Georgia Tech’s strong finish has earned it a little bit of warmth for its bowl trip.
After beating then-No. 14 Virginia Tech and archrival Georgia on the road in the final three weeks of the regular season to finish at 8-4, the Yellow Jackets earned an invitation Sunday to the TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla., where they’ll play Kentucky.
“As soon as we became bowl eligible, our players and everybody, the goal was to try to get to a warm bowl game, so that was south of Atlanta,” coach Paul Johnson said Sunday night. “So that was a big deal.”
Jacksonville isn’t quite tropical, but the average high in December is 65 degrees, 11 degrees warmer than Atlanta, according to the Weather Channel. It will be a rewarding trip for the Jackets, who won five of their final six games after a 3-3 start. Among the bells and whistles of the trip – a lobster and seafood buffet at a team dinner upon their arrival, luxury accommodations on Amelia Island, Fla., and the chance to become just the 10th Tech team to win nine games since Bobby Dodd’s retirement after the 1966 season. They can also finish the season going 3-0 against the SEC after regular-season wins against Vanderbilt and Georgia.
“We’re excited to have another chance to play,” Johnson said.
Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury was likewise eager to bring the team to north Florida. He said that the institute has large alumni bases in north and central Florida. Further, the TaxSlayer (which until 2014 was known as the Gator Bowl) had appeal as a bowl game with some history that Tech has played in seven times, dating back to 1956 and most recently at the end of the 2006 season. Also, Jackets fans have typically resonated with an SEC opponent for a bowl game.
TaxSlayer Bowl president and CEO Rick Catlett said that Tech was the top choice of the bowl’s selection committee as it selected in conjunction with the Belk, Pinstripe and Sun bowls as the ACC’s “Tier One” bowls. The committee wanted either Miami or Tech, and the decision was made for it when the Russell Athletic Bowl, which picks ahead of the Tier One bowls, invited Miami.
“They play a different brand of football, but it’s really exciting to watch,” Catlett said. “They were very successful. Anytime you go between the hedges and beat your rival, you’ve had a successful year.”
Tech will be allotted about 7,000 tickets in the 67,246-seat EverBank Field, home of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Tech ticket office is selling tickets at $85 for lower-level tickets and $125 for club-level seats. They can be purchased through the Tech website.
Kentucky finished the season 7-5 and will be going to its first bowl game since the 2010 season. The Wildcats closed the regular season by beating in-state rival Louisville (then No. 11) on the road. Catlett said that Kentucky was also its first choice on the SEC side.
“It doesn’t usually work out that way,” said Catlett of getting the first choice on both sides.
Tech last played Kentucky in 1960. Of the teams that were in the SEC at the time of Tech’s departure in 1964, the Jackets have played Kentucky least recently.
“When you get teams that are on the way up and hadn’t played each other for a long time, we think that’s a great opportunity for a great matchup,” Catlett said.
Johnson and Kentucky coach Mark Stoops met in 2012 in the ACC title game, when Stoops was the defensive coordinator for Florida State. It was that week, actually, that Stoops was hired to become Kentucky’s new coach.
Florida State survived a second-half rally by the Jackets to win 21-15.
“We were fortunate we had some very talented players there at the time at Florida State and, again, we were able to come out on the winning end,” Stoops said. “But it’s always a challenge, and we always have great respect for Georgia Tech and the challenge that’s in front of you.”
