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Who Left
Georgia Tech lost more on special teams than people seem to have realized. Yes, Sean Poole was a good punter, but we lost someone with a much greater effect: Special Teams Coach Dave Walkosky. The news was first reported by coachingsearch.com. There was quite a bit of ambiguity around the entire situation. Also curious was that Senior associate athletic director Ryan Bamford confirmed that he was no longer on staff and then had this to say to Ken Sugiura at the AJC: "That's probably about all I can tell you."
Who's New
Replacing Dave Walkosky did not take too terribly long. About two-and-a-half weeks after Walkosky's departure, Paul Johnson added former Indianapolis Colts and Montreal Allouettes coach Ray Rychleski. Rychleski has also been working with the O-Line since he joined the staff.
With the incoming freshman class, Paul Johnson and his Yellow Jackets added a couple of players that could help Jamal Golden with return duties as soon as this season: Myles Autry and Qua Searcy. As Joey mentioned yesterday, both players' athleticism will have a huge impact on our returning games
Projected Depth Chart
Position | First String | Second String |
Placekicker | Harrison Butker (So) | Andrew "The President" Chau (R-Jr) |
Kickoffs | Harrison Butker (So) |
Ryan Rodwell (R-So) |
Punter | Ryan Rodwell (R-So) | --- |
Long Snapper | Sean Tobin (R-Jr) | Trevor Strobel (So) |
Kick Returns | Jamal Golden (R-Jr) Lynn Griffin (R-So) |
Myles Autry (Fr) Dennis Andrews (R-So) |
Punt Returns | Jamal Golden (R-Jr) | Deandre Smelter (Sr) Myles Autry (Fr) |
Outlook
This will definitely be one of our best position groups this season, and I believe that new ST Coach Ray Rychleski will continue improving our special teams. Perhaps the biggest thing here is the return of Jamal Golden. In 2012, Golden became the first Georgia Tech player to return a kick for a touchdown since 1998.
How will the special teams do this season? Is Ray Rychleski an improvement over Dave Walkosky? Will Myles Autry see the field this season?