Good, Bad, and Ugly: Syracuse Edition

For the first time since joining the JOL staff on a permanent basis, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets are going to a bowl game.

There were several ups and several downs, but the defense stood tall when they needed to the most, and the offense was able to go on a death march of sorts to salt the game away.

LB Kyle Efford - At a position where Georgia Tech has been looking for someone to step up, Tatum and Efford did just that on Saturday night. Efford has really emerged in the last several weeks, and his performance tonight could not have come at a better time.

Efford is as physical as any linebacker in the ACC, and as a redshirt freshman, he’s got a chance to really solidify his status on the Georgia Tech defense, regardless of who is calling the plays in 2024 and beyond.

His play late in the 4th quarter was on the type of play he has had trouble with all season. He made the right read, and his INT helped clinch the win for GT.

CB Ahmari Harvey- Coming off an ankle injury, it isn’t typical for a cornerback to be as present in the run game as Harvey was on Saturday night.

At a position that was originally set to be a strength but struggled early in the season, Harvey has taken steps in his progression similar to that of Efford.

Harvey was around the ball time and time again, making some solo tackles and also taking part in the type of gang tackling that head coach Brent Key was looking for.

Aidan Birr- For the last several years, the kicking game has been a problem. Extra points, field goals, you name it, Georgia Tech fans cringed every time a kick was attempted.

Since getting the job during the SC state game, Birr has been as good as you could ask. Coming back from the gruesome knee injury he suffered late in his HS career, many wondered if he would have a chance to make any type of impact at all at the next level.

He’s done that and then some.

RB Jamal Haynes- I have not had the chance to write anything about Haynes all year, so bear with me a bit. Haynes went from being someone that was on the chopping block, buried on the depth chart, to being a game-changing weapon in the offensive backfield. Haynes took all those steps as a player earlier in the season. Tonight, Haynes took the next step in his role as a leader. Coming off an uncharacteristic fumble that gave the ball to Syracuse in good field position, the defense held strong.

Haynes went along the defensive sideline, and dapped up each player. Haynes thanked them for having his back, knowing after sharing a moment with Key that he was going to have his chance to redeem himself.

Run Defense- Syracuse ran 58 plays on Saturday night. 42 of them were run plays. Georgia Tech, for whatever reason, whether it be coaching, muscle memory, or something else, was tentative in space. Rather than attacking the ball-carrier, the defenders would wait for them to initiate contact.

Against a TE who likely runs a 4.8 or 4.9 40-yard dash and a wildcat RB, they were able to limit the damage and tackle low, making the big plays when needed.

Against UGA, that’s going to be a completely different animal entirely. They won't be able to make half-assed ankle tackle attempts and hope for the best. They won't be able to put 7 in the box the way they did on Saturday night.

Missed tackles against Syracuse led to chunk plays. Missed tackles against Georgia will lead to touchdowns.

Syracuse’s offense- Watching a TE run the ball 12 times, and a wildcat RB run the ball 27 times is not easy on the eyes. Neither was watching that TE throw screen pass after screen pass. Mechanics errors galore.

Not much more needs to be said, other than the fact that the ugly offense still found a way to comeback from 24-3, and that they could possibly be favored in their matchup against Wake Forest.

Head coach Dino Babers has been desperate in his attempt to achieve bowl eligibility, and as Brent Key said in his post-game press conference, he's done a helluva job making lemonade out of oranges no matter how ugly it is and how bad it tastes.

GT's second half execution offensively- Earlier in the week, Georgia Tech OC Buster Faulkner was nominated for the Broyles Award, an accolade that is given yearly to the nation's top assistant coach.

Faulkner's offense had 205 yards in the first half, and outside of stalling in the redzone late in the 2nd quarter, they looked like a unit that could only stop themselves.

After coming out for the second half and instantly getting plus field position after a turnover, the offense again executed and found the endzone by way of Jamal Haynes.

From that drive to the mid-way point of the 4th quarter, the offense kept coming up just short. Missed assignments, bad reads, penalties, and dropped passes plagued a unit which looked like a well oiled machine.

As the UGA game and bowl season loom, the lulls and lack of execution offensively will need to improve. Or at the very least, shorten in length.