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Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets ready to move forward

By Kathryn Morrison

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After a 3-9 2015 season, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are eager for a fresh start. The Yellow Jackets will kick off their 124th football season this Saturday against Boston College in Ireland.

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will kick off the season this Saturday against Boston College in the team’s first game outside of the United States. Though this matchup may be their first game outside of the country, the Jackets have traveled farther in the past. In 1991, they traveled 4,490 miles to Honolulu, Hawaii for the Aloha Bowl, in which they beat Stanford 18-17. This weekend’s trip is slightly shorter, being 3,921 miles.

Can the Yellow Jackets leave that 3-9 season in the past? Head coach Paul Johnson and company would certainly like to. Last season, a total of 16 players combined to miss more than 80 games with injuries. Georgia Tech won only one ACC game last year, which happened to be against the Florida State Seminoles. Even more unfortunate, six of their nine defeats came by eight points or less.

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Despite last season, Coach Johnson has remained positive throughout the offseason. After all, isn’t the beauty of being at the bottom having nowhere to go but up? From his perspective, another year means another year of experience for the young team. He has also expressed improved athleticism in the Yellow Jacket’s offense, including senior quarterback Justin Thomas, and believes that the team as a whole will be better this time around. According to Johnson, they’ve been more focused, largely due to not wanting a repeat of last season.

Coach Johnson addresses Boston College: 

At his weekly press conference on Tuesday, Coach Johnson addressed this weekend’s matchup. Oddly enough, the Boston College Eagles were also 3-9 last season. The full press conference can be viewed at www.ramblinwreck.com.

VIA RamblinWreck.com:

"Opening Statement:“I think that we had a really good fall camp. Preparation has gone well for Boston College. It’s a little bit of a guessing game as to what we are going to get with two new coordinators and a new quarterback and all the things that they have going for them but I know that with any Steve Addazio team, they’ll be hard-nosed and well-coached and physical. We are looking forward to have the chance to travel and go play. It has been a long time since we’ve played and we’re looking forward to have the chance to get back out there and see what we’ve accomplished during the offseason.”How do you decide who goes in and on the substitution pattern during the game?“Sometimes we script it before the game, other times it’s just kind of a feel. I’ll just put one in. In this game, we’ll kind of script a series or two and then if somebody’s hot, we’ll leave them in or that kind of thing.”BC’s defense was No. 1 in the country last year, what do you anticipate from their defense this year?“Well, they have eight starters back, so I’m sure they’re going to be very similar to what they were a year ago. Like anything, even though there’s a new coordinator, I’m sure he’s going to look at what they did successfully and add to his repertoire. They’ve got a lot of experience, the defensive coaches there, and Jim Reid has coached for a long time and so has Paul Pasqualoni, so they’ve both been around the block and you’re probably not going to give them anything they haven’t seen.”"

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After an offseason of recovery and improvement, will the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets bounce back this season? Catch their season opener in Aviva Stadium in Dublin this Saturday, Sept. 3, at 7:30 AM EST on ESPN2.

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