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Yellow Jackets Dominate Orange, 41-16

THE FLATS Haynes King solidified his standing as one of college football’s top players, accounting for 395 yards of total offense and five touchdowns, and No. 7 Georgia Tech continued its run as one of college football’s top teams in a 41-16 rout of Syracuse on Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field.

King completed 25-of-31 passes for 304 yards and three touchdowns and ran 12 times for 91 yards and two more scores in perhaps his and his team’s most complete performance of the season to date. King’s .806 completion percentage was the highest in Georgia Tech history for a passer with at least 30 attempts.

The senior signal-caller led the Yellow Jackets to scores on seven of 10 possessions, including a pair of touchdown passes to tight end Josh Beetham (21 and 13 yards), another scoring strike to wide receiver Dean Patterson (37 yards) and two TD runs of his own (2 and 4 yards).

In all, King and the Georgia Tech offense racked up 543 yards of offense, its most in an Atlantic Coast Conference game in two years, dating back to a 635-yard outburst in a 46-42 win over North Carolina in 2023.

Not to be outshone by the offensive fireworks, Tech’s defense also turned in one of its best performances of the year, particularly in the first half, when the Orange managed just 118 yards as the Jackets opened up a commanding 20-3 lead.

In contrast to the efficiency of Georgia Tech’s explosive offense, Syracuse managed points on just three of their 10 possessions. The Orange managed just 17 first downs (compared to Tech’s 28), as the Jackets’ defense allowed just five third-down conversions on 14 attempts.

But the story of the day was King. His 304 passing yards, three touchdown passes and 395 yards of total offense were all season highs, while the 300-yard passing game was his sixth in 31 games as a Yellow Jacket, which moved him into a tie for the second-most in Tech history, behind only 1999 Heisman Trophy runner-up Joe Hamilton’s seven.

It all added up to the No. 7-ranked Yellow Jackets moving to 8-0 for only the sixth time in its 133-season football history (1917, 1928, 1942, 1952, 1966 and 2025) and 5-0 in ACC play for the first time ever.

Georgia Tech puts its unblemished record on the line again next Saturday, Nov. 1, when it travels to NC State for an ACC showdown. Kickoff time and television arrangements will be announced later on Saturday or early Sunday.

Haynes King turned in the finest performance of his outstanding season to date, accounting for 395 yards of offense (including 304 passing) and five touchdowns in Saturday’s homecoming win over Syracuse (Danny Karnik photo)

 

