Technical Tidbits 8/10

Aside from the ultimate goal of bringing home a national title, the Georgia Tech football team has set a couple of different goals for itself heading into the 2015 season -- the Jackets have their eyes fixed on leading the nation in both rushing and third down efficiency. Though it seems like a difficult goal to achieve at first glance, you have to remember that last season's record-breaking offense managed to finish first in rushing offense at 342.1 yards per game while also leading the pack in terms of third down efficiency at 58%, a full 5% better than second-place Auburn. The pieces are certainly there for a repeat in 2015, especially if the new wide receivers and running backs manage to step up.

Big news broke from the broadcast booth over the weekend when it was announced that former center Sean Bedford will be taking over the color analyst role which was recently vacated by former A-Back Roddy Jones. Bedford, who joined the Jackets as a walk-on back in 2007, received just as much recognition for his habits off the field as he did for his fantastic blocking on the field -- he graduated as a four-year letter-winner with a degree in aerospace engineering and has since gone on to get his law degree. He will join play-by-play announcer Brandon Gaudin in the radio booth this season.

Though most media outlets consider Georgia Tech to be a top-20 team heading into the 2015 season, the folks over at Syracuse.com see the Jackets as the No. 25 team in the nation, barely squeaking into the polls at all. Suffice it to say that I am hardly in agreement with this particular ranking -- having a quarterback like Justin Thomas should just about be enough to crack the No. 25 spot on its own -- but there is still plenty of time to prove doubters wrong. The schedule, while it will be absolutely brutal at times, is not nearly enough to prevent Tech from having another successful season. Something went wrong if Tech is ranked this low at any point during the regular season.

ESPN finished off its list of the top players in the ACC over the weekend and placed Tech's Justin Thomas at fifth on the list, behind the likes of James Conner, Deshaun Watson, Jalen Ramsey, and Kendall Fuller respectively. I have no argument with the placement of James Conner, who is something close to a generational running back for Pitt, but the other three are up for debate. I still contend that Deshaun Watson is too unproven to be ranked above Thomas, but my feelings on Ramsey and Fuller are mixed. Both are excellent players but comparing defensive backs to quarterbacks is comparing apples to oranges.

Where would you put Justin Thomas on the list of the ACC's best players?