Three Georgia Tech Players To Watch On Saturday Vs Pittsburgh

It is senior night for the Yellow Jackets and a huge game to punch their ticket to the ACC title game in Charlotte. Let's take a look at some key players to watch in primetime who will have a big impact on the game.

1. QB Haynes King

latest — Nov 15, 2025; Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) runs during warmups prior to a game against the Boston College Eagles at Alumni Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

It is senior night for the Yellow Jackets, and King has been a key piece for the Yellow Jackets being where they are right now, with a chance to punch their ticket to Charlotte. King has 2,259 passing yards and 10 touchdowns on a 72.7% completion rate. He is also the leading rusher for the Yellow Jackets with 807 rushing yards and 14 touchdowns. When the running game has struggled this season, King has come in and put up big numbers and been an effective runner for Georgia Tech. More than anything, King is a leader for this team, and they respond to him when he talks. Every time the Yellow Jackets need a play or a speech to get picked up, King delivers.
“Well, one, trying to make practice as hard as possible, whether it's pushing the tempo, expecting certain things from them at a certain high level. If practices are the hardest thing, if practices are harder than the game, then the game is gonna be easy, and you're just out there having fun. But like I said, just pushing those guys to the limit, whether it's practice or the way that they prepare. Walk through the same way. Then afterwards, go talk to them. Like, hey, what were you thinking here? Like, hey, did you see when I did this? I want you to know why I'm doing this,” said King. “I want to push the tempo. I want people to chase the ball. If we do that, like I said, we're gonna be in a good position to make explosive plays, get them in an end zone. Cuz now we're getting those home run blocks, stuff like that. And just to execute at a high level, if you strain yourself mentally and physically during practice, that's what's gonna happen in game, you practice how you play.”

Saturday is a culmination of all his hard work from battling a torn labrum last season and putting his body on the line for his team, to leading them to a 9-1 record and one of the best teams in the country in 2025. Whatever Georgia Tech has needed, King has been there to provide it. He will get his final chance in front of a raucous crowd to be remembered forever by leading the Yellow Jackets back to an ACC title game for the first time since 2014.

2. Offensive Linemen Joe Fusile/Keylan Rutledge

They each have been a big part of the identity that the Yellow Jackets have shaped as a football team over the course of the Brent Key era. This offense has been predicated on the running game and the ability to protect the quarterback. Georgia Tech has been built on physicality and hitting people in the mouth at a consistent level. Coming into the season, there were a few unknowns with the offensive line losing some key pieces and only two returning starters coming back: Rutledge and Fusile. They have handled it beautifully and are helping spearhead the way for the best offense in the country in total yards, averaging 496.7 yards per game. Rutledge is the highest graded offensive lineman on the team with a 76.7 offensive grade. He also leads the team in pass blocking with a 79.9 grade. Fusile has a 63.0 offensive grade on 481 snaps. Both seniors have played a big role and been an integral part of the success of the team.

“The seniors are a huge part of our program where we're at right now. We talked about it after practice. I had them stand up and said, These guys have done a lot for us. Guys have been here one year, guys have been here two, guys have been here three or more. The guys have been here three more years, 13-3 in that stadium. 10-0 in the last two seasons in that stadium, right? That's a far cry from where we're the ones that have been here four years and five years have come from,” said Key. “And it's because of them. Look, this is about the players. It is about the players here at Georgia Tech. It's always been about the players, and it always will be about the players here. All right, the players are the ones out there in the arena going at it.
The respect I have for these players, the good times, the bad times, the ugly, it doesn't matter. To be a Georgia Tech football player, you're part of a very unique club, a privileged club.”

3. EDGE Brayden Manley

It is a big game for the defense, which is facing one of the better teams they have faced all season. With a quarterback that can escape and improvise, it will be important that the edges contain and do a better job of getting to the quarterback. The Yellow Jackets barely created pressure besides from the interior in Jordan Van Den Berg and Akelo Stone in their last game out against Boston College. Georgia Tech desperately needs Manley to take that next step forward. He was a highly coveted defensive player coming from Mercer in the transfer portal after being named the SoCon Defensive Player of the Year. He has quite delivered that production with only 13 tackles, a sack, and a forced fumble on the season. If Manley can play at the level he did before, it would be a game-changer for the Yellow Jackets, especially with a high-powered attack that likes to throw the ball. Tackling will be at a premium, and Manley should be able to help in that area. Coach Key made it a priority this week to have a live tackling session.

“We've got to shore up some tackling, right? And the only way to do that, I mean, I'm not a genius by any means, and the only way I know to get better at something is to do it. So that's what we did. We've done that before in the past. We've got a really good football team we're playing, and they're a physical team, and I thought it was indeed, and look, we didn't go the whole time. But we had situational times we did, and I thought it was needed. I thought the response from our team was really good for them,” said Key.

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