Georgia Tech QB Haynes King Looks To Cement His Legacy With The Yellow Jackets

Coming into 2023, Haynes King was a grad transfer coming over from the Texas A&M Aggies under legendary head coach Jimbo Fisher. King unfortunately dealt with some injuries with the Aggies that didn’t allow him to realize his full potential. However, Georgia Tech saw his potential and nabbed him out of the transfer portal after three seasons with Texas A&M.

King delivered in his first year with Georgia Tech, showing just how good he was. He finished with a career-high 2,842 yards and 27 touchdowns. He has 16 interceptions, which was a little bit concerning, but he improved in that area each year as the starter. Georgia Tech was on track after a 7-6 season to take the next climb.

2024 Season

latest — Nov 22, 2025; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) throws a pass against the Pittsburgh Panthers in the third quarter at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Now comes 2024.

The moment he captured the nation’s eyes was against the rival Georgia Bulldogs in the final game of the regular season, where the Yellow Jackets took it to Georgia and put on one of the best games ever in college football history with a 44-42 victory in eight overtimes. King was the best player on the field that night and put up unreal numbers. King went 26-36 for 303 and two touchdowns through the air. On the ground, he rushed for 110 yards and three touchdowns and carved up the Bulldogs defense. It is the best performance you will see from a quarterback in a losing effort. What is even crazier is that he did that and the majority of the 2024 season with a torn labrum, which he confirmed at ACC Media Days in Charlotte prior to the 2025 campaign.

“It was a torn labrum. It was a little different. You know the strength in the shoulder and everything around it to support it, whether it is the rotator cuff. Right now, I have entered the stage of maintaining it. If I maintain the strength and the feel-good state, and there is a line where it is a strength test based on numbers and stuff like that. If it stays at that line, I should be good because that is what the shoulder is telling them. It’s a lot of maintenance, pre-hab, and just keeping it strong,” said King.

King threw for 2,114 yards and 14 touchdowns to just two interceptions. He was also a force on the ground, rushing for 587 yards and 11 touchdowns in 2024. Playing with a torn labrum and putting up those kinds of numbers is just a testament to the warrior that king is. That tough loss to Georgia fueled him and the team heading into the 2025 season.

A Special Year On The Flats

2025 was a pretty special year on the Flats for Haynes King and the Yellow Jackets. King led the Yellow Jackets to an 8-0 start and into the top 10 of the AP Poll at one point in the season. King orchestrated key wins over Colorado, Clemson, Wake Forest, and the eventual ACC champion Duke Blue Devils. He has the Yellow Jackets on the cusp of securing a berth in the ACC championship game, but they ultimately fell short against Pittsburgh.

After a phenomenal season where he finished with 2,697 passing yards, 922 rushing yards, and 27 total touchdowns, King was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year and the ACC Player of the Year. He finished 10th in the Heisman voting and was also named first-team All-ACC after a stellar senior season. King secured a plethora of awards and could have easily mailed it in, but he chose not to.

The fact that he is even playing in this game says a lot. King has not only impacted the Yellow Jackets football team but also off the field with how he carries himself, volunteering in the community and creating a children’s book. He has always given back and has continued to show it is more than just him but about everyone else. His unselfishness is why Georgia Tech went from a three-win team before he arrived to now on the brink of winning 10 games, something they haven’t done since 2014. Just listen to this answer of why he is playing in the bowl game.

“I mean, throughout this year, we put our blood, sweat, and tears into this team. I'm not one to quit and just, you know, be selfish and go about my business. I always finish what I start. That's just kind of how I was raised. My mentality going into this game is just we're going to one, go out there and have fun, but two, try to go out there and execute and find ways to win. It's always more fun when you win,” said King.

If that doesn’t get you going, then I don’t know what will.

His Legacy

His co-offensive coordinator/quarterback coach and offensive coordinator for Saturday, Chris Weinke, summed up King well and what he is about.

“I can't say enough about him. When you talk about it as a coach, the true joy is coaching young men like this. Uh, he was raised the right way. He's wired the right way. Um, he learned at a young age that, as he alluded to, you finish what you started. Um, in this day and age, in the landscape of college football and all this movement, I never for one second thought this man wasn't going to finish his mission, and he came here with a purpose. He represents exactly what college football is all about. He's old school. He's got an old soul. He lives every single day the same way. That starts with toughness. He learned that from his daddy. I've had the opportunity to coach a lot of quarterbacks and trained a lot of quarterbacks over the years. This one here is special,” said Weinke.

“Everything he does, okay, uh, he does it for the people around him. It's never about him. It never will be about him. It's always going to be about the team. So, when you can find a young man that takes that approach every single day that plays this position, um, you've got a chance. As we all know, regardless of what level you play at, if you have a quarterback, you got a chance. I've been very fortunate and blessed for the last three years to be able to help him in his process of achieving his goals, but more importantly, um, also just observing on game day how much joy he brings to not only me, but our team, the fans. His legacy is going to be special. I know he doesn't talk about it now, but, uh, he'll go down in history as one of the best ever put on this uniform. He's been the same guy every day. I ask every quarterback to be the same guy every day. Okay? You can't be great on Monday, average on Tuesday, really good on Wednesday, and mediocre on Thursday. I don't know who I'm getting on Saturday. He's the same guy every day. So, it's been a true joy and honor and blessing to be able to coach him. I can't wait to take this last ride with him. I'll be calling it from the booth. So, I'm going to have a lot of fun.”

King has been so fun to watch and captivated the support with his stellar play, leadership, and grit on the football field. He never wavered and always came up big for his team in the critical moments. Saturday is the culmination of a stellar three-year career with the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and a chance to be forever enshrined in Georgia Tech lore as one of the best players ever to put on a uniform. King is not worried about his legacy right now, and he shouldn’t be, even with one final game to go. However, it will be cool to see him one last time with a chance to deliver something for the Yellow Jackets that they haven’t experienced in over a decade. His legacy is defined by toughness, grit, exemplary character, and a person who persevered despite facing injuries and adversity throughout his career. It didn’t matter what was ahead of him; King was always ready to run through that brick wall for his teammates and coaches and put his body on the line for the Georgia Tech program. That makes you special, especially in this new era of college football that is self-centered and predicated on NIL and putting yourself ahead of others. This is the antithesis of Haynes King and everything he stands for, which is why his legacy is so great.

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