Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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www.BLUEANDGOLD.com NOV. 20, 2021 37 GAME PREVIEW: GEORGIA TECH After nine games, redshirt junior line- backer Ayinde Eley ranked second on the Yellow Jackets with an average of 9.5 tackles per game, which was good for third in the ACC. PHOTO COURTESY GEORGIA TECH ATHLETICS I won't be surprised to see this one unfold in a similar manner as the 2019 home finale, a 40-7 win versus Boston College. Between dynamic all-around running back Jahmyr Gibbs and electric but erratic quarter- back Jeff Sims, Georgia Tech has enough on offense to score a couple touchdowns. The Yellow Jackets' defense, though, doesn't look well equipped to stop the Irish. Tyler Horka: Notre Dame 34, Georgia Tech 17 There's a narrative floating around that Georgia Tech just needs to learn how to win close games, but the fact of the matter is that this Yellow Jackets team is pretty accustomed to losing. Head coach Geoff Collins only won three games in his of his first two seasons on the job, and the Yellow Jackets only had three wins through nine games this season. That's not a recipe for success with games against No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 1 Georgia to finish the regular season. This won't be a big blow- out, but it will be a comfortable victory akin to the way the Irish handled an inferior USC team at Notre Dame Stadium in late October. Mike Singer: Notre Dame 37, Georgia Tech 13 Georgia Tech hasn't been all that impressive this season, but from the outside looking in, it seems like the Yellow Jackets are much more competitive after an abysmal year in 2020. I don't foresee Georgia Tech being able to slow down the Irish offense, but this game won't be a complete blowout. The Fighting Irish just have too many horses in the stable offensively despite their injury issues. Staff Predictions Todd D. Burlage: Notre Dame 41, Georgia Tech 17 When Georgia Tech head coach Geoff Collins arrived in Atlanta for the 2019 season, he faced the tall task of replacing the unique triple-option offense run by previous head coach Paul Johnson. Reconstruction challenges were expected, but with only a 9-22 overall record now deep into his third season in Atlanta, program momentum seems flat-lined. Irish head coach Brian Kelly is 9-2 at Notre Dame Stadium on Senior Day and has won four straight home finales. Steve Downey: Notre Dame 33, Georgia Tech 14 Even though it hasn't really shown up in their record, head coach Geoff Collins is adamant his program is making progress. The average margin in the Yellow Jackets' first six defeats was just 9.7 points, marked improvement from the 24.9 in 2020 and 22.4 in 2019. In five of the six losses this season, Georgia Tech led in the fourth quarter or had a possession to tie or take the lead. However, the Yellow Jackets' defense — despite being heavy with juniors and seniors — has struggled mightily. They rank last in the ACC and 123rd nation- ally in passing efficiency defense (162.21 rating), and are 113th in total defense (442.2 yards allowed per game) and 110th in passing defense (267.7). The Fighting Irish have the personnel to exploit those issues and should cruise to another Senior Day victory. Patrick Engel: Notre Dame 38, Georgia Tech 17 It has been a long time — 2016, to be exact — since Notre Dame has lost one of these kinds of games.