Georgia Tech Buzz Magazine - Fall 2014

SAFETY NET

EVERY PLAY IN GEORGIA TECH’S OPTION ATTACK HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GO FOR A TOUCHDOWN

JOHNSON AND GOLDEN RETURN TO SHORT UP THE BACK END OF TECH’S DEFENSE

FALL 2014

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FALL 2014 • VOLUME 8, NUMBER 1 EDITOR

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FALL

In This Issue 4 10 14 18 22 24

2014

COMPLEXITY IN MOTION

28

A MESSAGE FROM DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS MIKE BOBINSKI

THE COLLIER CULTURE

30

PHILANTHROPIC PRIORITIES

SAFETY NET

32

DONOR PROFILE: MARY BROCK

OLLIE-GARCHY

35

Every play in Georgia Tech’s option attack has the potential to go for a touchdown

Tech’s new volleyball coach has her own way of building things

After a season of injury, Johnson and Golden return to handle the back end of Tech’s defense All-American Ollie Schniederjans beginning to build his team for the future while leading a young Tech team into his senior year.

An update on major facilities projects happening now in Tech athletics The sense of community has driven Mary Brock and her husband John to be civic leaders in Atlanta.

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Memorabilia, Autographs, and Auctions

TRAINING PARTNERS

Long distance duo of Greenwald and Lasater combine differing styles to form the core of the Jackets’ cross country team

RIVALRY EXTENDED

Tech and Georgia golfing alumni carry their competition out on the PGA Tour

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FB FOOTBALL

Quarterbacks coach Bryan Cook watches quarterback Justin Thomas (5) execute in practice.

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THE BUZZ

COMPLEXITY IN MOTION EVERY PLAY IN GEORGIA TECH’S OPTION ATTACK HAS THE POTENTIAL TO GO FOR A TOUCHDOWN

BY ADAM VAN BRIMMER

B

Bryan Cook scrutinizes Georgia Tech’s quarterbacks closely. As the assistant coach charged with teaching the finer points of head coach Paul Johnson’s option offense -- proper footwork and ball-handling, reads, tempo -- Cook’s eye for detail is as sharp as an upfield cut.

Cook ignores one aspect others might look for, though. He doesn’t bother watching for that “ah ha” moment, when all the techniques, film work and practice field repetitions click for the expectant quarterback.

“The light comes on gradually, not suddenly, with the option,” Cook said. “You see guys getting better at it, at different segments of the play, and when they get to the point where there is no hesitation from one piece to the other, you get excited about that. But one segment tends to build on another, and you can’t expect progress overnight.”

Teaching the option requires equal parts persistence and patience along with constant assessment. Johnson has spent three decades, including the last six years at Georgia Tech, honing and perfecting his version of the triple option, a variant of the wishbone with the two halfbacks positioned close to the line of scrimmage just outside the tackles rather than in the backfield behind the quarterback.

Cook is in his second year coaching Johnson’s option, although he spent four years teaching a hybrid offense, a mixture of a similar scheme and the spread utilized by Oregon, Auburn, Ohio State and others, at Cal Poly prior to coming to Georgia Tech. Cook will help projected starter Justin Thomas and reserves Tim Byerly and Matthew Jordan slowly master one of the most explosive offenses in college football.

“The option looks so clean, so fluid on film, then you get under center and it’s not,” said Thomas, who is in his third year in the system and averaged 7.1 yards per carry in limited playing time in 2013. “It happens really fast and getting comfortable with it requires good coaching and plenty of reps.”

IT’S ABOUT CHANGING THE SCOREBOARD

Learning the option at Georgia Tech requires many quarterbacks to unlearn much of what they already know about the position.

The option is en vogue at almost every level of football these days. Yet the scheme of overwhelming choice is the so-called read option,

Projected starter Justin Thomas averaged more than 7 yards per carry last season.

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5

Tim Byerly showed some moxie in last year’s contest at Miami and could be in line for significant time.

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THE BUZZ

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run from a shotgun formation. The quarterback lines up five yards deep, takes a shotgun snap and reads his defensive keys--whether the defensive end is rushing upfield or inside, whether the safety or outside linebacker is hedging toward the running lanes outside the tackle.

Johnson’s offense requires quarterbacks to read the same keys but is more complex in other ways. The quarterback takes the snap from under center, allowing the offense to get downfield much more quickly but requiring precise timing, ballet-like footwork and ball-handling skills to rival Chris Paul’s.

Cook has his quarterbacks start from the beginning with the snap cadence. Most plays call for an A-back to go into motion before the snap, and the quarterback must understand that halfback is in the proper position before calling for the ball.

The snap is another test, Thomas said.

“The footwork was and still is my main challenge,” said Thomas, who ran the shotgun spread in high school. “You have to get the snap when you are thinking about making the read and getting into the proper position. You have to accept that you’re never going to be perfect all the time.”

Perfection is the goal, however, as the option is all but unstoppable when executed properly.

Unlike a passing-oriented offense -- in which every time the quarterback throws the ball only three things can happen, and two of those are bad -- the option is not a risk-reward scheme.

Done well, most plays produce at least a short gain. And every play has the potential to go for a touchdown. The option isn’t about moving the chains, it’s about changing the scoreboard.

“You have so many threats on every snap with this offense,” Thomas said. “It all happens so fast you don’t have time to think about, so imagine what it’s like for the defense. The next thing you know you are running down the field.”

BRACE FOR IMPACT

For all the skills required of an option quarterback, reaction time is the most valuable, Cook said. A defensive back during his playing career, Cook understands the quarterback’s gamechanging potential.

“It is the one position where you can touch every component of the game,” Cook said. “And in the option, if your quarterback is talented and

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THE BUZZ

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can play at top speed, he can make a tremendous impact.”

