Panthers Trip UT-Chattannooga 81-76, Win Dr. Pepper Championship

Panthers Bringing a Trophy to add to the Basketball Case in the Sports Arena

Photo Courtesy of GSU Sports Communication

What a great way to finish 2010.  The Panthers are now 6-5 and take momentum into CAA play.  With a blowout win over a quality opponent in Texas A&M-Corpus Christi and UT-Chattanooga you'd think they played two great games but there is still plenty of room for improvement.  That's an encouraging sign as it's much easier for the coaching staff to teach while we win and the team's confidence continues to grow.

Coach Rod Barnes: "I am so proud of our team. I am just so excited for this team. They came out and played hard. They deserve to be raising that trophy tonight."


Great two game stretch for Dante Curry as he was named the Dr. Pepper MVP.  We will need him to put performances together in CAA play in January and February.  He and Eric Buckner were named to the All Tournament Team after Buck dropped a career high 23 points on the Mocs last night.

Eric Buckner and Dante Curry are All-Tournament Worthy

Photo Courtesy of GSU Sports Communication

Next: CAA play opens with a home date with VCU on Monday at 7pm.

Panthers Sink Texas A&M-CC 72-42

Panthers Warm Up Before they set McKenzie Arena & Texas A&M-CC ablaze.

Photo Courtesy of David McDaniel

Good win.  I'll not call this a great win until we see what kind of momentum this builds.  30 blowout wins over a quality opponent don't happen much around here.  It's almost unsettling.  This was a total team defensive effort and the Panthers hit nine shots from deep yesterday afternoon.

Freshman Devonta White directs the offense.

Photo Courtesy of David McDaniel

To give some perspective on how rare this kind of win is:
-Texas A&M CC entered the game with an RPI of 112. Our highest win vs. an opponent that highly ranked in non conference since Louisiana-Lafayette in 2004-05. They were ranked #48 and went on to win 19 games that year and head to the NCAA Tournament before losing to Lousville.

-Our last 30 point win over a Division 1 opponent was January 24, 2005 at Stetson when we were a member of the A-Sun.

The Georgia State Huddle

Photo Courtesy of David McDaniel

Even more impressive, we actually could have played much better:
-Yesterday we committed 21 personal fouls which is incredibly high in a blowout win.

-Freshman guard Javonte Maynor didn't shoot well and hasn't shot the ball in the last 5 games since the Samford game.
-Junior forward Jihad Ali was a complete non factor and needs to get more consistent. He seems to be riding a bit of a wave and can't put more than a few good games together. We will need him in conference play starting Monday vs. VCU.

*Kudos to Senior guard Dante Curry. It may be dawning on him that this is it, his last 2/3 of his college career. I really hope he can put more consistent efforts like this together because the kid can shoot, there is no doubt about that. Deliver with confidence and provide scoring off of the bench. He has been a bit of enigma at both South Florida and at Georgia State.  Tremendous promise when his first ever game he scores 21 points at Georgia Tech and has only scored double digits 9 times since in 53 games.

The next few weeks are going to be very interesting with this team. I believe they will continue to get better.  Let's see how we build on this effort.

Examiner.com Link

Corpus Christi Caller Times Link

Next: Thursday Night vs. Tennessee-Chattanooga at 7pm.

Pictures from Chick Fil A Bowl/FCA Breakfast

As many of you know, I grew up a Florida State football fan and had the privilege to attend the Chick Fil A Bowl/Fellowship of Christian Athletes' breakfast at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.  The guest speaker was none other than Bobby Bowden, legendary coach of the Florida State Seminoles (who happened to be playing in the game).  Orlando Sentinel FSU beat writer Andrew Carter (who's awesome BTW) did a write up on the event highlights and can be found here.

Pics from the event (thanks to my Dad):

TNT's Ernie Johnson, Jr. served as MC for the event

EJ, South Carolina's RB Brian Maddox & Florida State QB Christian Ponder

FSU Legendary Coach Bobby Bowden Speaks

         Your humble writer on the left and Former Eagle's Landing High, Georgia Tech & MLB player Matt Murton on the right.

Matt and I played HS basketball together for a couple of years.

