The winds of change aren't just breezing through Atlanta, they're gusting at high speeds. George O'Leary is giving his Georgia Tech team a comprehensive makeover on both sides of the football.
After an up-and-down 7-5 season which ended in a 35-30 Carquest Bowl victory over West Virginia, O'Leary hired former Jacksonville Jaguars secondary coach Randy Edsall to rewrite a defense that gave up the most yardage in the ACC.
"It seemed like every game down the stretch last season was a matter of which team had the ball last," senior defensive end Jesse Tarplin told the ACC Media Tour last week. "We weren't getting the job done on defense, and we knew it. Some [of the defensive miscues] had to do with the scheme."
A heartbreaking 27-24 loss to Georgia on Thanksgiving Day was the perfect example of Tech's 1997 defensive nightmare. Tech scored 14 unanswered points in the second half, taking a 24-21 lead on Charles Wiley's dramatic touchdown run with just 48 seconds to play.
But the defense spoiled the great effort, allowing Georgia to drive 65 yards in 40 seconds, and Georgia stole the 27-24 win with an eight-yard touchdown pass with eight seconds to play.
"When I reviewed films last year, I thought defensively we were in position to make the plays; we just didn't make them," O'Leary said.
Enter Edsall.
Replacing a passive read/react defense with a new pressing, blitzing scheme, Edsall hopes to make Tech a bit more unpredictable. It's a gamble, especially for a team that lost its top two defensive talents, linebackers Ron Rogers and Keith Brooking, to the NFL draft.
"We're probably as deep as we've been since I got here," O'Leary insists. "We have to replace some good players at linebacker, but there are several good athletes there to get it done. Experience is the big [concern]."
Sophomore Matt Miller is one of three inexperienced linebackers hoping to replace the 249 tackles Brooking and Rogers accounted for last year. Between Miller and seniors Delaunta Cameron and Justin Robertson, there are just 11 career starts combined.
The more aggressive defensive approach, inspired by the success of pressing defenses like Florida State and North Carolina, will also put cornerbacks Jamara Clark, a redshirt sophomore, and Jason Bostic, a senior, on the spot in frequent man-to-man coverage.
"It's exciting," strong safety Jerry Caldwell said. "But the secondary is going to have to play hard and smart. We're going to make some mistakes, but I think we're going to make some big plays, too."
Tech is also looking for more big plays on offense, remolding its offense to give athletic quarterback Joe Hamilton more opportunities to put points on the board. Offensive coordinator Ralph Friedgen has experimented with flexible formations and position changes, hoping to take advantage of All-ACC candidate Hamilton and a full stable of running backs.
In fact, if it weren't for the loss of Tech all-time receiving leader Harvey Middleton (165 career catches, 13 TDs), Tech might be deeper at the skill positions than any team north of Tallahassee.
Tech is so deep in the backfield that leading rusher Charlie Rogers will help offset Middleton's loss by moving to receiver, at least part time. Rogers may line up in the slot, split out wide or in the backfield. He'll also return kicks.
Former safety Jon Muyres, a quarterback and sprinter in high school, also moves over to receiver this fall.
"The coaches think this is the best way to keep the defenses like North Carolina and Florida State off guard," Rogers said. "The more positions a few of us can learn, the less those top defenses can substitute and draw a bead on us."
Hamilton will miss Middleton, a lifelong friend and teammate since junior high, more than anyone. But the redshirt junior had a strong spring and seems to be taking well to the new wrinkles in the playbook.
"Joe's always been a great athlete," O'Leary said. "I think the difference was last year he was an athlete who was learning how to play quarterback. Now I think he's a quarterback who's a heck of an athlete."
The backfield trio of Rogers, Ed Wilder and Charles Wiley should take a lot of pressure off Hamilton's shoulders. True freshman Joe Burns, last year's Georgia high school player of the year, will also push for playing time at tailback.
"We're going to be able to do things without counting on Joe to do it all the time," O'Leary said. "If I was just counting on Joe to do everything, then I would be worried."
Despite all that skill in the backfield, the best player on the team is neither Hamilton nor Rogers. It's Rodney Williams, the punter.
A four-sport athlete in high school, the athletic Williams is agile enough to play defensive back, but his explosive right foot will probably carry him to the NFL.
Still, Tech hopes to use Williams less this year, since school records like 12 punts against FSU last year are rather dubious.
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