2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions and Season Preview

Georgia Tech football finished the 2022 season with a 5-7 record, firing their head coach mid-season. Their wins came against Western Carolina, Pittsburgh, Duke, Virginia Tech and North Carolina. Aside from Western Carolina, all four wins occurred by five points or less. They got blown out in all of their losses with the exception of Virginia.

DraftKings Sportsbook puts the Georgia Tech win total at 4.5 with the under juiced to -140. Georgia Tech also sits at +20000 to win the ACC, which is ahead of only Virginia. With that said, let’s dive into our 2023 Georgia Tech football season preview.

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Season Preview

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Coaching Staff

After firing Geoff Collins mid-season, Georgia Tech promoted their interim coach Brent Key to head coaching responsibilities. He coordinated the run game from 2019 to 2022 and the players like him. At offensive coordinator, he hired Buster Faulkner, who most recently worked as an analyst for Georgia. Faulkner has offensive coordinator experience going back to Southern Miss in 2019. At defensive coordinator, Georgia Tech retained Andrew Thacker, who has been with the program since 2019. Keeping so much of the previous staff is the ultimate and final shot fired in Collins’ direction.

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Offense

Quarterback

At quarterback, Georgia Tech lost Jeff Sims to the transfer portal, but they added Texas A&M transfer Haynes King themselves. King has started portions of multiple seasons at this point in his career. He has completed 128 of 226 pass attempts (56.6%) for 1,579 yards (7.0 yards per attempt), seven touchdowns and six interceptions. King does have decent mobility with 150 rushing yards on 41 career rush attempts (3.7 yards per carry). Those numbers include nine sacks in his career. Last year, King finished as the 15th-graded quarterback in the SEC, per Pro Football Focus. It should be noted that Texas A&M did him little favors and King originally joined the program as a high 4-star recruit. Perhaps he can be rehabilitated, but that the chance that Georgia Tech is the program to do it remains low. Behind King, Georgia Tech retains Zach Gibson, who will battle Zach Pyron for a spot. Gibson completed 57 of his 104 passes (54.8%) last year for 589 yards (5.7 yards per attempt), one touchdown and two interceptions. He is not mobile whatsoever with -14 rushing yards last year. Pyron completed 49 of 82 passes (59.8%) for 565 yards (6.9 yards per attempt), three touchdowns and three interceptions. He also rushed 35 times for 127 yards, which gives the offense more options than Gibson. The depth of this quarterback room is actually decent, but the high-end talent remains questionable.

Running Back

A year after losing Jahmyr Gibbs, Georgia Tech now loses two of their top three rushers in Hassan Hall and Jeff Sims. Fortunately, they return their second-leading rusher Dontae Smith. Last year, Smith rushed 87 times for 420 yards, while catching 19 passes for 125 yards. Smith is 5-foot-11, 203 pounds, and has been efficient in this career. He averages 3.91 yards after contact, while forcing a missed tackle on 36.1% of his attempts. Behind him, Georgia Tech added Louisville transfer Trevion Cooley. Cooley rushed 59 times for 278 yards and two touchdowns last year, while catching nine passes for another 66 yards. Cooley is 5-foot-9, 200 pounds, and has also been efficient in college. He averages 3.13 yards after contact with a forced missed tackle on 21.4% of his attempts through his career. The third string back should be Jamie Felix, who carried just 23 times last year. This running back room should be a little better this year, but the high-end talent simply is not there to compete in the ACC.