I'm extremely proud of the way he represents the game and his family.

Big Red played in Japan in 2010 and is headed back over for 2011.

Look out for his "little" brother too.  Luke is in the Yankees Farm System.

Panther Recruiting Update - 12.28.10

Check out the Full Write Up Today and Every Tuesday Until National Signing Day at PantherTalk.com.

Today's Recruiting Update

AJC: Ol' Ball Coach - High Praise for City of Atlanta Recruits

From AJC.com:

Said South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier, "There's more players in a 50-mile radius of Atlanta than there is in the entire state of South Carolina."



My take: No real suprise here.  We know we are sitting on a recruiting gold mine. I'm hoping that others are paying attention. 

Coach Curry #4 on Sunday Paper's People of 2010

4. Bill Curry

Bill Curry certainly wasn’t lacking for career accolades in 2008, when he accepted Georgia State University’s offer to head up its new football team. But the Georgia Tech alum, a nine-year NFL veteran and a respected coach with stints at Alabama and his alma mater, inspired us in a whole different way with his newest gig. At an age when most people are easing into retirement, Curry, 68, ably built an entire football program from the ground up (with the help of GSU’s Athletics Department, of course)—recruiting, staffing, and generally laying the groundwork for a successful program. What’s more, he led the inaugural Panthers squad to a respectable 6-5 record, including a memorable 41-7 victory over Shorter College in Georgia State’s first-ever game at an exuberant Georgia Dome. Curry’s leadership, his vision and his willingness to shoulder such an imposing task in his seventh decade helped a skeptical city embrace the fledgling team as its own.—K.F.M.

Sunday Paper Link

Merry Christmas Panther Nation!

From my family to yours.  Merry Christmas!

Georgia State Falls 74-72 in OT

Losing hurts.  Losing to Georgia Southern hurts more. 

I've maintained for months that if you set your expectations correctly, you will not be disappointed.  Should we have beaten Georgia Southern? Probably but our teams are 8-37 on the road in the Rod Barnes Era.

I said that I would be pleased with a .500 overall record and near .500 in CAA play.  I believed that would be enough for Barnes to remain our coach and I still believe that will be the case.

So how do we get there? We currently sit at 4-5 in the non conference heading to Chattanooga next Wednesday for the Dr. Pepper Challenge which is a MTE (Multi-Team Event).  Thursday's game will likely be vs. Montreat who is an NAIA school.

I believe we should be able to split those two games and will return to Atlanta and enter conference play at 5-6.

To achieve .500 overall the team would need to go 10-8 the rest of the way.  I believe this is probable but will very difficult as we've never had better than a 8-10 CAA record.

South Carolina State Added to 2011 Football Schedule

WCSC-TV just released South Carolina State's 2011 schedule and Georgia State will travel to Orangeburg on October 15, 2011.

This is a pretty impressive game as they were in the FCS Playoffs this season.  Sounds like a weekend trip to Charleston and then gameday on Saturday.

Live5 Link

GSU's Iain Vance is 3rd Team FCS All American

Congrats Iain!

The Sports Network All American Team

GSU Sports Arena Continues Makeover

Whirlpool Treatment Area is being finished in the Sports Arena

Photo Courtesy of GSU Sports Communications

Pretty cool to see the continual evolvement of the Georgia State Sports Arena. 

With 9,000-square feet of brand new space, a spacious weight room, training room and whirpool treatment area will be made ready for occupancy. All the weights from the third-floor weight room will be moved downstairs to the new area, while a training room for the medical staff will be set up for second semester.

GSU Sports Link

QB Taylor Heinicke Verbals to ODU

Congrats to the Monarchs as they grab a QB from our back yard.  They graduate their starter Thomas Demarco in 2011 and Heinicke likely felt he can go up there and compete for playing time within his first 12 months on campus.

We came to him very late but I thought we still had an outside shot.  I fully expect an offer to SW Dekalb's Andre Wilson when the dead period ends on January 3rd.

Panthers Shake Off FAMU 76-67

My first game live this year and I was impressed with Devonta White in his first (hopefully of many) career starts.  He finished the game with 13 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists but I tend to look at other things that the box score does not always indicate.

