Tyrod centerpiece
"I think they have come together - they've played well," Johnson said. "Historically, you know that they're going to be strong defensively and in special teams, but offensively they've played well, scoring a lot of points and racking up a bunch of yards. They have a very athletic quarterback, their tailback is a great player, they have a veteran offensive line and an experienced tight end, and they're very well coached. They are just a good team and usually good teams get better as the season goes on."
Georgia Tech's defense is led by junior defensive end Derrick Morgan, who has nine tackles for loss of yardage, including six and a half sacks this season. Voted Honorable Mention All-ACC last season, Morgan spent his first two years playing in the shadows of three NFL draftees and is the Yellow Jackets' only returning starter on the defensive line.
"On their defense, Morgan is exceptional," Beamer said. "I know they've been talking about cutting back on their schemes a bit, but they're still difficult to prepare for because you're not sure where they're going with that."
With the downgrading of teams like North Carolina and East Carolina in recent weeks, Georgia Tech is seen by many analysts to be Virginia Tech's last real test of the regular season. If the Hokies win, they'll hold a two-game lead in the coastal division standings over the Yellow Jackets.
"As far as the conference championship goes, it's not going to wreck the season one way or another," Paul Johnson said. "But, if we want to win our side of the conference, it's an important game. Anyone that follows the ACC knows that if (Virginia Tech) come in here and beat us, they would have to lose two games, probably three, because they would have the tiebreaker over us. It makes it almost impossible for us to win the division. Now, if we beat them, it doesn't mean we're going to win the division. We still have a lot of conference games left. So do they."
Despite the hype surrounding the game, there are still a limited number of tickets for Saturday's game available through Georgia Tech's athletics Web site.
The contest is slated for 6 p.m. and will be aired nationally on ESPN2.
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