Postgame Notes

Team Notes
  • Georgia Tech moved to 8-0 for only the sixth time in its 133-season football history (1917, 1928, 1942, 1952, 1966, 2025).
  • Georgia Tech’s eight-game winning streak is its longest since it won eight-straight games in 2009 and matches its longest since it won nine games in a row spanning the 1989 and 1990 seasons. It matches the Yellow Jackets’ longest same-season winning streak since they won their first nine games in 1966.
  • Georgia Tech moved to 5-0 in Atlantic Coast Conference play for the first time in its 43 seasons in the ACC (Tech officially began ACC play in 1983).
  • Georgia Tech has won seven-straight ACC games dating back to last season.
  • Georgia Tech moved to 5-2 all-time against Syracuse.
  • Georgia Tech moved to 3-0 at home against Syracuse.
  • Georgia Tech moved to 57-18-1 all-time on its homecoming.
  • The homecoming win was Georgia Tech’s fourth-straight.
  • The game was played in front of a sellout crowd of 51,193. It was Georgia Tech’s first home sellout for an ACC game in 10 years and one day, dating back to its 24-16 “Miracle on Techwood Drive” win over Florida State on Oct. 24, 2015. It was the Yellow Jackets’ first home sellout against any opponent since the 2021 edition of “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate” versus archrival Georgia.
  • Georgia Tech’s 543 yards of offense were a season high against NCAA Division I FBS competition (prev.: 481 vs. Virginia Tech – Oct. 11; the Yellow Jackets had a season-best 680 yards against FCS opponent Gardner-Webb on Sept. 6).
  • Georgia Tech outgained Syracuse, 543-381, including a 322-118 margin in the first half, as Georgia Tech raced out to a 20-3 halftime lead.
  • After gaining 41 yards on its first offensive play of the game, Syracuse managed just 77 yards over its final 23 plays of the first half (3.3 avg.).
  • Georgia Tech’s lost fumble on the second play of the game was its first turnover in three games, dating back to a lost fumble in the fourth quarter of its 30-27 overtime win at Wake Forest (Sept. 27).
  • Georgia Tech lost the opening coin toss for the seventh time in eight games this season. The Yellow Jackets’ lone win on an opening coin toss came in their second game of the season (Sept. 6 vs. Gardner-Webb). Including losing the coin toss at the beginning of overtime at Wake Forest (Sept. 27), Tech is 1-8 in coin tosses this season. The statistical odds of winning just 1-of-9 coin tosses are just 1.76% (9 in 512).
Individual Notes
  • r-Sr. QB Haynes King continued to cement himself as one of college football’s top players, as he completed 25-of-31 passes (80.6 pct.) for 304 yards and 3 touchdowns, while also rushing 12 times for 91 yards and two touchdowns.
  • King’s 304 passing yards, three touchdown passes and 395 yards of total offense were all season highs (prev.: 243 passing yards at Wake Forest – Sept. 27; two TD passes vs. Temple – Sept. 20; and 349 yards of total offense at Wake Forest).
  • King’s .806 completion percentage is the highest in Georgia Tech single-game history (min. 30 att.) surpassing George Godsey’s .784 versus Virginia (Nov. 9, 200). He now owns five of the top six single-game completion percentages (min. 2020 in program history.
  • With 304 passing yards, King moved into fourth in Georgia Tech history with 6,436 passing yards in 31 games as a Yellow Jacket. He surpassed George Godsey, who threw for 6,167 yards from 1998-2001.
  • King’s 300-yard passing game was his sixth as a Yellow Jacket, which moved him into a tie with Godsey for the second-most in Georgia Tech history, behind only Joe Hamilton, who had seven 300-yard passing games from 1996-99.
  • King extended his own school record by throwing for a touchdown and running for a touchdown for the 15th time in his 31 games as a Yellow Jacket. His 15 games with a passing TD and rushing TD are three more than any other player in program history (12 –Hamilton).
  • r-Sr. TE Josh Beetham scored the first two touchdowns of his career on 21- and 13-yard TD catches in the second quarter.
  • Beetham is the first Yellow Jacket with two touchdown receptions in a game since TE Brett Seither vs. North Carolina on Oct. 28, 2023.
  • After making just 3 catches for 29 yards over his first 25 career games, Beetham has 5 receptions for 131 yards over the last four games.
  • With his 37-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter, r-Sr WR Dean Patterson has two TDs in his 6 receptions as a Yellow Jacket. Patterson is averaging 21.8 yards per catch (6 receptions for 131 yards).
  • With r-Sr. WR Malik Rutherford sidelined due to injury, true Fr. WR Jordan Allen shattered his previous career high with 6 receptions (prev.: 2 at Duke – last Saturday).
  • r-Sr. DL Jason Moore’s forced fumble in the third quarter was the second of his career and his first since Oct. 29, 2022 at Florida State.
  • So. DL Jordan Boyd’s recovery of Moore’s force fumble was the first of his career.
Head coach Brent Key displays eight fingers to the Georgia Tech student section following the Yellow Jackets’ eighth win in eight games this season (Danny Karnik photo)

 

Multimedia

Head Coach Brent Key Postgame Press Conference (Video)

Head Coach Brent Key Postgame Press Conference (Audio)

Student-Athletes Postgame Press Conference (Video)

Haynes King ESPN Radio College Gameday Postgame Interview (Audio)

 

ACC Digital Network Highlights

ACC Digital Network Condensed Game

ACC Digital Network Full Game Replay

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2025 GEORGIA TECH FOOTBALL TICKETS

Tickets still remain for the Yellow Jackets’ final home game of the 2025 regular season at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field.

Nov. 22 vs. Pitt (Senior Day/Military Appreciation Day/Michael Isenhour Toy Drive-25th Anniversary) – Click HERE for tickets.

Full Steam Ahead

Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.

For the latest information on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, follow us on XFacebookInstagram and at www.ramblinwreck.com.

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