Kirby Smart previews matchup against pesky Georgia Tech

We’ve spent the entire week looking at what Georgia has done to prepare for Georgia Tech, but what have the Bulldogs really seen out of the Yellow Jackets so far this season?

It’s no secret that Tech’s season got off to a rocky start, firing former head coach Geoff Collins following a 1-3 start. Although all three losses came against ranked opponents, it was enough to convince the athletic department that a change was needed.

Since Collins’s firing, the Yellow Jackets have gone 4-3, with a shot at clinching bowl eligibility for the first time since 2018 on Saturday. The man responsible for the midseason turnaround is former Yellow Jacket offensive line coach and player Brent Key, who Kirby Smart shared his admiration for earlier this week.

“He’s got great leadership qualities,” Smart said. “He played under what I thought was one of the best staffs that he’s been around. When he played there, it was George O’Leary. The job that he did there goes unrecognized. It was during some of the time that I was playing here. He had some of the best Georgia Tech teams there were. They were so physical, so competitive. I think Brent playing under him shaped him into who he is and who he’s become as a coach. What a tremendous job he did, and know Brent is doing. Brent’s done a tremendous job in recruiting for a long time, and he still will be. I don’t know if he will end up there, or somewhere else, but he is going to be a good football coach regardless of where he is.” 

To find an impressive win in Key’s resume, you don’t have to look back further than last Saturday when the Yellow Jackets took down the No. 15 North Carolina Tar Heels on the road.

“Yeah, you know, they started a little slow. And then once they got in their groove, they were really aggressive, extremely physical,” Smart said. “You know, I think they held UNC to their lowest output in terms of yardage and maybe points in the season. They played really hard, and they did a great job defensively. They always have — you know, Tech has good personnel. And the guys there know football and you can see that the kids are playing with a lot more passion and energy. They’re one game from bowl eligibility and you saw it come out in the play against UNC.”

In their big win over the Tar Heels, the Yellow Jackets employed two different quarterbacks – Zach Gibson and Taisun Phommachanh – who combined for 187 yards on 15-of-23 passing, as well as 12 carries for 53 yards on the ground. Smart addressed how the two quarterbacks complimented each other and the challenge of defending both signal callers.

“Yeah, they definitely got different skill sets and they’re both good players,” Smart said. “I caught some of a Thursday night game earlier this year and got to see the Gibson quarterback. And, then, you know, watching Taisun go against the UNC team, it was a different flavor. You know, they really complement each other. Big, physical guy. Both of them can actually run. And the improvement that Gibson’s made over the recent games to me is astounding. He’s throwing the ball much better, much more efficiently.”

So far this season, the Georgia Tech has forced 14 fumbles, recovering nine of the loose balls. On the year the Yellow Jackets are +11 in the turnover department, one of the top teams in the country for that category. Considering the Bulldogs’ struggles with turnovers this season, it’ll be critical for the offense to keep the ball away from the defense.

“Their defensive coordinator does a great job,” Smart said. “They attack the ball, man. They’ve got visual, intentional strip-outs. That’s what we want our guys to do. We always say we’re competing with the other team to cause more turnovers than they do, and they do a great job with it. They’re plus-10 [in turnovers] in their wins, and they’re plus-one in their losses. They’ve got a really good turnover margin.” 

That’s not the only dangerous part about the Tech defense. According to Smart, the Yellow Jackets constantly attack the backfield, creating issues for any offense that they face.

“Havoc. They cause havoc. They stunt and move people. They fire people. They blitz people, and they cause turnovers,” Smart said. “They’re bought in. They play really hard. Credit to Coach Thacker and what he believes in, but they’re playing really hard. They’re athletic and move around a lot. They do a good job.” 

In the series history, Georgia has a 69-39 lead over Georgia Tech, winning 17 out of their last 20 matchups including four in a row. Still, Smart has emphasized educating his players on the importance of the rivalry.

“It’s what this program’s biggest rivalry was many, many, many years ago when they were in the SEC. Our kids don’t know that history,” Smart said. “They don’t know the history of this rivalry and what goes into it. It was a really big rivalry, you know, during Paul’s years here because of the triple option and playing something different and the physicality of the game, you know. And I think educating our players on that so they understand it — because it means a lot to our players in terms of what they want to achieve and they got to win this game to achieve those things. So making sure they understand that is really important. And teaching the history of that is important because it’ll mean something to the Georgia Tech players and the Georgia players 20/30 years from now.”

Kickoff between the Bulldogs and Yellow Jackets is set for 12:00 p.m. ET on ESPN. Georgia will honor its senior class before the game with this being the last game many of them will play between the hedges at Sanford Stadium.