Tech’s must-do list
In Tech’s three-game losing streak, the special teams has made mistakes in all three. The offense has sputtered twice and improved in the third game, but is desperate for more big plays. The defense has been streaky.
“I think last year, truthfully, the offense was good enough to carry the team,” coach Paul Johnson said. “This year, they’re not. Right now, nobody’s good enough to carry anybody, so everybody’s got to do their part.”
The Yellow Jackets will need solid consistent play from their offense, defense and the kicking game to have a chance against Clemson. Johnson has been particularly peeved with special teams. Against Notre Dame, kicker Harrison Butker missed two field-goal tries. Against Duke, the Jackets allowed a kickoff return for a touchdown, a 69-yard punt return and flew a punt snap over punter Ryan Rodwell’s head. Against North Carolina, Rodwell dropped a low snap from snapper Sean Tobin, resulting in a 23-yard punt that helped the Tar Heels score a critical touchdown at the end of the first half.
“You can’t have a special-teams disaster game after game,” Johnson said. “You can’t do it.”
Big plays needed
Credit Clemson coach Dabo Swinney with reading the game notes produced by Tech's communications office. During both his news conference and on the ACC teleconference, in praising the Yellow Jackets' quick-strike capability, he cited a statistic included in the packet, that 12 of Tech's 28 touchdown drives have taken two minutes or less, the eighth best percentage among power-conference teams.
What Swinney neglected to say was that nine of them were against Alcorn State and Tulane. The Jackets had two against Notre Dame (one was their last-ditch scoring drive at game’s end) and one against North Carolina.
The explosive plays that have typically accompanied the offense have gone missing in the past three games. In the three-game losing streak, the Jackets have had three run plays of 20 yards or more. Tech averaged 2.9 such plays last season.
“It’s hard to have 14-, 15-play drives and six (yards) a pop without screwing it up,” coach Paul Johnson said. “Somebody’s going to get a penalty or miss a block or miss an assignment or do something so you just need to have some explosive plays.”
Clemson, which has a defense packed with NFL draft prospects, has allowed four run plays of 20 yards or more, tied for 30th in the country.
The dearth of big plays is one reason why Johnson plans to play all three of Tech’s B-backs — starter Patrick Skov and backups Marcus Marshall and Marcus Allen. While still learning the offense, Marshall is the biggest home-run threat of the three. He did not play against North Carolina.
“We’ve got to get more production out of that spot,” Johnson said.
Lots of options
For the third time in the past four games, Tech will face an opponent that has faced or will face another spread-option offense. On Saturday, Duke and Notre Dame will play Army and Navy, respectively. Both service academy coaches, Army’s Jeff Monken and Navy’s Ken Niumatalolo, have worked under coach Paul Johnson.
Clemson took its turn against Wofford in both teams’ season opener Sept. 5. For all three teams, the extra game allowed their defenses more of a look at the unorthodox scheme.
“Paul Johnson came out of the womb coaching option football,” Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “He’s got answers. Throughout the course of the game, you better have some change-ups because if you have one pitch, I don’t care how fast you bring it in there, he’s going to hit it. You better come with a Greg Maddux plan. You better come with multiple pitches.”
Defensive coordinator Brent Venables has considerable respect for Tech quarterback Justin Thomas.
"From a feel standpoint, (Thomas) has a unique, instinctual skill set," Venables told The State newspaper. "That's the biggest thing. He's got the speed to go along with it and a cannon of an arm to make all the throws."
Stay the course
Against North Carolina on Saturday, Tech sent extra defenders at Tar Heels quarterback Marquise Williams to rush his throws or blow up plays. The problem with Tech’s strategy lay in its execution.
Yellow Jackets players, both linemen and blitzing linebackers or defensive backs, took the wrong paths to get to Williams, which created creases through which he could flee the pocket. Tech was similarly erratic when rushing the standard four.
“We had, at times, a guy get out of his lane and go the wrong way, where, if he had just stayed in his lane, it would have closed down a big scramble (gap),” defensive coordinator Ted Roof said. “But, we all have got to do a better job.”
It will be incumbent upon the Jackets to improve for Clemson, as Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson can burn defenses with his legs. Watson, from Gainesville, is Clemson’s second leading rusher with 46.5 rushing yards per game.
Gaining in health
Tech should receive a lift from the return of at least three players who had missed time with injuries. Defensive tackle Patrick Gamble (head), wide receiver Micheal Summers (shoulder) and A-back TaQuon Marshall (undisclosed) are expected to play after missing one or more games.
Gamble’s return coincides with defensive tackle Adam Gotsis coming back after being ejected in the second quarter of the North Carolina game for targeting. Summers is by far the most experienced wide receiver on the roster. He was developing into a favored target of quarterback Justin Thomas and he also can make an impact as a perimeter blocker on run plays.
