Georgia Tech Football: 2022 Spring Game Recap

Georgia Tech Football held their spring game last week. What were the key takeaways from the game?

Atlanta Journal Constitution: Hyosub Shin

A lot of college football teams, including many on Georgia Tech's upcoming 2022 schedule, are just now getting their spring practice underway. The Yellow Jackets, however, finished up last Thursday and are now done with their spring practice for the year. This was the fourth spring practice for Georgia Tech head coach Geoff Collins and it is not a stretch to say that this was the most important one for him during his tenure. 

Collins is going to enter the season squarely on the hot seat after not having made a bowl game thus far in his tenure. There were signs in the early part of the 2021 season that this team was making strides under Collins. The Yellow Jackets played Clemson down to the wire and routed North Carolina, a preseason top ten team. The latter part of the season was a disaster, however. Ugly losses to Notre Dame and Georgia left some wondering if Collins would be fired after last season, but he was given another chance to show he has this program going in the right direction. 

The first thing that should be said about any spring game is that it is hard to get serious takeaways from the game itself. Every program does its spring game differently and Georgia Tech made sure to make theirs unique this year. Fans were allowed to watch the game from the field and it made for a relaxing atmosphere all evening, even if it was a bit unique. The game was not a two-hour scrimmage like most other spring games and the first part of the night consisted of drills and then moved into more of a team setting, with the offense facing the defense. 

So what were the key observations and takeaways from the Georgia Tech Football spring game? 

1. First Chance for new Coaches to Impress

 

The Yellow Jackets are bringing in a host of new coaches for the 2022 season to try and turn the program around and the spring game was the first chance to see what kind of progress had been made. The offensive has a new coordinator in Chip Long, a new quarterbacks coach in Chris Weinke, and a new running backs coach in Mike Daniels. On defense, David Turner, Travares Tillman, and Jason Semore are all in their first season in Atlanta as full-time coaches. 

For most teams, the first spring when learning an offense can be a challenge. It is the first time that these players are getting to learn from the new coaches and that can be a big adjustment. 

There were some new looks that the offense showed, such as taking more snaps under center and having multiple tight ends on the field. The Yellow Jackets' offense ranked 92nd in total offense last season, so this is going to have to be a unit that takes a big step forward if Georgia Tech wants to be competitive. 

2. Jeff Sims has an up and down day

During his two-year career so far at Georgia Tech, Yellow Jackets quarterback Jeff Sims has shown moments where he looks like a future star and moments where he doesn't. Finding consistency is going to be the key for Sims to lead this offense in the upcoming season. 

Because he is learning a new offense and has only had a month or so to do that, it is fair to not be too hard on Sims. However, there were some plays during the game last Thursday that reminded Tech fans of how inconsistent Sims can be at times. 

Early during the scrimmage portion of the game, Sims looked on time and threw with anticipation, and looked like he knew where to go with the football in the pocket. After that, there were plays where Sims missed some throws and his mechanics were off. 

How much Sims can improve and be more consistent is the key for the Georgia Tech offense in 2021. Hopefully, he will improve over the summer as he learns Long's new offense. 

3. Replacing Jahmyr Gibbs is going to be a tall task

The running game has been a fixture of the Georgia Tech offense, even after Paul Johnson left. The Yellow Jackets used to be able to rely on one of the best running backs in the country to hand the ball off to, but they no longer have that luxury. 

Gibbs is off to Alabama and Georgia Tech has to replace their best offensive player this season. If the spring was any indication, that is still an ongoing process. 

Dontae Smith had 14 yards on only three carries and Hassan Hall had six carries for 15 yards. Hall is a grad transfer from Louisville and should make more of an impact during the season, but that is undoubtedly a disappointing performance. 

It bears repeating that stats in a spring game should be taken with a grain of salt, but it is no secret that replacing Gibbs is going to be challenging for the offense. Long wants a strong running game in his offenses and it is unclear if he has that right now. 

4. Secondary had a strong day

The offense for the Yellow Jackets had their struggles throughout the day, but some of that should be attributed to how well the secondary covered. Tillman is back in Atlanta to coach the defensive backs and his unit was the most impressive during the scrimmage. The secondary is having to replace four starters and is a question mark, but so far, so good. 

Defensive back Kenyatta Watson was making plays and had a pass breakup, as well as an interception. If he can finally stay healthy for a full season, it would be a big boost for the Yellow Jackets defense. 

The rest of the players provided airtight coverage all game and challenged Sims to make hard throws down the field. 

This was a surprise considering the players that Tech is having to replace, but it would be a welcome development if the Yellow Jackets secondary plays that well during the season. 

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