Cook is shepherding several impact players this fall. Thomas is the quickest and fastest quarterback he’s ever coached, and Byerly has a toughness his head coach, Johnson, compares to that of former option star Joshua Nesbitt. Cook also coaches the B-backs and the staff expects a big season from Zach Laskey.

Johnson remains the offensive coordinator, taking the lead in game-planning and calling the plays on game day, and promises to “get back to our roots a little more” this fall after experimenting with spread formations and concepts in 2013.

The offense will need contributions from many to meet Johnson’s expectations. Stars who accounted for more than 60 percent of the Yellow Jackets’ yards, including three of the top-four rushers, and more than half their points in 2013 are no longer at Georgia Tech.

Thomas and his peers understand the situation. Thomas described this season as one of “opportunity” and said Cook’s approach to coaching reflects that view.

“There is a sense of urgency, but we’ve been in the system long enough there should be,” Thomas said. “Coach Cook makes sure you understand what you are doing. You do something wrong, he’s going to correct you. His expectations are understandably high.” ■

vb VOLLEYBALL

Collier inherited a Jacksonville program coming off back-to-back losing seasons only to go 30-4 and make the NCAA tournament in just her second year.

THE COLLIER CULTURE

TECH’S NEW VOLLEYBALL COACH HAS HER OWN WAY OF BUILDING THINGS

BY ADAM VAN BRIMMER

F

Forced to make a coaching change, Theresa Wenzel chose to make a culture change.

Georgia Tech’s senior woman administrator recommended Michelle Collier as Georgia Tech’s next volleyball coach in March as much for Collier’s presence as her success. Born and raised in Brazil, where the approach to athletics is more free-flowing than technical, Collier would bring a new level of energy and camaraderie, Wenzel reasoned, to a program in need of a boost.

Collier had accomplished just that at Florida’s Jacksonville University. She inherited a program coming off back-to-back losing seasons only to go 30-4 and make the NCAA tournament in just her second year leading the Dolphins.

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THE BUZZ

“That fast a turnaround is indicative of how she can set a culture and a tone for a program,” Wenzel said. “She got those girls to buy in and then helped them perform at their best.”

Collier sees the same potential in the Georgia Tech program. Her predecessor, Tonya Johnson, is a high-caliber recruiter, and Collier inherits a talented team with nine freshmen and sophomores. The Yellow Jackets will have at least four new starters in their lineup come the August 29 season opener and the young roster promises spirited competition for those spots.

The team embraced Collier’s practice approach – short, fast-paced sessions in which each player works on every skill in the game – during spring workouts. Yellow Jackets’ senior Courtney Felinski says she expects Georgia

Tech to be better prepared and display strong chemistry this fall.

“She works your butt off for the entire practice, but it is a fun style, and when you’re done, you’re done,” Felinski said. “Here the trend has been to break things down into technical pieces. The new philosophy is to learn by playing, by getting to know the game better. It’s been refreshing.”

BEEN THERE, TAUGHT THAT

Collier’s storied playing career resonates with her new players as well. Collier played professionally around the world, earning league MVP honors in Indonesia and the best foreign player award in a league in Cyprus.

And her collegiate career is welldocumented in the NCAA and South Florida record books: She ranks fifth all-time in kills at the Division I level and is South Florida’s career leader in both kills and digs.

Her abilities and experiences give her what Wenzel calls “a swagger” that oozes self-assuredness.

Collier admits her background as a player influences her coaching. Much like two other Georgia Tech women coaches who were playing legends in their sports – swimming coach Courtney Shealy Hart and women’s basketball coach MaChelle Joseph, both AllAmericans – Collier has that drive that comes only from being raised on competition.

“I’m not nearly as fiery as a coach as I was as a player, but I am just as competitive,” Collier said. “I have to be more reasonable and use my mind and not just my heart. The heart still plays a big part, though, especially since there are few situations that come up with a player that I haven’t experienced myself.”

Collier’s background allowed her to recognize a hunger for success in her new team. Georgia Tech emerged as one of the Atlantic Coast Conference’s top programs in the 1990s and early-2000s, making eight NCAA tournaments in an 11-year span.

Johnson built on that success in her first two seasons, winning 40 matches and making the 2009 NCAA tournament. The program lost that momentum, though, posting losing records in two of the next three seasons. Johnson left in February to return to the University of Texas, where she worked prior to coming to Georgia Tech.

“We needed to make a lot of changes,” Felinski said. “We trust coach Collier and her staff and trust their system.”

COME TOGETHER

Georgia Tech’s success under Collier is dependent on the players’ ability to develop trust in each other, according to the coach.

Chemistry can be fleeting in team sports, particularly in those that have grown more and more specialized in recent decades. Like volleyball. Hitters hit. Setters set.

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THE BUZZ

Collier’s storied playing career resonates with her new players as well, having played professionally around the world.

Blockers block. And defensive specialists defend. Breakdowns in one discipline can lead to harsh words and finger pointing from others on the team.

Collier strives to avoid those situations by insisting on crosstraining during practice. She prided herself on being an allaround player – an outside hitter who excelled defensively – and understands the many benefits of versatility.

“I want my players comfortable with every part of the game,”

she said. “It is important to have and know your strengths, but it is equally important to build skills and confidence in your weaknesses. And once you see how hard other positions are to play, you respect that position more and understand the challenges more.”

One challenge Collier need not worry about meeting is generating excitement about Georgia Tech volleyball on game day. The Yellow Jackets play in one of college volleyball’s more special venues at O’Keefe Gymnasium. The 2,000seat arena’s cozy confines have

been likened to Duke’s Cameron Indoor Stadium during Blue Devil basketball games.

While she has yet to witness a match at O’Keefe, Collier anticipates the atmosphere being similar to what she experienced growing up in Recife, Brazil.

“The atmosphere has a passion about it you can feel,” she said.

