he ever passes his physical. For now tho, the players highlighted will be the ones I will use when assessing the possible lines. Now its time to play with some line combinations.
About the only thing we know for sure about the lines are that Kozlov and Hossa will be paired together and Kovy will be on a separate line than them. Also, I will assume that Larsen will be a winger on the checking line, and that Perrin will play on the checking line as well (per Waddell's comments). Those can be etched in stone pretty much, with everything else unknown. I will go through some possibilities.
Matching Holik with Hossa and Kozlov:
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I have loved this setup ever since we signed White (and assuming we would get Kozlov back). The Falconer goes into a great explanation of how these lines would create two lines which play very different styles and compares them to basketball styles. The Holik line would be the complex, well developed, physical half court style, where as the White line would be the exact opposite: a fast paced full court press focusing on breakaways and exploiting other teams turnovers (yet potentially suffering a lot of turnovers as well). This could create some very interesting matchups and would allow us to exploit a team's weakness much more effectively. Some people claim that Sterling is going to be the winger counterpart to the Kovy line, but I'm a big fan of Dupuis and would love to see his speed here. Regardless, feel free to interchange them if you disagree with me that Dupuis should be on the Kovy line. Another idea that I haven't seen mentioned would be Slater getting another try on the Kovalchuk line. Everyone seems to write him off as being a checking or 4th line player (with good reason if he can't stay on his skates) but he is fast and could be an interesting counterpart to a speedy Kovalchuk line.
White centers Hossa-Kozlov, Perrin centering the Kovalchuk line.
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Now don't laugh at this roster set up, since I think it is a very legit possibility that Holik cannot play top line minutes. White centering Kozlov and Hossa could work, and although it doesn't separate out the styles of the top lines as much, the Kovalchuk line could still be used as an aggressive counterpart to the conservative Hossa line. Again, Slater could replace Perrin as Kovalchuk's center and Dupuis and Sterling can be swapped if you wish.
So thats what I have with the possibilities and unless we offer a trade, I really see our lines shaping up one of these ways. Here's hoping Holik can stay healthy and play top line minutes because I really like the looks of the two different styles of play. Think fire and ice...lightning and thunder...shake and bake...ok I'm done.
Thrashers stuff
Thrashers have re-signed Boulton, which was somewhat surprising. Something tells me he might be used as a healthy scratch and pulled up in situations where we might need him.
Also the schedule has been released, I will be putting it up shortly.
Goodbye Threet
So freshman QB Steven Threet has decided to transfer....which is kinda surprising. Some people claim that he's homesick/misses girlfriend, while others are claiming that he saw Nesbitt and saw the writing on the wall that he was going to be a back up for his 4 years here. He really turned a corner in spring practice and I thought he had a chance to lead us somewhere special. Good luck to him and hopefully he fins somewhere he can be happy.
UPDATE: Threet has decided to transfer to Michigan...showing that he wanted to go back home
July 9, 2007
Richard Watson just Commited to GT
This dude is flat out sick. 6-1, 225 with 4.5 speed...built like a truck. Like others have said...3rd down just got a LOT easier.
So now we have 2 RB's committed, 1 qb, 2 wr, 1 OL, 1 LB, 1 DB...this weekend has propelled tech into the top 20-25 range in recruiting so far. We will see how far this momentum continues.
July 7, 2007
Georgia Tech's Recruiting
So Georgia Tech's Recruiting is really starting to fill up. I will be starting a feature which includes a bunch of information on each commitment. Stay tuned for details
July 5, 2007
Thank you SlavaDon
For I now feel a whole lot better about this team. It was very scary having all of our eggs in the Kozlov basket (can that cliche be used when it's not Easter???), but now that he has signed, our team is finally starting to fill out. In case you haven't heard and you could not decipher from my beginning, the Thrashers have re-signed Slava Kozlov to a 3 year deal worth 11 million dollars, which averages about 3.7 million per season, which IMO is a steal with some of the other contracts being thrown out there for lesser players. The best news is that Slava actually took a paycut of 1 million to stay with the Thrashers, and hopes that his decision will help Marian Hossa do the same. Needless to say, I believe Kozzy will be the lucky one honored on the back of my jersey (it has been blank since my gf bought it for me last year).
In other news:
*Don Waddell has claimed that we will not be going after anymore UFA's this season, and that his main priority is working on a Hossa extension.
*Exelby filed for arbitration, but most believe it was standard procedure and the team and X will work out a contract before the court needs to get involved.
*Apparently new signee Perrin and his former head (case) coach John Tortarella will not be missing each other too much now that Perrin is gone. Apparently Torty is upset that the Tampa Bay Lightning took a chance on Perrin by giving him his shot when no other team would and Perrin treats TB by leaving for 'only' 150k more. Perrin's side is that he was guaranteed a 3rd line by the Thrash, while he would play 4th line minutes for Tampa Bay (oh and the fact that 150k is more than 3x what the normal person makes...thanks for making me feel poor Tort).
*There is an interesting story about how Perrin made the NHL. Apparently we will hear it enough, but to make it quick, he has been good friends with (former) teammate Martin St. Louis since childhood. They both play a similar game and while Marty was in the NHL becoming a star, Perrin was struggling in Europe until TB gave him his shot.
*Scouting report on Perrin is a speedy player who has a good scoring ability but is very tiny for the NHL. Current projections show him on the checking line, which seems to be ironic for such a tiny guy.
