It would not be a stretch to say Paul Hewitt, the coach with perhaps the strangest contract in all of Division I sports, has worn out his Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets welcome. After leading the Jackets to their highest moment ever, the 2004 National Championship Game, Hewitt's mustered four losing seasons, only one ranked finish, and two NCAA Tournament wins.
A populated and spirited Alexander Memorial Coliseum, filled with Jackets fans who showed out for Tech basketball history, made the latter* years of Hewitt's tenure** even starker. Sunday night's crowd against the Miami Hurricanes was involved and active, a decent ACC basketball crowd by any measure, but would've been a lackluster showing if it had occurred during the mid-1980s or early-1990s.
Though Tech may lose top recruit Julian Royal if Hewitt goes elsewhere, most Tech fans are unlikely to get all that worked up about recruiting implications here. Hewitt has developed a reputation as an excellent recruiter who struggles to convert stars into wins.
Hewitt will be informed by March 15 whether his contract will not be allowed to automagically renew itself.
* - Assuming.
** - Tenure, almost literally.