Nov. 26, 2010
By Jon Cooper
Sting Daily
– Georgia Tech will bring down the curtain on the 2010 season when they visit Athens for their annual renewal with Georgia. Kickoff is at 7:45 p.m.
The Jackets insured themselves of bowl eligibility, and a .500 regular season (as well as a .500 mark in the ACC) last Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium, rallying for a 30-20 victory over Duke. The win snapped a three-game losing streak. Now their mission is to deprive their interstate rival of both of those.
The high-scoring Bulldogs have lost two of three, last week stubbing their toe at second-ranked Auburn, blowing a 21-7 first-quarter lead before falling, 49-31.
Georgia holds a 60-39-5 lead in the series (28-13-1 in Athens) and has won eight of the last nine meetings with Tech, including last year’s 30-24 win at Bobby Dodd. The Jackets’ last trip to Sanford Stadium was a dramatic 45-42 shootout win, in which they over came a 28-12 halftime deficit.
Today’s game can be seen on ESPN. Jackets fans can catch the broadcast on the Georgia Tech ISP Radio Network, with Wes Durham (play-by-play), Rick Strom (color) and Jeff Woolverton (sidelines) calling the action and can get live stats on RamblinWreck.com.
As with any good rivalry, numbers can be thrown out the window when the teams get together. Having said that, here are some numbers for you to throw out your window.
3 – The number of consecutive wins by the road team in the series.
4 – The margin of tackles separating sophomore Julian Burnett (71) from team-leader senior ILB Brad Jefferson (75). It’s also the number of double-digit-tackle games from Burnett, who didn’t start until the team’s sixth game.
11 – The number of tackles by Jefferson in last year’s game. He also had a tackle for loss.
14 – The number of years since the two teams have met without either team ranked in the top 25.
18 – The number of career tackles against Georgia by Jefferson.
54 – The total number of career tackles against Georgia by the rest of the current Jackets’ team.
21 – The number of wins by Georgia Tech against Georgia in 27 games in the series when scoring at least 21 points.
24 – The amount of rushing yards per game more Georgia Tech has averaged in 2010 than 2009. The Jackets come in averaging 319.4 ypg on the ground. Last season they finished averaging 295.4.
90 – The number of rushing yards below their per-game average Georgia Tech was held to in last season’s game. They rushed for 205 yards.
99 – The series record for points in a game in the 1999 renewal. Georgia Tech won the game, 51-48, in overtime at Bobby Dodd. In that game, Georgia Tech tried a field goal, which Georgia blocked. But Tech recovered and Luke Manget converted a 38-yard game-winner on the next play.
107.0 – The difference in rushing yards per game between ACC leader Georgia Tech and second-place Virginia Tech.
122.3 – Anthony Allen’s rushing yardage per game over the last three games. He has 1,059 for the year and is second in the ACC.
214/16.5 – Roddy Jones’ rushing yards and yards per rush in Georgia Tech’s 2008 victory in Athens.
180/3.3 – The amount of career rushing yardage and yards per carry against Georgia by the rest of the current Georgia Tech roster. That includes 110 rushing yards on 43 carries by Joshua Nesbitt.
194 – The difference in Georgia Tech’s nation-leading rushing attack (319.4) and Georgia’s rushing defense (125.4 ypg allowed), which enters ranked 23rd nationally.
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5 – The number of rushing touchdowns by sophomore Washaun Ealey in UGA’s 44-31 win at Kentucky on Oct. 23. The five scores tied Robert Edwards’ record set on Sept. 2, 1995 against South Carolina. Ealy had 183 rushing yards against Tech last year.
10.0 – The SEC-leading sack total of junior OLB and Bronko Nagurski Award Finalist Justin Houston. Houston also was named a semifinalist for the Butkus and Bednarik Awards. Houston had 10 total sacks coming into his junior season.
20 – The number of turnovers caused by Georgia’s defense this season. They’ve turned them into 80 points. Opponents have only 21 points on 12 Bulldog giveaways. Georgia’s plus-8 turnover margin is 18th in the nation.
23 – The number of career touchdown passes by A.J. Green. He is seven behind the school’s all-time leader Terrence Edwards.
35.8 – Georgia’s offense per game over the last six games. They are 4-2 in those games. Since the return of A.J. Green from suspension, the Bulldogs’ lowest point total has been 27, his first game back.
51 – Georgia’s point total in the 2002 renewal, a 51-7 win. It’s the most points ever by Georgia against Georgia Tech.
78 – The number of yards of total offense freshman quarterback Aaron Murray needs to pass Quincy Carter (1998) and David Greene (2001) to become Georgia’s all-time leader in total offense by a freshman. Murray comes into the game with 2,753 yards. Former Kentucky QB Jared Lorenzen holds the all-time SEC mark at 3,827 yards set in 2000.
319.8 – UGA’s total defense per game. That’s fourth in the SEC and 21st in the nation.
1,708 – Junior Brandon Boykin’s school-record career kickoff return yardage. He needed 62 returns to pass Gene Washington (1,637 on 71 returns from 1973-76). Boykin returned his fourth career kickoff for a touchdown against Kentucky. He has an SEC-record three career 100-yard kickoff returns for scores.
.350/5/5 – Georgia outfielder Zach Cone’s batting average (7-for-20), runs scored and RBIs in five career games against Georgia Tech. Zach is Tech wide receiver Kevin Cone’s younger brother. It should be noted the Yellow Jackets are 4-1 in those games.
