Well, here we are.
It’s time for the regular season finale as No. 5 Georgia takes on Georgia Tech in Sanford Stadium, trying to win at home in this rivalry for the first time since 2012.
To get the latest on the Yellow Jackets for our weekly Insider’s Take series, we turn to Kelly Quinlan on Jacketsonline.com.
UGASports: How would you assess Georgia Tech's season so far? What has been the biggest surprise? What has been the biggest disappointment?
Quinlan: "It's been a tale of two seasons, really. The Jackets started the year 1-4 and struggled to close games against Pitt and USF they should've won. Since the Clemson game, the Tech defense came around, and the Jackets played better in each game under new defensive coordinator Nate Woody. In the second half of games, the Jackets have given up fewer than seven points in five games. There were a couple of key injuries on offense early in the year, with starting B-back KirVonte Benson going down in fall camp and starting center Kenny Cooper missing about nine months after an injury in spring ball. Tech got Cooper back mid-season, and he's made a big impact at center and helped the offense.
I think the biggest surprise has been the use of both TaQuon Marshall and Tobias Oliver at quarterback. Marshall has battled some injuries, and Oliver has put up a ton of yards in limited duty. If one quarterback isn't effective, they can switch and use Oliver as a change of pace to throw off defenses. While Paul Johnson says the two do the same things, the packages are very different for each quarterback, and it has been tough to prepare for.
The biggest disappointment was the loss at Pittsburgh. The Jackets should've won that game and beaten USF the week before. They came out flat, and it cost them an ACC division title."
UGASports: Explain the way Coach Johnson is using both TaQuon Marshall and Tobias Oliver.
Quinlan: "TaQuon Marshall is the starter, and if he struggles or isn't making good decisions, Johnson puts in Oliver. Marshall has played better the last two weeks; he's healthier than he's been since the first week of the season. The quarterback who's hot and making plays stays in the game, and that's how they've done things the last three or four games. Oliver runs more of a double-option power-running package, and Marshall has the full offense at his disposal. They ran as many play types against Virginia as I've seen since Paul Johnson was here, because of Marshall's grasp of the offense last week."
UGASports: What's been the strength and the weakness of the defense this year?
Quinlan: "The defense is good at forcing turnovers with forced fumbles and interceptions. They rally to the ball and pull it out a bunch. There have been several forced fumbles and tipped interceptions this year simply off effort on defense. The defensive line is the strength of this group, led by senior defensive end Anree Saint-Amour. He is the best player on Tech's defense. He has a knack for getting pressure; he has a pair of interceptions and several sacks this year.
The weakest part of the defense is the inside linebacker play. Square pegs in round holes, neither Brant Mitchell nor David Curry are athletic enough to be successful in this scheme, compared with what Nate Woody would like. They really have issues with running quarterbacks, keeping their eyes in the right place, fitting their gaps correctly, and tackling. The corner positions have been hit and miss as well, with Tre Swilling and Lamont Simmons. Swilling is a redshirt freshman and makes "young player" mistakes, but he also makes some big plays. Simmons has been very inconsistent all year."
UGASports: What's the fan base's temperature regarding Paul Johnson?
Quinlan: "Depends on whom you ask. Sidewalk fans are generally negative toward Coach Johnson and have delusions that Georgia Tech is Alabama in waiting. The majority of fans realize how hard the school is, the difficulties they face in recruiting surrounded by major factory schools on all sides, such as Georgia, Clemson, Auburn, Tennessee, and Florida. Todd Stansbury, the athletic director, would like to see Johnson stay until he can fully implement his AI2020 plan and have the athletic department correctly funded for the first time since O'Leary left. The reality is, people respect what Johnson has done, and everyone knows he only has a handful of seasons left before he retires.
Most of the fans just want to win, and a win over UGA would surely give him a lot of good will. Seeing the turnaround and the potential of Nate Woody's defense, even without its ideal players, has changed the minds of some on the fence to the positive side."
UGASports: Break down how you see this game shaping up.
Quinlan: "On paper, this looks like a shootout type of game. Neither team has a great run defense, and both teams are good at running the ball and have plenty of weapons for it. Like most of the UGA-Georgia Tech games, I think it'll be a close game. But I think the Jackets will struggle if they get behind the chains. The Tech passing game has been suspect, so if UGA can keep them off-balance, then the Dawgs have a good shot at an easy win.
The hardest thing to gauge for both teams is the lack of quality opponents. Georgia played a good LSU team and Tech played a great Clemson team, and both lost. But other than that, both schools have played a bunch of average teams all year. The ACC Coastal is worse than the SEC East for the first time in a while.
I think both teams will run wild, and if UGA is able to hit some pass plays, they will win and could cover that 17-point spread. If the Jackets can play decent defense, then it will be a close game like the last few trips to Athens. I'd expect a Georgia win 34-27. I've always expected UGA to win in this game except for 2009 and 2014, so we'll see what happens. The talent gap is significant, so a Tech win would be a tremendous upset."
