ESPN Analyst Names Haynes King as one of the Most Important Players In The College Football Playoff Race

King was one of the best quarterbacks in the ACC last season

Nov 25, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) runs for a touchdown against the Georgia Bulldogs in the second half at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia Tech is flying a little under the radar heading into the 2024 season and a lot of that has to do with skepticism about their defense, as well as playing one of the nation's toughest schedules. When you play one of the nation's toughest schedules though, it gives you an opportunity to play spoiler to a lot of teams and that is what Georgia Tech could do this season. The Yellow Jackets have one of the ACC's best quarterbacks and offenses and that is going to help them put a scare into a lot of teams.

Given all of this, ESPN's Bill Connelly has Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King as one of the most important players in the College Football Playoff Race, ranking him No. 21:

"After a frustrating and injury-plagued time at Texas A&M, King was part of a rousing breakthrough at Georgia Tech, throwing for 2,842 yards, rushing for 830 (not including sacks), jumping into the Total QBR top 30 and leading the Yellow Jackets to their first bowl in five years. He and Jamal Haynes form one of the nation's more dangerous backfields, and while the Jackets are in no way title contenders themselves -- King would also have to play stellar defense to help in that regard -- they could alter the CFP picture with shots against four projected top-20 opponents (per SP+): Florida State, Notre Dame, Miami, and Georgia."

King accounted for 3,729 yards of total offense (2,842 passing, 737 rushing) and 37 touchdowns (27 passing, 10 rushing) in his first season as the Yellow Jackets’ starting quarterback in 2023. He was one of only two Power Five conference players with at least 2,800 passing yards, 700 rushing yards, 25 touchdown passes, and 10 touchdown runs in 2023, joining Heisman Trophy winner and eventual No. 2 overall pick in the NFL Draft, Jayden Daniels of LSU, while he became only the fourth Atlantic Coast Conference player since 2000 to reach those plateaus in a single season, joining Clemson’s Deshawn Watson (2015), Louisville’s Lamar Jackson (2016 and 2017) and Virginia Tech’s Jerod Evans (2016).