3 games, 3 positive results for Blake Gideon’s Georgia Tech defense
Three games, three positive results for Blake Gideon’s defense.
Georgia Tech’s first-year defensive coordinator is a quarter of the way through the 2025 season, and so far the outcomes have been deemed a success. The defense has been a large reason why the Yellow Jackets are undefeated after three games for the first in nine years and ranked No. 18 in the country.
“They’re playing fast. They’re playing faster each day, each team period in practice, each week,” Tech coach Brent Key said Monday on SiriusXM radio. “Seeing the speed they were playing with, the intentionality, the physicality, really good communication — we’ve gotten better and better each week with our communication, and communication allows you to play faster.
“We’re by no means a finished product. We got a long way to go. We’ve gotta continue to force ourselves to be the best fundamentally sound team in the country. We cannot let our techniques and fundamentals go away. That’s what I challenged the team and the coaching staff with (Sunday). You start getting into game 3, game 4, 5, 6, everybody is worried about scheme. I’m worried about techniques, fundamentals and how we play the game.”
Tech’s defense has allowed 53 points in three games, its fewest three-game total since 2021. It also has given up only 575 passing yards, the fewest since 2021 when that squad gave up 373 passing yards after three games.
Linemen Jordan van den Berg, Amontrae Bradford, Christian Garrett, Brayden Manley and Akelo Stone; linebacker Kyle Efford; and defensive back Daiquan White have been Gideon’s best players, according to Pro Football Focus. Van den Berg, Efford, White, Garrett and Manley; defensive backs Clayton Powell-Lee, Kelvin Hill, Zachary Tobe and Ahmari Harvey; and linebackers Melvin Jordan IV and Cayman Spaulding have excelled in defending the run, while White, Efford, linebacker Tah’j Butler, and defensive backs Omar Daniels and Tae Harris have stood out in pass coverage.
Tech has been getting contributions from up and down the roster, which certainly has helped with some of the early successes.
Of course, no unit is without flaws, and the Jackets undoubtedly have areas to improve as the season lengthens.
Tech ranks ninth in the ACC in total defense, with 337.3 yards allowed per game, and ninth in fewest first downs allowed (56) and in sacks (2).
The Jackets rank 11th in allowing teams to convert on third downs (37.2%) and 14th in rushing defense (145.7 yards per game allowed) and in pass-efficiency defense (131.2).
Under the microscope, the Jackets had more than one alarming breakdown against Clemson on Saturday. There was a third-and-22 when Clemson ran for 30 yards. There was a 73-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Cade Klubnik to wide receiver Bryant Wesco Jr. There were five Clemson runs of 10 yards or more.
The Tigers also were 7-of-12 on third-down conversions and 1-for-1 on fourth down.
“We’re just trying to improve on the little things every day, being in the right spots, how to have your hand on blocks and things like that,” Tobe said of Tech’s defensive play. “It’s nothing major, it’s just the small things, just making sure we’re honing in on those little details to make sure we win the games we’re supposed to win.”
Tech will face the challenge of a Temple offense this week that features quarterback Evan Simon (40-for-60 passing, 467 yards, 9 TDs, 0 INT), running back Jay Ducker (36 runs for 239 yards and a TD) and wide receivers JoJo Bermudez and Peter Clarke (17 catches for 245 yards and three scores combined). Key spoke highly of the Owls’ ability to shift and motion pre-snap, much like Tech’s offense is prone to do.
Temple was held to 104 yards of offense in a 42-3 loss to No. 11 Oklahoma on Saturday. But in the two previous games, wins over Massachusetts and Howard, they averaged 48.5 points and 513.5 yards of total offense.
“I think they’re a good team. Like every team we play, they’re gonna be a good team. They got good skill,” Tobe added. “We just gotta come out there and do our thing, and we’ll be all right.”
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