No. 16 Georgia Tech’s focus on two-point conversions pays off
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — The two-point conversion is a bit of a sore subject around Bobby Dodd Stadium. But because it is spoken with such an undertone of despair, it has also been a point of emphasis ever since No. 16 Georgia Tech lost at Georgia on Nov. 29.
In that game, Tech lost in eight overtimes after failing on six of its seven two-point conversions and losing on Georgia running back Nate Frazier’s game-winning two-point run. The Yellow Jackets (5-0, 2-0 ACC) have made two-point conversions a regular — and major — part of practice.
“A lot. A lot. A lot,” Tech coach Brent Key said Saturday about how much he has his squad work on the situation.
Tech beat Wake Forest 30-29 on Saturday at Allegacy Federal Credit Union Stadium. It escaped with an ACC road win because it stopped the Demon Deacons two-point conversion try, a try that would have wrecked Tech’s perfect season had it been successful.
Key said when preparing for 2025, he and his staff, of course, studied 2024 and what could have been done better, which areas his program could make ground in. The two-point conversion was a big part of that discussion.
“Sixty or 70% of the game, those normal down calls that you make, anybody can make those calls. It’s the situational things that matter. It’s experiences in situations,” Key said. “We work those things every single day, guys. Every. Single. Day. We do numerous situational aspects at practice, so it becomes second nature.
“There’s so many things you can’t predict that are gonna happen in a game. When you get in those situations you gotta rely back on your training and your preparation.”
With much of Wake Forest’s student section having relocated from behind Tech’s bench to the grassy knoll behind the end zone, sensing an upset and chance to storm the field, Tech quarterback Haynes King scored on a 2-yard touchdown run to put the visitors ahead 30-23 at the start of overtime. Aidan Birr kicked what turned out to be the winning extra point.
But the Demon Deacons (2-2, 0-2 ACC) still had their chance to go on offense, and immediately scored from 25 yards out when running back Demond Claiborne escaped a tackle in the backfield and sprinted down the left side of the field to dive into the end zone.
Wake Forest’s offense stayed on the field, but Key waited until before the next snap to call his one afforded timeout.
“That’s why it’s valuable to keep that timeout with you,” Key said. “Once they showed their formation, just through film study figured it’d be a spinout, throwback.”
Wake Forest quarterback Robby Ashford took a snap out of the shotgun and rolled to his right, scouring the end zone for an open receiver. He found no one. So he slid back to his left and tried to fire to the middle of the end zone.
But the only player there was Tech safety Clayton Powell-Lee. Powell-Lee cradled the pass as he fell to his knees, ending the game and the upset bid.
“On Tuesday we work it a lot,” Powell-Lee said about two-point conversions. “We have racks of like four or five, and we practice two-point plays, how to defend them, where they might try to hit us in our weaknesses. Practicing those really helps in situations like this. It’s just good to know you’re prepared in those situations. I’m glad we practice those things.”
Said Deacons coach Jake Dickert: “Went with kind of the rub route, got zone, missed the throwback off of the fallout. They did a good job covering it and credit to them. (Ashford) tried to make a late play.”
Tech now is off until hosting Virginia Tech on Oct. 4. Rest assured, though, they’ll continue to spend time on those pesky two-point conversions. Had they not, Saturday’s result could have had a different ending.
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