Georgia Tech Football Transformation in Full Speed

Georgia Tech improved their record to 6-6 this season, making a bowl game for the first time since 2018

Author:
Rish Desai
Publish date:
Dec 19, 2023 10:30 AM EST

In this story:

Roughly 15 months ago, the athletic department and the football program at Georgia Tech underwent a major change: replacing Athletic Director Todd Stansbury and Head Football Coach Geoff Collins with J Batt and Brent Key respectively. In that time since the changes, Tech football has seen a culture change which has created a ripple effect in a multitude of areas.

In Key’s final eight games under the interim tag, he put his new team culture on display every week and turned the Jackets into an attractive destination for both players and staff. Over the last few years, the transfer portal has become a significant factor in collegiate athletics. In Batt and Key’s first offseason in their new positions, they were able to bring in several centerpieces from the transfer portal including starting quarterback Haynes King from Texas A&M, wide receiver Dominick Blaylock, and tight end Brett Seither from in-state rival Georgia and wide receiver Chase Lane from Alabama.

To maximize their offensive abilities, the team brought in Buster Faulkner from Georgia to be the Jackets’ new offensive coordinator. The new playmakers and Faulkner brought a new dimension to the Jackets’ offense and produced immediate results this past season.

Georgia Tech improved their record to 6-6 this season
Nathaniel Caudell

Georgia Tech was one of the top offenses in the ACC this season and garnered national attention for their offensive prowess. Throughout the season, the team produced big plays in high volumes. They had 55 “explosive plays” through the air(20+ yard pass play) and 50 “explosive plays” on the ground(10+ yard rushing play).

Two of the biggest reasons this was able to be the case were because of the standout play of King and the exceptional play of the offensive line. Through his performance this season, King has emerged as one of the top quarterbacks not only in the ACC but on the national stage as well. King led the ACC in passing touchdowns and points responsible; he also led the Jackets to being second in total offense in the conference. In thrilling ranked wins against Miami(FL) and North Carolina, King made critical plays when it mattered most and received lots of national attention for his performance. Most notably, in one of the most exciting wins in program history, King played a nearly flawless game with 4 touchdowns and only 1 interception to go along with 90 yards on the ground and 287 yards through the air and received numerous national awards for that week.

From an offensive line standpoint, this team has given the fewest sacks in conference play and was amongst the top 20 in the nation in the fewest sacks allowed. The steady play of the offensive line allowed the opportunity for the offense to execute at the highest level.

Together, this combination of King spreading the ball around at a high level, an elite offensive line, and creative play calling from Faulkner allowed for the Jackets to take big steps in the right direction. These areas directly translated into on-field results as they became one of the nation’s most improved offenses. From points per game, Georgia Tech scored 31.1 points per game improving from 17.2 points per game a season ago and from a yardage point of view, they moved up to 429 yards per game from 325 last year.

Ethan Mackenny lines up at tackle
Petre Thomas - USA Today

In just one year, this young team has begun producing very promising results including reaching bowl eligibility for the first time since 2018. Georgia Tech has continued to leave fans eagerly awaiting what else is in store for this team as has also been evident from rising fan interest. Throughout the season, the national interest and attention this team has garnered has continuously increased. In their final regular season, their rivalry matchup against then #1-ranked Georgia brought in over 5 million viewers becoming the most-watched ABC Saturday night game of the season and the third most-watched ACC game of the season.

This year a record-breaking number of players have entered the transfer portal, but Georgia Tech has had some of the lowest number of players enter the transfer portal. The low transfer portal entrance number is a true testament to the culture that Batt and Key have been creating.

With plenty of the team’s leaders staying and continuing to become more comfortable in the system, the transformation of this team is one to be excited about.