5 Key Takeaways From Georgia Tech's Convincing Win Against VMI

Key Takeaways From Georgia Tech's Blowout Victory on Saturday

Sep 14, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) throws a touchdown pass against the Virginia Military Institute Keydets in the second quarter at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Georgia Tech got back to their winning ways on Saturday in a dominating 59-7 win against VMI. The Yellow Jackets are now 3-1 on the season and have a major ACC matchup coming up next week against Louisville. Here are some key takeaways from the game yesterday: 

1. Georgia Tech's defense looked much improved compared to last week- No matter the opponent, this kind of defensive performance should be applauded. The Yellow Jackets allowed 35 total yards of offense and -16 rushing yards in the first half. Another important note is that the Yellow Jackets held VMI to 0-8 on third down all in the first half. VMI averaged just 1.3 yards per play in the first half. VMI finished the game 1-13 on third down. An important area Georgia Tech has struggled with this season has been sacks. The Yellow Jackets had more sacks on Saturday than they’ve had all season combined finishing with three sacks against VMI. Sylvain Yondjouen, Trenilyas Tatum, and Josh Robinson all registered sacks. Georgia Tech now has five sacks through four games. The run defense was also really good on Saturday and the Yellow Jackets showed great open-field tackling in the game. VMI finished with just 104 yards of total offense and 12 rushing yards. It was the least amount of rushing yards given up since 2004 for the Yellow Jackets.

2. The offense got back to its explosive ways- The Yellow Jackets had 366 yards of offense in the first half. The passing offense was dynamic with 275 passing yards and on the ground, the Yellow Jackets had 91 rushing yards in the first half. Georgia Tech connected on deep passes all game long, including a 35-yard touchdown from Haynes King to Malik Rutherford. TE Avery Boyd had a 33-yard touchdown catch where he made a defender miss and ran in for the score. The offense scored on four consecutive scoring possessions and on all four possessions they scored a touchdown in five plays or less. At the half, the Yellow Jackets had more points (38) than VMI had yards (35). King had another big game. In the first half, he was 17-22 for 275 yards and three touchdowns. King didn’t play in the second half after a stellar first-half showing. He continues to prove he is one of the best quarterbacks in the country. Georgia Tech had a 38-0 lead at halftime and played their reserves in the second half in the blowout victory. Georgia Tech scored their most points this season (59) and got contributions from all over. 

3. Young Players getting some shine- True freshman LB Tah'j Butler got a chance to see the field and blew up a screen pass resulting in a loss of five yards on the play. Butler finished with a team-high five tackles and a tackle for loss. DB Zachary Tobe also got a chance to see the field and made several plays on the ball for the Yellow Jackets that resulted in two pass breakups. Tobe also had three tackles on Saturday afternoon. True freshman EDGE Amontrae Bradford also registered a tackle. True freshman QB Aaron Philo also got a chance to see some action in the fourth quarter and showed great improvisation as the rush nearly got home staying on his feet and throwing a 41-yard strike to Chris Elko. True Freshman RB Anthony Carrie had the longest run of the afternoon, a 29-yard rush that set up the Yellow Jackets into VMI territory late in the fourth quarter. He also finished with a two-yard touchdown run. It’s always great seeing young players getting an opportunity to see the field and Georgia Tech continues to show they have good depth and talent behind their starters. 

4. Georgia Tech may have found their No.2 running back- One of the biggest questions this season is who would complement starting running back Jamal Haynes, so far Georgia Tech has been doing it by committee, but may have found themselves a guy they can depend on. It was the college debut for former Parkview star Trelain Maddox. Maddox received his first reps of the season for the Yellow Jackets and didn’t disappoint. In the first half, he had 48 rushing yards on seven carries. He finished with nine carries for 53 yards and a touchdown. I think what was most impressive was his yards after contact and the burst he had. There were several plays where Maddox turned three or four-yard runs into seven and eight-yard gains. His burst allowed him to get to the second level of the defense quickly and set more manageable second downs for the Yellow Jackets. Maddox finished with 5.9 yards per carry. He seems like a fitting complement to Haynes in the backfield. 

5. Eric Singleton got back to Freshman All-American form- Eric Singleton Jr caught the longest play of the game from 50 yards out. It was a great bomb from King and Singleton JR separated from the cornerbacks with ease reeling in the catch. Singleton Jr also had a lot of success on the corner route in the game and took advantage of the lax coverage in zone by VMI. He had his best game of the season and finally finished over the 100-yard mark. Singleton Jr finished with five catches for 102 yards and a touchdown. His lone receiving touchdown came from 14 yards out. He also had a run of 15 yards on a reverse earlier in the game.