Wake Forest head coach Dave Clawson gives thoughts on matchup with Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech travels to Wake Forest on Saturday

Author:
Jackson Caudell
Publish date:
Sep 21, 2023 1:38 PM EDT

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Georgia Tech is back on the road this Saturday and this time Brent Key's team is going to be going to Wake Forest for a matchup with the Demon Deacons. Wake is 3-0 heading into this matchup and is coming off of a comeback victory over Old Dominion, a game in which they totaled 10 sacks. This is going to be the toughest test of the season so far for Wake, as they have played Elon and Vanderbilt along with the game against Old Dominion.

Georgia Tech is 1-2, but that does not tell the entire story. This team was leading by 15 against Louisville and was only down a touchdown in the fourth quarter against No. 17 Ole Miss last week. Demon Deacons head coach Dave Clawson pointed this out this week when discussing the matchup and he talked about how much better Georgia Tech seems to be under Key:

“Georgia Tech is a very improved football team with a difficult schedule. They are 1-2, but have lost to an undefeated Louisville team. If they don’t fumble the ball at the 16-yard line going in with four minutes left in the fourth quarter, that’s probably a winnable game for them. Then the Ole Miss game, that score is deceptive. It was a one-score game in the fourth quarter. They had a chance to win it. Their new head coach, (Brent) Key, has done a really good job of assembling talent.

“If you look at who in our league has used the portal the most, it’s probably first Louisville and then Georgia Tech. They took 16 players in the portal last year, then took a bunch the year before. The amount of players on their team who started their careers at Georgia, South Carolina, Notre Dame, Michigan or Texas A&M — they have some high-level players. On offense it shows, because they’re averaging more than 35 points and 500 yards a game. Haynes King, the quarterback from Texas A&M, is playing at a very high level. He has good arm strength, and is really athletic and fast. Every time he throws the ball you have to defend the actual play, and if you’re not in the right rush lanes, he can take off for 40 yards. He’s athletic, fast and has a live arm.

“Their offensive line is big and physical. They have excellent skill. They have three-to-four running backs and six-to-seven receivers. They have goot slots, outside receivers and tight ends.

“Defensively, they’re athletic and have a lot of experience. Really on both sides of the line of scrimmage, I think their offensive line has 104-109 starts. They are multiple in the back end. I think coach Key has done a great job of rebuilding their roster. He played there and was a line coach. They’ve taken on his mentality, and are a very physical, downhill football team."

Dave Clawson — Georgia Tech faces Wake Forest this weekend
Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Clawson has a lot of respect for what Key is building at Georgia Tech and that respect goes both ways. Earlier this week, Key talked about the program that Clawson has built and how good they are on both sides of the ball:

"We have a good opponent this week, Wake is a good football team. Probably one of the most, over the last six or seven years, one of the most impressive teams not just in the conference, but in the country with what Dave Clawson has been able to do there. They have a system in all three phases in the game, they understand their system, they know how to play in their system, they have players that play extremely well in their system, they play confident, and they have answers. They have answers on offense, on defense, the kicking game, so you know, it'll be a... and they play hard, they play extremely hard, they are a tough and physical team and we are looking forward to going out there on the road and playing our first road game in the ACC."

This is going to be a matchup of two high-powered offenses and it might come down to which defense can get a stop. Wake leads the ACC in sacks so far this season and how Georgia Tech can mitigate their damage up front will be a huge key in this game.