Hokies look to snap losing skid in the battle of the Tech’s
By THOMAS HOWLETT
Patriot Publishing
After getting stunned on the road last week in California, the Hokies look to rebound on their home turf against a struggling Georgia Tech.
For the second straight week the Hokies were on the receiving end of a heartbreaking loss. Once again the offense struggled to keep momentum, while the defense couldn’t make a stop when it mattered most.
Even then it still came down to the final play, but this time instead of a missed field goal it was a final pass from Ethan Grunkemeyer that fell incomplete.
The play came with tons of contact that could have been ruled pass interference, but the officials didn’t blow the whistle and Luke Reynolds couldn’t make the catch.
To make matters worse John Love missed two more field goals, which could have changed the game.
The fact of the matter is that the Hokies are on a two game losing streak, and for the first time in the James Franklin era there is a major roadblock.
What happens this week against the Yellow Jackets will be very telling for the future of the season and the program.
Grunkemeyer only passed for 288 yards while in total the ground game only contributed 113 yards of offense.
Defensively the Hokies were a mess in the secondary as Cal’s backup quarterback Jackson Brousseau tossed a touchdown pass along with 321 yards.
Their opponent this week doesn’t rely on the pass nearly as much as Cal. Brent Key’s Georgia Tech teams are known for running the football, but this year the production hasn’t been top tier.
Key’s offenses have typically featured the quarterback as a main running option, however that is not the case this year with new quarterback Alberto Mendoza. Mendoza is the younger brother of last season’s Heisman Trophy winner Fernando Mendoza, and the resemblance is uncanny.
While both have similar playing styles they do not have the same level of arm talent. Alberto Mendoza has only 1,193 passing yards and seven touchdowns. His arm talent is better than Georgia Tech has had in previous seasons, but his lack of rushing prowess has limited the Yellow Jacket’s options.
Georgia Tech’s leading rusher is Michigan transfer Justice Haynes. Haynes has rushed for 462 yards and three touchdowns. His partner in crime is Trelain Maddux, and while the splits favor Haynes to get a significant amount of carries more than Maddux, the opportunities he brings to the offense is a great complement.
Jordan Allen and Dalen Penson are the top receivers for the Yellow Jackets statistically, but the two receivers have only one touchdown between them.
A theme for the Yellow Jackets has been their issue to finish drives, and if they want to enter the Hokies’ house and exit with a win, capitalizing with scores will be crucial.
The Yellow Jackets have struggled the most defensively. Georgia Tech has only one interception this season and three forced fumbles, only two were recovered.
The key to defeating the Hokies is by forcing mistakes, and Georgia Tech has not made weaker competition make mistakes this season.
Safety Tae Harris leads the defense in tackles with 32 on the campaign while defensive tackle Tawfiq Thomas is second with 31. Thomas is tied for first on the team with two sacks.
Georgia Tech got right with a win over a tough Duke team to improve to 2-3 on the year. Duke was Georgia Tech’s first ACC win and Power four victory as well.
The contest came down to the final seconds with Duke missing the game tying field goal. Georgia Tech will try and snowball this momentum heading into Saturday.
Both teams will be playing for the inverse of each other. The Hokies look for a win to snap a losing streak, while the Yellow Jackets will look to start their first win streak.
The old saying is that “styles make fights” and that is certainly true for this contest. Both head coaches bring their respective teams unique identities, so regardless of the outcome it will be a clash to remember between Franklin and Key.