Tech's line, Dwyer come through to take ACC

By Doug Roberson

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

TAMPA -- Lost amid the 469 yards Georgia Tech piled up in its 39-34 win against Clemson in the ACC championship game Saturday night were the players on the offensive line that paved the way.

By the end of the game, redshirt sophomore Clyde Yandell was manning the tackle spot that was being  held down by Nick Claytor before he left in the second half with an injury. He was filling in for starter Phil Smith, who broke his leg in the first half. Smith was filling in for Austin Barrick, who was injured against Vanderbilt. Thin at tackle before the game started, coach Paul Johnson said he had no more available interior lineman left because of injuries.

"They did good. Nick Claytor and Clyde Yandell, they came through and held their own," quarterback Josh Nesbitt said. "We didn't miss a beat."

Guard Cord Howard, a senior, said he told Yandell when he jogged into the huddle: "It's your time man. Play. If you need anything ask me, as always. Just play, man. Don't leave anything out here."

He didn't. Jonathan Dwyer's 15-yard game-winning touchdown run came on the left side, where  the revamped line caved in Clemson's defense.

The Tigers had kept Dwyer mostly in check until the final possession, when he accounted for 33 yards of the 86-yard winning drive. Johnson said a few tweaks to the blocking scheme finally got Tech clicking on its last possession. Dwyer carried the ball the final four times on the drive.

"The last drive, I knew I needed to make a play and if the ball was in my hands, I was just going to give it all I had and leave my energy on the field, just give it all I had and try to make plays," Dwyer said. He finished with 110 yards, including 51 in the final quarter.

During a Sunday teleconference, Johnson said Barrick may return in time for the Orange Bowl. Smith likely won't.

Tickets

Tech has 17,500 Orange Bowl tickets for sale. Each ticket costs $125 and can be purchased starting Monday at ramblinwreck.com/bowl.

Orange history

This will be the sixth time that the Jackets will play in the Orange Bowl. Their previous history:

• 1967: defeated Florida 27-12.

• 1952: defeated Baylor 17-14.

• 1948: defeated Kansas 20-14

• 1945: defeated Tulsa 26-12

• 1940: defeated Missouri 21-7

Stay or go?

Wide receiver Demaryius Thomas and Dwyer both said that they will sit down after the season and decide whether to leave school early for the NFL. Both would have one more year of eligibility.

"If I have a chance to go high [in the draft], I might leave," Thomas said. "If I don't, I'm staying. I'm not even thinking about it."

Called it

Former Tech defensive tackle Darryl Richard, who is now with the New England Patriots, reminded his followers on facebook.com of what he said of Johnson on Nov. 1, 2008: "I think his teams in the future will compete for championships because it's the way he programs a team. I don't believe his system is just the triple option. I believe his system builds all the way from the offseason, how he ... makes men out of boys. It's a mentality and I think it makes men out out of boys."

Dwyer had something similar to say after the win: "Since Coach Johnson came in, we're a different type of team, a swagger around here. He brings his confidence to run his offense."

Money

Winning the ACC championship earned Johnson a $200,000 bonus. He makes $2.3 million a year.

Playing in the title game doubled Clemson coach Dabo Swinney's salary from $875,000 to roughly $1.7 million. His contract stipulates that if the Tigers play for the conference title, his salary is to be increased to the average of the other ACC's coaches.

For the record

Several ACC championship game records were broken on Saturday:

• Tech kicker Scott Blair's four field goals erased the old record set by Wake Forest's Sam Swank, who kicked three in the 2006 victory against Tech.

• C.J. Spiller's four scores set a record for most touchdowns and points (24). Blair's 15 points were second-most.

• It was the first title game in which neither team punted.

• The 70-yard Nesbitt-to-Thomas touchdown pass was the longest pass play.

• The 73 combined points set a record.

• Jerrard Tarrant's 50-yard interception return was the game's longest.

• Tech's 469 yards (333 rushing, 163 passing) broke Boston College's mark of 389 yards set in the 2007 game.