“The girls talk about sleepless nights and how special it is to play there. I can’t wait, and I want to make sure we play as hard as we can for the fans.” ■

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fb FOOTBALL

SAFETY NET

AFTER A SEASON OF INJURY, JOHNSON AND GOLDEN RETURN TO HANDLE THE BACK END OF TECH’S DEFENSE

BY MATT WINKELJOHN

S

So maybe it wasn’t exactly like driving to visit Grandpa and reminiscing along the way, but when Isaiah Johnson and Jamal Golden made the trip last month to Ted Roof’s house, it sure felt like two brothers on a family trip.

Georgia Tech’s safeties are back, and their bond at the rear of the defense will be key as the Yellow Jackets try to replace seven former starters, six of whom landed an NFL training camps.

Some of their recent chit chat indicates how these two are trying to synchronize themselves for the betterment of the Jackets. The GoldenJohnson duo will be the two-headed quarterback of Roof’s defense.

They’re fresh out of the shop and of quite like minds if not skill sets.

Funny thing is, for the notion that they’re peas from a similar pod, they’re not alike. Johnson is without question a seeker of those carrying or catching a football. Golden is best known for avoiding ill reputes when he has the rock.

They have ice time in common: Johnson missed last season after wrenching a knee in practice in December, 2012, and Golden was lost to a shoulder injury after the third game of 2013.

Speaking of shop, these two talk it often.

When the entire Tech defense went for barbecue at their coordinator’s house in July, Golden and Johnson made the trip together and picked up where they’d left off -- chatting about the art/ science of defense, and calling it.

Roof would be proud.

They’re going to have to work in tandem, guiding linebackers, linemen and cornerbacks and nickel backs into positions to succeed.

Without the safeties reading well the opposing offenses and lining up mates, the defense would often be doomed upon the snap.

So, Johnson, a graduate student, and Golden, a fourth-year junior, chat. A lot.

“We see the whole field from back there, and when the calls come down from us ... we have to be precise,” Golden said. “Our strength is being able to get people lined up so they can play fast and make plays.

“We talk outside [of practice]. We rode to [Roof’s] and we talked football the whole time.

We’re both coming back off an injury, and we do stuff together to get back like we were.”

Roof welcomes back experience, especially in Johnson.

He enrolled early at Tech in the spring semester of 2010, and he’s seen and hit quite a bit.

In starting three games and playing in all 13

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THE BUZZ

Georgia Tech safeties Jamal Golden (4) and Isaiah Johnson (1) are back, and their bond at the rear of the defense will be key as the Yellow Jackets try to replace seven former starters.

as a freshman, starting all 13 as a sophomore and then the first 13 as a junior before his preSun Bowl injury, he’s racked up 211 career tackles and assists – 14th most in school history for a defensive back.

Johnson’s also recovered five fumbles and intercepted five passes.

He’s been around a while (and is in line to earn a master’s degree in building construction in December).

Fond are memories of playing alongside Golden in 2012, although Jamal made a bigger splash that season as one of the nation’s top return men.

Even before the first game arrives, there is a comfort zone in the back of the Tech defense.

Johnson doesn’t have to fret about Golden.

“I played with Jamal so I already know his style,” Isaiah said. “That’s one less thing you

have to worry about. I know Jamal is going to do his assignment. He knows how to make plays, and adjustments even in trying to disguise [defensive calls].

“You may see somebody in the wrong area in pre-snap, but I know that he’ll be in his zone [in time]. If I’ve never played with someone, I’ll see him out of his area and be saying to him, ‘Hey, get back!’ With Jamal, I know his style of play and I can just worry about getting everybody else aligned.”

While interchangeable in the defense, the bigger Johnson (6-feet-2, 213 pounds) typically fits into the strong safety role while Golden (6-0, 193) mans free.

In somewhat simple terms, Golden said, “It depends on the call who’s down in the box [nearer the line of scrimmage], who’s in the post.

Strong safety mainly is reading receivers, and

OFFICIAL AIRLINE OF GEORGIA TECH速 ATHLETICS ASSOCIATION

Golden gives Tech some juice on special teams as well, ranking in the NCAA top 10 in both punt return and kickoff return average in 2012.

I’m reading more [handoffs] and the line. He’s more spread out from the box than I am.

“That often leaves him with the No. 3 receiver, which is usually a back or tight end. If a team is going fast and we get caught on one side of the

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field, we can play both positions.”

You likely know Golden best from his return work.

In 2012, he was the only player in the NCAA to rank in the top 10 in both punt return average (14.6, sixth) and kickoff return average (28.4, 10th).

In 28 games at Tech, including starts in the first five games of 2012 and the first three games of ’13, the business major totaled 44 tackles and assists.

Golden is a rangy guy, often showing signs of why he played cornerback and quarterback at Wetumpka (Ala.) High.

He, Johnson, Roof, secondary coach Joe Speed and the Jackets have plenty to tend to as the season approaches.

The Jackets’ defensive coordinator deployed multiple personnel combinations at safety last season, and Tech improved significantly on defense from ’12 to ’13 with Roof in the first year of his second tenure as defensive coordinator.

That will be a tough act to follow.

Defensive backs Jemea Thomas (Patriots) and Louis Young (Broncos), ends Emmanuel Dieke (Giants) and Euclid Cummings (Buccaneers), and linebacker Brandon Watts (Vikings) have moved on.

So there are questions.

Johnson and Golden have plenty of their own, and they often ask each other.

They shutter themselves in film study even

in the off-season, reviewing the game’s details from a bird’s-eye view that affords planning options.

“Isaiah and I are connected,” Golden said.

“We’ve been working hard this offseason on when to disguise and when not to, the little things.”

Perhaps Johnson improved by not playing. He said his knee is a non-issue, that he sometimes forgets which one he injured (left). Add the time he’s had to study football and the nuances of Roof’s ways while also making observations in real time last year, and he’s more than optimistic.

