Written by Garin Turner
Georgia Tech (1-0), travels to Tampa, Florida to square off against USF (1-0) tomorrow at 11 AM CST on ABC/ESPN 2. The Yellow Jackets beat Alcorn St. 41-0 last week in their home opener. The Bulls won their home opener against Elon 34-14. This is the first meeting between the two teams.
The Bulls are looking for its fourth straight win against a Power Five opponent. USF has gone 22-4 since 2016 which includes 9-1 in out-of-conference games. In the past four seasons, the Bulls have a 17-3 record at home. In his debut for the Bulls, grad transfer Blake Barnett threw three touchdowns and 305 yards going 24 of 34. He also ran for 31 yards and a score.
USF had 515 yards of total offense, marking its third straight game with 500-plus yards and the seventh time in the past 13. Freshman wideout Randall St. Felix had seven catches for 143 yards including a 40-yard touchdown to open up the season for the Bulls. Nine different players caught passes for the Bulls. Tight end Mitchell Wilcox caught four passes for 45 yards and a score. Receiver Tyre McCants had six receptions for 26 yards and a score.
It was also a running back by committee approach for the Bulls. Eight different players ran the ball for a total of 38 times for 148 and the lone score on the ground by Barnett. Jonny Ford had eight carries for 43 yards and Elijah Mack added 10 carries for 33 yards.
For Georgia Tech, quarterback TaQuon Marshall went 9 for 18 for 104 yards and a touchdown. He did throw an interception as well. The Yellow Jackets racked up 543 total yards on offense against Alcorn St. 439 of those yards came on the ground. That marked the fifth time in the last 12 games that the Yellow Jackets have rushed for 400-plus yards.
12 different players ran the ball for Georgia Tech for a combined 54 attempts. Four players had 70-plus yards rushing. Jordan Mason (11 car, 85 yards, one touchdown), Marshall (9 car, 77 yards, one touchdown), KirVonte Benson (10 car, 75 yards, two touchdowns), and quarterback Tobias Oliver (12 car, 72 yards).
It’s early in the season, but both teams are ranked first and second in total yards allowed. The Yellow Jackets are first with just 146 yards allowed. The Bulls are second with 234 yards allowed although they did give up 192 on the ground.
