Georgia Tech B-backs Marcus Marshall and Marcus Allen mostly struggled to find running room in the Yellow Jackets’ 38-35 win over Duke on Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Marshall, starting in place of the injured Dedrick Mills, finished with 13 carries and 69 yards, with 50 coming on one run to the 2-yard line. Allen had five carries for 21 yards.
Coach Paul Johnson said he expects Mills, a freshman, will return for next week’s game at North Carolina. Mills leads Tech with an average of 74.3 rushing yards per game and 10 touchdowns. He missed Saturday’s game because of a concussion.
The issues the B-backs had against Duke were exemplified early in the fourth quarter when Allen, a senior, was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1 on the 32-yard line. Johnson said Allen needed to run with lower pads. Duke took over and scored to take a 35-31 lead.
“We can’t run between the tackles right now,” Johnson said.
It appeared that Marshall was about to get the first down on the previous play until he tripped and fell.
Tech was starting two freshmen, Parker Braun at guard and Jahaziel Lee at tackle, on the left side. Will Bryan replaced Shamire Devine at right guard.
Marshall said Duke’s defensive line was stuffing the gaps.
“The running game was kind of struggling for a little bit,” he said.
About the Author
