FINALLY. It feels incredible to have the greatest sport in the world back on my television screen. I’ve had too much peace without sports in my life, so it’s only right that my blood pressure spikes every weekend again. Georgia Tech opens up this season in beautiful Boulder, Colorado, to play against Atlanta legend Deion Sanders. Not only is the 1990 National Championship on the line, but so are expectations for the season. It’s opening weekend, and when you’re one of the biggest games on TV, all
eyes are on you, and first impressions are everything. Here is what I think I know before the season kicks off against the Colorado Buffaloes.
Life is bigger than football
Around a month ago, Deion Sanders announced in a press conference that he was battling bladder cancer and is now cancer-free. It is fantastic news that he will be there healthy on Friday night to coach his team and do what he loves. Deion has been very open about his experience and is encouraging and uplifting others who are battling the same thing, which I find admirable. This is a reminder, before the season starts, that life is about so much more than football, and the health of coaches and their families is ultimately much more important than a game. Congrats to Deion on being cancer-free!
Colorado’s offensive capabilities are up in the air after losing most of its offensive production from 2024
Colorado will be debuting many players on the offense, with the most anticipated being the quarterback battle between Kaidon Salter and five-star freshman Julian Lewis. As of Tuesday before kickoff, Salter has officially won the starting job. He had a stellar 2023 season at Liberty, finishing with 2,876 yards, 32 touchdowns, and only six interceptions. He led them to an undefeated regular season record and a New Year’s Six bowl against Oregon. 2024, however, was a much different story. Salter struggled a lot and had almost 1,000 fewer yards passing and half the number of touchdowns. Will we see 2023 Salter reborn, or will he continue to regress? He hasn’t always played the best against Power Four schools during his time at Liberty, as he never amassed 150 yards passing against any of these bigger opponents. I think he will be the starter for the season, but if he struggles a little bit on Friday, I would not be surprised if we see both quarterbacks make an appearance. Both of these guys have a high ceiling. Salter could have already reached his, and Lewis may see his in the future with more experience under his belt. Only time will tell.
I do know this Colorado offense has to replace a top-five quarterback, a Heisman winner, and their top-four receivers. Not that their offensive line was any good, but they also lost four of five starters and will try to rebuild that position from the portal this season. I do not think their offense will be bad by any means, but I think that having to replace an immense amount of talent and trying to get transfers to gel in week one will be a difficult task. The only thing that worries me here is that Salter takes advantage of being a mobile quarterback and will be able to scramble and create plays with his legs downfield, especially if our defensive line is a weaker position. Other than that, Colorado has a lot of uncertainty on offense. They will debut four new receivers, a new quarterback, and four new offensive linemen. I am also very interested to see how the running back room looks. Colorado has completely ignored the run game for the last two seasons. As a team, they had 847 yards last year, and their leading rusher had 384 yards and transferred to South Carolina. There are just a lot of unknowns here all around. We will see if they come out ready in Week One.
Our offense starts a little slower than people expect
This might be a piping hot take on my end, but I think we may need some time to warm up on offense. I hope and pray that I am wrong, but we have a good amount of transfers and some new faces on the offensive line and tight end position. There is no doubt that the veterans on this offense will come out to play. Haynes King, Jamal Haynes, Keylan Rutledge, etc. However, we have a few positions that we need to fill that have question marks. On the offensive line, our new starters will be Harrison Moore at center, Ethan Mackenny at left tackle, and South Alabama transfer Malachi Carney at right tackle. The success of our offense will depend a lot on these three new starters, as Tech has had one of the better offensive lines in the country and will need that high level of play to continue. Moore and Mackenny have seen decent amounts of playing time, and Carney started at South Alabama. I don’t think we will see a huge fall-off at the line, especially because of the outstanding job that Geep Wade is doing, but it could take some time for these players to find their rhythm as starters.
