Technical Tidbits 9/30

Georgia Tech's match-up with the Miami Hurricanes this Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium will be an excellent chance at redemption for Paul Johnson's Yellow Jackets, who will look to defeat #DaU for the first time since Johnson's inaugural season way back in 2008. If Tech can in fact win against the Canes, it will mark just the second time in school history during which the Jackets have defeated both Miami and Virginia Tech in the same season (2006) while just about guaranteeing CPJ at least another year to coach on the Flats. While this game seems clearly in Tech's favor, don't get too excited -- Miami has shown some great proficiency in the passing game, which will test the Georgia Tech secondary greatly. After all, the Canes have had no problem putting points on the board in the past -- they have dropped 202 points on Paul Johnson's teams since 2008, and average of about 34 per game.

Not only could Tech's match-up with the Hurricanes be a chance at redemption for the Jackets, but it could also be the biggest game of the season for Paul Johnson's squad. Tech is obviously coming off of a win on the road against a very tough Hokie team which has given Tech fits over the years, so why shouldn't a win over the Hurricanes at Bobby Dodd Stadium propel the Jackets to what could be their best season in years? To me, this is a must win game simply because it will truly shine the national spotlight on Atlanta, albeit for a short time, and hopefully give Tech some huge momentum moving forward in ACC play. There isn't a team on the schedule which Tech has no chance against, and winning against the pesky Canes could give us that extra boost to make this season special.

Wide receiver DeAndre Smelter has been a true bright spot for a Tech team which has given us a lot to be happy about lately. He has stepped up big in every game so far, making clutch catches like he did against Virginia Tech and even adding some razzle dazzle on amazing runs after the catch as we saw against Wofford. If he can keep up this production, I would be totally comfortable calling him a top five wideout in the nation; he could go VERY high in this year's draft with a few more big games. I would honestly be utterly thrilled to see Smelter make a boatload of money in the NFL; he turned down a $1M+ offer from the Twins to play at Georgia Tech and pursue a high quality education. Turning down a million dollars is not something that most high school kids would do, and I have a tremendous amount of respect for what Smelter did and sincerely hope he can land an even bigger paycheck in the NFL.

Following some questionable injuries to Florida State players on Saturday, NCSU head coach Dave Doeren has called out Jimbo Fisher for faking injuries during the Wolfpack-Seminole match-up. Fisher obviously shot these claims down, calling Doeren a liar for his claims. The general consensus seems to be that FSU was faking injuries, but we may never know. I'd like to think that Fisher holds himself and his team to a higher standard than that, but there is just no telling when you are an outsider looking in on a DI football program.

What is DeAndre Smelter's ceiling? What has to go right for Tech to beat Miami? Is Miami the biggest game of the season?

Have a great Tuesday!