“I’ve had a year to study film, and get up under coach Roof,” he said. “Seeing somebody playing your position ... maybe making certain adjustments in your head that from the sideline I could see I would have made.”

Golden, too, is ready to apply past experiences and pains to film study and the way he and Johnson work together to create a sturdy safety net for the Jackets.

A key to play at the back end of the defense is front-end work, and Golden-Johnson have been on that for a while.

“Studying your opponent, knowing when the quarterback is getting into his cadence, knowing tendencies ... you learn what the offense can and can’t do in certain formations,” Golden said. “That slows the game down a lot, and allows you to play faster.” ■

MG MEN’S GOLF

OLLIE-GARCHY

ALL-AMERICAN OLLIE SCHNIEDERJANS BEGINNING TO BUILD HIS TEAM FOR THE FUTURE WHILE LEADING A YOUNG TECH TEAM INTO HIS SENIOR YEAR.

BY MATT WINKELJOHN

O

Ollie Schniederjans has known since long before he became the No. 1-ranked amateur golfer in the world that he would try to play professionally without knowing when. He knows now, and after deciding to stay at Georgia Tech for his senior season, he even has his caddie lined up.

Lance Bailey and his soon-to-be boss will form quite a pair.

The golfer has for a decade diligently and with utter purpose built up his game while his bag man practically fell into the sport.

Bailey, a former college baseball player, transitioned into the sport when he took a summer job as a golf cart boy late in his time at the Uni-

versity of South Carolina-Aiken only to never leave the game.

Schniederjans sees him as a perfect sidekick for when he goes pro next summer. They’ve already worked together many times, including the Scottish Open in July, and the U.S. Amateur at the Atlanta Athletic Club in August.

They met at the Bentwater Golf Club near Acworth, where Ollie took up the game at about age 12 when Bailey was a club pro.

Frequently, they played side by side and where the lad might swing a four iron, the elder would wield a seven blade for the very same shot.

An evolution has taken place to where now,

Schniederjans finished second in a playoff in last year’s NCAA Championship.

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“Ollie just bombs it,” and Bailey carries his clubs.

These days, it goes like this: Ollie, 21, handles the analytics and swings the sticks; Bailey, 45, handles the bag while throwing in a few words for balance.

“He has a great demeanor. He’s kind of like a part of my inner group, and I like to have that with me out [on the course],” Schniederjans said. “If I’m doing great, he doesn’t get too riled up and if I’m doing bad, he’s fine.

“He’s fun to be around. I love going to dinner with him after rounds. He has a great aura about him, and he’s a great caddy. He lets me be me and helps confirm yardages and so forth.”

Bailey didn’t plan this.

More than half a lifetime ago, he was a spunky, sparkplug of a second baseman and leadoff hitter -- first at Walters State Community College in his native Tennessee, and then at USC-Aiken.

His eligibility ran out before he had graduated, however, so Bailey went looking for a job nearby. Golf to that point had been, “Something I did between football, basketball and baseball ... something to fill the time.”

In short order, the Bristol, Tenn., native went from cart guy to inside guy to club manager.

He moved to the Atlanta area in 2001, wound up at Bentwater in ‘05 and now is a regional manager with Canongate Golf involved in oversight of four clubs.

Back in the day, Bailey was a sidekick of sorts as former Bentwater head teaching pro Mark Anderson began crafting the young Schniederjans’ game. Anderson now works in Brunswick, Ga. “[Bailey] allowed me to use the course. He never coached,” Schniederjans said. “He was best friends with my coach. His situation is great. He can quit his job and be a full-time caddy without skipping a beat. That’s what he wants to do.”

Bailey is divorced, and, as Schniederjans suggests, ready to make the rounds.

He’s caddied on quite a few occasions for Ollie already, beginning with some of the bigger junior tournaments years ago, and up to and including this summer.

When Schniederjans tied for fifth in his first pro tournament (played as an amateur), the Web.com Tour’s Air Capital Classic, Bailey was on the bag. Ditto when Ollie tied Ernie Els and others for 41st in the Scottish Open.

Schniederjans’ prospects make him a good bet as a pro.

In his junior season at Tech, he won or tied for medalist honors a school-record five times. That included winning the ACC title, and does not include tying for honors in NCAA stroke play before falling in a playoff to Stanford’s Cameron Wilson.

The Harrison High graduate from Powder Springs was first-team All-America and one of three finalists for the Ben Hogan and Jack Nicklaus awards for collegiate player of the year.

Long ago on a golf course not so far away, a would-be looper saw something in the making.

“Ollie has incredible talent, and has worked his butt off,” Bailey said. “When he was 14, his mom knew that I had caddied quite a bit, and she asked if I could drive him for a Georgia qualifier at Orchard Hills down I-85 toward Alabama.

He shot 64 and won by like four shots.

“He is very mentally tough. I’ve always said I’ve never seen a golfer hate a bogey as much as Ollie Schniederjans. When he misses a green, he says, ‘Now let’s see if I can get up and down.’ “ Beyond the story behind the SchniederjansBailey tandem, there is another about why they’re not already competing with the sport’s biggest boys.

Although he gave serious thought to turning pro after his superb junior season. Schniederjans ultimately returned to the plan he had all along: to graduate.

As several of his contemporaries and friends from the college freshman class of 2011 not only turned pro but have enjoyed early pro success like (former Texas standout) Jordan Spieth, (Alabama’s) Justin Thomas, and (Stanford’s) Patrick Rodgers, the temptation to call a career audible was real in late spring.

Ollie ultimately opted to practice patience and remain on The Flats.

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THE BUZZ

“My success came a little bit later than theirs.

Justin won the Haskins award his freshman year.

Jordan was a top five player. Patrick Rodgers was Ben Hogan award finalist his freshman year,” Schniederjans said. “They didn’t have the same long-term focus that I have. They were more like, ‘Just get me out there.’

