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Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets get wrecked by Clemson, 26-7

By Kathryn Morrison

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The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are now 3-1 after an overwhelming loss to the Clemson Tigers at home on Thursday night. Will they bounce back next weekend against Miami?

Heading into Thursday night, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets vs. Clemson Tigers appeared to be the ultimate matchup, and the Yellow Jackets had a legitimate chance of winning. Instead, this game seemed like it was already over after the first quarter. The No. 5 Clemson Tigers defeated the Yellow Jackets 26-7 at home for the first time since 2003.

Did this Georgia Tech loss actually tell us more about the Yellow Jackets or the Tigers? The 3-0 Yellow Jackets were looking to make a big statement to the College Football Committee in prime time, but instead, it was the Tigers that made the statement. Prior to Thursday’s game, many said that this just wasn’t “the same Clemson team.” In a sense, they were right. This definitely wasn’t “the same Clemson team” that lost the previous five games on the road at Tech. Instead, they made it look easy this time.

In Georgia Tech’s defense, this was their toughest game so far this season. They had been playing great football, yes, but prior to Clemson, their toughest competitor was the Vanderbilt Commodores. On the other hand, the Tigers were also 3-0, but they didn’t necessarily dominate their first two win against Auburn and Troy.

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What went wrong at Bobby Dodd?

A lot. Tech’s triple option offense was simply no match for Clemson’s defense. In the first quarter, the Tigers defense had forced the Yellow Jackets into negative total yardage.

Additionally, Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson proved that he is still a very serious Heisman Trophy contender. He got things going early for the Tigers with a nine play scoring drive to start the game, and it only got worse from there. Georgia Tech did intercept Watson in the end zone…but then defensive back Lance Austin fumbled in his own end zone. As a result, the Tigers were up 23-0 by the half.

By halftime, it looked like Georgia Tech was bound for a shutout. The game carried on with the Yellow Jackets struggling against the Tigers defense, while Watson and company thriving on offense. It wasn’t until the fourth quarter that Georgia Tech finally managed an 11 play scoring drive to put them on the board.

What’s next for Tech?

Next week, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will take on the 3-0 Miami Hurricanes, who are led by formed Georgia Bulldogs head coach Mark Richt. Miami is off this weekend, but they dominated their first three games over Florida A&M, Florida Atlantic and Appalachian State. What does the mean for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets?

VIA Doug Roberson of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

"It’s not good.“We’re going to see the same kind of athletes next week when Miami comes here,” Johnson said. “We’ve got to be able to play better. We’ve got to have a little pride and throw our bodies around and get in front of some people and play better.”"

Next: Georgia Bulldogs Recruiting: 2017 Offensive Line

Georgia Tech will go head to head with Miami next Saturday, October 1, at 12:00 PM ET at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Historic Grant Field in Atlanta.

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