Saying he liked the way his team fought, Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said they were fortunate to defeat Boston College 17-14 on Saturday in Dublin, Ireland.
“We clearly weren’t ready to play and that comes back on me,” he said. “I did a terrible job. I’m responsible for it. We didn’t play like we played in camp. The way we played the first couple of weeks in camp I was excited to watch us play. We reverted right back to a year ago.”
Johnson not only pointed a finger at himself, he included the coaching staff and the players. Johnson didn’t disclose the number of missed assignments made by the Yellow Jackets, saying they don’t typically release that information, but his message to the coaching staff was clear.
“What you see is what you are,” he said. “You are either coaching it or allowing it to happen. I’m tired of watching it.”
Johnson noted that if not for several Boston College mistakes his team might not have won. The Eagles missed a field goal, had another blocked and threw an interception on third-and-1 in the first quarter.
Tech's defense did keep Boston College from scoring long enough to allow the offense to put together a game-winning drive that included a 22-yard pass from Justin Thomas to Qua Searcy on fourth-and-19, and a 4-yard touchdown run by freshman B-back Dedrick Mills for the winning score.
The offense mustered 238 yards, including just 119 yards rushing. The 2.7 yards-per-carry average was the fourth lowest for a Johnson-coached team.
“It was a crazy game,” Johnson said. “It reminded me a year ago at Notre Dame. That’s almost the same way we played a year ago.”
Only kicker Harrison Butker and Searcy were mentioned when asked if there was any part of the game that Johnson was happy with other than the result. Searcy, Step Durham and Butker received the player of the week award. Durham, who had three tackles and broke up two passes, received it because Johnson said he made the fewest errors on defense.
Johnson said if the Yellow Jackets play against Mercer (0-1) on Saturday like they played against Boston College they could lose. The Bears play on the FCS level.
“We did enough to win,” Johnson said. “I thought that they fought, but they are their own worst enemy.”
The players said they understand Johnson’s frustration. Starting guard Shamire Devine said the message from Johnson was to be as crisp as a scalpel or the team would run…a lot.
“I’d like to be crisp as a scalpel,” Devine said.
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