Christian Ponder, JR, Florida St 33-40, 395 yds, 3 tds, 0 int
Terrell Pryor, SO, Ohio St 13-25, 239 yds, 2 tds, 1 int, 104 rush yds, 1 rush td
Thaddeus Lewis, SR, Duke 30-43, 371 yds, 2 tds, 1 int
Sean Canfield, SR, Oregon St 30-43, 329 yds, 3 tds, 0 int
Daryll Clark, SR, Penn St 16-27, 230 yds, 4 tds, 0 int
Jevan Snead, JR, Ole Miss 22-33, 332 yds, 2 tds, 2 int, 1 rush td
Stephen Garcia, SO, South Carolina 22-33, 312 yds, 2 tds, 0 int
Zach Collaros, SO, Cinn 15-17, 253 yds, 3 tds, 0 int, 52 rush yds

Running Back

CJ Spiller, SR, Clemson 81 yds, 5.8 ypc, 104 rec yds, 1 rec td, 310 apy, 1 kr td
Delone Carter, SR, Syracuse 170 yds, 5.7 ypc, 3 tds
Javhid Best, JR, California 159 yds, 12.2 ypc, 1 td, 1 rec td
Noel Devine, JR, West Virginia 178 yds, 7.7 ypc, 1 td
Allen Bradford, SR, USC 147 yds, 9.8 ypc, 2 tds
Joe Martinek, JR, Rutgers 139 yds, 5.6 ypc, 2 tds
Daniel Thomas, JR, Kansas St 145 yds, 7.3 ypc, 1 td
Cyrus Gray, SO, Texas A&M 131 yds, 5.2 ypc, 3 tds
Toby Gerhart, SR, Stanford 125 yds, 4.6 ypc, 1 td
Anthony Allen, JR, Georgia Tech 103 yds, 9.4 ypc, 2 tds

Wide Receiver

Dexter McCluster, SR, Ole Miss 137 yds, 19.6 ypr, 1 td, 123 rush yds
Rod Owens, SR, Florida St 199 yds, 22.1 ypr, 1 td
Rich Dunnell, SR, Boston College 179 yds, 17.9 ypc, 1 td
Devier Posey, SO, Ohio St 161 yds, 20.1 ypc, 2 tds
Jonathan Baldwin, SO, Pitt 144 yds, 24 ypr, 1 td
Andrew Brewer, SR, Northwestern 135 yds, 16.9 ypr, 1 td
Alexander Torres, JR, Texas Tech 128 yds, 16 ypr, 1 td
Golden Tate, JR, Notre Dame 128 yds, 11.6 ypr, 2 tds
Donovan Varner, SO, Duke 120 yds, 15 ypr, 1 td
Jordan Shipley, SR, Texas 108 yds, 15.4 ypr, 2 tds
Marshawn Gilyard, SR, Cinn 82 yds, 20.5 ypr, 1 td, 220 apy

Freshman

SITE: Scott Stadium

TIME: Saturday, 12:00 PM ET

WEATHER: 60 degrees, Rain (70% Chance of Precipitation)

RADIO: Georgia Tech ISP Network (WQXI 790-AM Atlanta, WYAY 106.7-FM Atlanta)

TV: Raycom

RECORDS: No. 11 Georgia Tech 6-1, Virginia 3-3

COACHES: Georgia Tech – Paul Johnson (15-5, second season), Al Groh (59-47, ninth season)

Georgia Tech Players to watch:

QB Josh Nesbitt (Jr., 6-1, 214), B-Back Jonathan Dwyer (Jr., 6-0, 235), A-Back Anthony Allen (RS Jr., 6-0, 225), A-Back Roddy Jones (RS So., 5-9, 192), WR Demaryius Thomas (RS Jr., 6-3, 229), OG Cord Howard (RS Sr.,6-5, 300), DE Derrick Morgan (Jr., 6-4, 270), DB Morgan Burnett (Jr., 6-1, 210), DB/PR Jerrard Tarrant (RS So., 6-0, 202)

Virginia Players to watch:

QB Jameel Sewell (Sr, 6-3, 219), RB Mikell Simpson (Sr., 6-1, 200), RT Will Barker (Sr., 6-7, 315), DT Nate Collins (Sr., 6-2, 290), LB Steve Greer (RS Fr., 6-2, 225), DB Ras-I Dowling (Jr., 6-2, 200)

Georgia Tech keys to the game

Josh Nesbitt. He has been instrumental to Tech’s improvement on offense in the last three games. Nesbitt is on a roll rushing the ball, having run for 262 yards and six touchdowns over the last two games. He has put himself within reach of several Georgia Tech records. Nesbitt now has 1,658 rushing yards for his career and needs only 102 yards to break Joe Hamilton’s career rushing mark by a quarterback. He can also surpass Hamilton’s single season mark of 734 yards rushing if he goes for at least 110 yards against Virginia. Nesbitt has already tied the single season mark of 9 rushing touchdowns by a quarterback and four more will allow him to pass Shawn Jones’ career record of 19. There is still room for improvement in other parts of his game with crisper pitches on the triple option and better decision making in the passing game.

