Georgia Tech’s football team made a huge splash last year. There were 3 wins against teams (Clemson, UGA, Mississippi State) that finished the year in the top 15. The Orange Bowl win over Mississippi had Georgia Tech in everybody’s final top 10. The Yellow Jackets got on a roll towards the end of season that made them one of the best teams in the country by the end of the year.
It’s a new year, and the Yellow Jackets will try to continue their program’s rise. It’s not that Georgia Tech won’t be a good team this year, but can Georgia Tech be a great team and firmly establish that the Yellow Jackets are here to stay?
Let’s take a look at the current powers of the ACC Clemson and Florida State, and where they turned the corner from good football team to national powers. For Clemson back in 2012 when they defeated a top 10 LSU team in the Chick Fil A Bowl, it looked like Clemson was ready to turn the corner as a program. We finally we became convinced of this in 2013, when the Tigers opened the season defeating a top 10 ranked Georgia team. They went on finish the season with an Orange Bowl win over Ohio State, and the rest is history.
The Tigers put together another 10 win season last year, and sit in position to make a run at the playoffs this year. Clemson has yet to reach elite status, but a nationally respected program they certainly have become.
Florida State was in this position not so long ago too. In 2012 Florida State, won an Orange Bowl over Northern Illinois which was nice win. That was a springboard to 2013, and the Noles backed it up. They went to Clemson and routed that very good Tiger team in Death Valley. Of course FSU finished things off by beating Auburn in the national title game.
Last season they made the college football playoffs, after a 13-0 regular season, that saw them beat Oklahoma State, Clemson, Louisville, Florida, and Georgia Tech.
They are now considered one of the elite programs in college football along with Ohio State and Alabama.
Just this year, Michigan State made that move from good to possibly great when they knocked off Oregon to become a legitimate playoff team.
This is where Georgia Tech wants to be.
There will be other opportunities for marquee wins for Georgia Tech with games against Clemson, FSU, and Georgia so I wouldn’t call this a must win, but it definitely could set the tone for a special season.
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