“I’m looking at golf as a long career for me, and I’m going to be doing things until I’m 50 or so. I’m in no rush, and I’ll always be happy to have the degree, and know I finished school.

Mom will be happy about that, too.”

There was more to the decision.

Schniederjans has a caddie lined up, but has not yet made big-time decisions on where he will live and more. He figures to pique the minds of big-time consults.

He plans to travel to south Florida over Christmas break to scout the area, and while there he will play golf with former world No. 1 and four-time major champion Els and former No. 1 and six-time major champion Nick Faldo.

Els extended the invitation while at lunch with Schniederjans at Wimbledon in the middle of Ollie’s grand summer tour of the British Isles.

That journey was pegged to his trip to participate in the Palmer Cup, where top American players fell to top British players in a Ryder Cupstyle format.

Also while in England, Ollie tried and failed to qualify for the British Open, and was invited to play in the Scottish.

He’s looking forward to scouting the West Palm Beach area, and perhaps the Orlando area.

“It’s a long-term business decision to have my degree, sure, but also I have a lot of planning to do,” explained the management major. “I have to figure out who’s going to manage me, and where I’m going to live.

“I have to get all kinds of things lined up, and

I still have my brother [sophomore Ben] here [playing baseball for the Yellow Jackets]. I have stuff that I want to stay and finish, and help Georgia Tech. I always was planning on staying four years.”

Plans can change, and while Schniederjans’ hasn’t, Bailey’s did over the summer.

He didn’t make the trip for the Palmer Cup, but when Schniederjans landed a late invitation into the Scottish, Bailey – who is divorced -- jumped into action.

“It was always one of my dreams to go to Scotland. It was everything I thought it would be and more,” he recalled. “When I found out he was playing, I was like, ‘Uh-oh, I got to get going.’ I wanted to help him in any way I could. I’ve been telling people for years ... he’s got something special.

“I can’t put my finger on it; it’s the way the ball sounds coming off the club, the way he handles himself. I don’t know how to put it. I do like my job, but at the same time Ollie is an unbelievable talent.”

Indeed, there is something about Ollie.

Plans may sometimes change, yet his remained the same after all.

He’s not at all sad to be staying at Georgia Tech for another year. The way he sees it, college isn’t a bad place to be, and if he has a senior year anything like his junior campaign, there may be all the more potential sponsors ready to line up and join his team before he ever swings a pro club.

“The biggest thing is for me to get everything out of what I’ve accomplished, I need more time to plan and get organized for what I’m going to do,” Schniederjans said. “It’s not like it’s too much of a burden for me to spend another year in college. I still can get a lot better, and it’s fun.” ■

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TRAINING PARTNERS

LONG DISTANCE DUO OF GREENWALD AND LASATER COMBINE DIFFERING STYLES TO FORM THE CORE OF THE JACKETS’ CROSS COUNTRY TEAM

C

BY ADAM VAN BRIMMER

College coaches’ livelihoods depend on their ability to find talent.

Sometimes, though, talent seeks out coaches instead.

An overlooked prodigy sends a highlight tape. A high school coach or mentor makes a telephone call. An un-recruited athlete walks on the first day of practice.

The Georgia Tech men’s cross country team’s season promises to be the best in years because two off-the-radar recruits sought out coach Alan Drosky.

Brandon Lasater and Jeremy Greenwald will anchor the Yellow Jackets this fall and show the potential to make the team a contender at the Atlantic Coast Conference and NCAA meets. And both ran unorthodox courses to the front of the Georgia Tech pack.

Lasater was a high school state champion, albeit in the private school ranks of the Georgia Independent Schools Association.

Tall and lanky, he had little aspirations beyond high school track and cross country. He didn’t even contact Drosky until after he’d been accepted to study electrical engineering at Georgia Tech. Drosky showed little interest until Lasater’s high school coach, a retiree who coached distance runners at Tulane and the U.S. Military Academy and knew Drosky through the college coaching network, called and vouched for the then-high school senior.

“He told me he thought the kid had some potential, and while we hear that a lot, this coach had a little more credibility with me,” Drosky said. “His times were on the borderline, so given the coach’s background, I figured I’d give him a shot.”

Greenwald, meanwhile, was less of an unknown, albeit beyond Georgia Tech’s usual recruiting sphere. Like Lasater, academics sparked the Virginian’s interest in Georgia Tech. He reached out to Drosky upon his admission acceptance. The times he shared “were right on the cusp” of what college

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Jeremy Greenwald (521) and Brandon Lasater (523) will anchor the Yellow Jackets this fall and show the potential to make the team a contender at the Atlantic Coast Conference and NCAA meets.

coaches look for in recruits, and “as he continued to improve on those, our interest grew,” Drosky said. Greenwald was the runner-up in the state championship meet as a senior, finishing behind only a much sought after runner who now competes for Georgetown University.

So while the initial recruitment was Greenwald reaching out to Drosky, the coach wooed the runner in the end.

“I was coming anyway,” Greenwald said. “This is where I wanted to be.”

Both Greenwald and Lasater have validated Drosky’s interest since. Greenwald was named an honorable mention All-American in track this spring and was an NCAA All-Region selection in cross country last fall. Lasater is a three-time All-ACC performer and a 2013 honorable mention AllAmerican on the track and was an NCAA All-Region honoree in cross

country last year after finishing a team-best 16th at the NCAA South Region meet.

Both runners continue to make strides because of their commitment to turning weaknesses into strengths. Lasater is well known – feared even – for his closing kick but sometimes falls too far behind the leaders to make up the ground necessary for a top finish. His focus is tactical, stalking the frontrunners and lengthening his kick.

Greenwald has taken the opposite approach. A self-described “bull in a china shop” in the middle of runs, he’s worked on his patience, conserving energy for late in races.