*Thrash still need a playmaking top 2 line center. Options are to move Holik up into the top two lines or trade for a top center.
*Rumors are that Holik is on the trading block. I hate to see any player go, but Holik's contract is eating up space. I think he either needs to move up or be traded...
Projected lines I thought were interesting:
Kovy- White- Sterling
Hossa-Holik-Kozlov
Dupuis-Perrin-Larsen
4th line=anyone
Yes, this is a stretch for both White and Sterling, BUT it's not like Kovy really played with anyone special last year.
It's late...more to come later
July 2, 2007
Roster starting to fill up now:
Thrashers have signed C Todd White (played for the Wild the past 2 seasons) for a 4 year contract worth a little over 2 million/ year. In the past he has centered Hossa, so I seem him as a replacement for Belanger.
Thrashers have also signed Forward Eric Perrin. He's a little on the small side but has speed to burn. Word is that he is Sim's replacement (with speed). He may serve as another winger for Kovy (or be a checking forward so that Dupuis can move up)...in my opinion we don't need anyone special as another winger for Kovy, we just need someone who can keep up with him. As good as Mellanby and Tkachuk may have been, they were sorely behind every play for the line to work.
Kozlov talks are still going on and there's a bit of optimism that he may come back. If Kozlov does sign, that leaves us with the following roster:
Hossa-White-Kozlov
Kovy-__________-Perrin
Larsen-Holik-Dupuis
Sterling-Slater-(another young guy)
Wow...although we haven't really signed anyone big, if we can bring Kozy back and get a Yashin or similar to center Kovy's line, this looks like a pretty good team. The signing of Perrin, Dupuis, and White show that Waddell is trying to get speed to compete with the new NHL. I really like the Hossa-White-Kozlov line, as their games seem to complement each other. Puttin Perrin on the Kovy line is a stretch, I know, but like I said, we need SPEED at that other wing.
July 1, 2007
July 1st has arrived
Cross Keith Tkachuk of your list...he's gone
Welcome back Pascal Dupuis (who I would really like to see with Kovy on first line.)
These are still my lines i would like to see:
Hossa-FA-Kozlov
Kovy-FA-Dupuis
Larsen-Holik-Lavallee
Sterling-Slater-anyone else
June 27, 2007
Thrashers Catch-up
First another apology for the lack of posts....it's extremely hard to find time to make a post.
Here's an overview of what's been happening in the Thrasher organization.
We originally had 5 draft picks, but traded the late 3rd rounder (78 overall) for defensive forward Chris Thorburn. It may not appear to be much, but the Falconer does a very good analysis of the trade, saying that we are giving a pick which typically yields a bust for a player who may actually play.
With the rest of the picks, we focused on forwards (picked 3 forwards and one defenseman), resulting in a draft Waddell was very pleased in (which may be just talk and defending a crappy draft year).
Here is an overview of the players we drafted:
3rd Round (67 overall)-RW- Spencer Machacek - 6'1" 180lbs.
Spencer played in the WHL on a loaded team. His production and stats are not outstanding, but this may be due to him not being on the primary scoring or power play lines. Waddell claims that the organization ranked Spencer in the first round on their board, so they were very excited to pick them up.
4th Round (115 Overall)- C- Niklas Lucenius - 6' 189
Niklas has a pretty cool picture up on the Thrashers website. Considered by many to be the number one Finnish player this year (considered a weak year for Finland, though).
6th Round (175 Overall)- C-John Albert- 5'10" 180
John is the first player drafted by the Thrashers from the US developmental program. Will be playing at Ohio State for the next couple of years, which Waddell says is very important.
7th Round (205 Overall)- D- Paul Postma- 6'2" 173
Paul is a very raw, skinny Defensman with a decent frame. Apparently has a good hockey mindset but is not very athletic or skilled.
In other news, Waddell was attempting to sign Kozlov, but it appears Fla may be getting to him a little bit too much. So what is our plan B? Resigning Tkachuk. This is a lot closer now that we have made a trade with St. Louis. Basically we traded the rights of Tkachuk to St. Louis until July 1st in return for our 1st round pick we traded them. Then we still have a chance to get Tkachuck without having to give up our 1st rounder. Great move in my opinion.
It seems as if Waddell is doing his best to make manuevers given the huge constraints he has. This team may take 2 different directions by the time this offseason is over. Some of the question marks were solved when the restricted free agents were offered contracts. Slater, Doell, Exelby, Schultz (recently acquired in a trade), Stuart, and Thorburn were all extended contracts. Larsen and McCarthy were both signed new deals, solidifying the checking line and the defense ( I really like McCarthy and think he screams new NHL.)
Here is a good story on Sterling on Fox.com: Sterling's ready for the next step
A roster analysis will be coming shortly...but that's the scoop for now...
June 11, 2007
GT's camp
This past Saturday I attended the GT camp for high school students, and there were some pretty good standouts. Derek Winter was probably the one guy that opened my eyes the most, followed by Chris Jackson and Ahmed Shakoor. Chris Jackson has already committed to us, Shakoor committed to Louisville, and Derek Winter currently does not have an offer. Overall, though, the camp had quite a good talent level and I could see quite a few guys getting offers.
On an unrelated note, I saw the football poster for this year...and WOW...for once I actually like it...a lot.
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