What does the crystal ball say about November?
Last week we ran through October and had a nice little chat. Now comes crunch time: November. The month where teams run out of gas or establish themselves and state that they belong. Arguable the best time for football and also the biggest stretch for Georgia Tech as they face Virginia Tech, Miami, and georgie.
Bird has the Jackets at 6-2 and Winfield picks 7-1 overall.
November 4th: at Virginia Tech
Bird: Of all the games predicted by the fans of From the Rumble Seat, only one team was predicted to defeat the Jackets. The Hokies in Blacksburg present Paul Johnson's bunch the biggest obstacle for the ACC Crown. The Hokies return a veteran backfield, a strong corps of wide receivers, and a fairly efficient offensive philosophy. This is the first time the Jackets have met the Hokies in November under CPJ's watch and I think that's the key point. The Hokies and Jackets both relish November football but a predicted kickoff temperature of 45°F looks to give the Hokies an early advantage. If I had to pick one team to win the Coastal, I'd choose Georgia Tech 6 times out of 10. If I had to pick one team to win this game, I'd probably take VT 6 times out of 10. Like 2009, this is my Game of Year.
Winfield: Let's get this cleared up. I am going to this game to experience Lane Stadium on a Thursday Night straight up. I always enjoy going to that game and when the opportunity arises to experience a Thursday night game, you take it. Example 1, Example 2 Ok, back to business. I could not agree with Bird more on this one. Since the Hokies joined the ACC, the winner of this game has won the Coastal Division. Why should this year be any different? While I don't want to say it, I fear the energy of Blacksburg helps decide this game, kind of like Clemson 2006 where I could not hear myself think. I absolutely love playing Virginia Tech because it's intense, exciting, and loud, but I can see the Turkeys taking this one.
November 13: Miami
Winfield: Last year, we lost to Miami because we were exhausted and Jacorry Harris had arguably his best game of the year against us. I want revenge. Tech wants revenge. As the Jackets return from a two week road trip, Miami's gonna take some punishment.
Bird: Ever since Clemson beat Tech with the purple on purple uniforms, they've been cursed. Last season's epic futility in Sun Life Stadium has bestowed a curse on the Hurricanes. I predict a new 4 year streak over the Canes starting in 2010. Blowout City. The Canes on the road in November under Randy Shannon are 2-5. Cane quarterbacks have thrown 13 picks against 13 TD's in road November games under Shannon and I don't see this improving in 2010. Look for a rocking Bobby Dodd Stadium and a sad Hurricane squad following this payback game.
November 20: vs. Duke
Bird: If Sean Renfree survives the season, Duke may score a touchdown against Georgia Tech. Otherwise, this is a joke game. Cutcliffe may have his team in good condition to play with unmotivated squads (e.g. NCSU, UNC, etc.) but he hasn't even come close to competing with CPJ's teams since the Skipper left Navy. Tech wins big.
Winfield: hahahahaha. Dook.
November 27: at georgie
Winfield: Here's why we win this game plain and simple:
There's a huge difference between the Army-Navy game and the Georgia-Georgia Tech game. I'd say the biggest is both team's respect each other in Army-Navy. I think both fan bases respect each other and both schools do that. And you know the Georgia-Georgia Tech rivalry for whatever reason is just nasty for lack of a better word. I don't know that I got the full force of it ‘til this year but I've got a long memory. I got the full brunt of it this year so I know what it's about now.
-Paul Johnson
Bird: Even if Georgia finds a quarterback by the end of the season, Tech should be steamrolling through the schedule. This game should end like 2009's edition should have with a big Tech victory.
Just like all Tech fans and our preseason blogpoll ballot, we are overly optimistic in the 2010 season. Bird says 9-3, Winfield says 10-2. Go Jackets!