Georgia Tech Week 4 Preview: North Carolina
Sep 7, 2013; Chapel Hill, NC, USA; North Carolina Tar Heels corner back T.J. Jiles (37), safety Tre Boston (10), tight end Eric Ebron (85) and wide receiver Kendrick Singleton (81) celebrate their win over the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at Kenan Memorial Stadium. North Carolina won 40-20. Mandatory Credit: Liz Condo-USA TODAY Sports
The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets finally have an actual challenge. Not to knock on the Duke or Elon programs, but they are currently on a much lower level than the Jackets. The Tar Heels should be one of the top teams in the Coastal Conference and the first real test for Georgia Tech. Fortunately for Jackets fans, GT has historically beaten up on the team from Chapel Hill.
Opponent- North Carolina Tar Heels (1-1)
Time/TV- 12:00 PM, ET, ESPN
According to the Associated Press, the Tech-UNC match up is the game of the week in the ACC and it should be a great one to watch. Both teams have an electric offense and both teams probably have a thing or two to prove defensively.
Coach Larry Fedora employs a no-huddle, up-tempo, spread offense that can really wear down a defense if the chains are moving. With Bryn Renner listed as QB1, that’s more often the case than not. Renner is one of the top ACC quarterbacks but of a completely different mold than Tech’s own Vad Lee. He is strictly a drop back and pass QB and a very low threat to cause problems scrambling out of the pocket. However, he is an extremely accurate passer and with Eric Ebron, Quinshad Davis and Romar Morris to throw to he’s got some talented weapons.
The weak spot on UNC’s offense is definitely the offensive line. If the linemen and linebackers of the Yellow Jacket defense don’t just fold over, they should have some good opportunities to get Renner in some trouble. Three of the starting linemen are first year starters with two of them being freshman. Senior James Hurst is the cog holding everything together for North Carolina’s line so the Jackets would be smart to center most of their attack on the opposite side.
Defensively, the Tar Heels shouldn’t pose a huge threat. Last year, Georgia Tech came into Chapel Hill and rolled over them to the tune of a 68-50 win. They have lost their best defensive player (Sylvester Williams) to the NFL and while they have looked generally okay so far, they are still vulnerable in the secondary and haven’t proved anything against a triple-option offense like Georgia Tech. I doubt that UNC gives up 68 points again–if only because this is Fedora’s second year employing his Ram/Bandit defense–but as long as Vad Lee and company keep doing what they have done in their first two games, finding the end zone shouldn’t be a huge problem.
Despite preseason rankings, I do believe Georgia Tech has the edge in this game–however slight. But there is no denying that the season truly begins tomorrow in Atlanta.