Technical Tidbits 3/23

Georgia Tech will look for a third NIT victory tonight when the team takes on San Diego State at a potentially hostile Viejas Arena in California. Perhaps calling the crowd at Viejas "potentially" hostile is not doing the Aztec faithful enough service -- they had a sellout of over 12,000 fans in the team's last game against Washington. The days of playing in front of empty seats in Columbia are officially over; this is the real deal. San Diego State, like Tech, has blown out its previous two NIT opponents -- IPFW and Washington, respectively -- by 15+ points each. I can't really say which team between Tech and SDSU has played a tougher NIT schedule, but it's safe to say that tonight's game will be between two of the best teams in the tournament. It should be a fun one.

The college basketball coaching carousel is beginning to spin, doing so at a rate which threatens to leave Georgia Tech in a very awkward situation by the time Mike Bobinski makes a public decision regarding the future of head coach Brian Gregory. With a few high-profile jobs having come open and others having been filled, the time to make a big coaching change would be right about now. Every passing day will see fewer and fewer candidates that most disgruntled fans would dub "acceptable", making the situation stickier seemingly by the minute. Of course, this is going to be an ugly situation no matter what as a result of everything from timing to funding. It's no secret that firing a coach following a solid postseason performance, even in the NIT, would be frowned upon by many bystanders. That coupled with the serious budget issues which would almost certainly arise with Gregory's firing and the potential that most candidates would be gone by the time a decision could be made may send this whole process into a tailspin.

The AJC's position-by-position preview of Tech's 2016 football team continues today with an early look at the A-Backs. Like the B-Backs which were previewed yesterday, the A-Back position was decimated by injuries to both steady contributors and potential stars during the atrocious 2015 season -- players that missed time included Broderick Snoddy, Qua Searcy, TaQuon Marshall, and Nate Cottrell among others. This season, however, figures to feature much more depth at the critical third option position with the arrival of the likes of J.J. Green and Omahri Jarrett along with the returns of the aforementioned injured contributors. A-Back figures to be a strong position for Tech in 2016, barring another injury explosion.

Georgia Tech baseball extended its win streak to four game last night, cruising past Kennesaw State on the road by a final score of 13-2. The Jackets proved once again that they can be consistent winners, improving to 16-4 in the process with a critical win over an in-state rival. The game could be a catalyst for some great momentum as the Jackets head into a weekend series with an absurdly talented North Carolina team up in Chapel Hill. If they are able to ride the momentum, a seven-game streak to bring the record to 19-4 or even a series win to get to 18-5 would be phenomenal for the team's specs early on in the year.

Have a great Wednesday!