The energy level seems to be higher when he is on the court and he finds players with passes that they should be able to convert.  Like any other freshman guard, there are momentary lapses in judgement and he made a few that were not tremendously costly.  He will learn and get better.

Jihad Ali shoot the ball well and hit 5-6 from deep.  This is a tremendous step forward and hopefully a sign of a turnaround to his disappointing junior season.

Next Game: @ Georgia Southern on Dec. 22nd.

AJC: GSU Stocking Up 3rd Class

Good work by our guy Ken at the AJC.  Interesting nuggets including 7 commits at this point (4 public) and that CBC doesn't expect anyone to transfer to this point.

AJC Link

SB Nation Atlanta Has a New GSU Section

A New Partnership for 2011

And yours truly is the new Georgia State Editor.  Thanks for all the kind words and I'm looking forward to this incredible partnership.

SB Nation Atlanta Link

GMC DB D'Mario Gunn Signs with GSU

Signed, sealed and delivered!

Just confirmed that his LOI is likely headed to our compliance folks but GMC Coach Bert Williams confirmed that former Georgia Military College Defensive Back Demario Gunn signed with us today.

He would have 3 years to play 2 and would give us another veteran body in our defensive backfield.  From what I've been told, he would count towards the 2010 class and that we should have approx. 5.5 grants-in-aid (using CBC's preferred phrase) left for 2011.


More details as they are available.

GSU offers Collins Hill Taylor Heinicke

Future Panther?

Just confirmed that MTV Reality Star and Collins HS QB Taylor Heinicke is holding an offer from Georgia State.  He currently holds offers from Old Dominion, Richmond, Valdosta State and West Georgia. I've been told William & Mary and Penn have shown interest as well.

I've been told that he went on an official visit to ODU this past weekend and is planning on an OV to Richmond in January. 

Coach Curry was in New York on Monday and he and several offensive coaches were in Heinicke's home last night for a visit.

Mid Season Highlights (2010)

ESPN Scouts, Inc. Profile

Rivals.com Profile

Scout.com Profile

CBS Sports on GSU Football - Year 1

Is Georgia State about to get more Greenspace?

Interesting to see if this gets added as the area in and around our campus would take another huge step to looking more "traditional." 

Atlanta Downtown Link

Georgia State Falls 61-59, Squanders 10 point 2nd half lead

Junior PF Brandon McGee was a bright spot vs. WMU

Photo Courtesy of GSU Sports Communications

The AJC called it a collapse and it's hard to disagree.  Maybe it was just the way things bounce after the victory vs. James Madison with the Ali tip in winner.

You're at home and you have a 10 point lead with 8:49 to play in the ball game.  From that point, Western Michigan outscored the Panthers 19-7 and stole a game that they never should have won.

It's extremely frustrating to watch but as I've said over and over, this is going to happen with so many key players who are new to this team and new to college basketball on the Division 1 level.  My expectations were, and still are, to stay around .500 overall and continue to get better as the season goes on.  Our freshman struggled mightily vs. the Broncos, as Harold Doby and Devonta White shot 1-8 from the field and had 5 turnovers between them. 

Brandon McGee played very well and I wouldn't be suprised if he earned the start vs. Florida A&M this Saturday.  Last week was a little harder as new players (see how I keep emphasizing that), took final exams all week and were practicing while their peers left for Christmas break.  This cannot be understated.  If this is your first time doing this at a Division 1 level (many JUCO players have no organization and can pretty much go and come as they please to class and many HS players have never taken 5 exams in a semester before) then it becomes a culture shock.

This week should be a more focused week of practice and I expect a good effort vs. the Rattlers of FAMU on Saturday night at the Sports Arena.  I'm hoping to see you there.

Examiner Link

Source: John Thompson no longer candidate for Ark. St. DC job

From a source close to the situation:

John Thompson has pulled out of consideriation for the Defensive Coordinator job at Arkansas State. In an email exchange, there were multiple factors but Coach Thompson did not want to move his children again [Thompson has two sons, 14 and 11].   He said he'd like to come back home to Arkansas [at some point] but his family had to come first.