All the way turnt up. Last week the Jackets brought the intensity on defense, which will need to carry over on the road. GT has allowed a startling 36 points per game on the road compared to only 18.5 per game at home. UVA’s offense is not very good, ranking 10th in the ACC with 24 points per game and 11th in the ACC with 304 total yards per game. Tech will need to hold them to those totals. The Jackets also need to continue to get pressure with their front four as they did last week against VT because there is no way that Sewell dances all over the field to avoid sacks as Tyrod Taylor did.

Killer Instinct. GT should have put VT away in the third quarter, but then Nesbitt made a poor read in the passing game and threw an interception. Early in the fourth quarter GT had another opportunity to put them away, but Nesbitt again gave the ball away on a bad pitch. Three of their four ACC victories have come by five points or less. If the offense continues to play with fire, the defense will eventually get burned at the end of the game.

Virgnia keys to the game

Red Zone Offense. The Cavaliers lead the ACC in red zone offense, having scored every time they entered the red zone this season. The problem being that they are also next to last in total opportunities with only 17 chances. They will be up against GT’s red zone defense, which is second best in the ACC, as their opponents only have a 75 percent success rate. UVA will need to continue their streak if they expect to be successful against the Jackets.

Turnovers. After losing their first three games of the season, including an embarassing home loss to William & Mary, UVA has turned it around with three straight wins. The key has been forcing turnovers. The Cavaliers have taken the ball away nine times in the last three games while only turning it over once. Their defense has only given up an average of six points per game during these contests. Their run defense has been especially strong during these wins, giving up an average of 82.3 yards per game with a long of only 12 yards. This is not likely to continue against GT, but the Cavaliers will have a strong chance if they win the turnover battle and limit big plays by the Jackets.

Health concerns? Virgnia’s two best offensive weapons, Sewell and Simpson, may not play in the game. The loss of Sewell would especially hurt, considering that that he has been very effective during the three wins. He has now thrown 109 straight passes without an interception. His potential replacement, Mark Verica, is no stranger to the Yellow Jackets. Last year he orchestrated a victory against GT to ruin their homecoming weekend. He was an impressive 29-39 with 270 yards passing and two touchdowns.

Third Down Efficiency

Georgia Tech leads the ACC and ranks fourth nationally with a third down conversion rate of 52.6 percent on offense. Virginia, on the other hand leads the ACC and ranks tenth nationally on third down defense as their opponents only convert 29.4 percent of the time. The Jackets will look to put themselves in third and short situations in order to help them win this battle.

Rushing Offense

Sean Bedford has won the ACC offensive lineman of the week award twice and Cord Howard has won it once, paving the way for the second best rushing offense in the nation. Tech averages 282 rushing yards per game this season and scores 32.4 points per game, good for 24th nationally. They also have three of the top seven rushers in the ACC in Nesbitt, Dwyer, and Allen. Allen averages an astonishing 11.5 yards per carry this season and the three players have combined for 17 rushing touchdowns.

First Quarter Domination

GT is outscoring their opposition 76-28 in the first quarter, while UVA has outscored their opponents 37-7. The Cavaliers have not allowed an opponent to score in the first quarter for five consecutive games. They have also not allowed a touchdown in the first half in their three victories. GT will need to maintain their first half dominance and take a lead into halftime. They are now 12-1 under CPJ when they accomplish this.

Curse of Scott Stadium

Name the longest standing road losing streak for the Jackets against an ACC team. FSU? VT? Miami? No, the correct answer is UVA. Tech has not won at Scott Stadium since 1990, which ammounts to eight straight losses. Good thing the Jackets have CPJ, who has already broken long standing losing streaks against both UGA and FSU.

Injury Update

Out: DE Robert Hall (knee), LB Kyle Jackson (foot), WR Kevin Cone (ankle)

Questionable: DB Cooper Taylor (undisclosed)

Prediction

After poor performances in back to back games, the defense showed up in a big way on Saturday night. Tyrod Taylor did his usual routine dancing all around the pocket but he was unable to find anybody down field due to excellent coverage in the secondary. He only got loose for one big gain on a play late in the game where he scored from 22 yards out on an incredible run. The defensive line did a great job getting penetration and the linebackers did well plugging holes on running plays. Ryan Williams, the leading rusher in the ACC, was held to only 14 yards on 12 carries, until he finally busted loose for a 66 yard touchdown. Nevertheless, the defense really came up big and made up for a sloppy performance by the offense.

