Technical Tidbits 1/20: Heartbreak in Blacksburg, early signing period gains steam

Georgia Tech lost an absolute heartbreaker up in Blacksburg on Wednesday night, falling by a final score of 62-61 to the resurgent Virginia Tech Hokies. Senior Quinton Stephens took a 15-footer for the win with just a couple of seconds remaining but came up just short as the Jackets fell victim to a string of small mistakes — it was a missed layup here, a missed free throw there, and ultimately a poorly designed out of bounds play that ended up costing the team a chance at a 4-2 ACC record. Discouraging as the end result was, a 3-3 conference mark is something that the team should be proud of. This next stretch looks just as grueling as the opening few games, but a win or two would keep the Jackets on track for a postseason appearance of some sort.

The idea of an early signing period for college football players, as proposed by Paul Johnson and others, appears to be gaining some traction in coaching circles. Though the possibility of a June period was rejected on Wednesday, it remains entirely plausible that we could see a December period pop up some time in the near future. There are positives and negatives to the proposal, but the fact that Paul Johnson is such a strong advocate in favor of the early signing period just about makes the decision for you, at least in the scope of Georgia Tech athletics. Both sides of the debate will continue to claim that they want what they want because it’s what’s “best for the kids,” but they’re all lying. No one has time for feelings when there’s a BAWL GAME to win.

If there’s one thing that can be said for Georgia Tech’s past few football recruiting classes, it’s that they haven’t been afraid to get out and do some cost-free recruiting. We’ve seen it on social media with guys like Kyle Henderson a couple of years back and Tre Swilling this year, and it now appears that we have none other than safety A.J. Gray to thank for helping to secure the commitment of top-rated punter Pressley Harvin after a very cordial welcoming during a junior day visit. We largely have no idea how effective that type of recruiting is, but it never hurts to have guys that are excited to come to Tech speaking well about it to other prospective Jackets. Yep, tweeting at recruits is always discouraged unless you are also a recruit.