Georgia Tech was clearly inspired by Syracuse’s rushing attack last season.
Teams: Syracuse Orange (1-0, 0-0) vs No. 23 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (2-0, 1-0)
Day & Time: Saturday, September 7, 12:00 pm
Location: JMA Wireless Dome, Syracuse, NY
Line: Syracuse checks in as a +3 underdog according to most sportsbooks.
TV/Streaming: ACC Network, WatchESPN
Radio: Cuse.com, TK 99/105, WAER 88.3, Sirius/XM 161 or 193
Rivalry: 4-1, Georgia Tech
Current Streak: 1, Georgia Tech
First Meeting: The first meeting between these two teams didn’t come until 2001 when the programs faced off in the Kickoff Classic at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey. It wasn’t a classic, with the then No. 10 Yellow Jackets winning a defensive battle 13-7. The lone touchdown for Syracuse came via a quarterback rush by some guy named Troy Nunes.
Last Meeting: Georgia Tech jumped out to a 17-3 lead at halftime which grew to a 24-3 lead after the start of the 3rd quarter. The Orange valiantly battled back and nearly tied the game halfway through the 4th quarter, but Syracuse failed a 2-point conversion to make the score 24-22 in favor of the Yellow Jackets. Georgia Tech then scored with two minutes and change left and Syracuse immediately turned the ball over to lose 31-22. That loss meant that the Orange couldn’t meet the 7-5 regular season target record that John Wildhack set, which meant Dino Babers was dismissed following the game.
Photo by Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Head Coaches: Syracuse – Fran Brown (first year – 1-0) | Georgia Tech – Brent Key (second year, 13-10)
Coach Bio: Key was a four-year starter at Georgia Tech playing right guard. He immediately went into coaching after his college career, staying in Atlanta as a graduate assistant before getting his first full-time assistant job with Western Carolina. Key then moved to UCF to coach alongside George O’Leary, who Key played under at Georgia Tech. He stayed with the Knights for 10 years, working his way up the UCF coaching hierarchy. He was eventually named Assistant Head Coach in his final three seasons.
Key was fired from UCF after a messy 2015 season where the Knights went 0-12. He moved to Alabama to take over the offensive line coaching duties from Mario Cristobal. He stayed in Tuscaloosa for three years before returning to his alma mater Georgia Tech. Key immediately became assistant head coach, offensive line coach and run game coordinator for the Yellow Jackets. After Geoff Collins was fired four games into the 2022 season, Key took over as interim head coach and rallied Georgia Tech to a 4-4 record to close out the year. He was named permanent head coach of the Yellow Jackets a few days after the season ended.
Last Year: A win over No. 17 North Carolina and a gifted win over No. 17 Miami (shoutout to the clock) were the highlights in a 6-6 season for Georgia Tech, sending the Yellow Jackets bowling for the first time since 2018. Georgia Tech capped off the season with a 30-17 win over UCF in the Gasparilla Bowl.
Last Game: Georgia Tech’s efficiency and defense proved to be the difference against their Atlanta rivals in Georgia State. The Yellow Jackets stayed true to their identity with 225 rushing yards en route to a 35-12 win.
Photo by Michael Wade/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
“Fear Me, I’ve Killed Hundreds of Timelords”: Jamal Haynes rushed 11 times for 82 yards and a touchdown against Syracuse last season. That is about what he is averaging so far this season for a Georgia Tech team that has run the ball very effectively this season.
If Syracuse Wins: I, for one, would like to thank our new lord and savior Fran Brown.
If Syracuse Loses: So can we quickly schedule FSU to regain some confidence?
Fun Fact: Brent Key was the tight ends/running backs coach at Western Carolina when Fran Brown was a player there in 2004.