GT All-Decade: Feature Backs (Tailbacks, B-backs)
As we wind down the 2000s, Georgia Tech fans are riding an emotional high they hope continues for decades to come. With an ACC championship, a BCS bowl berth and historic wins over their biggest rivals — Clemson and Georgia — the Yellow Jackets have had plenty to celebrate these past 10 years. With the Yellow Jackets making a run at becoming a national power once again, they have had 10 players this decade declared All-Americans, and currently have 24 former players on NFL rosters, including the No. 2 overall pick in the 2007 draft. In addition to this year’s conference championship, they have also finished in first-place in the ACC’s Coastal Division three times, and have secured three bowl wins.
Through all that success, there have been plenty of players who have made their mark in a Georgia Tech uniform, and for the next two weeks, The Telegraph will be giving you the chance to vote on your picks for the Yellow Jackets’ All-Decade team. We’ll go position-by-position, and you’ll pick the winners by going to www.macon.com/decade to vote.
Our eighth ballot is for Georgia Tech’s top feature backs (tailbacks and B-backs) of the decade, and the nominees are:
(Note: Years as Georgia Tech starter in parenthesis)
Joe Burns (1998-2001). A two-time All-ACC running back, Burns was a one-man wrecking crew in his time at Georgia Tech. Featured as a tailback, fullback and occasional one-back, Burns filled just about every role in the Yellow Jackets’ backfield at the start of the decade. By the time he left Georgia Tech for an NFL career with the Buffalo Bills, Burns was ranked fourth on the school’s career rushing list — he has since been passed by P.J. Daniels and Tashard Choice. Noted for his combination of explosive speed, good blocking and power running skills, Burns became only the fifth Georgia Tech player in team history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season, when he totaled 1,165 as a senior in 2001. That same year, he caught a career-high 28 receptions.
P.J. Daniels (2003-2005). Another prolific ballcarrier, Daniels jumped Burns on the all-time career rushing list in 2005, registering 3,346 yards. He also finished his stint near the top of another key rushing statistic: 100-yard rushing games in a career. Daniels rushed for 100 yards or more 16 times, bested only — at the time — by Robert Lavette, who had 18 during the mid 1980s. Beleaguered at times with nagging injuries, Daniels started for three seasons, earning All-ACC honors twice. Daniels may perhaps most be remembered for his performance in Georgia Tech bowls. In three postseason games he rushed for a combined 535 yards, including 307 and four touchdowns in Georgia Tech’s Humanitarian Bowl win over Tulsa his sophomore season. Following his collegiate career, Daniels was drafted in the fourth round of the 2006 NFL draft by the Baltimore Ravens.
Tashard Choice (2005-2007). Taking over right where Daniels left off and not missing a beat, was Choice. After transferring from Oklahoma in 2004, the metro-Atlanta native quickly began to compile one of the best statistical careers for a Georgia Tech running back. Before leaving Georgia Tech in 2007, the two-time All-ACC selection rushed for 3,365 yards, ranking him fourth in school history, just ahead of Daniels and Burns. He also had 18 career 100-yard-plus rushing games, tying him with Lavette. As impressive as Choice’s numbers were on the field, it was perhaps his off-field intensity that drew acclaim from Georgia Tech backers. Known for playing and leading with the exact same fiery and emotional persona, Choice easily earned the respect of Yellow Jackets fans. He may be most recognized for having been the player who, in 2006, led the team out of the tunnel in a game against North Carolina holding a sledgehammer. Dubbed a “sledgehammer game,” the Yellow Jackets beat the Tar Heels to receive an ACC championship game berth. Choice would wield the yellow sledgehammer only once more in his career before being drafted by the Dallas Cowboys in 2008. Starting at times last season as a rookie, Choice has already become an integral part to the Cowboys’ run game.
Jonathan Dwyer (2008-present). Playing in a different offense than the other three feature back nominees, Dwyer has quickly become the workhorse in one of the more run-based systems that Georgia Tech has ever seen. Just a junior, Dwyer has already climbed a number of the school’s rushing charts, including career touchdowns and 100-yard games in a season. With still one game left this season, Dwyer is only 10 touchdowns from tying the school’s all-time career mark, set by Lavette in 1984. At 35 career rushing scores, Dwyer sits in second place behind Lavette. Last season, as a sophomore, he had nine 100-yard games. That was enough to tie him for first all-time with Choice in that category. The first feature running back in most recent Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson’s spread option scheme, Dwyer has settled comfortably into the role of being a big, power-running back who still has the speedy and agility to turn an outside corner and elude defenders for big gains. Because of the pounding Dwyer’s body takes in this run-first offense, questions have mounted that this may be his final season on The Flats. The junior B-back has said he will reveal a decision after the Jan. 5 Orange Bowl.
So, who gets your vote? Go to www.macon.com/decade to cast your ballot and be sure to pick up a copy of the January 2nd issue of The Telegraph to find out the winners.
This story was originally published December 21, 2009 at 9:51 AM with the headline "GT All-Decade: Feature Backs (Tailbacks, B-backs)."