GT_EE78
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QUICK LANE BOWL
Let me start by saying that we are very happy to be going to the Quick Lane Bowl in Detroit. While I understand that the date and distance from Atlanta are not ideal for many fans, there are a lot great benefits to being selected to participate in this bowl game:
I know that there are a lot of questions as to how we wound up being selected to participate in the Quick Lane Bowl, based on our second-place finish in the ACC Coastal Division standings and the ACC’s publicized selection process.
- matchups play a big part in the national branding of a bowl and its participating teams, and the Quick Lane Bowl is the ACC’s only non-Tier One bowl game this year that features a Power 5 conference opponent in Minnesota from the Big Ten;
- it is played in a state-of-the-art NFL venue – Ford Field, the home of the Detroit Lions – and is guaranteed to have great weather on gameday (72 degrees and clear indoors!). Additionally, Ford Field is where our very own Calvin Johnson – who is being inducted to the College Football Hall of Fame tonight – became an NFL legend as a member of the Lions;
- the Quick Lane Bowl and the city of Detroit have an outstanding reputation for providing student-athletes and visiting fans with an incredible experience. We have heard nothing but good things about the experience from other schools that have participated in the Quick Lane Bowl;
- for those who can’t attend, a prime early-evening TV slot will allow us to showcase the Institute, our football program, our student-athletes and Coach Johnson’s career to the nation.
First, let me assure you that our staff did everything that we could to campaign for the best bowl destination possible for our student-athletes, coaches and fans. We were in constant communication with the ACC and the respective bowl committees, and we stated our case for why we felt that one of the league’s “Tier One” bowls should select Georgia Tech.
Of the ACC’s five Tier One bowls (Camping World, Gator, Sun, Belk and Pinstripe), three were spoken for by rule – Syracuse and NC State (both 9-3) were guaranteed spots in Tier One bowls, as was ACC Coastal champion Pitt. That left five seven-win teams (Georgia Tech, Virginia, Miami, Duke and Boston College) vying for the remaining two spots. Based on our 2-1 record against the other seven-win teams in the mix and our solo second-place finish in the ACC Coastal, we felt that we should have received one of those two bids and we made that known to the league office and bowl reps. However, at the end of the day, the Pinstripe Bowl chose Miami and the Belk Bowl chose Virginia.
All of that being said, I’d like to reiterate that we’re very much looking forward to our trip to Detroit and the Quick Lane Bowl. We think it will be a great experience for our student-athletes and fans that are able to attend, and it should be a great game against a Big Ten opponent. For more information – including tickets and travel packages – click HERE to visit our Bowl Central page.
In closing, I’d like to also recognize women’s basketball head coach MaChelle Joseph, who notched her 300th win as a head coach when her team defeated Georgia State on Sunday. Congratulations to Coach Joseph, not only on her terrific career but a great start to the season for her Yellow Jackets, who are 6-2, including a win over nationally ranked Georgia.
As always, thank you for your support and happy holidays!
Together We Swarm,
I hate when politicians keep saying an overused phrase like "at the end of the day" . All one needs to remember is at the end of the day it got dark.
