Technical Tidbits 12/8

Georgia Tech forward Charles Mitchell, whose impressive start to the season was mentioned yesterday by a few media outlets, is actually in the midst of a much more impressive season than many people realize -- he is one of two players in the nation to record a double-double in every single game of the season. While it's true that we are just eight games into a long basketball season, recording eight straight double-doubles is a very impressive feat. What's even more impressive is that Mitchell has actually outplayed former Yellow Jacket Robert Carter so far this season, averaging 14.5 points and 13.0 rebounds to Carter's 13.6 and 6.6. When you consider that Tech got two years of Mitchell's contributions compared to one of Carter for Maryland, it seems that the Jackets may have actually won that "trade", at least to this point.

Though Mitchell has been the most impactful transfer so far this season, the contributions of former Virginia Tech Hokie Adam Smith is another reason for Tech's relative success so far in 2015. Smith, who transferred to Tech late in the offseason as a graduate transfer, led the conference in three-point shooting a season ago and has done a nice job of translating that success from Blacksburg to The Flats. In fact, the Jonesboro native has actually improved his three-point percentage from an impressive 42.4% last season to an even better 43.4% this year. The sample size has been admittedly smaller, but his average of just about three triples per game has been a huge help to the sporadically offensively-challenged Jackets.

The annual announcement of the College Football Playoff field is always accompanied by the subsequent announcements of 38 other, lesser bowls. This year, as you may have guessed, is no different. I personally can't wait to see the Fiesta Bowl, which will feature a matchup between Ohio State and Notre Dame in a game that feels like it should be an annual rivalry but apparently isn't -- the two teams haven't matchup up in a few years. The Fiesta Bowl is now sponsored by Battlefrog, a corporation that I've never heard of. I guess Tostitos got over it.

I'll leave you today with a big congratulations to Georgia State, which recently clinched its first bowl appearance in school history. The Panthers, who finished the season with a 6-6 record after blowing out Georgia Southern in their rivalry game, could realistically be the second-best team in the state! That doesn't seem like much, but when you consider that Georgia State had a 1-23 record as an FBS team prior to this season everything is put into perspective. They will now head to the Cure Bowl for a matchup against 5-7 San Jose State.

Which bowl games are you most looking forward to watching?