Nesbitt did not have his best game and he made the wrong read almost every single time GT tried to pass the ball. The one correct read he did make, however, turned out to be his only completion
of the game which was a huge momentum swing for the Jackets. He connected on a 51 yard pass to Bay-Bay late in the first half after GT had amassed only 2 yards of total offense on their first 20 plays. VT made two straight stops near the goal line before Nesbitt finally snuck it in for the touchdown and the lead at halftime. This seemed to break the spirits of the Hokies, who had been in control of the game up until that point.

GT came out in the second half focused, and with a few minor adjustments the offense was suddenly unstoppable again. They took the opening drive straight down the field for a touchdown to go up by two scores. Highlights of the drive inlcuded a nice individual run by Anthony Allen for 16 yards and a well blocked run by Nesbitt for 31 yards. On the longer run, Peeples cut down safety Kam Chancellor to spring the play, which would be a common theme of the second half.

Tech allowed a big kickoff return on the next play, but their defense would come up huge to stuff VT on fourth down. The Jackets were in position to put the game away, but Nesbitt missed a wide open Tyler Melton and opted instead to throw into double coverage. The pass was picked off and swung the momentum back into VT’s favor. Williams broke his big run up the middle on the very next play for a touchdown and suddenly VT was back within one score.

It wouldn’t matter though as GT would methodically march down the field, chewing up six and a half minutes en route to another back breaking touchdown. Highlights included a big collision between Allen and Chancellor and a 34 yard run by Dwyer up the middle. The firey-spirited Allen got up and talked trash to Chancellor after the big hit. Nesbitt capped the drive off with a perfect pitch to Marcus Wright on the triple option for the 13 yard score.

VT got another big kick return, but were unable to do anything with the ball after Derrick Morgan got a big third down sack on Taylor. GT would then gobble up another seven and a half and a half minutes of clock as they drove all the way to the 15 yard line. Then Nesbitt made his second bad pitch of the possession and this time the Hokies recovered. GT could likely have put the game away with a touchdown.

VT took advantage of the mistake and quickly answered with a touchdown after the GT defense seemed ill prepared to take the field after the turnover. The Jackets did well to bat down the two point conversion in order to maintain more than a field goal advantage.

GT got the ball back and went for the dagger on the first play, but the pass was well covered by the Hokies. GT went back to their bread and butter and Nesbitt made a good read to pitch the ball to Allen on the triple option. Allen made a solid catch on a low pitch and then gained 23 yards after juking a defender. Nesbitt then showed why he is a baller in this offense by turning a first down run into a 39 yard touchdown run. A great block by Peeples created a huge hole for Nesbitt, who then bounced the ball outside toward the sidelines. He stiff armed the last defender and showed his agility by tip-toeing the sideline in order to sneak inside of the pylon. That TD sealed the deal and soon thereafter the party began on the field.

Anthony Allen had a great individual performance and it would be nice to see him get more carries in the offense. If Dwyer does end up going pro, Allen is a no-brainer to move over to be the featured B-back. He is a tough runner, but also has great moves in the open field and decent speed.

Todd Reesing, SR, Kansas 30-51, 401 yds, 2 tds, 1 int
Ben Chappell, JR, Indiana 23-38, 333 yds, 3 tds, 0 int
Zach Collaros, SO, Cinn 132 rush yds, 13.2 ypc, 2 rush tds
Josh Nesbitt, JR, Georgia Tech 122 rush yds, 5.3 ypc, 3 tds
Mike Kafka, SR, Northwestern 34-47, 291 yds, 2 tds, 0 int, 42 rush yds

Running Back

Montel Harris, SO, Boston College 264 yds, 9.8 ypc, 5 tds
Mark Ingram, SO, Alabama 246 yds, 10.3 ypc, 1 td
Andrew Dixon, SR, Conn 153 yds, 4.6 ypc, 3 tds
Shane Vereen, SO, California 154 yds, 9.1 ypc, 1 td, 210 apy
Anthony Dixon, SR, Miss St 135 yds, 5 ypc, 2 tds
Toby Gerhart, SR, Stanford 123 yds, 4.4 ypc, 2 tds
Ben Tate, SR, Auburn 132 yds, 4.3 ypc, 1 td
CJ Spiller, SR, Clemson 106 yds, 11.8 ypc, 2 tds

