College Gameday Crew Makes Their Picks For Georgia Tech vs Syracuse

College Gamdeday picked the winner of Georgia Tech vs Syracuse

Jan 1, 2024; Pasadena, CA, USA; Lee Corso (left) and Kirk Herbstreit on the ESPN College Gameday set at the 2024 Rose Bowl college football playoff semifinal game at Rose Bowl. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

College Gameday was in Ann Arbor, MI today for the big top-ten matchup between Texas and Michigan, but they made sure to talk about the big matchup over in Syracuse between the Orange and the No. 23 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. Earlier in the broadcast, Stanford Steve picked Syracuse +3 as one of his top plays of the day, but the rest of the crew made their picks later in the show.

The guest picker today was arguably the greatest Olympian ever, swimmer Michael Phelps. Phelps, Nick Saban, Pat McAfee, and Kirk Herbstreit picked Georgia Tech, while Desmond Howard and Lee Corso picked Syracuse to pull off the win.

The line for this game has remained pretty steady all week and has not shifted heavily in one direction. Georgia Tech opened as a small 2.5 point favorite on Sunday and as kickoff nears on Saturday, that is where the line is on Fanduel Sportsbook. Georgia Tech is going to be a road favorite in an ACC game today.

When the two teams faced off last November, the Orange had serious injuries on their offense, especially at the quarterback position. Now, Ohio State transfer Kyle McCord is in and he had a fantastic debut last week against Ohio, throwing for over 350 yards and four touchdowns. Syracuse also welcomed back Oronde Gadsden and he showed off his talent last week in his first game back from injury.

It is not all good news for Syracuse though. They had a hard time stopping the run last week vs Ohio and their best defensive player, linebacker Marlowe Wax, is injured. That could be a huge issue against one of the country's top rushing attacks.

Earlier this week, head coach Brent Key spoke with the media and took time to praise McCord and how good of a quarterback he thought he was:

"What I see as the challenge is the player himself. I think he's a tremendous quarterback. He gets rid of the football and throws the football really well. He has good skill guys on the outside that he can deliver them too. He has size and experience on the offensive line, it is going to be a big challenge for us."

This is likely to be the best passing attack that the Yellow Jackets have seen this season. On the other hand, Syracuse's run defense was so poor last week that the Yellow Jackets might have a huge day on the ground to offset anything Syracuse does on offense.

Here is how you can watch Saturday's game.

TV: ACC Network

• Play-by-Play: Chris Cotter

• Analyst: Mark Herzlich

• Sideline Reporter: Coley Harvey

• Mobile App: ESPN

• Online: WatchESPN.com

 

RADIO: Georgia Tech Sports Network

• Play-by-Play: Andy Demetra

• Analyst: Joe Hamilton

• Sideline Reporter: Chris Mooneyham

• In Atlanta: 680 AM/93.7 FM The Fan

• Across Georgia: Visit RamblinWreck.com for station affiliate list

• Satellite: SiriusXM 371

• Mobile Apps: GT Yellow Jackets, 680 The Fan, SiriusXM, TuneIn

• Online: RamblinWreck.com, 680TheFan.com

Bill Connelly's SP+ sees a narrow Georgia Tech victory on the horizon. SP+ is projecting Georgia Tech to win the game by a score of 30-29 and gives the Yellow Jackets a 52% chance to win.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-800-GAMBLER.