What Would A Win Against Clemson mean for Georgia Tech's Program?

Here is what a win against Clemson could mean for Georgia Tech and the Brent Key era

Nov 29, 2024; Athens, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key reacts with an official during the game against the Georgia Bulldogs during the first quarter at Sanford Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

Georgia Tech has been a program building for the last few years, when head coach Brent Key took over as an interim coach in 2022. Since the Yellow Jackets have been in the national spotlight, challenging some of the ACC elite, they have had back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since 2013 and 2014, and brought home a top 25 recruiting class in 2024. Georgia Tech has been recruiting in the state of Georgia at an elite level since Key has taken over, flipping top prospects, landing blue chippers, and getting top prospects to stay home.

Huge Opportunity

Aug 29, 2025; Boulder, Colorado, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) prepares to pass the ball in the second quarter against the Colorado Buffaloes at Folsom Field. Mandatory Credit: Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images | Ron Chenoy-Imagn Images

At the head of leadership and a person who has been instrumental is Coach Key. He is 6-1 against nationally ranked ACC opponents and holds an overall record of 14-9.

The Yellow Jackets have continued to be on an upward trajectory as a program and have continued to take steps in the right direction. Their miraculous win over Miami on the road back in 2023, defeating future first-round pick and North Carolina led Drake Maye at home on ACC Network in primetime, Florida State in an international game in Dublin, Ireland in a week 0 matchup, and finally the win last year against No. 1 overall pick and the highly favored Miami Hurricanes.

The nation finally got a chance to see it against Georgia last year when the Yellow Jackets took their in-state rival eight overtimes and nearly shocked the country with a victory over the world against a College Football Playoff Contender. To come out with a .500 with a gauntlet of a schedule Georgia Tech faced last year, said a lot for the Yellow Jackets, including those two significant wins we mentioned earlier.

A star for the Yellow Jackets that has also emerged in this era for Key is QB Haynes King. King embodies and is an extension of Key on the field with how he carries himself. An example would be him this off-season living and staying in the locker room with an air mattress in order to watch more film and to get prepared for the season, putting in the extra work and time. This Yellow Jackets team goes as King goes, and is a much better team with him at the helm. In any rebuild of a team, whether college or pro, there is always a player, along with a coach, who is the star or leader of the group that ushers in a new era. King is that person.

So what would it mean with all the moments the Yellow Jackets have enjoyed?

Nov 9, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets head coach Brent Key talks to ESPN reporter Kris Budden after a victory over the Miami Hurricanes at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

It would signify that Georgia Tech is a contender in the ACC and has a viable chance to make the College Football Playoff. It would be big for the program and to show that Georgia Tech is here to stay. They can win the big games as an underdog consistently, and they are a formidable team. It would be the culmination of all the hard work Key has put into the program coming into fruition and finally having its moment by defeating a rival who has owned the series as of late.

Georgia Tech would captivate the college football world, likely leading to them being ranked in the AP Poll, more national conversation, and probably more games on the ESPN networks. Getting the just due that they have earned and have been longing for since their glory days, when the Yellow Jackets were a consistent contender and a power in the ACC. They would be the talk and garner more respect as a team to beat and not just a pushover team, as they were in years past, but a keepsake in this new era of college football.