https://www.si.com/college/2022/09/13/cl...ll-rebuild

Nice bit of press here for GS.

From the story:
“Even two games in, people are saying Georgia Southern football is back on track,” says Benko, hired at GSU amid the pandemic in the spring of 2020. “People are excited. It’s a lot of fun to tell the story of where we’re going.”

Where’s that? It depends on Helton, his staff and a group of players led by a sixth-year quarterback who transferred in this spring. Kyle Vantrease, the same QB who helped deliver Buffalo a MAC division title in 2020, completed 37 passes for 409 yards against the Huskers.

Like so many within this program, Vantrease carries with him a “chip on his shoulder,” says Helton. It’s a cliché, yes, but it’s real. That goes for the coach, too.

“It’s every one of us,” Helton says. “It’s all of us. It’s our opportunity to do something special. Think about us as coaches. It’s my second opportunity and it’s Coach [Bryan] Ellis’s second opportunity as an offensive coordinator.”

"Benko hired Helton on Nov. 2, four weeks before the season ended and six weeks after USC fired the coach. It gave Helton the ability to evaluate the team, staff and get a jump start on recruiting. He spent each day last November visiting every high school in a three-hour radius and then watching his new team practice. He noticed something immediately: He didn’t expect an option program to have skill players with such speed."

(09-14-2022 11:38 AM)Georgia_Power_Company Wrote:  https://www.si.com/college/2022/09/13/cl...ll-rebuild

Nice bit of press here for GS.

From the story:
“Even two games in, people are saying Georgia Southern football is back on track,” says Benko, hired at GSU amid the pandemic in the spring of 2020. “People are excited. It’s a lot of fun to tell the story of where we’re going.”

Where’s that? It depends on Helton, his staff and a group of players led by a sixth-year quarterback who transferred in this spring. Kyle Vantrease, the same QB who helped deliver Buffalo a MAC division title in 2020, completed 37 passes for 409 yards against the Huskers.

Like so many within this program, Vantrease carries with him a “chip on his shoulder,” says Helton. It’s a cliché, yes, but it’s real. That goes for the coach, too.

“It’s every one of us,” Helton says. “It’s all of us. It’s our opportunity to do something special. Think about us as coaches. It’s my second opportunity and it’s Coach [Bryan] Ellis’s second opportunity as an offensive coordinator.”

"Benko hired Helton on Nov. 2, four weeks before the season ended and six weeks after USC fired the coach. It gave Helton the ability to evaluate the team, staff and get a jump start on recruiting. He spent each day last November visiting every high school in a three-hour radius and then watching his new team practice. He noticed something immediately: He didn’t expect an option program to have skill players with such speed."

Nice article and press!

The HS coach he is talking to in the picture is former JMU quarterback and 2004 National championship team member, Matt LeZotte.

This is a good thing

Good to hear. I want the SBC to be a complete terror and any team that comes out as champ is tough, battle tested and ready to win their NY6 bowl. :-) Georgia Southern being good helps all of us.

(09-14-2022 12:27 PM)forphase1 Wrote:  Good to hear. I want the SBC to be a complete terror and any team that comes out as champ is tough, battle tested and ready to win their NY6 bowl. :-) Georgia Southern being good helps all of us.

If Helton cranks out 8 or 9 wins this year, he gone.

(09-15-2022 09:16 AM)iStoopify Wrote:  If Helton cranks out 8 or 9 wins this year, he gone.

WTH are you talking about?

Chadwell has “cranked out” multiple 11 win seasons and he wasn’t “gone” immediately. (Even though everyone on this board said he was going to assuredly be gone 2 years ago).

So other than being an App fan and hating GS, what makes you think Helton will be gone after only one year if he wins 8 games?

seems like a happy guy now....he's a florida / SC guy...and has $5M in the bank (assuming the feds took half) - why leave for more BS when he is building something there?

Doc Holliday was the first head coach relieved of duties facing Kyle Vantrease.

All this dude does is destroy opposing head coaching careers.

(09-15-2022 09:16 AM)iStoopify Wrote:  If Helton cranks out 8 or 9 wins this year, he gone.

I can’t tell what’s a more impressive 2-week turn around: our offense or App fans’ opinion of Clay Helton.

(09-15-2022 11:24 AM)TrueBlueDrew Wrote:  

(09-15-2022 09:16 AM)iStoopify Wrote:  If Helton cranks out 8 or 9 wins this year, he gone.

I can’t tell what’s a more impressive 2-week turn around: our offense or App fans’ opinion of Clay Helton.

I didn't see any App fans bashing this hire (maybe I missed it). In fact there was probably more skepticism in our fan base than in any other fan base in this conference.

And I wouldn't bet against what he's saying at all. We've been trying to replicate for 6 years what (TBH) a one-of-a-kind coach did here and it didn't work that well at all and Helton will stand to get more credit than he really deserves even though if he does really well this season he'll literally be the third head coach since 2014 to completely crush the preseason expectations.

Actually I guess if you count Tyson Summers he'd be the fourth consecutive head coach whose first-year results were very different from the consensus preseason expectations.

A lot of football left though and I want to see what we do with the remaining non-conference schedule.

(09-14-2022 12:07 PM)jmu98 Wrote:  

(09-14-2022 11:38 AM)Georgia_Power_Company Wrote:  https://www.si.com/college/2022/09/13/cl...ll-rebuild

Nice bit of press here for GS.

From the story:
“Even two games in, people are saying Georgia Southern football is back on track,” says Benko, hired at GSU amid the pandemic in the spring of 2020. “People are excited. It’s a lot of fun to tell the story of where we’re going.”

Where’s that? It depends on Helton, his staff and a group of players led by a sixth-year quarterback who transferred in this spring. Kyle Vantrease, the same QB who helped deliver Buffalo a MAC division title in 2020, completed 37 passes for 409 yards against the Huskers.

Like so many within this program, Vantrease carries with him a “chip on his shoulder,” says Helton. It’s a cliché, yes, but it’s real. That goes for the coach, too.

“It’s every one of us,” Helton says. “It’s all of us. It’s our opportunity to do something special. Think about us as coaches. It’s my second opportunity and it’s Coach [Bryan] Ellis’s second opportunity as an offensive coordinator.”

"Benko hired Helton on Nov. 2, four weeks before the season ended and six weeks after USC fired the coach. It gave Helton the ability to evaluate the team, staff and get a jump start on recruiting. He spent each day last November visiting every high school in a three-hour radius and then watching his new team practice. He noticed something immediately: He didn’t expect an option program to have skill players with such speed."

Nice article and press!

The HS coach he is talking to in the picture is former JMU quarterback and 2004 National championship team member, Matt LeZotte.

I went to HS w/ Matt LeZotte.