Wide Receiver

Blair White, SR, Michigan St 186 yds, 15.5 ypc, 2 tds
Danario Alexander, SR, Missouri 180 yds, 20 ypr, 1 td
Devin Aguilar, SO, Washington 154 yds, 22 ypr, 1 td
Dezmon Briscoe, JR, 154 yds, 19.3 ypr, 1 td
Chris Owusu, SO, Stanford 116 yds, 23.2 ypr, 1 td, 287 apy
Greg Childs, SO, Arkansas 135 yds, 33.8 ypr, 1 td
Tandon Doss, SO, Indiana 130 yds, 18.6 ypr, 1 td
Derek Moye, SO, Penn St 120 yds, 20 ypr, 1 td
Golden Tate, JR, Notre Dame 117 yds, 14.6 ypr, 2 tds, 181 apy
Hubert Anyiam, SO, Oklahoma St 119 yds, 11.9 ypr, 1 td

Freshman

SITE: Bobby Dodd Stadium

TIME: Saturday, 6:00 PM ET

WEATHER: 53 degrees, Partly Cloudy

RADIO: Georgia Tech ISP Network (WQXI 790-AM Atlanta, WYAY 106.7-FM Atlanta)

TV: ESPN2/ESPN360

RECORDS: No. 19 Georgia Tech 5-1, No. 4 Virginia Tech 5-1

COACHES: Georgia Tech – Paul Johnson (14-5, second season), Frank Beamer (182-90-2, twenty third season)

Georgia Tech Players to watch:

QB Josh Nesbitt (Jr., 6-1, 214), B-Back Jonathan Dwyer (Jr., 6-0, 235), A-Back Anthony Allen (RS Jr., 6-0, 225), WR Demaryius Thomas (RS Jr., 6-3, 229), OG Cord Howard (RS Sr.,6-5, 300), DE Derrick Morgan (Jr., 6-4, 270), LB Brad Jefferson (Jr., 6-2, 236), DB Morgan Burnett (Jr., 6-1, 210), DB/PR Jerrard Tarrant (RS So., 6-0, 202)

Virginia Tech Players to watch:

QB Tyrod Taylor (Jr., 6-1, 216) RB Ryan Williams (RS Fr, 5-10, 206), WR Jarett Boykin (So., 6-2, 215), LG Sergio Render (Sr., 6-3, 313), LT Ed Wang (RS Sr., 6-5, 309), DE Jason Worilds (RS Jr., 6-2, 262), LB Cody Grimm (RS Sr., 5-11, 210), CB Rashad Carmichael (RS Jr., 5-11, 186), CB Stephan Virgil (Sr., 5-11, 189) FS Kam Chancellor (Sr., 6-4, 230)

Georgia Tech keys to the game

Contain the freshman. Running back Ryan Williams has the ability to run for 200 yards against GT. He’s just that good. Williams easily leads the ACC in rushing and he ranks sixth nationally with 122 rushing yards per game. He has also run for 9 touchdowns, which ties him for fourth place in the nation. He is a tough runner with a low center of gravity, but also has the ability to make people miss in the open field. GT will need to limit him to small chunks rather than large gashes. This is most easily achieved with penetration by the defensive line and solid tackling by the linebackers.

Early Lead. GT would do well to score a touchdown on the first drive in order to put some pressure on Tyrod Taylor and the Virginia Tech offense. The more that the Yellow Jackets can force him to pass, the better they will be. Taylor has had a breakout season so far with eight touchdowns against only one interception because they don’t ask him to do too much within the offense. He only averages 17 pass attempts per game and he completes 55 percent, which is pedestrian for a quarterback. Where he does the most damage is by scrambling around in the pocket, buying time for his wide receivers to get open. Everybody remembers the play he made against Nebraska to beat them at the last second. The more that GT makes him pass, the more likely he is to try and force the issue, which will provide interception opportunities.

Continue the offensive momentum. The offense is on a tear right now and at the moment it doesn’t seem like anybody can stop the Ramblin’ Wreck. Nesbitt’s progress has been instrumental to the success of the Yellow Jackets and he will need to continue playing at a high level. He made several big plays against FSU last week and made intelligent reads in the triple option all game long. Last year GT had several missed opportunities against VT which ended up costing them the game. They will need to capitalize this year if they expect to take down the Hokies.

Virginia Tech keys to the game

Red Zone Defense. The Hokies have given up only six touchdowns this year in 22 attempts by the opposing offense. This ranks them fourth best nationally in touchdown efficiency defense behind only Ole Miss, Florida, and USC. GT on the other hand has been a force to be reckoned with in the red zone over the last two games, scoring touchdowns on eight of their ten offensive chances. VT will need to limit GT to field goal attempts in order to come away with victory at Bobby Dodd.

