Aug. 29, 2017
Georgia Tech Football (9-4, 4-4 ACC in ’16) vs. Tennessee (9-4, 4-4 SEC in ’16)
Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game • Monday, Sept. 4, 2017 • 8 p.m. • Atlanta, Ga. • Mercedes-Benz Stadium (71,000)
TV: ESPN | Watch Online
Radio: Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network | Where to Listen (In Atlanta: 106.3 FM / 1230 AM) | Sirius 84 / XM 84 | Listen Online | TuneIn
Tickets: SOLD OUT
Gameday Central | Game Notes/Depth Charts | 2017 GT Football Info Guide
Top Storylines
• Georgia Tech opens its 125th season of football on Labor Day evening when it takes on former Southeastern Conference rival Tennessee in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game at brand-new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta.
• The Yellow Jackets ride a four-game winning streak into 2017 after closing 2016 with wins over No. 18 Virginia Tech, Virginia, Georgia and Kentucky. Tech is one of only eight Power 5 conference teams that brings a winning streak of four games or longer into the 2017 campaign.
• Georgia Tech returns 15 starters (seven on offense, eight on defense) from last year’s 9-4 squad but must replace a three-year starter at quarterback (Justin Thomas), last season’s leader in sacks and tackles for loss (defensive tackle Patrick Gamble) and the program’s all-time leading scorer (place kicker Harrison Butker).
• The Jackets went 3-0 versus SEC opponents last season and are 5-1 in their last six matchups against SEC foes.
• Georgia Tech and Tennessee are renewing their rivalry for the first time in 30 years. The former SEC foes squared off every season but three from 1954-87 but have not met since the Volunteers’ 29-15 in Knoxville in `87. The last time the Jackets and the Vols matched up in Atlanta, Tech downed UT, 14-13, at Grant Field in 1986. Tennessee leads the all-time series, 24-17-2.
• Georgia Tech is opening the season with a neutral-site game for the second-straight year. Last year, the Yellow Jackets opened the campaign with a 17-14 win over Boston College at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland — 3,921 miles from Atlanta. This season’s opener at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta is just 1.5 miles from Tech’s Midtown campus.
