The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly From Win Against North Carolina

Georgia Tech had a lot of good and not much ugly against North Carolina

Author:
Jackson Caudell
Publish date:
Nov 20, 2022 10:30 AM EST

In this story:

Georgia Tech pulled off one of the biggest surprises of the college football season last night by going to Chapel Hill and beating North Carolina and star quarterback Drake Maye.

The Yellow Jackets were on their third and fourth-string quarterback and without top wide receiver Nate McCollum last night, but still came away with a win against a team that will be playing in the ACC Championship in a couple of weeks.

This win moves Georgia Tech to 5-6 and 4-3 under interim head coach Brent Key.

Here is the good, the bad, and the ugly from Georgia Tech's stunning win over North Carolina last night.

The Good

Georgia Tech quarterback Zach Gibson played well in a win over North Carolina
Georgia Tech Athletics

1. Georgia Tech won!

2. The defense had its best performance of the season. Georgia Tech played the top-scoring offense in the ACC and held them to a season-low 17 points and season-low 365 total yards.

3. Maye came into this game as a contender for the Heisman trophy and Georgia Tech likely ended that last night. The Yellow Jackets held Maye to a season-low in passing yards.

4. Georgia Tech overcame a 17-0 deficit. Like most, I was worried when Tech got down early, but this team does not quit and showed their heart in coming back.

5. A Georgia Tech offense missing its top two quarterbacks and wide receiver outgained one of the best offenses in the country 373-365.

6. Quarterback Zach Gibson deserves a ton of praise. Gibson had not played well against either Virginia or Florida State, but finished 13-18 for 174 yards and took care of the football, and avoided the North Carolina pressure. Gibson averaged 8.1 yards per attempt and 12.5 per completion.

7. Keion White showed why he is looked at as an NFL prospect at defensive end by finishing with three sacks and four tackles for loss.

8. This defense created havoc all game long against UNC, finishing with 12 tackles for loss and six sacks.

9. D'Douse keeps performing well along the interior and both he and fellow starter Makius Scott each had a sack.

10. With McCollum out, Georgia Tech needed a wide receiver to step up last night and the guy that did was Malik Rutherford. Rutherford was targeted early on quick throws and finished the game with six catches for 68 yards on eight targets.

11. This is the first time that Georgia Tech has won consecutive road games against nationally ranked teams since it defeated No. 3 Miami in 2005 and No. 11 Virginia Tech in 2006

12. This is the first time Georgia Tech has won consecutive games against ranked opponents in the same season since 2004.

13. Brent Key is now 4-3 as the interim head coach.

14. Hassan Hall and Dontae Smith were effective in catching passes out of the backfield. The two running backs combined for six catches and 89 yards against the Tar Heel's defense.

15. Georgia Tech was 8-15 on third down.

16. LaMiles Brooks had another interception. Brooks has been the best player in the Georgia Tech secondary this season and had another great game.

The Bad:

Georgia Tech running back Hassan Hall vs North Carolina — Georgia Tech running back Hassan Hall made plays in the passing game against North Carolina
Georgia Tech Athletics

1. The rushing offense could have been better. Georgia Tech did have 186 yards on the ground but averaged under four yards per carry.

2. Gavin Stewart missed his lone field goal attempt. Special teams miscues have been a problem this year, but this one did not cost Georgia Tech, fortunately.

3. The run defense tightened up as the game went on, but Georgia Tech did allow North Carolina running back Elijah Green to run for an 80-yard touchdown on the first play from scrimmage for the Tar Heels. Green carried the ball ten times for 92 yards and averaged 9.2 yards per carry. Georgia is going to run the ball often against Georgia Tech next week and the run defense is going to need to be better.