Beamer Ball. Virginia Tech is once again one of the better teams nationally on special teams. They rank in the top 40 in net punting, kick returns, and kick return defense. In what will likely be a close game, a big play on special teams such as a kick/punt return or a blocked punt/field goal could decide the outcome. VT should have the decided advantage against Georgia Tech, who ranks in the bottom 25 nationally in both punt and kick return defense.

Turnovers. Both teams are good at creating turnovers with GT ranking first in the ACC and VT ranking second at slightly less than one turnover gained per game. VT will need to win this battle if they expect to win on the road in a hostile environment. About the only time the triple option has been stopped lately is when it has stopped itself with fumbles. Last week FSU nearly stole a win from the Jackets by forcing three fumbles and then recovering all three of them for turnovers. On the season GT averages 3 fumbles per game and only loses only one of those. VT needs to recover at least two in order to help their chances.

Another Shootout?

GT has won their last two games by an average score of 46-38. Both teams will once again bring high powered offenses to the field on Saturday. VT is first in the ACC with 34.2 points per game while GT ranks third with 33.2 points per game. The biggest difference, however, may be VT’s defense, which ranks second in the ACC giving up only 17.7 points per game. The key to that statistic has been their red zone defense as previously described.

B. Thomas

Demaryius Thomas or as his jersey indicates, “B Thomas”, leads the ACC with 103 receiving yards per game which also ranks him 15th nationally. He appears in my report just about every week, which won’t stop until any cornerback in the ACC is able to shut him down. This week he once again will have a huge size advantage against the Hokie cornerbacks, who are both listed at around 5-11, 190. Bay-Bay is 6-3, 230 and should again be able to feast on man coverage when his number is called.

Third down efficiency

The Jackets top the ACC at converting on third down with a 52.4 percent success rate. This is mostly due to the fact that GT puts themselves in very manageable third and short situations. Nesbitt has been extremely successful this season at running the mid-line option in order to pick up a first down. If he ever comes up short, the Jackets will usually go for it where they are a perfect six for six on fourth down conversions. VT on the other hand tops the ACC in third down defense, with their opponents only converting 27.7 percent of their attempts. GT will need to get the upper hand in this category so that they can continue to dominate the time of possession battle as they have so far this season.

Explosive Passing Attacks

GT leads the ACC and ranks fourth nationally with 277 rushing yards per game, while VT is second in the ACC and ranks 16th nationally with 208 rushing yards per game. Not the way to start a passing attack segment right? But get this, GT also leads the nation with 12 passing yards per attempt and VT is tied for third nationally with 9.9 yards per attempt. This can mostly be attributed to the success of their running games. Both teams do not need to pass much and when they do the opponent is usually not expecting it, which results in huge gains through the air.

Coastal Division Leader

Either Georgia Tech or Virginia Tech has represented the Coastal Division in the ACC Championship game every year since its inception. This year Miami is also in the hunt which makes this game even larger so that GT can potentially control their own destiny once again. A win would put them in a three-way tie for first place. The scenarios for who would go to the championship game become complicated with a three way tie so that break down will have to wait for another day if necessary.

Injury Update

Out: DE Robert Hall (knee), LB Kyle Jackson (foot), Kevin Cone (ankle)

Doubtful: Anthony Egbuniwe (undisclosed illness)

Questionable: DB Cooper Taylor (undisclosed)

Prediction

It just seemed like one big turnover was going to change the entire game.

Tech got the ball first in the second half and then on the second offensive play it happened. Nesbitt and Dwyer were on two different pages and fumbled the exchange. FSU recovered on the GT 24 yard line and seemed poised to go in for a likely insurmountable two touchdown lead. However, GT suddenly woke up and decided to play some defense – sort of. Griffin made a nice tackle for loss on first down and then pressure from another blitz finally forced an errand pass by Ponder. On third and long, two FSU receivers broke wide open over the middle of the field and nearly ran into each other. As a result, the intended receiver was distracted and dropped the pass, which would have probably went for six. FSU was forced to settle for a field goal, but their kicker pushed it wide left. This was a huge momentum swing for the Jackets and the defense was fired up on the sidelines. This energy carried over to the offense and Tech scored on the first play – a 73 yard bomb to Bay-Bay. He burned single coverage on the play and fought through a defensive pass interference penalty to catch the pass and take it to the house.

