Technical Tidbits 4/16

The Orlando Sentinel sat down for a quick interview with Georgia Tech quarterback Justin Thomas regarding his experience during the 2014 season and what he is doing to prepare for 2015. Thomas' responses, many of which undoubtedly earned the Paul Johnson seal of approval for brevity, do a lot to confirm his status as both a leader in the locker-room and likely the face of the team. He touches on attempting to gel with some of the younger, newer players who will fill the skill position players all around him on offense. That relationship between quarterback and offensive players could be key in 2015, a season which will feature plenty of new faces on that side of the ball.

To continue with our trend of Justin Thomas-related links, I'll relay this question to you that was posed by Yellow Jacked Up: what would be considered the next level for Justin Thomas? This is as interesting a question as I've heard all offseason long simply because I haven't sat down to think about it. We talk all the time on this site about how much better Justin Thomas will be in 2015 even compared to 2014, but what exactly would the next level be? My answer is that his next stop is as a top-five quarterback in the nation. His skills and talent are undeniable, and the nation will begin to take notice after the strong 2014 campaign which opened so many eyes.

Georgia Tech will play the upcoming spring game with some key injuries at the linebacker position, meaning that just six players are healthy and ready to go. Among the injured are star linebacker P.J. Davis and presumed starter Tyler Marcordes along with Beau Hankins, a solid depth player. None of the injuries seem to be season-threatening, but they will keep the trio out of commission for the spring game. Hopefully guys like Anthony Harrell and Tre Jackson, who could compete for some snaps this season, will take full advantage and prove their worth to the coaching staff.

Statistically, Georgia is the second best state in the nation in terms of caliber and quantity of football recruits. With four FBS teams in the state, two of which don't really compete for the top recruits, Georgia features a whopping 37.9 3/4/5 star recruits per program. While I am usually a big defender of Paul Johnson's recruiting (because it isn't that bad, especially not this year), I must admit that Tech's struggles to recruit Atlanta can be frustrating at times. Paul Johnson's deficiency in Atlanta-area recruiting, as big as it may seem, doesn't even touch that of Brian Gregory, though. CBG's ability to recruit the city itself is honestly terrible despite coaching at a school right in this hotbed.

What would Tech's team be like if Brian Gregory did a better job of recruiting the Atlanta area?

Have a great Thursday!