Football officially kicked off for down at Bobby Dodd Stadium this past Thursday night. 42,132 fans showed up to watch the Yellow Jackets open the 2011 season with the Western Carolina Catamounts, which happens to be the alma mater of GT head coach Paul Johnson. This game was a total mismatch on paper and on the field as well. From the opening kickoff, it was apparent Georgia Tech could do anything they wanted on this night. Despite some sloppy play at times, fumbles mostly, the Yellow Jacket offense was down right dominant. They put up 662 yards of total offense (365 passing, 297 rushing) and would go on to defeat the Catamounts 63-21 and move their record to 1-0 on this new season.
Highlights
The two quarterbacks for the Georgia Tech, Tevin Washington and Synjyn Days, accounted for 365 yards passing and 3 touchdowns, which at the end of the week was Top 10 in the FBS. You read right! The biggest recipient of those yards was Stephen Hill who caught 4 passes for 181 yards and 2 touchdowns. The Yellow Jackets had 12 different players rush the ball during the game for 297 yards and 6 touchdowns. The quarterbacks combined for 105 yards rushing and 1 touchdown, while Orwin Smith and David Sims proved to be the most effective rushers on the night. Smith only rushed for 84 yards on only 4 carries, but scored 2 touchdowns. Sims on the other hand punished the Catamounts interior defense for 44 yards on just 9 carries.
On defense the Yellow Jackets allowed two touchdowns. However, one was on a short-field (own 4 yard line) defending after a turnover. Overall, the defense was pretty impressive. With so many players playing, it is hard to get a firm evaluation as to who was the best on the night, but there were definitely some things that stood out. The Georgia Tech defense showed it's not afraid to lay some players out. There were several big hits throughout the game, one of which was by cornerback Rod Sweeting. Starting inside-linebacker Julian Burnett led the team with 12 total tackles, and the team as a whole had 4 sacks on the night.
The Bad
The special teams definitely needs to improve. The field goal unit came out only once and the kick was blocked due to bad protection and a low kick. On the block, WCU picked the ball up and ran it back for an uncontested touchdown. Kickoff coverage will also need some tweaking.
Offensive Player of the Game: WR - Stephen Hill - 4 catches, 181 yards, 2 TD's
Defensive Player of the Game: LB - Julian Burnett - 12 total tackles
Next Opponent: @ Middle Tennessee State (Sept. 10, 2011)
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