With the game tied once again, Tech’s defense stepped up and forced FSU to kick a field goal. Tarrant made a key play defending a wide receiver screen pass that he had already been burned on twice for big gains. Tech was also able to get some pressure on Ponder with delayed blitzes. GT got the ball back and went on a back-breaking 9 minute touchdown drive. They converted three third downs and one fourth down on the drive to take their first lead of the ball game and totally deflate the Seminole faithful. The lengthy drive also gave the defense a chance to rest. Wright ended up scoring the touchdown on a 19 yard pitch from Nesbitt. Hill and Peeples made key blocks on the play.

GT forced FSU to a three and out and looked ready to put the game away. Derrick Morgan made a tackle for loss and also drew a key holding penalty to eventually force the FSU punt. GT went marching down the field again and gobbled up 4:30 of clock before a bad pitch by Nesbitt resulted in a turnover. Tech needlessly kept FSU in the ballgame with turnovers.

The defense stepped up once again, however, and Tongo made an important play to sack Ponder and force a fumble, which Peters recovered. This time Tech was not to be denied. Nesbitt owned FSU on the mid-line option on four straight plays, but then decided to pitch the ball on the triple option on the fifth play. The pitch was perfect this time, but Roddy dropped it after looking up to find the defender before securing the ball. FSU picked up the fumbled and briefly ran with it, but somehow Nesbitt managed to track the play down and rip the ball away from the defender! This was clearly the play of the game because the defender had a convoy of blockers and might have taken it the distance. Tech also got the ball back with a fresh set of downs due to the change of possession. Two plays later, Nesbitt kept it on the triple option and made a sick inside juke to break into the open field. He then made a nice cut back and Hill sealed the backside with a good block, which allowed Nesbitt to walk in for the 22 yard touchdown. Game, set, match.

Nesbitt played amazing and made the correct reads all game long, which is especially impressive considering that Tech operated out of the triple option for the majority of the game. He also looked unstoppable once again on the mid-line option in short yardage situations. This was instrumental in the fourth quarter to pick up tough yards for first downs in order to salt the clock away. He also of course made that incredible play to rip the ball away from the FSU defender. He only needed to pass the ball eight times this game, but was very accurate on all of those attempts. Nesbitt has now put together back to back incredible performances and it is safe to say that he finally has the offense mastered. It only took 17 games, but hey, when the offense plays this well it’s hard to complain. Tech was also unlucky to lose all three fumbles, but it was a little overdue considering how few they had lost during the previous three games.

The defense had a terrible first half and that includes every single player that stepped out onto the field. However, they made up for it by holding FSU to only 157 yards and nine points in the second half, despite three turnovers by the Tech offense. They used a three man front and blitzed over top of it, which was more effective at confusing FSU’s offensive line to get pressure on Ponder. Our secondary needs a lot of work; every single player Tech used against FSU was burned at least once for a big play.

Special teams did a pretty good job. The hands team recovered both onside kick attempts by FSU and the kick return defense did a good job. They only gave up one long return late in the game. Tanner once again was not tested with a field goal try, but he made all of his extra points. Blair did better with his kickoffs (he kept it in-bounds) but can still be more consistent with his depth.

Jimmy Clausen, JR, Notre Dame – 4*
Todd Reesing, SR, Kansas – 4
Riley Skinner, SR, Wake Forest – 4
Jerrod Johnson, JR, Texas A&M – 3*
Russell Wilson, SO, NC State – 3

Running Back

Jacquizz Rodgers, SO, Oregon St – 4*
Toby Gerhart, SR, Stanford – 4*
Jahvid Best, JR, California – 3*
John Clay, SO, Wisconsin – 3*
CJ Spiller, SR, Clemson – 3
Ben Tate, SR, Auburn – 3
Mark Ingram, SO, Alabama – 3

Wide Receiver

Golden Tate, JR, Notre Dame – 3*
Jordan Shipley, SR, Texas – 3
Eric Decker, SR, Minnesota – 3
Marshwan Gilyard, SR, Cincinnatti – 2*
Mike Williams, SR, Syracuse – 2*
Ryan Broyles, JR, Oklahoma – 2*

Freshman

Tate Forcier, QB, Michigan – 4**
Ryan Williams, RB, Virginia Tech – 4
Dion Lewis, RB, Pitt – 4
BJ Daniels, QB, South Florida – 3*
LaMichael James, RB, Oregon – 3

