Behind Enemy Lines: Five Questions for the AJC's Ken Sugiura

ATLANTA, Ga. - After dropping two straight conference losses for the first time in the Scott Satterfield era, the Louisville Cardinals (1-2, 0-2 ACC) hit the road for the second time during a three-game stretch to face the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (1-2, 1-1 ACC) at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta, Ga. Kickoff is scheduled for Friday, Oct. 9 at 7:00 p.m. EST.

Ahead of tomorrow's conference matchup, Louisville Report sat down with the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Ken Sugiura to find out more about the Yellow Jackets.

1) It's now Year Two of the rebuild under head coach Geoff Collins. How far along have the Yellow Jackets come along since he took over?

Considering that their first four games of last season included a 52-14 loss to Clemson, an overtime loss to FCS Citadel and a 24-2 loss at Temple (along with a 14-10 win over a USF team that finished 4-8), I’d say they’ve made solid progress, even if the record (1-2) doesn’t necessarily reflect it. Maybe the biggest area of change on the field in the transition from former coach Paul Johnson’s option offense was on the offensive line, where players had to gain weight and learn the techniques and scheme of offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude’s offense. Tech didn’t reach 400 yards of total offense once last year, but has done it in each of the first three games of this season.

You can see development in players like center Mikey Minihan and defensive ends Jordan Domineck and Sylvain Yondjouen. Defensively, pieces are being collected and the defensive line is better. Collins has a top-30 recruiting class in the bank and fans seem excited about the direction of the team. It certainly seems like they’re on a path towards becoming competitive in the ACC.

2) Collins made the decision to go with Jeff Sims, a true freshman, as his quarterback. How has the passing game looked since he made that call?

It’s been up and down. Sims was poised and efficient in leading the Jackets to an upset of Florida State in the season opener (23 for 34, 277 yards, one touchdown, two interceptions). In the two games since, he is a combined 31 for 64 for 418 yards, two touchdowns and six interceptions. That’s a drop in yards per attempts from 8.1 to 6.5. He’s had some bad luck with bad bounces with the interceptions and his line did not protect him well in the Syracuse game. That said, he throws downfield with accuracy and makes plays when he gets time to throw. He also is effective tucking the ball and running when the opportunity presents itself. A big key against Louisville, obviously, is making good decisions with the ball.

3) It seems that Georgia Tech is getting overwhelmed by the injury bug like they were late last year. How much has that affected the on-field play?

I’d say it’s been significant, although I imagine no team has been immune. They lost a returning starter at defensive tackle before the season began (T.K. Chimedza), their top corner has been out the first three games (Tre Swilling), their top two tight ends have missed the past two games (Dylan Deveney and Dylan Leonard), a possible starter at defensive end (Antonneous Clayton) missed the first two games and their All-ACC running back has been out the past two games (Jordan Mason).

It has undoubtedly compromised the play on the field. Tech has been hit by a lot of deep balls on which Swilling likely could have had an impact on the back end and Clayton on the front, for instance. Having both tight ends out has impacted the passing game, both protection and in providing downfield targets. Would it have changed the outcome of either of the losses, though? I’m not certain about that.

4) In week 1, Tech pulled off what was then viewed as a huge upset on the road Florida State. What were the key elements behind that victory?

Sims kept his composure after throwing two first-half possessions, leading two long touchdown drives in the second. Similarly, the defense gave up 10 points and 118 yards in the first quarter but limited the Seminoles to a field goal and 189 yards the rest of the way. Tech took advantage of some injuries on the FSU offensive line to take control of that line of scrimmage and cause a lot of problems for Seminoles quarterback James Blackman.

5) What is your personal prediction for Friday's game and why?

I don’t have a great feel for Louisville. I’ll note that the Cardinals are a 4.5-point favorite and have a 72 percent win probability (ESPN). I think Tech has reason to be concerned with finding someone to keep up with Tutu Atwell. How the Jackets do on third downs in keeping Malik Cunningham in the pocket and from making downfield throws will be something to watch. On the other side, Tech has to avoid unforced penalties (seven false starts against Syracuse), keep things simple for Sims (stay out of third and long) and convert in the red zone. I think it’ll be close.

(Photo of Tutu Atwell: Rich Barnes/USA TODAY Sports)

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