I have a great idea for the next head coach of Georgia Tech football: The guy who is currently coaching the Yellow Jackets.
Let’s not try to overcomplicate this: Geoff Collins was a terrible football coach. He was incompetent. He couldn’t tie his shoelaces. He took over the special teams and the special teams were a disaster. If “hands-on” coaching produces atrocious results, the quality of coaching is obviously abysmal.
Guess what? Under Brent Key, those mistakes aren’t happening. Every phase of play is markedly better. It’s not just a matter of effort, but of execution and attention to detail. This is what shows up when the quality of coaching is good. This is what happens when daily instruction in practice is able to connect with the players and elicit results.
If these athletes at Georgia Tech are responding well to instruction and guidance from Brent Key, why take that away from them? At the very least, why not ride this out for one year after 2022?
Look at it this way: Keeping Brent Key for 2023 would make next year a prove-it year for Key and his staff. The head coach would be highly motivated to perform. Give him a modest pay raise. Tell him that if he thrives in 2023, he gets a multi-year extension and even more resources. It’s pretty simple. If he fails next year, you get to move on and hire a big name for 2024. Because Key was retained for 2023, though, Georgia Tech would achieve considerable cost savings and would have more money to hire an elite candidate in 2024 — and that’s IF 2023 doesn’t go in the right direction.
That should be Georgia Tech’s strategy. Why not stay with the coach who is resonating and connecting and doing what Geoff Collins never could? Why mess with success, and why interrupt a good thing? With the rest of the ACC Coastal Division in a state of chaos, Georgia Tech could do far worse than Brent Key in 2023.