Steven Sheffield, JR, Texas Tech 33-41, 490 yds, 7 tds, 1 int
Thaddeus Lewis, SR, Duke 40-50, 459 yds, 5 tds, 0 int
Todd Reesing, SR, Kansas 37-49, 442 yds, 4 tds, 1 int, 1 rush td
Christian Ponder, JR, Florida State 26-36, 359 yds, 5 tds, 0 int
Riley Skinner, SR, Wake Forest 24-33, 360 yds, 4 tds, 0 int
Casey Keenum, SR, Houston 39-52, 434 yds, 4 tds, 2 ints
Jonathan Crompton, SR, Tennessee 20-27, 310 yds, 4 tds, 1 int
Austen Arnaud, JR, Iowa State 25-40, 293 yds, 2tds, 0 int, 67 rush yds, 1 rush td
Josh Nesbitt, JR, Georgia Tech 4-8, 131 yds, 1 td, 0 int, 140 rush yds, 3 rush tds
Chris Turner, SR, Maryland 24-44, 307 yds, 3 tds,1 int

Running Back

Jacquizz Rodgers, SO, Oregon St 189 yds, 5.7 ypc, 4 tds, 271 apy
Ben Tate, SR, Auburn 184 yds, 4.8 ypc, 2 tds
Alexander Robinson, JR, Iowa State 152 yds, 5.6 ypc, 2 tds
Mark Ingram, SO, Alabama 172 yds, 6.1 ypc, 1 td
Damien Berry, JR, Miami 162 yds, 11.6 ypc, 1 td
Anthony Dixon, SR, Miss St 134 yds, 6.4 ypc, 2 tds
Mike Smith, SR, Arkansas 145 yds, 8.1 ypc, 1 td
Mikell Simpson, SR, Virginia 83 yds, 5.5 ypc, 4 tds, 66 rec yds

Wide Receiver

Dezmon Briscoe, JR, Kansas 186 yds, 15.5ypr, 2 tds
Jordan Shipley, SR, Texas 147 yds, 13.4 ypr, 1 td, 273 apy, 1 pr td
Randall Cobb, SO, Kentucky 62 yds, 32 ypr, 1 td, 89 rush yds, 1 rush td, 230 apy
Kerry Meier, SR, Kansas 142 yds, 8.9 ypr, 2 tds
James Cleveland, JR, Houston 131 yds, 11.9 ypr, 2 tds
Scott Long, SR, Louisville 146 yds, 29.2 ypr, 1 td
Kyle Williams, SR, Arizona State 126 yds, 9.7 ypr, 1 td, 211 apy
David Roberts, SO Arizona 138 yds, 11.5 ypr, 1 td
Keith Smith, JR, Purdue 126 yds, 18 ypr, 1 td

Freshman

SITE: Doak Campbell Stadium

TIME: Saturday, 8:00 PM ET

WEATHER: 78 degrees, Scattered T-Storms (40% Chance of Precipitation)

RADIO: Georgia Tech ISP Network (WQXI 790-AM Atlanta, WYAY 106.7-FM Atlanta)

TV: ESPN2/ESPN360

RECORDS: No. 22 Georgia Tech 4-1, Florida State 2-3

COACHES: Georgia Tech – Paul Johnson (13-5, second season), Bobby Bowden (311-94-4, 34th season)

Georgia Tech Players to watch:

QB Josh Nesbitt (Jr., 6-1, 214), B-Back Jonathan Dwyer (Jr., 6-0, 235), A-Back Anthony Allen (RS Jr., 6-0, 225), A-Back Roddy Jones (RS So., 5-9, 192), WR Demaryius Thomas (RS Jr., 6-3, 229), OG Cord Howard (RS Sr.,6-5, 300), DE Derrick Morgan (Jr., 6-4, 270), DB Morgan Burnett (Jr., 6-1, 210), DB/PR Jerrard Tarrant (RS So., 6-0, 202)

Florida State Players to watch:

QB Christian Ponder (Jr, 6-2, 217), WR Bert Reed (RS So., 6-4, 205), C Ryan McMahon (RS Jr., 6-3, 282), LG Rodney Hudson (Jr., 6-2, 285), LT Andrew Datko (So., 6-6, 283), LB Dekoda Watson (Sr., 6-2, 226), LB Nigel Bradham (So., 6-2, 235), DB Patrick Robinson (Sr., 5-11, 194), DB Greg Reid (Fr., 5-9, 175)

Georgia Tech keys to the game

Special Teams. GT gave up a kickoff return for a touchdown last weekend against Mississippi State that allowed the Bulldogs to jump right back into the game. Blair also struggled again with his kickoffs, even though it was his only responsibility of the game. Tech does not have anybody else that can kick the ball deep so he will be expected to step up and do his job correctly. Freshman Chris Tanner handled field goal duties, but Tech never even attempted one. He made all of his point after attempts last week, but has yet to be tested with a field goal attempt. Tech’s kick return defense currently ranks 108th in the nation and their punt return defense ranks 93rd. FSU has a speedy return man in Greg Reid, so the return defense will need to have a solid game this weekend.

