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ATLANTIC COAST CONFERENCE MEDIA CONFERENCE

November 9, 2011

Paul Johnson

PAUL JOHNSON: I'll tell you, we're excited to have a chance to play another top ten team here at home on Thursday night. We were very fortunate last Saturday in the game with Clemson. I thought our guys played extremely well, and we got some breaks and was able to kind of hang on and win that game and keep our hopes alive in the conference race. So this is a do-or-die game for us Thursday night. We realize if we lose this game we're out of the conference race, and if we win we stay alive for another week.
It's a big game, I think as you mentioned. It's been huge since I've been here the last -- this is my fourth year, and every year this game has had a lot riding on it. It'll be a huge challenge; Virginia Tech has got a good football team, and we're looking forward to having a chance to line up and play against them.

Q. As you know, a lot of coaches talk about the uniqueness of the Georgia Tech offense and how it's something that they don't see week in and week out. Is there anything about their defense that your kids on offense don't see in our opponents week in and week out? What's unique or maybe unconventional about their defense?
PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I think more coverage wise than anything else in the secondary they do a really good job. Bud is really good at adjusting what they do, and they've got a base defense, and they usually play off that. But most of the stuff that people have done we've played against. Believe it or not, most of the defenses in our league line up very similar.

Q. Orwin Smith has been an exceptional runner on the perimeter this year. Can you just talk a little bit about him and the things he brings to the offense?
PAUL JOHNSON: Well, Orwin is a really good football player. I think he's been -- he's a good runner, he's a good receiver, he catches the ball, and when he gets in space he's a hard guy to tackle. I think he likes to play, and certainly he's been a big part of what success we've had to this point. He and Roddy Jones I think complement each other very well at that position, and Roddy has done a nice job blocking for him, which has created a lot of stuff for Orwin this year. He's a very good football player. He'd be a good player whatever offense you run.

Q. You've had your share of really good running quarterbacks and your guy is the leading rushing quarterback in the league right now. Can you talk about Logan Thomas as a rusher and what he brings to the table as a running quarterback?
PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, well, I think he's a big, physical guy. He's very athletic, and anybody who's that big that has those kind of physical attributes can be dangerous when they want to run the ball. I think a lot of people recruited him coming out of high school as a receiver/tight end type guy, which tells you what kind of athletic ability he has. He's very dangerous running the ball. You have to keep him contained.

Q. Is he more dangerous in kind of the broken play type running thing or because of the set running plays they run with him?
PAUL JOHNSON: I think some of both. He's a big guy that's hard to tackle. They run a little of the zone option keep with him and of course he gets some scrambling, but they don't have a whole lot of design plays for him to run the ball.

Q. I want to ask you about Virginia Tech is coming to your place, and I see where they have won an ACC record 11 straight road games. As a matter of fact, I think the last time they lost on the road was at your place. What's the secret to that, and how difficult is it going in on the road in this conference and putting together 11 straight wins?
PAUL JOHNSON: Well, the secret is probably to have a good team, and they've had some good teams. I think it's extremely difficult. That's quite a record that they've accomplished, and it means that not only do they have some good players and a good team but that they've done a good job in setting things up and the way they travel and the way they do things. It's very tough to go on the road in this league and win every week.

Q. We've got a couple of the top rushers in the nation going at it tomorrow night. When you look at David Wilson for Virginia Tech, your thoughts on him, and what kind of a challenge does he present your defense?
PAUL JOHNSON: Well, he presents a huge challenge. I mean, he's very talented. He's got great speed, good balance, he breaks tackles, and when he gets in the open field nobody is going to catch him. He torched us up there a year ago on a kickoff return that basically sealed, won the game for them with a couple minutes left. He's very explosive. I think nobody is going to probably shut him down. You've just got to try to contain him and hope that he doesn't hit a bunch of big plays.

Q. Also, is there one area of the Tech offense that kind of jumps out at you? They look capable at quarterback, a veteran line, good receivers, good tailback, good tight end. Anything that really jumps out at you with that offense?
PAUL JOHNSON: Well, I think the running back is the key. They've got good players at a lot of positions, but he's the key.

Q. I wanted to ask you about Julian Burnett. His tackle totals have really gone up lately. Can you talk about has he made a step forward, or can you just talk about how he's playing?
PAUL JOHNSON: Yeah, well, I think Julian is playing well. He's always been one of our better players. He was selected as a captain by his teammates as a junior, which is a heck of a honor, and he's become more of a leader, I think, on the defense, and certainly he's up to his game. I think he's a little more comfortable with what he's being asked to do, and he's one of our better players for sure.

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