Georgia Tech wins, but this was nothing to celebrate
Josh Nesbitt had an early 4-yard touchdown run to get Georgia Tech going. Nesbitt ran for two scores and threw for two more, but it turned out to not be such an easy night.
NASHVILLE — When a team has won five straight, launched itself into the BCS bowl picture and generally has left the impression it will skate through the “Nerders Row” portion of its schedule — Virginia, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Duke — it doesn’t expect to have games like this.
Georgia Tech defeated Vanderbilt on Saturday night 56-31. Looks one-sided. It wasn’t. Nor should it have been this sloppy or this difficult.
Expectations on North Avenue suddenly are meteoric. Maybe the altitude got to be too much.
It’s all still sitting there for the Yellow Jackets, everything they could possibly have wanted when this season began. A double-digit win total. An ACC championship. A BCS bowl game. A top-10 ranking. A second season under Paul Johnson to reaffirm that the first season under Paul Johnson wasn’t nearly a fluke.
But this game was a not-so-subtle reminder that there’s still the possibility of the bottom falling out. Vanderbilt entered this game with a 2-6 record. Its only victories had come over Western Carolina and Rice — and they don’t really count.
But where was this game at halftime? Tied at 28-28. When the Commodores drove to a field goal on their first possession of the second half, they led 31-28.
How bad should the Jackets feel about that? Bad enough to inch toward the balcony and maybe seek therapy.
In Vandy’s six previous losses, the Commodores totaled 9, 3, 7, 13 (that against Army, and only because of a field goal in overtime), 10 and 10. One of those 10’s came against the Bulldogs. So you need not wonder why Tech defensive coordinator Dave Wommack is as unpopular on The Flats as Willie Martinez is in Athens.
If the Jackets don’t want to concern themselves with impressing poll voters, that’s one thing. But they can’t give up an 80-yard kickoff return or a 62-yard touchdown run, as they did Saturday night, and expect to skate again. They can’t assume any of their remaining opponents will implode the way Vandy did.
Because there’s only one Vandy.
Jonathan Dwyer gave Tech a 35-31 lead late in the third quarter with a 3-yard touchdown run. Then Vanderbilt turned back into Vanderbilt.
On the ensuing possession, running back Jamie Graham fumbled on the Commodores’ 19-yard line. (It was one of three Vandy fumbles.) Two plays later, Dwyer was in the end zone again from 3 yards out and suddenly it was 42-31 after two touchdowns in a span of 40 seconds.
Early in the fourth quarter, quarterback Josh Nesbitt connected with Embry Peeples for an 87-yard score, and the game looked like a rout. But for most of the night, it wasn’t.
It would be overstating things to suggest this was an “escape.” It was more like a reminder.
After a string of impressive conference victories over Florida State, Virginia Tech and Virginia — two of those coming on the road — expectations surrounding this program skyrocketed. The Jackets had the look of a team that was together and focused, that was following their coach, that seemingly would not be derailed in this home stretch.
Even coach Paul Johnson, while stating he believed Vanderbilt was better than its record indicated, did not anticipate any sort of a letdown. When asked earlier in the week about playing a non-conference game against a lesser opponent, he said: “I think our football team, to be a special one, has to go out and want to win every game. … I’m not worried about [a letdown]. I hope our guys are mature enough to realize that Vanderbilt is a good football team. We’re playing against the SEC. We’re not supposed to be able to compete. It’s a chance for our guys to match up with [an SEC team] again.”
Except that when you think, hear and see Vanderbilt, you don’t think, hear or see SEC. You see a small stadium that’s one-third empty on a campus where football doesn’t matter
It matters again at Tech. When you stumble, everybody notices.
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
469 comments Add your comment
Steve
November 1st, 2009
10:43 am
Of course if vandy loses to fla 61-24 next week, everyone will say look how dominant the gators are. It’s a joke.
Jack G.
November 1st, 2009
10:47 am
Why are all you folks jumping on Jeff?
