Duke (4-2, 3-0) hosts Georgia Tech (6-0, 3-0) on Saturday in a meeting of teams undefeated in ACC games. The Yellow Jackets are ranked number 12 in the AP Poll. Kickoff is at 12:00 pm EDT with television
coverage provided on ESPN. Duke is favored by three points.
Injury Update: Linebackers Tre Freeman and Kendall Johnson are Probable for Duke. No update on safety Terry Moore. Georgia Tech did not provide any injury status updates during their Tuesday press conference.
Bye Week Comments: Both Duke Head Coach Manny Diaz and Offensive Coordinator Jonathan Brewer commented on the bye week saying it was nice to have the opportunity to get healthy and have extra time to prepare for Georgia Tech but it was the following comment by Brewer which caught my attention, “…to fine tune some things that maybe were out of whack a little bit and maybe add a little bit to our arsenal things we hadn’t done yet.” It is exciting to hear the OC of an explosive offense imply a new wrinkle or two could find its way into the game plan this week.
Offense: Georgia Tech is balanced on offense running and passing the ball with success but they are a run first offense. In his Monday press conference, Duke Head Coach Manny Diaz emphasized Georgia Tech’s run game by stating, “They’re extraordinarily difficult to prepare for on offense with the quarterback run game and how well they run the ball in general.”
How well does Georgia Tech run the ball? Quarterback Haynes King is number three in the ACC in rushing yards with 440 yards, running back Malachi Hosley is number 14 with 384 yards and running back Jamal Haynes is number 15 with 380 yards so three of the Top 15 rushers in the ACC are Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The Yellow Jackets have 19 rushing touchdowns paced by Haynes King with nine.
Wide receiver Isiah Canion leads Georgia Tech in receiving yards with 245 on 16 receptions. He is a big receiver at 6’4” 215 pounds. Eric Rivers has 20 receptions for 236 yards and Malik Rutherford has 22 receptions for 204 yards. The Yellow Jackets involve the running backs in the pass game as well; Jamal Haynes has 16 receptions for 136 yards. Georgia Tech likes to pick their spots and take shots downfield but they also utilize quick passes to the perimeter such as wide receiver screens to keep the opponent’s defense off balance. Wide receiver Malik Rutherford is especially dangerous when he gets the ball on the perimeter with space to work.
Tight end Luke Harpring has seven receptions for 76 yards. Harpring is a name which should be familiar to Duke fans as Luke’s dad is Matt Harpring who played forward on the Georgia Tech basketball team from 1994-98 followed by an 11 year career in the NBA.
Quarterback Haynes King has been sacked only three times this season. When under pressure he isn’t going to stand in the pocket and take a sack, he is going to scramble and his talented legs are going to quickly turn a scramble into a run. The Duke defense has their hands full defending King and the potent Georgia Tech offense.
Defense: Georgia Tech struggles to stop the run. The Yellow Jackets are ranked 17th in the ACC in Rushing Defense yielding 169.5 yards per game. They’re ranked 3rd in the ACC in Passing Defense so statistically their defense should be ready to defend Duke’s explosive passing attack. However, statistics can be misleading. No team Georgia Tech has faced this season brought the level of talent onto the field as Duke will bring with quarterback Darian Mensah, ranked 1st in the ACC in Passing Yards, and his deep corps of receivers.
Linebacker Kyle Efford leads Georgia Tech in tackles with 35 followed by defensive back Clayton Powell-Lee with 28 and linebacker E.J. Lightsey with 27.
Georgia Tech has intercepted two passes and recovered two fumbles on the season. They have a -3 Turnover Margin compared to Duke at +5. Advantage Duke…on paper.
The Blue Devils will look to establish the run game with talented backs Nate Sheppard, Anderson Castle and Jaquez Moore to take pressure off the quarterback but they will certainly lean on Mensah to throw the ball early and often. Balance is key and this game between Duke and Georgia Tech features two balanced offenses.
Prediction: Duke forces a couple turnovers converting them into difference making points in a high scoring affair: Duke 37, Georgia Tech 31.
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