Colorado's Hidden Advantage Against Georgia Tech in Season Opener

With a matchup with Georgia Tech looming for the Colorado Buffaloes in week 1, Colorado may have a hidden advantage few are talking about.

Nov 8, 2025; Morgantown, West Virginia, USA; Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders walks along the sidelines late in the fourth quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Milan Puskar Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ben Queen-Imagn Images | Ben Queen-Imagn Images

In the 2026 season, the Colorado Buffaloes will begin with a trip to Georgia Tech, which will be a great test for Colorado in week 1. The result of this game and the performance the Buffaloes put on will have a lot to do with the expectations for Colorado next season. 

In this matchup, the Buffaloes could have a hidden advantage against the Yellow Jackets on the defensive side of the ball.

MSU defensive run game coordinator Chris Marve speaks to reporters at Media Day on Saturday, August 10, 2019 at the Leo Seal Complex. Photo by Keith Warren Msu Football Media Day | Keith Warren, Keith Warren via Imagn Content Services, LLC

Chris Marve’s Experience Against Georgia Tech

“Chris Marve’s Virginia Tech defense held Georgia Tech to just six points. Held them score a lesson in the second half. Clearly, Chris Marv has experienced playing against Brent Key’s scheme,” said Scott Procter on the DNVR Buffs Podcast.

Recently, it has become very clear how valuable experience in college football is, and in that respect, Colorado may have a significant advantage against the Georgia Tech offense. The Buffaloes new defensive coordinator, Chris Marve, has two years of experience as a defensive coordinator, and as Procter indicated, Marve had success against Georgia Tech. 

In that 2024 matchup, Marve’s group forced two Georgia Tech Turnovers, held them to under 100 rush yards, and forced them into 5-19 on third down and 1-5 on fourth down, which resulted in a 21-6 Virginia Tech win. 

For the Yellow Jackets, there are two key things to understand. They now have a new offensive coordinator in George Godsey and will have a new quarterback, whether that be projected starter Alberto Mendoza or one of the other quarterbacks on Georgia Tech’s roster.

That is significant because Marve does have to game plan for a new type of offense, however, he does have the experience advantage as a playcaller against Godsey at the college level. Godsey has experience as an offensive coordinator in the NFL in short stints, but being an offensive coordinator in college is much different. 

With all that to say, Marve has one thing he must do if he wants to replicate that success against Georgia Tech.

Sep 20, 2025; Oxford, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi Rebels offensive lineman Patrick Kutas (75) and offensive lineman Brycen Sanders (62) block Tulane Green Wave defensive linemen Santana Hopper (29) during the second quarter at Vaught-Hemingway Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Limit The Run Game

Based on how coach Brent Key has run the Yellow Jackets on offense, physicality and a consistent run game will definitely be something. Marve has to watch out for. 

In 2024, Marve was able to limit Georgia Tech’s rushing attack as the Virginia Tech defensive coordinator. The Hokies held the Yellow Jackets to 33 carries for 96 yards and an average of yards per rush. 

Being able to limit Georgia Tech under 100 rushing yards helped Marve tremendously to make Key’s offense one-dimensional and very pass-reliant. Forcing the Yellow Jackets to throw the ball much more than they wanted to made Key’s group very uncomfortable, leading to two interceptions and an inability to consistently move the ball.

That is the type of game plan that Marvel will be hoping to replicate with Colorado. Following last year’s campaign, the Buffaloes, as a defense, must improve their ability to stop the run. In 2025, Colorado allowed 222.5 rush yards per game, which ranked 135th in the nation.

That is why Colorado Coach Deion Sanders went out to improve up front with several key additions on the defensive line and at linebacker. This included defensive tackles Ezra Christensen, Santana Hopper, Tyler Moore, Samu Taumanupeoe, Dylan Manuel, and Sedrick Smith.

Linebacker Tyler Martinez drops back in pass coverage as the Aggies opened their season on Saturday night against the Bryant Bulldogs at Aggie Memorial Stadium. | Jaime Guzman/Special the Sun-News / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On the edge, Colorado also added Toby Anene, Vili Taufatofua, Balansama Kamara, Lamont Lester Jr., Immanuel Ezeogu, and Yamil Talib. At linebacker, the Buffaloes brought in Liona Lefau, Gideon Lampron, and Tyler Martinez as the marquee additions. 

 With all these additions, Colorado has a great chance to significantly improve their run game defense and get after the quarterback at a much higher rate to disrupt anything Georgia Tech tries to do with its passing attack.

If the Buffaloes can limit the Yellow Jackets' run game, it will be interesting to see how Georgia Tech's quarterback performs. The game being played on Colorado’s terms is something Georgia Tech might not be able to overcome.

Ultimately, Chris Marve being able to execute the proper game plan could be what helps the Buffaloes to start this season 1-0. 

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