All Jeff did was state the obvious. The D stinks and if it dosent get better someone is going to stick it to us.
I personally think Duke is going to give our D a lesson in Passing. They do it well and we dont defense it very well.
In short, Duke scares me.
As for the Georgia game look out. This will be a battle of defensive Cordinators.—Who is the baddest.
Kane337
November 1st, 2009
10:47 am
It’s easy to criticize the jackets now since the expectations are so much greater but look at this team now and compare them to what they were just 2 years ago under Chan Gailey Night and Day.
Instead of battling for a .500 record and bowl eligibility this team is contending for the ACC championship and is a legitimate top 10 BCS team. Paul Johnson has done a tremendous job in just less than 2 years. Give the man some time to recruit and fix the defense and this team could be scary for many years to come.
JJ
November 1st, 2009
10:49 am
2nd half matters too
28-3 gt
Stinger
November 1st, 2009
10:51 am
Jeff, are you kidding? Nothing to celebrate??? Mighty LSU beat Vandy by 14 pts; Ole Miss beat them by 16 pts; and South Carolina beat them by 4 pts. The worst loss previously was to UGA 34-10. We scored by far more points on them than anyone has and beat them by more points 25, than anyone else has. This was the mighty SEC on the road that we clobbered. Yeah, our defense did not play that well, but a football game is 60 minutes and we absolutely destroyed them in the second half like we have done most of the year. I am very pleased with this stomping of a mighty SEC team.
truth
November 1st, 2009
10:52 am
Johnson is a man, richt and bobo are boys
GT
November 1st, 2009
10:55 am
The Tech team played with heart, a Gailey team would have lost that game. What team in the country has the kind of record Jeff is talking about. We have bigger fish to fry so the article was somewhat on the money, we have a very weak first half defense almost by design it looks like. I am just glad we are having the year that wins along are not enough, this is a special year and these article are welcomed in that light.
Glitchy
November 1st, 2009
10:58 am
Don’t know if you’re pro-Georgia or pro-Tech, but you sure are pro-Statist – maybe B4 you write about Limbaugh again, you ( and the rest of the media) will check your facts…..
" I just want to celebrate"
November 1st, 2009
10:58 am
ajc– TECH STEAMROLLS VANDY
GT4Eever
November 1st, 2009
10:59 am
Mike Lum
October 31st, 2009
11:48 pm
Hey reality check, that was no rout. Don’t know what game you watched. Tech scored 21 points off four Vandy fumbles. Without those, it’s a 4 point game (if my Tech calculus/math is right).
WTF…those plays happened. You can’t play what ifs. It’s part of the game. They all count!!!
GBG
November 1st, 2009
10:59 am
The Yellow Jackets (8-1) rolled up a season-high 597 yards total offense against a Vanderbilt defense that was ranked 34th nationally, giving up 320 yards per game. They wore Vanderbilt out, holding the ball for nearly 40 minutes and rolling up 404 yards rushing.
And you write this crap? What about the offense Jeff? Give me one big break.
Old Gold Britches
November 1st, 2009
11:01 am
LA mutt NO, but maybe 31
wordy
November 1st, 2009
11:13 am
“And by the way, decaf is a waste of time. I generally go straight from high-octane coffee to scotch”
that is great. thanks Jeff
By the way GT what is up with GT. Wins at VT and gets destroyed at UM??? GT will be humiliated in a BSC bowl game
Stinger
November 1st, 2009
11:15 am
LAdawg, I wish we could play LSwho, Floriduh, Bammer,Okie State(LOL),Ole Missy, South Caroliner, Rocky Top, etc. This leaque is a joke. Plain and simple, a joke. Sad for you we do have one more SEC game on our schedule, UGA. I’d like to see you play Virginia, Duke, and Wake this year and see if you could win any of the 3. I doubt it.
macrotech
November 1st, 2009
11:19 am
LAdawg, no offense intended, but the sec just isn’t anything special without UF, BAMA and LSU (lsu is still questionable this year). The BIGGEST problem with Tech’s offense is that we’re going to have a tough time getting people to play us…right now, we have a schedule that we must play; we’re 8-1 with it! If you think the mutts could beat UM, FSU, NC, BC, then you’re as delusional as they come! No offense plus no defense means no chance! We have half of the equation working REALLY well….the other half is in the works! Amazing offense plus good defense equals a NC in the next couple of years. We all know how tough this season has been for all the dawg fans…sorry…Tech is the sh**, now! You know it! And, it KILLS you!!! GO TECH!!!