My take and what this means for 2011: This is great news for Georgia State fans. We will likely retain our DC for 2011 and I said after the Alabama game that keeping our coaching staff together is vital for long term success. John Thompson is a very good DC and game planner.  With another offseason conditioning program, another recruiting cyle, getting NG Eduardo Curry back from injury and adding a very good pass rusher in DE Roderick Thompson, our defensive line will continue to get much better.  This helps our LBs get better and in turn makes our young DBs continue to get better.

Star News: Barnes [Still] Likes Panthers' Potential

We are 1/5 through the regular season schedule and the Panthers are 3-3.  I expected them to be a .500 overall team and they are staying true to form.  With the new additions, 3 freshman playing significant minutes and lack of a vocal leader on the floor I stil believe this team will be staring at a 15-15 final mark in March.  That would be huge progress for both Barnes (7 straight losing seasons, including his time at Ole Miss) and for our men's basketball program.

Pretty good read by Brian Mull of the Wilmington Star News.  Touches on FT shooting woes, a freshman that has suprised Barnes and Jihad Ali's shooting slump.

Star News Link

Western Michigan's WR Trey Smith Transfers to Georgia State

Welcome to GSU Trey Smith!

Photo Courtesy of Kalamazoo Gazette file

From MLive.com

Trey Smith's 6-foot-4, 222-pound frame made him an intriguing prospect as a wide receiver. It wasn't enough for consistent playing time within Western Michigan University's football program.

Broncos coach Bill Cubit said Thursday that Smith is transferring to Division I-AA Georgia State.

MLive.com Link
 

Notes: Smith was the #189 rated WR by ESPN's Scouts, Inc and was a Top 10 WR in the State of Georgia in 2008.  He had offers from Akron, Marshall, East Carolina, Akron, Ball State before signing with Western Michigan.

From ESPN Scouts, Inc.

Smith is a huge target that does not get many opportunities to catch the football in this scheme. His size and long arms are his best assets as he is purely a possession guy that is best utilized on underneath routes and in the [Red Zone] area on jump balls.

My Take: This is a tremendous grab as he will be a true Junior this fall.  This looks to be very much a family related decision as his quote from someone I talked to was:

"Transferring back home after this semester. I'm gone miss my Western Michigan Fam but I gotta do whats best for me and my family."

His size will give us another powerful Red Zone weapon in 2011 and 2012.  Great work by Coach Pugh, Coach Curry and the rest of the staff.

SportsDaily: Interview with Coach Curry

Short but good Q & A with Coach Curry (honestly, when is it not, the man gets it done with the media).

My favorite Question and Answer:

Q: How long do you think you’ll keep coaching?

Curry: Wow… (long pause) I didn’t expect that question. It chokes me up to think about not doing it. I start to think about missing out on my grandchildren growing up. Joe Paterno is my hero and one of my best buddies. I will not be like Joe. I promised that to [wife] Carolyn and Sue Paterno. He is doing the right thing for him. I’m going to do it for as long as it makes sense to Carolyn Curry and those children that I coach.

Sports Business Daily Link

GSU Sports: Letter from Director of Athletics Cheryl Levick

Full text can be read via GSU Sports Link.

GSU Sports: Vote for Your Favorite Football Plays of 2010

Photo Courtesy of GSU Sports Communications

Vote early, vote often.  The Top 10 plays of the Georgia State football season are now online.  Vote for your favorite three.

GSU Sports Link

Wednesday's Quick Hitters - 12.8.10

Good Morning Panther Nation!  I hope you are enjoying the winter sports season and I hope to see you out at a men's or women's basketball game very soon.  We are counting down the days until signing day (56 for HS prospects and 7 for JUCO prospects) and I will be updating you with information as I hear it. 

Onto the links...

Coach Bond Helps GSU: Always interesting to hear perspective from outside our Metro area.  Northwest Arkansas Online Link

Got this tip from the Godfather of Football.  For any of you that watch Antique Roadshow, they stumbled upon a Green Bay Packers team signed football.  Of course, Coach Curry had signed it.  Pretty cool.  PBS Link

Comparing CBC to FBS Coaching Salaries.  Based on what Coach Curry's reported salary (he is the highest paid coach in FCS) he would make more than 5 FBS coaches.  USA Today Coaches Contracts for 2010 

Did you know? In 1989, GSU's band was rented by eventual Men's Basketball National Champion Michigan?  USA Today Story on Steve Fisher

Updated: DC John Thompson to Arkansas State?

