Georgia Tech football coach Paul Johnson averaged seven wins a season from 2010 to 2013, and his Yellow Jackets were predicted for more of the same last autumn.
Pegged fifth in the Atlantic Coast Conference's seven-team Coastal Division, Georgia Tech finished first and nearly knocked off Florida State in the league championship game. The Yellow Jackets defeated Georgia for just the second time in 14 seasons and capped an 11-3 year by racing past Mississippi State in the Orange Bowl.
Johnson was a guest Wednesday afternoon on "Press Row" on ESPN 105.1 FM.
Q: You had a lot to celebrate last year, but was there any personal vindication?
A: "I wasn't worried about what people who've never played or coached were writing. My feeling on that was there was a body of work there, and I've always felt that if there was somebody better to do a job that they ought to go get him.
"We just coach our guys to try and get better every day, and if they weren't writing about me, they would be writing about somebody else."
Q: After the bowl win, you said on ESPN that it will be nice not hearing about the SEC for a week or two. What is it like coaching in SEC territory?
A: "It's not so much the fans as it is the media. I'm not taking a swipe at the SEC, because there are some very good football teams in that league, but there are also some good teams that aren't in that league. That's all you hear about, and if they lose a game, it's because they're playing great teams in their league.
"That's all I was talking about. We've got good teams in our league, and I'm sure the Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12 feel the same way."
Q: Is it harder for you to recruit to your style given that so many high schools run the spread compared to 15 years ago, when so many ran the wing-T?
A: "Not really. That's kind of been a misconception that has been floated out there for a long time. You don't only recruit kids to play in your system. If that were the case, the NFL would have a real shortage now, because there are very few college teams running pro-style offenses.
"We try to recruit the best players that fit our system, and we feel like we have a great package to sell here. You get a world-class education playing in a major metropolitan city in a power five conference, so that's about as good as it can get."
Q: How do you educate your players on the domestic abuse issues that are prevalent today?
A: "Clearly we talk a great deal about personal accountability, but we're fortunate in a lot of ways that we coach at a place that if you're not serious about going to school and your education, you're not going to survive here. I always knock on wood when I say this because we're all just waiting for the next phone call, but in my seven years here, we haven't had to deal with a whole lot of that.
"We've got pretty squared-away guys who are motivated."
Q: You've got Justin Thomas back at quarterback but lost other offensive components. What are some of your bigger position concerns?
A: "We've got some new skill guys, like you mentioned. We lost our A-backs and our slot backs and had five seniors who played there. We lost two really good senior receivers who may both get drafted. We've got some young guys we feel like can be good, but it's just a matter of mixing them in.
"We also went into spring not having four offensive linemen who will probably be starting, but in a way that's been a blessing because we're developing some young guys who can give us some depth."
Q: Take away the quarterback, and what is the toughest position to replace in your offense?
A: "It's very similar to baseball for us, so it's probably right up the middle for us with center, quarterback and B-back. Those are the guys that when you're good, those three guys are all really good players."
Q: When you were at Georgia Southern, your Eagles won as often as UTC at Finley Stadium given your back-to-back FCS national titles. Are you surprised the Mocs are going for a Southern Conference three-peat later this year?
A: "It doesn't surprise me, because I always thought Chattanooga had a chance to be a really good program just from location alone with their proximity to Atlanta and Birmingham. I think high-school football in Tennessee is underrated, and it probably didn't hurt any that Georgia Southern and Appalachian left."
Q: Turning to our rapid fire, what is your favorite Tech tradition?
A: "Probably following the Ramblin' Wreck out of the tunnel. I think that's really cool."
Q: What is your best go-to Georgia joke?
A: "Oh, gosh. There are so many jokes you can make about Georgia. It would be hard to come up with one."
Q: Which ACC team is no one talking about but should be?
A: "Probably Virginia Tech. If you look year-in and year-out, they've been the most consistent team in the league."
Q: What is your handicap, and what is your favorite track in Atlanta?
A: "Right now it's a 7, but I can't play to it. I play mostly at Cherokee (Country Club)."
Q: Where is your favorite road venue in the ACC?
A: "I don't know about a favorite, but Death Valley at Clemson is always fun. It's always loud and crowded, and we've had some success there."
Q: Varsity chili dog, friend or foe?
A: "A friend about once a month."
Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6524.