When Georgia Tech was in the late stages of its game against Pittsburgh Saturday, effort was not a problem.
Video review and coach Paul Johnson’s feel for his team informed him of that much. But what Johnson did sense was a confidence shortage that helped lead the Yellow Jackets to a fifth consecutive defeat.
“I don’t think there’s any question that there’s a confidence factor that comes into it and when it’s going poorly, there’s guys going, ‘What’s going to happen next?’” Johnson said Monday at his weekly news conference. “As opposed to, ‘I’m going to win this thing.’”
It is a stark contrast from the team’s crunch-time disposition in the 2014 season. Johnson frequently praised that team for “finding a way to win,” something it did 11 times, the most since the 1990 national championship season. In the Yellow Jackets’ five-game losing streak, the outcomes of the Duke, North Carolina and Pittsburgh games (and arguably the Notre Dame game) were all up in the air in the final five minutes of the game. But Tech failed to produce enough winning plays.
After Saturday’s 31-28 defeat, Johnson said that freshmen made mistakes in failing to carry out assignments that shaped the final result.
“Basically, when the game got tight, they were all freshmen,” he said.
The offense depends on several of them. A-backs Mikell Lands-Davis and Clinton Lynch, B-back Marcus Marshall and right tackle Will Bryan started against Pittsburgh, Lands-Davis, Marshall and Bryan for the first time. TaQuon Marshall is also in the A-back rotation and wide receiver Brad Stewart also plays regularly. Defensively, linebackers Brant Mitchell and Victor Alexander and safety A.J. Gray have seen increased playing time.
A lack of confidence would not be a great surprise. The building tension of the losing streak combined with a freshman’s lack of experience, is a recipe for hesitation. Johnson said other players are trying too hard to make plays, which also typically doesn’t end well.
“I don’t think there’s any question that creeps in,” he said, “as opposed to having a quiet confidence that you know you’re going to find a way to win the game.”
Johnson noted how that attitude influenced games in 2014 that the Jackets won or clinched in the final minutes — Georgia Southern, Virginia Tech and Georgia among them.
“We weren’t dominant last year,” he said. “We found ways to win and we got contributions from everybody.”
It undoubtedly helped, particularly on the offensive side, to have numerous players with significant experience, particularly at the skill positions. That isn’t a attribute Tech enjoys with their replacements.
“I don’t know what’s going through their minds, but as young guys not playing that much in a new offense, it can kind of happen,” quarterback Justin Thomas said. “You can’t really play how you want to play because your mind’s thinking about what you want to do.”
Johnson repeated his belief that the team is close to having a significantly better record. He mentioned that Tech’s past five opponents have a combined record of 27-4. No. 9 Florida State, which plays the Jackets on Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium, is 6-0.
Four of the past five opponents are in the top 25 — No. 6 Clemson, No. 11 Notre Dame, No. 23 Duke and No. 25 Pittsburgh. The Sagarin ratings have Tech’s schedule as No. 9 in the country. Johnson ridiculed an article he said he read that described the team as being “in shambles,” referencing the schedule strength.
“We’re in every game,” he said. “I could describe shambles a lot differently than that. Now, are we 2-5? Yeah. Do we like it? No. But it is what it is.”
As freshmen accumulate snaps, it could undoubtedly build confidence. Monday, Lands-Davis attested to the growing comfort he has on the field.
On triple-option plays, Lands-Davis said that at first he only played his assignment as a lead blocker, usually taking on a cornerback or a safety, keeping tunnel vision no matter what the defense did. However, having played more, he said that he felt more able to change his assignment if, for instance, the cornerback blitzed.
“I think the more they get in tune with the offense, the faster they can play, which we’ve been seeing as the weeks have been going along,” Thomas said.
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