12.7.10 Update - Spoke to a contact of mine in Jonesboro, Arkansas and he confirmed that there has been lengthy communication with Coach Thompson about joining Arkansas State. My source was led to believe it's a matter of budget and ability to pay him a salary that is acceptable and competitive. No confirmation from there side or ours but my contact communicated with several boosters who say there has been communication between both parties and there have been appeals made to raise enough money through donations to bring Thompson in.

The rumbling from The Den at ArkSt.com, an unofficial message board of Arkansas State football is discussing the possibility of our Defensive Coordinator and Asst. HC for scheduling and strategic planning as being named the new DC under new coach Hugh Freeze. 

Freeze knows Thompson very well and they served together at Ole Miss and this would be a very good hire for Arkansas State.  I have the utmost confidence that CBC would hire a more than capable replacement if JT does accept this position.

This is not a shock to anyone that has followed our program as Thompson was actually a finalist candidate for the LSU DC job last season.  This is the blessing and the curse of a brand new program, if you experience success, your coaching staff gets poached by much larger programs. 

Updated: GSU Lands Football Commit #2

Another Future Panther from Roswell HS

Photo by Josh D. Weiss/AJC

Just confirmed that we've locked up a verbal from Athlete Nick Henderson out of Roswell HS. He was a 3 year starter and played Safety/Wide Receiver/Tight End for the Hornets.   I've been told we are recruiting him as an ATH (I'd imagine he'll likely RS in 2011 and then will be placed at Free Safety/Rover and provide depth behind Fred Barnes).  This fills another need and a great find by Coach Curry and staff.

Henderson at Bill Curry's Football Camp

Scouting Report and Notes: Good frame to play Safety.  Good recognition and sure tackler from the film I've seen. He looks to project at a 6'1 and in the 210-215lbs range.  He was Honorable Mention All-North Fulton Neighbor Team at WR this season.  From what I've been told, he's "pumped to be a Panther."

2010 Stats: 30 catches, 370 yards and 1 TD.

YouTube Junior Highlights (2009)

YouTube Sophmore Highlights (2008)

Ali Plays the Hero, GSU beats JMU 64-63

This a great home win.  Read that again.  James Madison was a Top 4 team in our league.  In the CAA lately, that has meant playing beyond the conference tournament. 

Ali was the man in the right position and this should not be shocking as he has incredibly high basketball IQ.  I've been tough (perhaps unfairly on my part) on him as expectations were very high for him to not only lead our team (he's a captain along with Sr. Marques Johnson) but possibly our leading scorer. 

This evens our overall record at 3-3 on the season and 1-0 now in CAA play.

Next game: Home vs. Western Michigan on Saturday at 8pm. 

AJC Link

Examiner.com Link

(Updated with Video) AJC: College Football HOF Selects Site

Current College Football Hall of Fame in South Bend, IN

The AJC just confirmed the new site for the College Football Hall of Fame.  Yet another reason to visit before our games or stay downtown after our games.

It's taken a few years but downtown is becoming the destination for sports and we are extremely fortunate to be in that landscape.

AJC Link

Atlanta Hall Management, Inc. Video

Evaluating Front Seven Size vs. Offensive Production in 2010

"If you torture the data long enough, it will confess." - Ronald Coase

As many of you know, I'm a huge proponent of Front 7 size and offensive production against.  A great way is to look at the yards per play (not necessarily the scoreboard as you have varying factors such as turnovers, special team plays and others).