Jonnyboy
November 1st, 2009
11:20 am
Jeff, I see you still have a column. Not surprised it’s the AJC. Did they tell you to stick to sports and sports only? That is something that even you can’t screw up.
Now don’t think I am being hard on you, that Bonehead guy Mr no nothing football is just as bad.
jojatek
November 1st, 2009
11:21 am
Schultzy, puhleeeeaaaaase!! Are you kidding me?!! Our boyz made the adjustments that were necessary on defense… they were opportunistic when it mattered most… and their offense rolled yet again… that is what great teams (and, dare I say it, great programs) do… CPJ is the real deal…
Let’s talk a little bit more about those black helmets in Jacksonville: What the hell was that all about?!!! I think Jerry Glanville was the guy who invented that concept… dress an underachieving, poorly coached football team in black in a desperate ’slight-of-hand’ attempt to keep the fans (and the critics) at bay. Unfortunately, the black helmets are here to stay with the Falcons (Glanville’s only tangible legacy in Atlanta if you set aside his decision to send Brett Favre packing…). Let’s hope Richt gets back to red helmets on Thanksgiving weekend… if we wanted to play Grambling, we would have put them on the schedule!!
… and for God’s sake, CMR, please stop talking about men wanting respect and women wanting love in your post-game press conference… we’re really starting to worry about you…
Brock
November 1st, 2009
11:21 am
My apologies to LA Dawg. This is not a tech blog, but a blog about tech. However, I still feel sorry for you.
Tallahassee Jacket
November 1st, 2009
11:22 am
Jeff, those Vandy fumbles were forced by GT defense. I don’t recall any missed center/qb exchanges, bad handoffs, etc. A rout is a rout.
Gen Neyland
November 1st, 2009
11:23 am
JS’s blog is accurate. To the GT fanbase, congrats on beating two of the SEC’s bottom feeders of 2009. You should start low and work your way up the ladder of SEC programs cause we all saw what happened when you started near the top last bowl season. And my goodness, Vandy hung with ya’ll way too long. I still see a GT defense that is hot/cold.
buzzwax
November 1st, 2009
11:23 am
Paul Johnson 56 Steve Spurrier 14
Johnboy
November 1st, 2009
11:25 am
Beez R beeutiful BUT DEFENSE wins championships! We’ll get there. I see a couple of ESL kickers on the horizon so that we aren’t always short field challenged. recruiting is gonna be like christmas in a toy store for CPJ. Who wouldn’t wanna come to ATL and play for a winner?
buzzwax
November 1st, 2009
11:25 am
Vandy and Miss St. are only in the SEC when they play SEC opponents……
Giff Smith for DC!
GTFan1
November 1st, 2009
11:26 am
What time do you guys think the Wake game will be? 3:30?
79
November 1st, 2009
11:27 am
I wonder if there isn’t a girl on Tech’s women’s soccer team who could get the kick-off past the other team’s 15 yd line…..
ACC puts up more points on Vandy than any sec team
November 1st, 2009
11:29 am
Jeff,
Such doom and gloom. Tech just put up more points on Vandy than any other sec team has. It’s hard to get up to play them, even for the sub-par ACC.
The only reason ugag put up their 30 something is they are trying to salvage their season.
