Georgia Tech's Option Will Cause Problems for Florida State in ACC Title Game

Florida State’s quest for an ACC championship and a College Football Playoff berth hasn’t been easy.

Entering Saturday, the Seminoles had won five games by six points or fewer and erased three double-digit road deficits.

And the events of November 20 in Durham, North Carolina, made that road even tougher. When North Carolina upset rival Duke, it locked Georgia Tech into the ACC title game as the Coastal Division representative.

That’s bad news for Florida State’s defense.

Paul Johnson’s flexbone option can be incredibly tough to prepare for in a regular week—and even more so this season. On Saturday, the Jackets (10-2) held the ball for 36 minutes, 23 seconds and rushed for 399 yards in a 30-24 overtime upset of No. 9 Georgia.

FSU and Georgia Tech haven’t met since facing off in the 2012 ACC Championship Game, a 21-15 Florida State victory.

Entering Saturday’s rivalry match with Georgia, the Yellow Jackets were averaging 327.9 rushing yards per game, which ranked fourth nationally.

Sophomore quarterback Justin Thomas has done an exceptional job taking over for Vad Lee as the starting quarterback. He was Tech’s leading rusher entering this week with 827 rushing yards and five touchdowns, over 200 more than No. 2 rusher Zach Laskey.

After losing linebackers Christian Jones and Telvin Smith from last season’s BCS National Championship team, Florida State has had issues in the middle of its defense. Junior Terrance Smith was the only returning starter from 2013’s linebacker group.

The group has also struggled with injuries. Against Louisville, the Seminoles finished the game with just two scholarship linebackers on the field after Smith missed the game with a pectoral injury and freshman Matthew Thomas left with a shoulder injury.

Ronald Martinez/Getty Images

Both are back in the lineup and healthy, but linebackers remain a concern for the Seminole defense.

Entering Saturday’s game against Florida, the Seminoles were No. 55 nationally in total defense, allowing 379.2 yards per game. They were No. 45 nationally in rushing defense, allowing 148.8 yards per game.

And perhaps most damning, they were No. 103 in third-down defense, making it difficult to get off the field.

That plays right into Georgia Tech’s hands. Paul Johnson loves nothing more than to bleed the clock with slow, methodical drives.

The Jackets were sixth nationally entering this week in time of possession, holding the ball for 33:49 per game. And they lead the nation in third-down conversions, converting 58.3 percent of them.

That’s bad news for the Seminoles, who have made a habit of playing poorly early and revving up their engines for impressive second-half comebacks. Erasing a deficit, of course, is much tougher when you don’t have the ball.

If the Jackets attack the middle of Florida State’s defense effectively, they could be a major speed bump for the Seminoles’ College Football Playoff hopes.