It’s probably too early to declare Georgia Tech’s kickoff return game a problem solved, but it looks drastically better than it did two weeks ago.
After improved results against Miami and Duke, the Yellow Jackets now rank 11th in the country at 26.05 yards per kickoff return. Return specialist Jamal Golden is tied for No. 4 individually, at 31 yards per return.
“(The other 10 players on the return team) made my job easy,” Golden said. “So credit goes out to them.”
Against Duke, Golden had returns of 68 and 51 yards. For the game, Tech averaged 34.5 yards, the Jackets’ best single-game average since the 2011 Maryland game. The average is considerable given Deon Hill had two returns for a total of 19 yards after Duke pooched its final two kickoffs, even though Golden was out of the game with a mild concussion.
Against Miami the week before, Golden’s returns measured 37 and 30 yards. In its first four games, Tech averaged 22.8 yards per return, and only three of 15 kickoff returns reached their 30, the unit’s goal for each returned kickoffs. For Golden, it was a return to his 2012 form, when he finished 10th in the country in kickoff-return average before missing most of the 2013 season with a shoulder injury.
“Guys just got fed up and made blocks,” coach Paul Johnson said. “Jamal did a good job with his vision and got good returns. There’s no secret to it. If you block guys, you’re going to have good returns. If you don’t, you won’t.”
Special-teams coordinator Ray Rychleski devoted particular time to the unit during the team’s open week after the Virginia Tech game. On Tuesday, he noted kickoff-return unit members such as Matt Connors, Beau Hankins and Shaun Kagawa for their work to free Golden. On the second return, Connors made a block that took him out of the play and then ran past Golden to make another block at the 25-yard line that enabled Golden to reach the Duke 49. In fact, after falling down on the second block, Connors got up and caught up to Golden again and was putting another Duke defender on the ground as Golden was tackled.
“The kids have worked hard at it since the open week,” Rychleski said. “I wouldn’t say we were horrendous before that — we were still fourth in the league, fifth in the league – but we’ve made a difference the last two games.”
The unit’s fervor could prove important Saturday against North Carolina. Opponents’ average starting point against North Carolina is just inside the 23, the best in the ACC. In a game where offensive efficiency figures to be paramount — Tech ranks last in the ACC in defensive yards per play (6.6) and UNC is second to last (6.1) — every extra yard that the special teams can create or deny will be important.
Golden has positive memories of North Carolina’s Kenan Stadium. In 2012, he returned a kickoff 100 yards for his second touchdown return of the season in Tech’s wild 68-50 win. Golden’s first score of the season was Tech’s first kickoff return for a touchdown since 1998. If he can score a third time, he will become Tech’s all-time leader in that category, breaking a four-way tie with Drew Hill, Gary Lee and Dez White.
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