Technical Tidbits 3/24

Former Georgia Tech associate athletic director Ryan Bamford was hired yesterday to fill the role of athletic director at UMass. Bamford spent the last four years at Tech following a nearly decade-long stint with Yale, and oversaw all operation aspects of football, basketball, and baseball during his time on the Flats. He has done a phenomenal job since his arrival and has more than earned a shot at an AD position with another DI school. Thanks to Ryan for his contributions to the Tech program and best of luck with your future endeavors in Massachusets!

Georgia Tech opened up spring practice yesterday in preparation for what should be a very exciting 2015 football season. The Jackets will lost most of their offensive skill players (including Synjyn Days and Zach Laskey), but should have more than enough talent prepared to step up and fill the void. One of the more interesting storylines to watch through the spring will be the development of one of those newcomers, B-Back C.J. Leggett. While there were some rumblings last season about burning Leggett's redshirt, he remains as much a mystery as anything for most Tech fans -- his ceiling is thought to be very high, but we'll have to wait until later to find out just how special a player he can become.

The 2014 basketball season was just as frustrating for freshman Tadric Jackson as it was for the entire team. Jackson, a four-star recruit and cousin of guard Chris Bolden, was highly touted as a shooter coming into the season, but could only manage to shoot about 27% from the floor all year long. For many, his season-long struggles raised questions about whether or not the high school sharpshooter would become all he was made out to be at the collegiate level. In my honest opinion, the future for Tadric Jackson is as bright as ever -- he played well down the stretch and gained valuable experience in tournament situations. A shot is something that you can work on and improve, but being an athlete is an irreplaceable asset. Tadric Jackson is an athlete.

The ACC has been flat out dominant for the entire duration of the NCAA Tournament so far. The conference which was called overrated by so many during the regular season has showed up in full force for the postseason, putting five teams into the Sweet 16 despite losing regular season champion UVA in the round of 32. That is an impressive feat and really speaks to the depth and quality of the ACC as a whole -- nearly one third of all remaining teams belong to the conference.

What does the ACC's success in the NCAA Tournament tell you about where the conference stands compared to other comparable conferences?

Have a great Tuesday!