Stumpknocker
November 1st, 2009
11:29 am
Shove it up your exaust pipe Shultz. Had this been a Dawg win, it would have been a hard – faught victory over a tough SEC opponent……….and BTW (LA DAWG), you can shove-it too!!!!!!!!
willie
November 1st, 2009
11:35 am
Hysterical article….we won by nearly 4 TD’s. Great stuff, Jeff.
Johnboy
November 1st, 2009
11:40 am
LA DAWG California deserves you… BTW your mop up QB did a lovely forward lateral to Brandon Spikes or was that supposed to be a forward pass?
Johnboy
November 1st, 2009
11:41 am
or was that lower alabama ?
Full Metal Jacket
November 1st, 2009
11:42 am
Just spent an hour this morning watching Sportscenter for their coverage of the GT game. Iowa got at least 10 min worth of love for a horrible game. TCU got plenty of coverage “still trying to figure out how they are even ranked… they dont play anyone worth a crap.” Oregon got spotlight props for the good win over a horribly overrated USC.
GT……buried in the 1 min “and in other football news section” showing one pass TD.
Of course UGA got a few good mins for their thumping by Florida. By the way UGA… the helmets are lame….seriously…when your uniform makes better press than your play on the field, its time to reevaluate your program….
Napa Jacket
November 1st, 2009
11:42 am
Schultz, you get it and you have gotten it all year. Tech can be good but we are not yet to a point where we can not be on point and still be good. I think you have a grounded approach to describing the state of our team. We are a heartbeat away from being one of the elite teams in the country but we are a hiccup away from dropping back into the masses. The best thing about our team is that the players and the fans have bought into the system and Coach Johnson has our respect and attention. My unqualified opinion is that if PJ can rally the troops as he has in less than 2 years (since the departure of Gailey) then he has the chance to do some very special things down at the flats…as long as he avoids the hiccups.
Keep up the good work.
JimC
November 1st, 2009
11:47 am
That was an embarrassment. If Vanderbilt hadn’t made so many mistakes in the 2nd half, Tech would have lost the game. I usually feel great on Sunday after a win, but not this time.
If we play like we did Saturday in Nashville, we’ll lose the last three games AND lose the devision championship.
Why can’t we play with any consistency?
Dumb
November 1st, 2009
11:47 am
Fla won the NC in 2006. That year they beat Vandy 25-19.
In 1996, when they had that powerful Danny Weurfel offense look how bad they beat Vandy. Give me a break JEFF
Florida Gators (12-1-0)
Date AP Rank Opponent Result
Aug. 31 #4 SW Louisiana (0-0-0) 55-21
Sept. 7 #4 Georgia Southern (1-0-0) 62-14
Sept. 21 #4 at #2 Tennessee (2-0-0) 35-29
Sept. 28 #1 Kentucky (1-2-0) 65-0
Oct. 5 #1 at Arkansas (1-2-0) 42-7
Oct. 12 #1 #12 LSU (4-0-0) 56-13
Oct. 19 #1 #16 Auburn (5-1-0) 51-10
Nov. 2 #1 Georgia (3-4-0) 47-7
Nov. 9 #1 at Vanderbilt (2-6-0) 28-21
Nov. 16 #1 South Carolina (5-4-0) 52-25
Nov. 30 #1 at #2 Florida St. (10-0-0) 21-24
Dec. 7 #4 vs. #15 Alabama (9-2-0)* 45-30
Jan. 2 #3 vs. #1 Florida St. (11-0-0)† 52-20
GR82BAG8R
November 1st, 2009
11:51 am
Gen Neyland, let’s see how the Vols perform against Vandy. Then you can try and defend how long Vandy hung with the Vols – - or perhaps how they hung one on the Vols.
BTW, one of those SEC bottom feeders gave Florida fits. So either Florida is close to being a bottom feeder, or MSU isn’t.
daegcatcher
November 1st, 2009
11:53 am
Jeff – you must have confused the Georgia performance with Georgia Tech. Don’t you get the script by now – lay back in the first half to make the other side relaxed and over confideent and then sting like a bee in the second half and really cream their butt in the final quarter – works every time! Poor dawgs – they looked pathetic and really will get an ass whuping when they play Ga. Tech. Bring lots of hydrocortisone for the bee stings!