The differing styles make Lasater and Greenwald good training partners. Lasater’s steady pace has helped Greenwald relax on the track or course while Greenwald’s innate sense of urgency has pushed Lasater to keep the leaders within striking distance. Both are strong

closers.

The duo are also close friends “who like to bust on each other.”

They are housemates this year along with a few other Georgia Tech distance runners. Both voiced hopes that the closeness will improve chemistry and propel the Yellow Jackets to nationals.

“We’re not a dominant cross country team – we are built more for the track where other schools are geared toward cross country first,” Lasater said. “But we have the pieces to put it together.”

All because the two main pieces recruited Georgia Tech. Drosky often muses about his good fortune.

“I’ll have a good finish or Jeremy will have a good finish,” Lasater said, “and [Drosky] will talk about how hard it is to turn kids away because you never know who might be that next breakout runner.” ■

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MG MEN’S GOLF

Seven-time champion Matt Kuchar carries the banner for the Tech contingent on the PGA Tour.

RIVALRY EXTENDED

TECH AND GEORGIA GOLFING ALUMNI CARRY THEIR COMPETITION OUT ON THE PGA TOUR

G

BY ADAM VAN BRIMMER

Golf is the rare college sport that struggles to stir rivalry passions.

With few mano a mano showdowns between schools, a scoring system that often delays gratification, and the overall gentlemanly nature of the game, ill will for the rival is difficult to muster on the links, at least in the moment.

Calculating superiority is even harder.

School pride is on the rise, though, especially among the college game’s powers. A handful of schools are producing an inordinate number of successful players in the professional ranks, led by bitter rivals Georgia Tech and Georgia.

Between them, the two schools have 17 alums with PGA Tour earnings of $375,000 or more in 2014. Eight of those players have won events, led by the Yellow Jackets’ Matt Kuchar, the RBC Heritage champ, and Georgia’s Bubba Watson, winner of the Masters and Northern Trust Open.

“To hell with ...” is being heard more and more often around the clubhouse and along the fairways.

“Our guys take pride in it,” Georgia Tech’s longtime golf coach Bruce Heppler said. “The rivalry on the golf course is not the same as it is on the football field or in basketball, but it still exists. They move onto the pro ranks and they

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THE BUZZ

still feel a part of that college connection, and this is an outlet.”

Feeding the frenzy in recent years is a fledgling website that tracks the top performing college programs by professional success.

RivalsCup.net keeps a running tally of links supremacy, using cumulative money earnings as the defining statistic. Georgia Tech is the reigning Rivals Cup champ and has finished no worse than fifth in the four years since the site’s inception.

Yellow Jacket alums are on pace for a runnerup finish this season behind what Heppler calls the “evil empire” -- the Bulldogs, a group that surpassed $20 million in earnings on the PGA Tour before the start of August.

Clean, old-fashioned hate is sure to grow on the PGA Tour. Three of Georgia Tech’s eight standouts are under the age of 30, and veterans like Kuchar and Bryce Molder are in their competitive primes. Most of Georgia’s top performers are 20-somethings, led by Brendon Todd, Chris Kirk, Harris English, Brian Harman and Russell Henley.

“Competitiveness is bred into the fiber of our beings, and we want to beat the UGA guys,” wrote sixth-year pro Cameron Tringale in an email. “UGA has done so incredibly well lately

RIVALS CUP

Ranking #2 - $10,140,747 (as of Aug. 18)

Matt Kuchar Chesson Hadley Cameron Tringale Bryce Molder Stewart Cink Nicholas Thompson Roberto Castro Troy Matteson David Duval Larry Mize

$4,129,969 $1,340,173 $1,327,970 $807,211 $778,149 $702,936 $549,153 $387,797 $94,709 $22,680

on the PGA Tour, especially with guys under 30, and we need to pick up the pace.”

Such passion is what spurred Nicholas Mazzella to start the Rival Cup site in 2011. A college football fan, Mazzella was watching the Masters that April and was struck by CBS Sports broadcaster Jim Nantz’s tendency to mention where green jacket contenders had played their college golf. The Charlotte resident and Penn

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State grad started the site soon thereafter, playing on the notion “tradition never graduates.”

The PGA Tour pros embraced the Rivals Cup, referencing the site’s rankings in social media posts, particularly on Facebook and Twitter. Tringale and fellow Yellow Jacket alums Roberto Castro and David Duval have tweeted about the Rivals Cup rankings.

Georgia Tech’s Heppler often mentions the Rivals Cup as well. He leverages the professional successes of his proteges as a recruiting tool. College golf coaches identify potential recruits early in those players’ high school careers, often before the NCAA allows coaches to contact those up-and-comers.

With the limited media coverage of college golf, coaches look for “any and every way to tell the story.” Social media is an effective tool, and the Rivals Cup rankings helps quantify success.

“A lot of recruits are like, ‘I had no idea you had eight or nine guys out there until I saw it on your tweet,’” Heppler said. “Our players’ success as professionals conveys the message that if you play your college golf at Georgia Tech, the PGA Tour is a place you can go. And that’s where all these kids want to go.”

Georgia Tech’s reputation for producing pros is what attracted Tringale. The Californian grew up watching David Duval, Stewart Cink, Kuchar and Molder excel on the PGA Tour. Tringale reasoned the Yellow Jackets “must be doing something better and different that gives a player the best chance to success” and moved across the country to be a part of the program. He was a three-time All-American and is currently a leaderboard regular on the PGA Tour, putting him in the thick of the “mostly friendly” rivalry trash talk around the driving range and practice green.

