Ranking the opponents: No. 10 - Georgia Tech

Team: Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

WHERE: Bobby Dodd Stadium, Atlanta

WHEN: Saturday, Nov. 30.

2018 RECORD: (7-6, 5-3 in ACC Coastal)

RETURNING STARTERS: Offense – 4 (TB Jerry Howard, Jr., WR Jalen Camp, LT Zach Quinney, LG Kenny Cooper); Defense - 4 (LB David Curry, LB Charlie Thomas, CB Tre Swilling, SS Tariq Carpenter); Special Teams – 2 (K Wesley Wells, P Pressley Harvin III)

KEY LOSSES: OL Will Bryan, Parker Braun (transfer to Texas)

NOTE TO KNOW: Georgia Tech opens the season at defending national champion Clemson.

Last year proved to be the swan song for former coach Paul Johnson, who retired after the season following 11 years at the school.

Johnson’s final outing saw the Yellow Jackets finish 7-6, capped by a 34-10 loss to Minnesota in the Quick Lane Bowl, with some of the team’s better wins coming against the likes of Miami (27-21) and Virginia (30-27).

Enter former Temple head coach Geoff Collins, who is completely revamping the Yellow Jackets on both sides of the football.

Gone is the triple option, in favor of a more traditional spread, with the defense switching up from a 3-4 to a 4-2-5 scheme.

As you might imagine, the Yellow Jackets are expected to experience their share of growing pains—especially on the offensive side.

The quarterback trio of Lucas Johnson, James Graham, and Tobias Oliver have a combined 16 college passes between them.

Some good news: Running back KirVonte Benson rushed for 1,000 yards two seasons ago, while the secondary has legitimate talent and could well be the strength of the defense.

Unfortunately, with so much change, it’s hard to imagine Georgia Tech being able to navigate its schedule unscathed, as the Yellow Jackets can expect their share of growing pains until Collins can upgrade his roster to fit the team’s new system.

The Bulldogs will be a heavy favorite against a Yellow Jacket squad in rebuild mode.

Winning this one won’t be an issue.

Considering how different Georgia Tech will be from previous seasons, is there really any way to gauge the kind of team the Yellow Jackets will have this fall?

Quinlin: "It's a constant topic of conversation with every media interview, Tech fans, and even the coaches. If Paul Johnson were back, Tech would be picked second maybe in the Coastal by the media this summer, and this team will probably be picked last. The truth is, Clemson and UGA will be the two hardest games on the schedule, with the lowest chance of winning. They will beat the Citadel, and everything else is a toss-up.

"They lack depth or experience at key spots on the offensive line and at quarterback, and are thin up-front on defense after the death of Brandon Adams. That's not a recipe for picking a ton of wins in my opinion. I think they will go bowling and will be a tough out, but I think it's year one of a two-year process of rebuilding depth at positions like offensive tackle and tight end that were completely different or nonexistent in the triple under Johnson."

Anytime a new coach takes over, there's a "culture change" that takes place. Other than going to a more conventional offense, what's the biggest "change" that new coach Geoff Collins has brought to Georgia Tech?

Quinlin: "Collins is all about maximum effort in all things, and having fun while doing it. They play music at meetings until the meeting starts, they play music during practice with a DJ there. The kids love just hanging around with the coaching staff. That's a very different culture than the more stoic staff under Johnson. It's funny seeing how many recruits enjoy just hanging around campus, even ones committed elsewhere, because of the atmosphere Collins has created."

How long do you anticipate QBs, WRs, and OL recruited to play the option taking to adjust playing in Coach Collins' system.

Quinlin: "The wide receiver shift is zero. People forget they’ve put five NFL wide receivers in during Johnson’s tenure. That room was stacked with a lot of guys who just haven’t played much, because they only used three guys a game basically. The slot receivers are a mix of wide receivers and guys who played slot back in the old offense, so that's set. Offensive tackle is the real challenge on the line, because most of the offensive tackles were guys who were 'tweeners like Zach Quinney, who could’ve played tight end or offensive tackle. They have one real true offensive tackle in Jack DeFoor, and Quinney is pretty good, but the depth falls off a lot after them, with many guys who have little experience past blocking. The guards and centers seem to be very solid, based on what we saw this spring, and they have the right skill sets for those spots.

"The quarterback thing is the big question; however, the new offensive coordinator, Dave Patenaude, has tailored his offense at every stop to the quarterback he has rather than forcing schemes on people. They are going to run a ton of read-option, and have guys like Tobias Oliver and James Graham who are very dangerous with those types of plays.

"Lucas Johnson exited spring as the starting quarterback, and he can sling it. He was injured last year, and it really turned the Jackets’ season, because he was the best passer on the team, and they had packages for him to run differently, than what they normally did with TaQuon Marshall and Oliver. The biggest question there is Johnson’s health. He has battled injuries throughout his brief career and only played in two games. The wild card there is true freshman Jordan Yates, who should’ve been one of the top quarterbacks in the country, but got knocked by some schools for his lack of height.

"All in all, I expect the offense to take some time to transition, but if they are healthy, they will score some points this year."