4 quick takeaways from No. 13 Georgia Tech’s win over Virginia Tech
In front of an announced crowd of nearly 51,000, a throng that included members of the 1990 national championship team, No. 13 Georgia Tech kept its spotless record intact for one more week, dismissing Virginia Tech 35-20 on Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
A few quick observations from the Yellow Jackets’ sixth win of the season in as many games.
Fuller effort
Georgia Tech played probably its most complete game of the season, though Saturday’s game wouldn’t have a ton of competition out of the other four played against FBS opponents.
The Jackets controlled the game from the start, taking an 18-0 lead in their first three possessions. To that point in the game, it was the largest lead that Tech had held in any of its four games against power-conference opponents thus far this season.
Where the Jackets’ play has lagged for extended periods — notably the first 2½ quarters of their overtime win over Wake Forest, when they fell behind 20-3 — Saturday’s performance was more consistent in effectiveness.
Of Tech’s four games against power-conference teams, this was the first in which it never trailed.
King rises again
There will be a day when quarterback Haynes King doesn’t have to repeatedly put his body in the line in the pursuit of a Jackets win, but it wasn’t Saturday.
King’s first five runs converted first downs or went for a touchdown, and he finished with 14 runs for 60 yards and two touchdowns.
He was exceptional passing the ball, utilizing offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner’s play-calling to repeatedly deliver the ball to teammates in space. He finished the game 20-for-24 for 213 yards and one touchdown, his highest completion percentage (83.3%) in a game in which he threw more than six passes.
One shortcoming
Georgia Tech lost the “middle 8” — the last four minutes of the first half and first four at the beginning of the second — by a 14-3 score. It’s a segment of the game that coach Brent Key emphasizes for its impact in determining games’ outcomes.
The Hokies advantage enabled Virginia Tech to close the score to 21-14 early in the third quarter despite getting outgained 271-170 to that point.
The middle-8 score was skewed by the fact that Georgia Tech very much appeared victimized by a missed pass-interference call against the Hokies, and then a pass play from King to tight end Josh Beetham being ruled down at the Virginia Tech 1-yard line instead of the touchdown it appeared to be. The drive ended up in a field goal at the end of the half.
Key sequence
The Georgia Tech defense came through with a decisive stop in the third quarter that went a long way to nailing down the win.
After Aidan Birr’s 51-yard field-goal try was blocked, the Hokies took control at their 34 down 28-14 with 3:29 left in the quarter. A scoring drive could keep them in the game or even draw within one possession.
But, saddled by a first-down false start, Virginia Tech went three-and-out with the Jackets defense stuffing a run on first down, limiting a pass to the flat to an 8-yard gain and then crowding quarterback Kyron Drones’ pocket on third down, leading to an incompletion.
After Virginia Tech punted, Georgia Tech put the game away with an 83-yard touchdown drive and a 35-14 lead.
About the Author
Ken Sugiura is a sports columnist at the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Formerly the Georgia Tech beat reporter, Sugiura started at the AJC in 1998 and has covered a variety of beats, mostly within sports.