“Obviously, there are other factors that contribute to being a successful golf professional, but the combination of coach Heppler and Georgia Tech is just about unmatched in college golf,” Tringale said. ■

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THE BUZZ

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at ALEXANDERTHARPE FUND

A MESSAGE FROM DIRECTOR OF ATHLETICS MIKE BOBINSKI

Athletic Director Mike Bobinski

This is truly an exciting time for intercollegiate athletics at Georgia Tech. We are sharply focused on providing the resources and other support necessary for each of our teams to fully realize their potential for success. As always, the foundation for our athletic program will be our ability to recruit and retain studentathletes who embrace and value the experience of earning a degree at one of the nation’s premier academic institutions while also competing for championships at the highest levels.

With your philanthropic support, there is no limit to what we can accomplish.

Between now and the conclusion of Campaign Georgia Tech, our fundraising priorities are simple, yet ambitious: • To complete construction and renovation of three athletics facilities: the Noonan Golf Facility, Russ Chandler Stadium, and the Edge Center.

• To become one of the few Division I schools to fully endow all athletic scholarships.

• To increase annual unrestricted support via the Alexander-Tharpe Fund.

Our partnership with alumni and friends has been extraordinary, and we are proud, and grateful, to have an array of state-of-the-art facilities as a result of visionary and generous philanthropy – from McCamish Pavilion and the Zelnak Center to the Ken Byers Tennis Complex and the John and Mary Brock Football Facility.

That steadfast commitment from people who love the Yellow Jackets, and who demonstrate their loyalty in so many ways, year in a nd year out, is the lifeblood of intercollegiate athletics and all 17 men’s and women’s teams at Georgia Tech.

Your continued support is critical to our success, now and in the future, and we appreciate all that you do.

Thank you, and Go Jackets!

Sincerely,

Mike Bobinski Director of Athletics

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THE BUZZ

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For more information on building a game plan of your own, visit countryfinancial.com or call 1-866-COUNTRY.

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at ALEXANDERTHARPE FUND

PHILANTHROPIC PRIORITIES BUILDING GREATNESS

NOONAN GOLF FACILITY More than $7 million has been raised for the purchase of land and planned renovations to the site.

Upon completion, the golf team, which has enjoyed tremendous success on the greens and in the classroom, will have a permanent, first-rate practice

course and teaching center near campus- an invaluable asset to one of the nation’s best golf programs.

We are within $1 million of announcing a construction start date targeted for this Spring. Your support will have a major impact in making this a world-class practice facility for a world-class program.

attracting the best recruits. A generous anonymous donor has committed to a $2.5 million challenge grant to upgrade and enhance the locker room and lounges, pitching tunnel, training room, coaches’ locker room, and study room.

With the challenge grant, your donation will be matched dollar for dollar resulting in twice the impact.

RUSS CHANDLER STADIUM The renovation of Russ Chandler Stadium will have a similar impact on Yellow Jackets baseball by providing student-athletes with the environment necessary to perform at the highest level, and by

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THE BUZZ

ARTHUR B. EDGE, JR. INTERCOLLEGIATE ATHLETICS CENTER Another anonymous donor has come forward with a $3 million challenge grant to renovate the Edge Center. The upgrades will be focused on enhancing the academic center and the sports medicine/rehabilitation center, and will touch every student-athlete at Tech, regardless of their sport. It has been decades since either of these areas has been significantly updated, and now is the time to ensure that every Yellow Jacket has the tools and resources to excel academically, as well as access to the best treatment for the physical rigors of competition. More details about the challenge and how your involvement and support can make a difference will be announced once the project scope is further defined.

Your support will have a major impact for Georgia Tech Athletic facilities and the student-athletes. For more information or to make a donation, please contact the Alexander-Tharpe Fund at (404) 894-5414.

SUSTAINING EXCELLENCE Across all 17 varsity sports, Yellow Jackets athletics generates excitement and fosters community among supporters of all ages.

It is a proud tradition at Georgia Tech. Even more extraordinary, its student-athletes have upheld the distinction of succeeding on the playing field and in the classroom. Tech is committed to sustaining both academic and athletic excellence at the highest levels.

There is a deep loyalty to Georgia Tech athletics. Private support will ensure that Tech remains competitive in the ACC, reaches new heights, and brings home championships. The Director of Athletics has a vision to fully endow all athletic scholarships.

This presents an opportunity to make a tremendous impact on lives of student-athletes as it allows us to bring in quality and talented athletes that may not otherwise be able to attend Georgia Tech.

Endowment distributions currently cover thirty percent of all scholarships. With the rising tuition and cost of attendance, the annual fund helps to bridge the gap in funding. Whether through an annual unrestricted gift or a multi-year commitment for an endowed scholarship, the philanthropy of alumni and friends is the key to an even brighter future for intercollegiate athletics at Georgia Tech.

THE BUZZ

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at ALEXANDERTHARPE FUND

DONOR PROFILE: MARY BROCK

THE SENSE OF COMMUNITY HAS DRIVEN MARY BROCK AND HER HUSBAND JOHN TO BE CIVIC LEADERS IN ATLANTA.

BY SIMIT SHAH

Moss Point, Mississippi is 360 miles from Atlanta, but Mary Brock’s hometown is always close to her heart.

“Growing up in small town America impacted my husband John and me a lot.” she said. “There are so many things about it that give you valuable perspective. It’s a real slice of life and teaches you so much about being part of a community.”

The sense of community has driven John and Mary Brock to be civic leaders in Atlanta, and Georgia Tech has immensely benefitted from their generosity, time and leadership.

It all began back in Moss Point, which sits just west of Biloxi on the Gulf Coast. Mary Rockett, the eldest of six children, and John Brock met in church while in middle school and became good friends. John was a year older, and they started dating during his senior year of high school.

John went to Atlanta to pursue a chemical engineering degree at Georgia Tech, and Mary headed to Mississippi State College for Women.

As John prepared for a summer internship in California, the couple decided to get married.