Marshall has shown promise in all of his roles as an A-back — running, receiving and blocking — but sat out of the North Carolina game.
Cornerback Chris Milton, who left the North Carolina game with an undisclosed injury, is expected to be ready.
A-back Broderick Snoddy (hand), who missed the North Carolina game, is listed as out for Clemson.
Running near the goal line
Should Tech reach the Clemson 1- or 2-yard line Saturday and score via the pass, it would break a remarkable trend under coach Paul Johnson. The Jackets have scored 70 offensive touchdowns from the 1-yard line and another 30 from the 2-yard line. All 100 touchdowns have been scored via the run, including two 1-yard scores by quarterback Justin Thomas Saturday against North Carolina. (He was denied in the fourth quarter on third and fourth down from the 1-yard line, a pivotal moment in the loss.)
Of the 166 touchdowns that the Jackets have scored from the 5-yard line and inside, 162 have been run plays, or 98 percent. For Tech’s opposition, 76 percent of touchdowns covering 5 yards or fewer (79 of 104) have been on the ground.
Johnson said that he and his staff needed to take a closer look at using backup Matthew Jordan as a short-yardage substitute. It is a role backup Tim Byerly performed capably before his season-ending knee injury.
“I think he’s a big, physical kid that’s tough,” quarterbacks and B-backs coach Bryan Cook said. “I don’t think he’s scared at all. There’s no reason we can’t get that out of him.”
Tech coaches vs. Clemson
Tech holds a 51-27-2 series lead over Clemson, but coach Paul Johnson is the first coach since Bill Fulcher (1972-73) to add to the Yellow Jackets’ advantage.
Coach; Tenure; Record
John Heisman; 1904-19; 10-2-1
William Alexander; 1920-44; 9-1
Bobby Dodd; 1945-66; 8-1
Bud Carson; 1967-71; 4-1
Bill Fulcher; 1972-73; 2-0
Pepper Rodgers; 1974-79; 1-2-1
Bill Curry; 1980-86; 2-2
Bobby Ross; 1987-91; 2-3
*Bill Lewis; 1992-93; 1-1
George O’Leary; 1994-2001; 4-4
Chan Gailey; 2002-07; 3-3
Paul Johnson; 2008-present; 5-3
* Lewis was fired in November 1994 before that year’s Clemson game, a loss that went on George O’Leary’s record.
Tough schedule
It seems to be a good year to be a Tech opponent. Nine of the Yellow Jackets' 12 opponents have one loss or fewer going into this weekend's play. Tech's remaining schedule was ranked 13th strongest in the country by ESPN's Football Power Index as of Friday afternoon. The same metrics also ranked the Yellow Jackets 22nd and project them to win 6.3 games this season.
Team; Record; FPI ranking
Alcorn State; 4-1; Unranked (FCS)
Tulane; 2-2; 108
Notre Dame; 4-1; 10
Duke; 4-1; 45
North Carolina; 4-1; 27
Clemson; 4-0; 14
Pittsburgh; 3-1; 43
Florida State; 4-0; 18
Virginia; 1-3; 77
*Virginia Tech; 2-3; 36
Miami; 3-1; 39
Georgia; 4-1; 12
* Virginia Tech’s record and ranking before they played Friday night.
By the numbers
1996
The last time Tech lost four games in a row, which the Yellow Jackets are in danger of doing against Clemson.
100
The number of games coach Paul Johnson will have coached at Tech after Saturday. He is 61-38.
31
Games lost to injury by nine Tech players who have contributed or were expected to contribute this season.
The last time they met
Last game: Nov. 15, 2014 at Bobby Dodd Stadium
Score: Tech 28, Clemson 6
Star of the game: Tech safety Jamal Golden perfectly anticipated a screen pass, intercepting Clemson quarterback Cole Stoudt and running 85 yards for the Yellow Jackets' first score. He also made five tackles as the defense led the way for the Jackets in the defeat of No. 19 Clemson.
Stats that matter: Tech held Clemson to a 47.41 passing efficiency rating, intercepting the Tigers three times and returning two of them for touchdowns. … In a meeting of the teams with the highest third-down conversion rate (Tech) and the lowest defensive third-down conversion rate (Clemson), Tech was a robust 7-for-14. … In nine possessions, the Tech offense crossed the goal line once, its lowest touchdown output of the season.
Play of the game: The game probably will be remembered most for the gruesome broken-leg injury suffered by A-back Broderick Snoddy on a second-quarter run. After the entire team huddled around him, Snoddy was wheeled off the field to cheers from the Bobby Dodd Stadium crowd.
Quote of the game: "I was proud of our guys defensively. We haven't had a game like that defensively in a while." — coach Paul Johnson
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