New-look Georgia Tech rolls in Johnson’s debut

Two time zones away Thursday night, a candidate promised change if elected president this fall. At Georgia Tech, there was no need to wait until autumn.

Something different came to Bobby Dodd Stadium. There, new Tech commander-in-chief Paul Johnson’s team battered Jacksonville State 41-14.

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Rich Addicks / raddicks@ajc.com

Just think what new Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson will look like when the Yellow Jackets don’t win 41-14. Embry Peeples drew Johnson’s wrath in the second half.

BY THE NUMBERS

• How They Scored • ACC Standings
• Post-game blog
• PHOTOS: Tech 41, JSU 14
• Terence Moore: An imperfect rout
• Grade Tech's performance
• Injury report • Kicker issues?
• More on Tech

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Quarterback Josh Nesbitt (60 yards rushing, 87 passing) and B-back Jonathan Dwyer (112 rushing yards) scored two touchdowns each, and safety Morgan Burnett — all second-year players — had two interceptions.

That was just in the first two quarters.

And it was not good enough for the boss.

Johnson lit into players several times. “We’re going to have to get better faster because the competition is going to get a lot better,” he said.

Yeah, because after cruising from a 27-0 halftime lead over a Division I-AA foe, the Jackets seemed to begin looking beyond the “preseason,” and to reality: pending back-to-back ACC road games at Boston College and Virginia Tech.

Overall, there were two missed field goals and a botched PAT by Scott Blair, who was not helped by snapper Bret White. Add a few dropped passes, too many unblocked JSU defenders at Nesbitt’s feet, and Tech has work to do.

But there were building blocks, too, and evidence that players are adhering to a couple of Johnson’s operational mandates: that players be tougher than they were, and do more than they did.

First, a blooper.

The first play of the Johnson era was — gasp! — a long pass. It was there, too. Had A-back Roddy Jones not dropped the ball, it would have been good for at least 25 yards.

There would be more pass plays (15 total), and backs running every which way in Johnson’s whirling dervish attack. The net: 349 rushing yards and six touchdowns, not to mention 135 passing yards.

Tech began connecting on its second possession, scoring touchdowns on four of the next five, despite barely touching Johnson’s signature play: the triple option. “We probably ran it six, maybe seven times,” Dwyer said.

If you looked hard, you saw a trench mentality that went beyond the trenches.

On Dwyer’s 21-yard touchdown run, wide receiver Demaryius Thomas and A-back Lucas Cox made savage downfield blocks.

And when Dwyer raced 27 yards to the JSU 2 on Tech’s next possession, Thomas knocked down JSU safety Carnell Clark some 15 yards from the line.

Thomas said he’ll try to secure photos not of the catch he made but of his first-ever pancake. “It’s the best block you can have when you put somebody on his back,” the sophomore said. “After the game, Coach Johnson came up to me and said, ‘Hell of a job blocking. You’ll get yours soon.’ “

Tech’s defense didn’t allow a first down for the first 18 minutes, and gave up a mere 95 total yards through three quarters before the B- and C-teamers “lost intensity,” Johnson said.

Now, time for more change: The Jackets must move up a couple weight classes.

“There’s just too many issues with [Tech’s] offense,” JSU coach Jack Crowe said. “We had two-and-a-half weeks to deal with it. The rest of these folks will have two days. Good luck, ACC.”