Georgia Tech linebacker Jeremiah Attaochu didn’t run away from acknowledging his strike to the helmet of Virginia Tech quarterback Logan Thomas in the Yellow Jackets’ Thursday night loss to the Hokies. Attaochu said he had an “overdose of adrenaline” when he jumped on Thomas’ back in an attempt to sack him. When the 254-pound Thomas refused to go down, Attaochu appeared to punch Thomas in the head.
“I knew I was going too hard,” Attaochu said. “I’m a high-energy player. I was just going so hard. When I made contact with him, I was just mad he wouldn’t go down, so I kept trying to hack the ball.”
Attaochu was whistled for a personal foul, which gave the Hokies a game-changing first down instead of having to punt. Coach Paul Johnson, who after the game said he didn’t see what had happened, said it would be uncharacteristic of Attaochu to hit an opponent.
“There’s no excuse for it, though,” Attaochu said.
Attaochu may face discipline from the ACC or the school. On Friday, ACC spokesman Mike Finn and Tech spokesman Dean Buchan did not have news of any punishment against Attaochu. Finn said any decision likely would be made Monday after league officials review video from the weekend’s games. In October, Miami defensive tackle Micanor Regis was suspended for one game (against Tech, incidentally) by the school for a below-the-belt punch to a North Carolina player at the bottom of a pile of players.
Explaining decision
Johnson had a pretty simple explanation for why he decided to try for a first down early in the fourth quarter on a fourth-and-1 from the Tech 31-yard line with the Jackets trailing 27-26. Johnson said he felt like the Jackets had to keep scoring to keep pace with Virginia Tech. The Hokies had scored four touchdowns in their previous five possessions and had been driving for another score in the fifth before losing the ball on a fumble.
“So we needed to go down and score and I thought we could make a yard, and we didn’t,” Johnson said after the game. “We didn’t do a very good job with the play, maybe we could have had a different play call. We didn’t execute the one that was called.”
Quarterback Tevin Washington was short on a keeper, and the Hokies took advantage of the short field to score a touchdown for a 34-26 lead.
Numbers
Virginia Tech and Thomas’ dissection of the Jackets’ defense achieved historic proportion. The Hokies averaged 16.1 yards per passing attempt and 29.9 yards per completion — the highest averages in both categories against Tech in more than 30 years.
Virginia Tech running back David Wilson’s 175 rushing yards were the most by a Tech opponent since Clemson’s C.J. Spiller ran for 233 yards in the 2009 ACC title game.
The Hokies’ defense got in the act, too. Virginia Tech’s five sacks of Washington — he threw the ball only 10 times — were the most allowed by the Jackets in Johnson’s regime.
Former Tech coach dies
Former Tech assistant football coach James “Spec” Landrum died Thursday. Landrum coached at Tech from 1956-67, principally serving as a recruiter for coach Bobby Dodd. Landrum also coached at Georgia and was the first athletic director at Kennesaw State. Landrum, who suffered a stroke Nov. 2, was 94. As of Friday afternoon, funeral arrangements had not been announced.
Etc.
Johnson decided to give the team the weekend off. The Jackets will begin preparations for Duke on Monday with their normal game-week schedule. ... The kickoff time of the Jackets’ game against Duke next Saturday in Durham will be announced no later than at noon Sunday.
About the Author