Here's a look at the Defensive Front 7 that GSU faced in 2010

Sizes Of The Front Sevens Georgia State Faced in 2010
	SU	LU	JSU	CU	MSU	SSU	NCC	ODU	USA	LAM	ALA
DL	230	245	237	252	229	230	260	250	205	250	306
DL	240	270	285	278	274	281	294	285	290	250	279
DL	260	275	275	280	250	250	272	295	275	255	310
DL/LB	210	305	260	285	238	259	240	220	215	215	231
LB	185	215	235	225	189	184	230	225	230	190	263
LB	220	220	245	225	208	216	244	225	215	205	258
LB	240	215	255	225	203	217	210	225	200	210	238
Total	1585	1745	1792	1770	1591	1637	1750	1725	1630	1575	1885

Teams that had 1700 or less combined pounds (Shorter, Morehead State, Savannah State, South Alabama and Lamar) we averaged 4.6 yards per rush and 7.1 yards per pass.  In the other 6 ball games vs. heavier defensive fronts we averaged 3.4 yards per rush and 6.2 yards per pass. 

It's absolutely imperative that our offensive line gain a minimum of 5lbs per man (with the exception of LaDeven Kirkland as he will probably be in the lose 5lbs category of the eating line).  This added strength would have our projected starting O Line at 1482lbs.  I think this is very conservative and considering starting RG Harrison Clottey was basically playing with 1 good arm for the last 5 games of the year, this would be a tremendous gain.

What does all this mean?  As I've heard said many times by a former coach of mine, "The Off Season is when the Average become Good and the Good become Great."

What Will it Take to Get to 20K in 2011?

"20K in the Dome? I can dig it."

Photo Courtesy of Mouthpeicesports.com

I've been asked several times the last few days on the likelihood and % chance that we reach 20,000 in average attendance. I’ve decided to throw my thoughts together as it seems that Football Withdrawal has officially taken hold. Like one of my favorite sports interviewees, Shaquille O’Neal said, “I’m not an Odds-Matician.”

First, our attendance average this season for 7 games was 16,750.


Let me stop right there. That's tremendous. How tremendous? That's a better average than 13 FBS programs.


The soft season ticket renewal has already begun (if you haven't received a call, call the ticket office and they'd be glad to assist you) and full season ticket renewal will begin in January.


So what's the magic formula? If you are looking for that, you won't find it here. I don't have that. What I do have is my thoughts on what is possible in 2011.


We will graduate an estimated 3000 students in total in our December and April commencement ceremonies. These all become potential ticket purchasers at a minimum of $72 per ticket for the season or $15 per ticket for individual single games. I'll aim extremely conservative and say we grab 10% of these new grads. That's 300 new season ticket holders.


We will enroll an estimated 2000 transfer students (including many this January) who will be entering in the beginnings of Year 2. Again, conservatively I'll say we can attract 15% giving us 300 in the student section.


It's estimated that more than 3500 freshman will arrive on campus in August to begin classes. Using my 10% model again, let's add 350 additional bodies into the Georgia Dome next season.


A little further outside the campus lines, our season ticket base, which is currently more than 5500, is to increase and I'll again be very conservative and say 10%. That would be a additional 550 season ticket holders.


Average fan interest is extremely hard to judge. How big of impact did the Alabama game resonate in potential donors/season ticket holders? Nearly impossible to register but I will stay conservative and say that we receive an additional 1,500 fans per game next season by this factor alone.

Last, but not least, is adding local players. We are expected to sign a very small class (currently would be 8 or 9 and could blossom to 10 to 12 with attrition) but the adding of the family members alone from those 8-12 players could result in an extra 25 fans in the building.

So let's total my projections up and you have an increase of 3,725 in attendance giving us a total of 20,475. That would push us over 20K and would move us from 9th to 4th in all of FCS in only 2 years of existence.  Could we achieve this? Yes.  Will we? That remains to be seen.

SB Nation: If UMass Jumps to The MAC, What About Georgia State?

Interesting thoughts here from Jason Kirk.

SB Nation Link

Virginian-Pilot: Rumblings in the CAA

More good work by Rich Radford of the Virginian-Pilot:

If UMass bolts, expect New Hampshire to do likewise right on the Minutemen's heels. They just won't be hopping to the same conference, but they'll be leaving the CAA as yet another natural rival departs. With Hofstra and Northeastern cancelling their programs last season, if UMass goes, why would UNH stay? And it's all but a done deal that Rhode Island is bolting the league in 2013.

Full blog entry here: Virginian-Pilot Link