Oct. 20, 2012
HOW TO WATCH IT
Fresh off a perfectly-placed midseason bye week, Georgia Tech is back at it inside Bobby Dodd Stadium on Saturday when the Boston College Eagles come calling. Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. and the game can be seen line on the ACC’s regional sports networks, including Fox Sports South. Rich Waltz will call the action, with Keith Jones providing analysis and Jenn Hildreth handling the sidelines. In addition to being aired on Fox Sports South, Saturday’s game can also be seen on the following networks: Fox Sports Carolinas, SUN Sports, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic, New England Sports Network (NESN), and ESPN3 will also carry the game live, but will black it out inside the ACC footprint.
HOW TO HEAR IT
As always, you can hear Wes Durham and Rick Strom on the Georgia Tech IMG Sports Network – in Atlanta on 790AM and 106.7FM, on Sirius Channel 132, XM 193, or check the radio affiliate list.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow @gtathletics for in-game updates on Twitter and use the hashtag #GTBC12 for in-game discussion. Like Georgia Tech Athletics on Facebook for photos and more from Saturday’s game.
Roddy Jones LIVE BLOG
Saturday’s game also features the live blog of former Yellow Jacket Roddy Jones. Click here for more information.
SATURDAY SLATE
Sat 11a: Wreckfest
Sat 12p-2p: McCamish Pavilion open house
Sat 12:30a: Yellow Jacket Alley
Sat 3p: Kickoff vs. Boston College
Click here for more information on game day activities on campus
WHAT TO WATCH FOR
Unique History. Although not meeting since 2008, and only playing seven games between each other, Tech and Boston College have a storied history. The Eagles’ last visit to Atlanta was one for the books as now-Falcons’ QB Matt Ryan led 21st-ranked BC to a 24-10 win over the 15th-ranked Jackets. Ryan was 30-of-44 passing for 435 yards in a nationally-televised game. One year later, the teams met in Chestnut Hill, in Paul Johnson’s ACC debut, and Tech walked away with a 19-16 win.
We’ll do what we do best. The days of Matt Ryan in BC’s maroon and gold may be long past, but current signal-caller Chase Rettig is not afraid to sling it. Through six games, Rettig has racked up 1,635 yards through the air with 11 touchdowns. His 275.5 yards per game ranks fourth in the ACC and 21st nationally. Rettig has surpassed 300 yards passing twice already this season, and his 441 yards is sixth on BC’s single-game list. Tech’s strength lies in its spread-option attack, and the Jackets’ 331.0 yards/game rushing offense (third-best nationally) faces a BC defense allowing 250 rushing yards/game – that includes 516 yards generated by Army’s option offense.
Fear of the unknown. It’s still unsure how the shake-up on Tech’s defensive coaching staff will affect the Jackets. One thing is for sure, it’ll give Boston College something extra, and unknown, to have to prepare for. Interim defensive coordinator Charles Kelly has some legitimate defensive playmakers in Jemea Thomas, Jeremiah Attaochu and Brandon Watts and is hoping to rekindle some of Tech’s early-season defensive success.
Number Change. Senior Isaiah Johnson will not be wearing his traditional No. 1 jersey this week. Instead, look for Johnson to wear No. 40 as the Yellow Jacket continue to rotate the No. 40 jersey in honor of Julian Burnett, whose promising football career was cut short because of an injury last season.
THEY SAID IT
“Are they going to block you sometimes? Sure. They’ve got coaches, too. But what you don’t want to do is beat yourself. Make them have to block you, make them have to get open.” –Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson
“You kind of do that in practice. The coaches, we meet as a staff and we talk about situations, what we want to do in these situations and we’ll go over that with Coach Johnson, so he’s on the same page with what we’re thinking and he has a lot of input on that. All the other coaches have a lot of input. I’m going to say it 100 times. This is a `we’ thing.” –Georgia Tech interim defensive coordinator Charles Kelly
“You have to remember, Paul is the (James) Naismith of that offense, if you will,” he said. “He invented it. He knows it better than most people know their defense.” –BC coach Frank Spaziani
STAT(S) OF THE WEEK
**The NCAA record for single-season rushing touchdowns by a quarterback is 27, shared by Kansas State’s Collin Klein (2011) and Navy’s Ricky Dobbs (2009). At the halfway point in the regular season, Georgia Tech’s Tevin Washington has 13 rushing TDs.
** Washington’s career average of 9.9 yards per passing attempt would tie for the highest average in NCAA history, but he does not have enough attempts to qualify for the NCAA record books.
** Tech’s rushing average of 331.0 yards per game is the highest in school history, but it’s not the highest average in Paul Johnson’s career. His 2007 Navy team averaged a remarkable 348.7
