What assumptions do we have going into the first home game of the season?
After a captivating Week 0 of college football, the Jackets look to take on an inner-city foe that lies only 1.7 miles away: the Georgia State Panthers. Despite the proximity, these two teams have never met, so it promises to be a fun and exciting matchup.
Georgia Tech is bouncing back from a weekend of international travel and the high of a massive conference win. After being featured on the show College Gameday and receiving a lot of hype from the media, the team has plenty of momentum to build from. Here is what I Think I Know going into Week One of the 2024 college football season.
This game holds a lot of weight.
After the Florida State victory, I noticed two takeaways from college football media:
1. Georgia Tech is a vastly improved team, and they will continue to impress and win games.
2. Florida State played a horrible game, and Georgia Tech’s win was a fluke. This game was their peak, and they will be lucky to make a bowl game.
TLDR: People have contrasting views on Georgia Tech’s performance versus the Seminoles.
To me, this game is a benchmark of where we are as a team with our mentality. How do we handle the massive amount of national attention we have been getting? How do we respond after traveling back from a different country? How does this coaching staff keep this team from becoming too arrogant from an upset victory the weekend before?
If you have been a Tech football fan for some time, this game is likely causing some concern. In the past, this team has been known for winning games we shouldn’t and losing games we shouldn’t. Just last season, we got smoked by Bowling Green, then turned around the next weekend and beat 17th-ranked Miami on the road. This game provides an excellent opportunity for our team to demonstrate our ability to rebound and deliver a solid 60-minute performance, regardless of past patterns. However, it’s also a potential trap, risking a loss in a game we should not let slip away. I have faith in this team, especially after we played a remarkable game in Ireland, but we cannot overlook this matchup. I don’t think this fanbase or this team wants our FSU win to seem like a fluke, and we need to see that we have the mindset to play 60 minutes of football this weekend. Coach Key said in his press conference this week that Georgia State is “the biggest game of the year. Hands down, make no bones about it.” On Saturday, we will find out if this team is ready to rise to the challenge and handle the pressure this matchup holds.
The offensive line improvement we saw last season wasn’t a fluke.
Prior to the 2023 season, our offensive line was arguably our largest weakness. In just one year, offensive line coach Geep Wade and the entire offensive staff have completely turned this position group around, as the O-line is now one of our biggest assets. The Jackets finished 2023 with the most rushing yards in the ACC at 203.8 yards per game, and we picked right back up where we left off for this season, with 190 rushing yards on 36 attempts for an average of 5.3 yards per play. The line allowed for Jamal Haynes and Haynes King to get creative and disrupt the FSU defense. Even Chad Alexander had some impressive runs and exhibits potential. Let’s be honest, the Tech offensive line completely bullied this FSU defensive line, paving the way for a thrilling and dynamic running game. This was a shock to me, and pretty much everyone else who pays the slightest attention to college football. The Seminoles were anticipated by many to have the best D-line in college football with an immense amount of talent. After a Jamal Haynes touchdown at the very beginning of the 4th quarter, announcer Jesse Palmer expresses his shock at how our offensive line was outplaying the defensive line in the trenches. My favorite reaction to this game was “I was told this was the best defensive line in the country and Georgia Tech was pushing them around like paper.” This was spot on, to say the least. I can say confidently that this is the most impressed I’ve been with our offensive line since the 11-win season in 2014. The physicality and consistency are incredibly promising to see from this group.
As Coach Key says, “are you kidding me? Run the BALL!!”
The run defense looks drastically better
Need I say more? Georgia Tech finished 128th in the country in rush defense last year allowing 221.3 yards per game, 5.38 yards per rush, and 28 rushing TDs. It was abysmal, to say the least. Tech finished this game allowing only 98 total rushing yards on 31 attempts. 58 of these yards came from the first drive, meaning Tech only allowed 40 more rushing yards the entire game.
So yes, while the offensive line dominated in the trenches, the defensive line deserves just as much credit. Last season, the Jackets allowed a 44.7% success rate on rush attempts and were the worst run defense in the ACC by far. We lost our two best defensive linemen, Kyle Kennard and Da-Quan Douse, so expectations were not super high going into this game or this season. New defensive coordinator Tyler Santucci coached out of his mind, and the line looked like a brick wall that talented Florida State running backs could not budge.
This level of production from our line has only been seen for one game, so I do not want to get too confident just yet, but what we have seen so far demonstrates real potential.
This matchup holds meaning for both schools in the ATL.
This game will feature some very familiar faces on both the sidelines and the field. Former Tech quarterback Zach Gibson is expected to start against the Jackets, and defensive back Kenyatta Watson is the backup free safety. Kevin Sherrer is the defensive coordinator, former Tech QB Taquon Marshall is a Graduate Assistant, and Rod Rook Chungong is the Director of Player Development. Former Georgia Tech legend Bill Curry is known as the pioneer of Georgia State football, and it will be a monumental game to see his two teams finally compete against one another.
Saturday night will be electric, as Atlanta’s two college teams will finally match up against each other. Georgia State is going to be fired up and ready to play, and the Jackets are coming off one of the program’s biggest wins in almost a decade. This should be an incredible game with a lot riding on it.
Go Jackets!