Georgia Tech’s 38-17 loss to No. 18 Tennessee laid bare a team still searching for answers on both sides of the ball. The Yellow Jackets dropped to 0-2, and the numbers told a rough story: Tennessee rolled up 299 rushing yards, DeSean Bishop ran for 147 yards and two touchdowns, and Georgia Tech spent too much of the night trying to catch up.
The biggest issue on offense was simple enough to see. Georgia Tech went six quarters without an offensive touchdown and again struggled to turn drives into points.
Too many possessions stalled out, and the offensive line had another difficult night, allowing four sacks. Through two games, the Yellow Jackets have given up seven sacks.
They finished with 356 yards of total offense and 135 yards on the ground, but a lot of that production came after the game had already slipped away.
That slow-start problem keeps showing up, and it puts the defense in a tough spot for long stretches. When the offense has only two touchdowns through eight quarters, the margin for error disappears quickly. Georgia Tech also couldn’t sustain enough pressure on Tennessee, which averaged 14.8 yards per pass.
Sophomore quarterback Haynes was one of the few bright spots in an otherwise rough offensive showing. He gave Georgia Tech its first offensive touchdown of the season with 7:10 left in the third quarter, then added 79 rushing yards on 13 carries and another score on the ground.
He also caught six passes for 36 yards and finished with 5.5 yards per carry. Haynes had a handful of explosive runs and was the Yellow Jackets’ best offensive player on Saturday, but he didn’t get nearly enough support around him.
The passing game never really settled in, either. Mendoza had a difficult night, finishing 26-for-40 for 221 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions.
He looked shaky for much of the game and telegraphed several throws, which Tennessee made him pay for. The second interception was especially costly because Georgia Tech was driving and had a chance to trim the deficit to seven.
Instead, Mendoza telegraphed a throw to the boundary, and Jeremiah Telander came away with the pick. Mendoza did throw a touchdown in the third quarter, but by then the damage was already done.
On defense, Georgia Tech had a few individual efforts worth noting, even as the unit continued to struggle against the run. Tawfiq Thomas stood out up front with seven tackles, four solo stops, two tackles for loss, and a pass breakup.
He was active early and played one of the better games among the Yellow Jackets’ interior linemen. Still, the defense gave up too many big runs between the tackles and too many 20-plus-yard plays against Tennessee.
Special teams remains the one area where Georgia Tech has actually produced. The Yellow Jackets have a kickoff return for a touchdown, a field goal block, and a punt block return for a touchdown. For a while, those were their only touchdowns across the first two games.
The bad news kept coming, too. Georgia Tech lost two defensive starters in Jaylen Mbakwe and Jordan Walker, and their status is unknown right now. That leaves more questions for a team already dealing with problems in the trenches.
The defensive line, in particular, has not fixed the run-defense issues that showed up last season. Tennessee gashed Georgia Tech on the ground, and Colorado had already rushed for 181 yards before that. The Jackets also still aren’t protecting their quarterback well, and the offense has been too inconsistent to compensate.
With Virginia Tech, Clemson, Louisville, and an SEC game against Georgia still ahead on the schedule, Georgia Tech has plenty more heavy lifting to do. Right now, the Yellow Jackets look like a team with too many holes and not enough answers.
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Former Alabama Player Jaylen Mbakwe Was At Center Of A Scary Scene
A frightening moment overshadowed part of Georgia Techs game against Tennessee when Jaylen Mbakwe and Jordan Walker both went down after Mbakwes helmet collided with Walkers knee. Medical personnel rushed in quickly, and both Yellow Jackets needed assistance to leave the field, turning a routine play into a scene that quieted the stadium in a hurry.
Mbakwe was eventually transported by stretcher to an ambulance after being taken off on a cart, but he offered a thumbs-up to teammates and coaches as he was escorted away, a reassuring sign that he was conscious. For Georgia Tech, the immediate concern shifted far beyond the scoreboard, with the health of two players suddenly the only thing that mattered. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Tech Just Got Pulled Into A Brutal Week 2 Debate
Georgia Techs early-season buzz has given way to an uncomfortable reality after the first two games, and the latest Week 2 conversation only made that louder. The Yellow Jackets were grouped with some of the weeks biggest disappointments after a rough start that has raised fresh questions about how quickly this team can find its footing and whether last seasons momentum can be carried over in any meaningful way.
The broader issue is bigger than one bad Saturday or one ugly stat line. With the offense still searching for answers and the spotlight now drifting toward Brent Keys staff and personnel decisions, Georgia Tech has been pulled into a debate about whether the pieces on hand are enough to recreate the success the program showed a year ago. [Read more 🡒]
Georgia Tech Has One Bright Spot In A Loss That Raised Bigger Concerns
Georgia Techs home loss to Tennessee left a familiar kind of frustration: one bright moment, then a long stretch of problems that were hard to ignore. The Yellow Jackets were outplayed on both sides of the ball in a 45-24 defeat, managing only two offensive touchdowns while their defense spent much of the afternoon chasing Tennessees ground game. Special teams briefly gave the home crowd something to cheer about, but it was not enough to change the tone of a game that raised more questions than answers.
The larger concern came from how easily Tennessee controlled the line of scrimmage and how little Georgia Tech could do to slow it down. Alberto Mendozas interceptions added to the strain, and the Yellow Jackets never found much rhythm after their early spark. The one encouraging sequence mattered because it showed a unit capable of creating a big play in a tough spot, but for Georgia Tech the bigger issue now is whether that was a one-off highlight or the start of something more dependable. [Read more 🡒]