JimC
November 1st, 2009
11:54 am
A bit off-blog, but it was quite enjoyable watching the Dawgies go down in flames yesterday. They’ve evolved into a very entertaining team as we try to guess how many bonehead penalties they’ll have each week and how many of their illiterate thug players are arrested.
It’s hard to have any team speed when half their players are wearing those heavy ankle monitors.
willie
November 1st, 2009
11:55 am
I must be missing something. GT had 25 more points, 200 more yards of offense and and a 40 to 20 minute time of possession lead. Vandy had the 2 fluke plays late in the first half to make it look closer than it was. There was never a doubt in my mind as I watched that GT was going to win this game. Good teams win games like this and they did….easily.
dawgcatcher
November 1st, 2009
11:56 am
Oh and when are the dawgs going to get a real quaterback like Nesbitt. Cox looks so pathetic and overwhelmed each time they lose.
JimC
November 1st, 2009
11:56 am
Hydrocortisone for bee stings. Ha ha, that’s pretty funny!
canes2222
November 1st, 2009
12:00 pm
very impressive. I said after the lose to us that if GT defense plays good, they will be the team to beat in the ACC. Right now GT deserves mid-top ten, maybe top 5 consideration. Great game!!
bamayellowjacket
November 1st, 2009
12:01 pm
Jeff
Did you write the title for this blog? Otherwise,some good observations. The defense still needs work, but the offense, OH MY!
Any ol’ way, a win is a win. and I “celebrate” them all.
Gen Neyland
November 1st, 2009
12:03 pm
GR82BAG8R : Until the game is played, one never knows what may happen. The point today is that GT-Vandy was played so now we can be critical of what was seen. Anyway, congrats to your guys…
AMG
November 1st, 2009
12:05 pm
I remember when people said this offense would never work against the FBS teams. When was that, last week, last month. Does LSU think they could stop us this year? I want a rematch, Tech may not have much of a defense,but boy will they run you over. Please send the second best SEC team to play Tech. We will destroy Alabama, Florida or LSU. Not one of them is a true power house team this year and the SEC is completely overrated.
Jackette
November 1st, 2009
12:05 pm
Would someone take a look at last nights game on ESPN360 at the 3:27:55 mark, take a look at Jonathan Dwyers photo? Who is that? It isn’t Dwyer so just wondering whose photo they have up with Dwyer’s name under it?
Patrick
November 1st, 2009
12:05 pm
Great win, GT!! The offense is a lot of fun to watch. One thing I noticed was the OLs do a lot of cut-blocking. Why does #71 dive at the ankles of the opposing lineman on every single snap? Anyway, good luck the rest of the season although you won’t need much luck to whip the pathetic UGA mongrels.
AMG
November 1st, 2009
12:08 pm
Thank God for Oregon, I know Tech fans want to be ranked ahead of them, but I hate hearing how great USC is, when it was obvious they were not all that. way to go DUCKS! USC should be ranked 15th or higher if anyone votes for the truth and not for some west coast bias.
Jackette
November 1st, 2009
12:08 pm
GT plays 3 SEC teams this year, 2 on the road whether any of them are ranked or not. The schedule is set, if all were in the top 25 and UGA usually is, we still have to play them. Not GT’s fault they are not having good years. You want to cry over someone’s schedule..take a look at who Fl and Bama play outside the conference…both play FIU, then here’s the rest..Charleston Southern, Troy, N. Texas and Chattanooga..
bamayellowjacket
November 1st, 2009
12:09 pm
BTW, this blog is still on daylight savings time.
W&Ws
November 1st, 2009
12:09 pm
Sorry, Jeff. It really does look like you made up your mind how to write your column at the half. Tech got 28 first downs and just one penalty. That tells me something about the overall progress of the team, O and D.