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Wide Receiver

Georgia Tech lost their top three receivers in Nate McCollum, Malachi Carter and E.J. Jenkins. This should not necessarily be viewed as a negative. To replace these players, Georgia Tech added Dominick Blaylock (Georgia) and Christian Leary (Alabama). Leary is 5-foot-10, 175 pounds, and has just three career receptions with Alabama. He originally joined Alabama as a 4-star recruit in 2021, ranking as the 75th overall player in that class. Blaylock is 6-foot-1, 205 pounds, and fell behind in Georgia’s receiving room due to injuries more than anything else. He originally caught 18 passes for 310 yards back in 2019 and never quite returned to form. He played in the slot 89.1% of the time, with an efficient 2.62 yards per route. There’s a good chance he moves to the perimeter here. He is another 4-star recruit and the 36th overall player from 2019. The final starter should be Malik Rutherford, who caught 23 passes for 225 yards last year. Rutherford is 5-foot-9, 155 pounds, and played in the slot 89.6% of the time. He recorded a solid 1.73 yards per route. Georgia Tech basically has three slots at the top of the depth chart. Georgia Tech added two other transfers with Chase Lane (Texas A&M) and Abdul Janneh (Duquesne) coming in. Lane is 6-foot-0, 185 pounds, and caught seven passes for 76 yards last year. His best year came in 2020 when he caught 29 passes for 409 yards and two touchdowns. He played out wide 76.1% of the time in his career with a poor 1.12 yards per route. Janneh is 6-foot-3, 180 pounds, and caught 43 passes for 585 yards and nine touchdowns last year. Leo Blackburn and James BlackStrain are a few other names that could contribute this year. This position group should be upgraded from 2022.

Tight End

At tight end, Georgia Tech lost Luke Benson, but they return their top tight end Dylan Leonard. Leonard is 6-foot-5, 238 pounds, and blocked on 57% of his snaps. As a receiver, Leonard caught 11 passes for 90 yards last year. Behind Leonard, Georgia Tech added transfers Brett Seither (Georgia) and Jackson Long (USF). Seither played 116 snaps in his four-year career with Georgia. He is 6-foot-5, 228 pounds, and should function as a receiving tight end primarily. Long is 6-foot-3, 230 pounds, and played just 22 snaps in 2022. He redshirted last year as a freshman. Another year of experience should help Leonard and the transfers should provide added depth.

Offensive Line

Georgia Tech lost just left guard Pierce Quick from last year’s team. They return right tackle Jordan Williams, who played 777 snaps last year. The same goes for left tackle Corey Robinson II after 735 snaps. Both were pretty bad last year, but Williams at least has three years of starting experience. Center Weston Franklin also returns after 649 snaps in his first year as a starter. Finally, right guard Joe Fusile returns after 486 snaps last year. He was a redshirt freshman, so a step forward is not out of the question here. The final starter could be Charlotte transfer Jordan Brown, who played 62 snaps last year. Georgia Tech also returns rotational players Jakiah Leftwich and William Lay III. The pair played 347 and 218 snaps at tackle and center. Any of the three could carve out a starting spot on this offense. If they move players around, Princeton transfer Connor Scaglione could also see the field. He has two years of starting experience in the Ivy League. This provides good depth for Georgia Tech, but the team will be reliant on someone taking a major step. There does not appear to be much talent on this unit.

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Defense

Georgia Tech ranked 98th on defense in 2022. This included the 101st-ranked run defense, 94th-ranked pass rush and 82nd-ranked secondary. This defense lost some of their players during the offseason, including both linebackers, Keion White on the edge and Zamari Walton at corner. Georgia Tech did add eight transfers on defense to fill the gaps. This unit likely functions as the strength of their team.

Defensive Line

Mentioned above, Georgia Tech lost White off the edge to the NFL. However, they do return three players with a decent amount of production. Kyle Kennard played 527 snaps last year. He logged 36 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. Kennard will need to take a step forward for this edge group to retain their production. Sylvain Yondjouen and Noah Collins return 324 and 207 snaps from last year. Yondjouen was particularly efficient on a small sample, recording 23 tackles, five tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks. Finally, Eddie Kelly comes over from South Florida via transfer. He played 290 snaps last year with six quarterback pressures.

