No Suprise, Georgia Tech's 2024 Schedule Ranked As One of The Nation's 10 Hardest

Jackson Caudell | May 9, 2024

Nov 25, 2023; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) throws / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

It has become one of college football's yearly traditions, but Georgia Tech's schedule is being ranked among the hardest in the country.

What is interesting about this schedule being so tough is that it does not include Clemson on it like almost every year. It was always a given that Georgia Tech's schedule would be tough because it included Clemson and Georgia on it every year, but that is not the case. The Tigers are not on the schedule and it is still a daunting schedule in front of Brent Key's team.

247Sports Analyst Brad Crawford ranked the Yellow Jackets 2024 schedule as the 6th toughest schedule in the country:

"One of only two ACC teams in our toughest schedules rankings, Georgia Tech has a difficult road ahead, especially if November when the Yellow Jackets play Miami, NC State and Georgia to end it. Brent Key must have this team ready to go every week, or else getting to bowl eligibility will be a challenge."

Seven of Georgia Tech's opponents appeared in the 247Sports post-spring top 25. 11 of Georgia Tech's 12 opponents played in bowl games last season.

It is no doubt going to be a tough schedule, even for a team that is returning a lot of talent and should have one of the best offenses in the ACC and the country. The good thing for the Yellow Jackets is that Key has shown an ability to win tough games and games where his program is an underdog dating back to when he took over as the interim head coach. Last season, Georgia Tech scored wins over Miami and North Carolina as underdogs, as well as playing Georgia tougher than most opponents did last season.

If Georgia Tech wants to be considered a dark horse for the ACC, they are going to have to earn it.

They open the season with defending ACC champion Florida State in Dublin, Ireland. The Seminoles have reloaded through the transfer portal again this season might be considered the ACC favorites coming into this season.

The final stretch of the season is going to be brutal. Notre Dame, Virginia Tech, Miami, NC State, and Georgia are the final five games of the season for the Yellow Jackets, with two of them (Virginia Tech and Georgia) are on the road.

Now that spring football is over and the portal is closed, how does Georgia Tech stack up against the rest of the ACC? According to CBS Sports Chip Patterson, the Yellow Jackets are in the middle of the pack in the ACC, as they checked in at No. 9 in his post-spring ACC power rankings. Georgia Tech comes in behind Florida State, Clemson, Miami, NC State, Virginia Tech, Louisville, SMU, and Cal. The Yellow Jackets come in ahead of Syracuse, North Carolina, Duke, Wake Forest, Boston College, Pitt, Virginia, and Stanford.

Here is what he had to say about Georgia Tech:

"I really like Georgia Tech's offense heading into 2024. Haynes King is back in his second season as the Yellow Jackets' starter, and he's joined by 1,000-yard rusher Jamal Haynes and three of the top four receivers from last year. King needs to get better about avoiding the costly errors after leading the ACC in both touchdowns (27) and interceptions (16), but it's a group that could be very prolific. But we're not power-ranking offenses here, and the Yellow Jackets were last in the ACC last season in both yards per game allowed and yards per play allowed. If Georgia Tech wants to improve on last year's seven-win season, there are obvious spots to start with limiting mistakes and getting stops."

I think being No. 9 going into the season is fair, though you could make the argument for Georgia Tech being above Cal and SMU. The offense has a chance to be one of the conference's best again this year if they can cut down on the turnovers, this could be an even better group than last year. The defense is the biggest question mark. Georgia Tech had one of the worst defenses in the country last year, but they have made changes to their defensive staff and added some talent through the portal to try and change that. The schedule is brutal yet again, but Brent Key has shown the ability to get wins that you would not expect him too.