“We couldn’t even sign the lease on the apartment in Atlanta because John wasn’t 21,” she laughed. “It seems nuts, and I’d advise my daughter or anyone else against it, but it worked for us.

We were just kids and just had so much fun. We had no clue.”

Mary began attending Georgia State, though Georgia Tech was very much part of their social lives.

“We went to a lot of Tech games, and John helped start a fine arts committee on campus that brought various musicians and artists to campus,” she remembered. “We also spend a lot of time with John’s Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity brothers.”

Mary witnessed the rigors of Georgia Tech firsthand as John earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the Institute. A job in Cincinnati at Proctor & Gamble awaited John in 1972, and Mary finished her bachelor’s degree at Miami of Ohio and added a master’s degree as well.

As John moved into the beverage industry, the couple moved as well – first Connecticut and then overseas to Europe as their family grew with three children. Eight years ago, they came back to Atlanta when John became the president and CEO of Coca-Cola Enterprises.

Since then, the Brocks have been active in a number of causes around the city, and Mary serves on the boards of trustees of Usher’s New Look and Spelman College, the boards of directors of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Metro

32

THE BUZZ

Atlanta Chamber and Horizons National and the Board of Advisors of the Winship Cancer Institute.

The couple has also funded chairs in biomedical engineering at Emory University and Georgia Tech with a particular emphasis on cancer research, as well as scholarships in chemical engineering.

In 2010, the Brocks were approached about helping to help fund a new indoor practice facility for football.

“We had supported chemical engineering, but this was so different,” he explained, “I’m thinking, ‘no way.’ I love sports, especially growing up in the South, but the idea of giving that kind of money to an indoor football facility wasn’t something we were going to do. It feels good to give money to causes that aid cancer research.

“We talked to Paul Johnson, and he told us, ‘If we want Georgia Tech to continue to be a great institute and competitive academically, then we also need to be competitive in athletics. Other schools inside the ACC and other top programs are building these facilities. It’s going to help in recruiting and help us be a better team. That’s going to make Georgia Tech even more competitive across the board.’ He did a great job in showing the value of building the practice facility.”

Ground broke on the John and Mary Brock Indoor Facility in January 2011 and was completed in six months.

“We watched it being built from day one, and it’s amazing what they did there,” said Mary Brock. “Land is at such a premium on campus, so the design is incredible.”

Mary also joined the ownership group of the WNBA’s Atlanta Dream in 2011, and now co-owns the team with Kelly Loeffler. The team has been to the league finals twice under their leadership, and recently they hosted three regular season games at McCamish Pavilion.

“We practice at Georgia Tech, so it was a great fit for us,” she noted. “It’s a great relationship, so we started the conversation about possibly games played at Georgia Tech. We had an event for Dream supporters during the Georgia Tech women’s basketball season, and they really loved McCamish. It is a great fit for our fan base, and good exposure for Georgia Tech.”

As a sports advocate in the city, Mary has become a strong supporter of MaChelle Joseph’s program and attends as many games as possible.

“MaChelle is a great leader and graduates her players,” said Mary. “She’s done a phenomenal job both on and off the court. I really respect how she runs the program and looks at the total

development of these young women. They learn skills that are going to help them in life beyond just basketball.”

“Mary is a very driven business woman that has a passion for the WNBA and the game of women’s basketball,” noted Coach Joseph. “She is relentless in her efforts to bring a WNBA championship to Atlanta! Mary has been an avid supporter of women’s basketball on many levels and has been a role model for so many young women in the business world as well.”

The Brocks are also chairing Campaign Georgia Tech, which has already raised over $1.421 billion for the Institute. The initiative runs through the end of 2015 and benefits both the academic and athletics needs for the school.

“Mary is a talented and caring leader who’s had a significant impact on a multitude of organizations in our region and beyond, and we’re fortunate to have her as part of the Georgia Tech community,” said director of athletics Mike Bobinski. “Both she and John have been incredibly supportive of our efforts to make Georgia Tech a world-class Institute in every way.” ■

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COMPLIANCE CORNER

BY SHOSHANNA ENGEL, ASSOCIATE ATHLETIC DIRECTOR FOR COMPLIANCE

MEMORABILIA, AUTOGRAPHS, AND AUCTIONS Shoshanna Engel Associate Athletic Director for Compliance

Shoshanna Engel Associate Director of Athletics for Compliance sengel@athletics.gatech.edu (404)894-8792

The Georgia Tech Athletic Association (GTAA) receives countless requests concerning memorabilia, autographs, and items to be donated and used for charitable auctions. While this is exciting and indicative of the great and lasting traditions and legacies of our athletics programs and student-athletes, NCAA rules closely govern the provision of such items and how they may be used.

The information and tips below should help our supporters determine how to proceed with requests: • All requests for memorabilia or other items (e.g., tickets) for a charitable/educational organization and/or auction must be accompanied by a detailed description of the event and the items’ intended use.

• Per GTAA policy, tickets to men’s basketball and football games will not be provided for any request.

• The GTAA will not donate memorabilia for personal use (e.g., home display).

• Items for autographs must be provided by the requesting organization/individual and may also be purchased at Georgia Tech retailers.

• Requests for student-athlete autographs will not be fulfilled.

All requests must be reviewed and approved prior to fulfillment. Detailed instructions may be found on the compliance website at www.ramblinwreck.com.

If you have any questions about memorabilia, autographs, auctions, or any other matter please do not hesitate to contact the compliance office.

Marquita Armstead Director of Compliance marmstead@athletics.gtaa.edu (404)894-5507

Bret Cowley Associate Director of Compliance bcowley@athletics.gtaa.edu (404)385-0611

Shardonay Blueford Assistant Director of Compliance sblueford@athletics.gatech.edu (404)894-0416

Kyle Buffolino Compliance Assistant kbuffolino@athletics.gatech.edu (404)894-0416

WWW.RAMBLINWRECK.COM

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