Tackling. Last week the Jackets made Anthony Dixon look like Earl Campbell. Tech still lacks a dominant linebacker that can fill up the stat sheet, but Jefferson and Griffin both played pretty well last week with 8 and 10 tackles respectively. They will need to assert themselves this weekend and make some plays in the backfield. FSU runs a pro-set similar to Miami that is dependent on play action. Play action is most effective when the linebackers buy the fake to the running back, which usually is only effective when the rushing attack is clicking.

Head Start. Tech is tough to catch when they jump ahead early because of the nature of their offense. The Yellow Jackets gobble up huge amounts of clock when the offense is moving the ball effectively and the opponent will always have a limited number of possessions to catch up. They currently lead the ACC in time of possession and rank tenth nationally at 33 minutes per game. Last weekend GT was four for five in the red zone and scored four touchdowns. They will be nearly impossible to stop with that kind of touchdown efficiency.

Florida State keys to the game

Pass the Ball. FSU will need to mix in some running to keep Tech honest, but their bread and butter is their passing attack. They rank 17th nationally in passing offense at 285.4 yards per game, while Tech ranks 77th in passing defense at 227.4 yards per game. Ponder should be able to exploit Tech’s secondary similar to the way that Jacory Harris did. FSU has the offensive line to give Ponder time in the pocket, but even when he is flushed he can make big plays with his feet.

One more for Bobby. There has been a lot of chatter this week about Bobby Bowden being forced into early retirement. This of course is a dead issue until the season is over due to his esteemed reputation, but if FSU loses their third straight game it will put them in a huge hole. The players could rally behind their coach and play extremely motivated. A third conference loss to open 0-3 in the ACC would also all but eliminate FSU from the ACC title race.

Run Defense. FSU is traditionally solid against the run and this year is no exception. They are fifth in the ACC allowing 128.8 yards per game, while Tech leads the ACC and ranks sixth nationally in rushing offense with 252.2 yards per game. Last year FSU gave up 288 rushing yards to the Jackets, including two big touchdown runs by Dwyer where we went untouched through the middle of the defense. FSU will need to play smarter football on defense this year if they expect to stay in this game.

Patrick Robinson and Greg Reid vs. Demaryius Thomas and Stephen Hill

Robinson is one of the best cornerbacks in the ACC, but he was injured last week against Boston College. He says that he will be ready to go for this weekend, but only time will tell. Either way, Bay-Bay should still be able to use his size to take advantage of this match up. He is 4 inches taller and 40 pounds heavier than Robinson. Bay-Bay currently leads the ACC and ranks 15th nationally with 107.2 yards per game. Greg Reid was one of the most highly touted freshmen in the nation coming into this season and so far he has looked impressive at cornerback for FSU. Stephen Hill has also played well as a freshman and he will have a big size advantage at receiver as he is 7 inches taller than Reid. Hill looks to build on his last two weekends where he made his first career reception against UNC and scored his first career touchdown against Mississippi State.

Josh Nesbitt

Nesbitt showed the big play capabilities of the offense in the passing game by throwing for a career high 266 yards passing while completing 11 of his 14 attempts last week against the Bulldogs. Tech did a good job to mix up the play calling by passing on first down when the defense least expected it. They also did a good job calling simple passes into the flat, which were easy completions and allowed Bay-Bay to do what he does best: gain yards after the catch. Nesbitt also had a solid game on the ground with 53 rushing yards, including some tough runs for first downs in short yardage situations. When he is on top of his game the only way that Tech can be beaten is if the other team can win in a shootout.

Turnovers

The Yellow Jackets gained four turnovers last week and now lead the ACC and rank 15th nationally in turnover margin with +1.2 turnovers per game. They have only turned the ball over once during the last three games, despite fumbling the ball nine times during that span. Tech hopes that their fortunes continue against the Seminoles.

Doak Campbell

Georgia Tech broke one streak last year by winning against Bobby Bowden for the first time. It was also their first win against FSU since 1975. This year they will look to defeat the Seminoles for the first time at their stadium. Tech is 0-6 all time in Tallahassee. Doak Campbell is the largest stadium that Tech will play in this season with a capacity of 82,300.

Injury Update

Out: DE Robert Hall (knee), LB Kyle Jackson (foot)

Doubtful: DB Cooper Taylor (undisclosed)

Questionable: DB Dominique Reese (shoulder)

Prediction