On the interior, Georgia Tech returns their three main contributors in D’Quan Douse, Makius Scott and Zeek Biggers. Douse played 451 snaps last year with elite run defense numbers. He finished with 26 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks. Scott and Biggers logged 424 and 278 snaps themselves. Their production did not reach the same heights as Douse, but they can be productive in a rotation. Fortunately, Georgia Tech added Etinosa Reuben from Clemson to this rotation. Reuben played 320 snaps in his Clemson career but should find the field more at Georgia Tech. Ultimately, losing a premier edge will hurt Georgia Tech, but they will hope to replace him numbers.

Linebacker

At linebacker, Georgia Tech lost their top two starters in Ace Eley and Charlie Thomas III. Both will be major losses for this unit. With that said, the Yellow Jackets hammered the transfer portal. They added Braelen Oliver (Minnesota), Andre White (Texas A&M), Austin Dean (Rutgers) and Paul Moala (Idaho) at the position. Oliver played over 200 snaps in three straight years with Minnesota, but never quite carved out a full-time role. His numbers leave plenty to be desired. White brings more experience with 1,165 snaps over his four-year career. Like Oliver, he never quite lived up to expectations from a production standpoint. Dean has even less experience with 146 career snaps. Moala is a little more interesting. After spending three seasons on the bench at Notre Dame, he transferred to Idaho, where he started and put up elite numbers. Can he find a role as he transitions back to the FBS level? This linebacker room is full of questions.

Defensive Back

Mentioned above, Georgia Tech lost Walton at corner this offseason. Fortunately, they have two full time returning starters in Myles Sims and K.J. Wallace. The pair played 774 and 740 snaps apiece last year. With that said, the pair had vastly different production numbers. Sims broke up three passes, logged an interception and made 43 tackles. Wallace only broke up one pass and proved a major liability in coverage. He proved decent against the run from his nickel position, but he leaves plenty to be desired. The final starter should be Kenan Johnson or a transfer. Johnson played just 161 snaps last year, but he has been with the program since 2019. Omar Daniels (Kansas State) and Justin Brown (Mississippi State) come over as transfers. Daniels only played 122 snaps last year and Brown is a freshman. He previously committed to Mississippi State before flipping to Georgia Tech after the death of Mike Leach. This position basically has one proven player and questions at the other two positions.

At safety, Georgia Tech returns a pair of starters in LaMiles Brooks and Clayton Powell-Lee. The pair played 729 and 520 snaps last year Brooks finished with an elite season, comprised of seven pass breakups, three interceptions and 52 tackles. Powell-Lee was not too far behind with two pass breakups and 48 tackles. The Yellow Jackets also return Jaylon King, who played 352 snaps last year and logged 32 tackles. Ultimately, the safety group should be the strength of the defense in 2023.

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Schedule

2023 Georgia Tech Football Schedule

The Yellow Jackets play a non-conference schedule consisting of South Carolina State, Ole Miss, Bowling Green and Georgia. Within ACC play, they draw Clemson, North Carolina, Louisville and Miami among the top end of the league. They do dodge Florida State, but this remains a difficult schedule.

2023 Georgia Tech Football Futures Bet & Prediction

The Wildcats over/under 4.5 wins is juiced to -140 towards the under. The Yellow Jackets should pick up two of those wins in non-conference against South Carolina State and Bowling Green. They do play the worst team in the ACC in Virginia, but that game is on the road. With a fairly difficult slate of ACC opponents, it is difficult to see Georgia Tech clipping two more teams in addition to Virginia. Under 4.5 wins will be the bet here.

Best Georgia Tech Football Futures Bet: Under 4.5 Wins (-140 at DraftKings)

You can read the rest of Matt Gajewski’s 2023 college football season previews and predictions below!

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions and Season Preview

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Season Preview

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Coaching Staff

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Offense

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Defense

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Schedule

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2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Season Preview

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Coaching Staff

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Offense

2023 Georgia Tech Football Season Preview: Defense

2023 Georgia Tech Football Predictions & Schedule

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