ATLANTA–Georgia Tech (4-2, 2-2 ACC) hosts its second straight Atlantic Coast Conference foe as Duke (0-6, 0-3 ACC) visits Bobby Dodd Stadium/Grant Field Saturday, October 21 for a 12 noon, regionally televised contest (FSNS in Atlanta).
Junior quarterback George Godsey (Tampa, Fla.), who ranks 10th in the nation in passing efficiency, will have the task of picking up Duke’s blitzing defense. Coming off a career-best 333 yards passing and four touchdowns in last week’s 52-20 win over Wake Forest, Godsey is completing nearly 62 percent of his passes for 1,341 yards and 14 touchdowns with only three interceptions.
“I like to see the blitz, myself, because if you can pick up the people you’re supposed to pick up, you have a chance for a big play,” said O’Leary.
Tech’s offense had been hampered by a lack of big plays through the first five games, but against the Demon Deacons, Godsey threw scoring passes of 72, 53 and 35 yards in the first half.
Junior Kelly Campbell (Atlanta, Ga.) leads Tech’s balanced receiving corps with 29 catches for 444 yards and five touchdowns, but 12 different Yellow Jacket receivers and backs have caught passes, including five players with 10 or more receptions.
O’Leary is pleased with the emergence of two true freshmen receivers, Nate Curry (Miami, Fla.), who had a nine-yard touchdown catch last game against Wake Forest, and Jonathan Smith (Argyle, Ga.), who caught his first three balls last week.
“I think the two freshmen are coming along really well,” said O’Leary. “You’ve got to be patient with freshmen, and I think the coaches have a done a good job with them as far as being patient and getting them into the mix. It’s good to have them because it gets other people in front of them working harder, too.”
The Rambling Wreck tight ends are becoming more involved in the offense. The quartet of Russell Matvay (Coram, N.Y.), Will Heller (Alpharetta, Ga.), Brian Lee (Florence, Ala.) and John Paul Foschi (Glen Head, N.Y.) have combined to catch 13 balls for 157 yards. Last year, the tight ends caught 12 passes for the entire season.
Tech’s running game, which produced a season-best 245 yards against the Demon Deacons, speads the wealth between Joe Burns (Thomasville, Ga.), Sean Gregory (Homewood, Ill.) and Sidney Ford (Lindale, Ga.). That trio averages 131.3 yards on 30 carries per game, led by Burns with 73.5 yards an outing and six touchdowns. Tech backs have posted three consecutive 100-yard games, with Burns against NC State (100 yards) and North Carolina (123) and Ford against Wake Forest (111).
