FSU vs. Georgia Tech: Game Grades, Analysis for 'Noles and Yellow Jackets

The finish inside Bobby Dodd Stadium was one for the ages as the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets knocked off the Florida State Seminoles 22-16 on a blocked kick returned for a touchdown.

It was Florida State that appeared to have the game in its hands with 10 seconds remaining as Roberto Aguayo was attempting a 56-yard field goal, but it was Georgia Tech's Lance Austin that wound up in the end zone for the winning score. 

The two key numbers in this game were 34 and 82. It was the 34 minutes that Georgia Tech possessed the ball that helped it sustain drives on offense and keep the ball away from Florida State. The other number (82) was the amount of rushing yards that Dalvin Cook had. That is not a terrible number, but the ineffectiveness to consistently run the ball hurt Florida State's offense on Saturday night. 

Everett Golson finished with 210 yards on 20-of-30 passing, but it was a red zone interception (his first of the year) that turned out to be a pretty big play. The Florida State defense played well at times, but it gave up too many chunk plays. The Yellow Jackets only mustered 67 total passing yards, but they were still able to consistently run the ball. 

Quarterback Justin Thomas finished with 88 yards on the ground, including a 60-yard score. His pass to Brad Stewart in the fourth quarter on fourth down was undoubtedly one of the biggest plays of the game. Georgia Tech played like a team that had nothing to lose, and it was a big first ACC win for them. 

For Florida State, the loss breaks up a 28-game ACC win streak, but all of its goals are still on the table. With Clemson still on the schedule (Nov. 7), the Seminoles still control their own destiny. 

Georgia Tech Game Grades 

Positional Unit	1st-Half Grade	Final Grade
Passing Offense	D	D
Rushing Offense	B+	B+
Passing Defense	C	C
Rush Defense	B-	B-
Special Teams	B	A
Coaching	B	A

Passing Offense

Let's be honest. There wasn't much there in the passing game for Georgia Tech. The long pass on fourth down to Stewart in the fourth quarter was huge, but Thomas never got anything going in this game. With the way Tech ran the ball, Thomas was not forced to make a lot of plays through the air. 

Rushing Offense 

This was the rushing offense we knew was going to play big in a game like this sooner or later. The Yellow Jackets ran the ball very effectively on Saturday night, averaging 5.3 yards per carry. As a team they rushed 49 times for 261 yards, and Thomas made some big plays with his legs. 

Pass Defense 

The pass defense gave up some plays, but overall it was a solid effort for this group. The interception in the end zone was one of the biggest plays of the game, and Golson was limited to 210 total passing yards. 

Rush Defense 

The Yellow Jackets defense did a great job of containing Cook in this game. A running back that good is going to get yards, so holding him to 82 yards on 17 carries was a win in that matchup. 

Special Teams 

Special teams is what won this game for Georgia Tech. The blocked kick for a touchdown was the obvious play of the game, but Harrison Butker was solid in this one too, going 3-of-3 on his kicks. 

Coaching 

Paul Johnson's game plan was very effective Saturday night. His team was not able to throw the ball very well, but he stuck with the running game and mixed things up enough to keep drives going. His defensive staff also did a very good job of limiting Cook to only 82 yards. 

Florida State Game Grades 

Positional Unit	1st-Half Grade	Final Grade
Passing Offense	C+	C+
Rushing Offense	C	D+
Pass Defense	A-	B+
Rush Defense	C-	D
Special Teams	A	C-
Coaching	C	C

Passing Offense 

It was an above average effort for the Seminoles' passing attack on Saturday night as they threw for 210 yards on 20 completions. This is not a team that is supposed to beat opponents with a ton of yards through the air, but the interception in the fourth quarter was a crucial mistake. 

Rushing Offense 

Cook appeared limited with his hamstring injury, but Florida State's inability to establish a run game is ultimately what hurt the team. The 'Noles averaged only 2.9 yards per carry as a team, which kept a lot of pressure on Golson to move the ball through the air. 

Pass Defense 

It was a solid effort by the Seminoles secondary, but we have to consider the team it was playing. Georgia Tech did not have a lot of passing in the game plan, but we still can't take away from this group. They did an excellent job of forcing Thomas into two interceptions early in the game, but a couple of deep passes helped Georgia Tech flip the field position. 

Rush Defense 

The Seminoles rush defense did not play well on Saturday night. They flew to the ball and made tackles for loss at times, but they were not able to consistently stop the Tech rushing attack. Georgia Tech was largely one-dimensional in this game, but Florida State could not keep the Yellow Jackets from sustaining drives. The Seminoles allowed 261 yards and 5.3 yards per carry, so it was not a great effort from this unit. 

Special Teams 

Of course the final play will be the special teams play that stands out, but it was a pretty good effort otherwise from the Seminoles. Aguayo connected on three of his four field goal attempts, and Cason Beatty averaged 50.0 yards per punt. 

Coaching 

Some of the coaching was questionable in this game. It's tough to figure out why Georgia Tech ran the ball so effectively, given the fact that its passing game was almost nonexistent. It's not entirely clear how much of a factor Cook's health was, but the offensive play-calling should have gotten him more involved. He did not even have a carry in the third quarter, and he was limited when he did carry the ball.