The next question is… who will replace Jackson Hawes? Hawes was arguably the best blocker in football last season and will make the Bills happy on Sundays. Cal transfer JT Byrne will likely fill this role as a blocker, as he is 6 ‘5 265. However, there is also redshirt freshman Luke Harpring, who many are ecstatic about, as well as Brett Seither, who is back from injury. There is a lot of promise for these guys, and I think that they will be a solid group. Replacing Hawes is a difficult task, and we will see if these guys can block as well as we need them to.
Another factor that I do not see many people discussing is the fact that the majority of our receiving core are transfers or freshmen. We know that Malik Rutherford will be dependable, but I will be interested to see if the other receivers also fit in with the offense immediately or not. There is no doubt that the talent is there, especially with Eric Rivers, but it wouldn’t shock me if we don’t meet many people’s high expectations in week one. Do not fret, because I know we can get there.
Overall, I think that the offense has a solid outing, but I would still expect some bumps along the way because it is the first game of the season. If I had to predict anything, I think Key tries to establish a physical attack to wear down Colorado’s defense by just running the ball down their throats. Let’s keep sticking to what we are good at and wait to see the continued success and growth of this offense throughout the season as everyone gets used to playing with each other.
Whoever wins in the trenches will win this game
Games are won in the trenches, as they say. Colorado had an abysmal offensive line the last two seasons, and Tech’s defensive line is the biggest question mark/likely to be our biggest weakness. Both offenses can create big plays, and both defenses can get stops, but much of that success will be determined by how the offensive line of Colorado plays and how the defensive line of Tech plays. If Colorado’s O-line shows little to no improvement, that might be a death sentence for them. Many seem to be in good spirits about this line, however, as they return star tackle Jordan Seaton and bring in players from the transfer portal, including Zylon Crisler from Illinois, Zarian McGill from Louisiana Tech, Larry Johnson III from Tennessee, and several others. All of these guys possess great size and strength, which could greatly challenge our defensive line, which struggled to get pressure on the quarterback last fall. We also brought in some help from the portal on defense, including edge Brayden Manley from Mercer, Akelo Stone from Ole Miss at nose tackle, and AJ Hoffler from Clemson at defensive end. This group will try to put pressure on the QB, so we will see if they can break through the Colorado front. If their line has greatly improved and our defensive line cannot get pressure on the QB, it could be a kiss of death for us. Not only that, but Colorado has a much-improved defense, and our offensive line may take a step back with new starters at the tackle positions. After a disappointing 2023, defensive coordinator Robert Livingston has done a fantastic job turning the Buffs’ defense around, leading the Big 12 in sacks, forced fumbles, and fumble recoveries in 2024. There are a lot of questions on the line of scrimmage for both teams, and we will have to see it played out to get answers.
This game will be close
Are we the better team on paper? I mean, probably. However, this is week one, where we play a primetime game on the road at high altitude. Not exactly the key to success in my eyes, but I think the veteran leadership of our seniors will help this team get the job done. I wouldn’t be surprised if it goes the other way, however. Colorado really puzzles me because they have so much roster turnover, so it’s hard to tell what they can become. They are a tough team to figure out, but regardless of the outcome, this will be an exciting matchup for both teams and both sets of fans.
Also, how will the Jackets fare with being favored on the road? Tech typically thrives as an underdog, and now they are heading into 2025 with lofty goals and expectations. This game will truly be the ultimate test to see how we hold up against the national attention.
This last point, I don’t just think I know, I definitely know. That is that:
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are the sole winners of the 1990 National Championship. That is all.
Week one games do not always define the season, but this one has the potential to. Former Colorado quarterback Joel Klatt himself said, “They (Georgia Tech) have an opportunity to put themselves on the radar. Why? Well, because they open in Colorado.” This has been a highly anticipated matchup for many years, especially now that Coach Prime has taken the college football world by storm. Brent Key said it himself that Sanders is one of his childhood heroes, and now he has the chance to defeat him in his house. If the Jackets can do it, the nation will see, and momentum will build. Let’s humble the Buffs.
Go Jackets.
