ESPN Insider: Why GT should be favored

cyptomcat

cyptomcat

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http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/acc/post?id=78029

Offense

The Seminoles may be able to boast having 10 offensive players, nearly their entire starting platoon, on the three-deep All-ACC roster, but the fact remains that Georgia Tech led the conference in yards per play in games against Power 5 teams (6.5). Florida State didn’t even rank second in this category, as their 6.2-yards-per-play mark placed them behind Pittsburgh (6.3) and Miami (6.3). (Note: Unless otherwise noted, all of the statistics listed below will be from games against Power 5 conference teams.)

The main portion of this edge comes from Georgia Tech’s gargantuan lead in rushing offense. The Yellow Jackets rush for nearly three times as many yards per game (343.1 for Georgia Tech; 124 for Florida State) and gain two more yards per rush (6.0 for Georgia Tech; 4.0 for Florida State).

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Florida State can certainly boast an edge in passing volume, but the Yellow Jackets can claim some significant wins in this area as well. The most notable of these would be Georgia Tech quarterback Justin Thomashaving a slightly higher overall Total QBR(73.8) than Jameis Winston (73.4). It’s not as if this number is solely based on Thomas’ ground game prowess, as he also has a higher Total QBR on passing plays (72.9 for Thomas, 71.9 for Winston).

Winston is also trending downward, as his eight interceptions in November were the most of any Power 5 passer in that time frame. This turnover binge led to a 54.4 Total QBR that ranked 10th among ACC passers.

Defense

The Yellow Jackets overall defensive stats may not look that impressive but those numbers do not reflect how well this platoon played over the past few weeks.

This has been especially evident in the area of turnovers. Georgia Tech racked up 17 turnovers in the past five games, a total that ranks second nationally. Their eight interceptions in November ranked tied for second among Power 5 teams in that time frame, and it helped lead to an 18.9 Total QBR allowed that ranked in a tie for third nationally.

Georgia Tech was also very good at converting those turnover opportunities into points, as four of their five defensive touchdowns on the season (tied for second nationally) occurred in November.

An improved penchant for big plays isn’t the only defensive plus for this team, as their overall yards per play allowed in November (5.1) was nearly equal to Florida State’s total in that category (5.0).
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jchens_GT

jchens_GT

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FSU will be up for this game and it will be hard fought. Although they haven't been impressive in portions of games this season, I am blown away that an undefeated, Power 5 team has received as much hate as FSU has gotten. They are vulnerable, and I think most people see that GT matches up favorably. They are still undefeated over the past two seasons, and that's not easy.
 
GTJake

GTJake

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Noone will say it publically, but I think a big part of this is the committee's ill-feelings toward Jameis Winston and his antics.
They're looking for a way to downgrade FSU and the close call games provide that for them.
I also think FSU is going to be way fired up for this game ... us against the world mentality. But that just make's our opportunity sweeter.
 
cyptomcat

cyptomcat

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I would favor GT too. FSU has fallen behind with couple teams we dominated. GT is the best team they will play this season.

The distractions seem to have an effect on FSU that they don't start the game motivated and prepared, which made it necessary to play catch up late in the game. That favors us too.
 

Jean-Baptiste Rochambeau

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Bruce Wayne said:
Yeah that is silly. I understand the hate but not the disrespect for on field accomplishment.
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This may be exaggeration, but I look upon FSU with the same academic contempt that I hold for North Carolina. Only FSU has a far longer and richer tradition of cheating than do the Tarheels. The recent shenanigans of their qb has cost them dearly in the court of public opinion. Not to mention alum Darnell Dockett's unsavory tweet this week about Obama's daughter.
 
Ash

Ash

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Whiskey_Clear said:
I don't get the lack of respect for an unbeaten team.
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Can you imagine a defending National Champion SEC team on a 28 win streak getting bumped in the polls because of some less than impressive wins? I can't.

I can't stand FSU but they have been getting the shaft in the rankings. I didn't care much until I realized it affects us. If we upset a #3 team we get a smaller bump in the polls than we would if we knock of #1.
 
AE 87

AE 87

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Interesting Stat: Redzone Scoring
FSU is #7 in Redzone defense, giving up scores only 70.45% of Redzone trips.
GT is #92 in Redzone offense, scoring only 78.46% of Redzone trips. From GT's side, most of that is missed FGs as we are #35 in TD rate.
 

chrsw003

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Funny thing is now they are getting bumped for winning a close game to an sec team. When a top sec team does that it shows how deep and good the conference is.
 
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