DUBLIN — There’s something about this Georgia Tech team that Brent Key believes could make for a special season.
But the season is long, and while Saturday’s thrilling 24-21 victory over No. 10 Florida State in the Aer Lingus College Football Classic was a memorable start, it won’t mean much if Georgia Tech can’t build on this success at Aviva Stadium.
“It’s definitely a special moment, and we want to enjoy it tonight, but as the guys said, it means nothing if we don’t handle business next week,” said Tech running back Jamal Haynes. “We’ve got to get back to work, clean up our mistakes, and get better.”
Tech opened the 2024 season in the same way it won many of its games in 2023: with a dominant running game, physicality, and a determination to make one more play when it mattered most. The Yellow Jackets rushed for 190 yards as part of their 336 yards of total offense, converted 5-of-9 third downs, and scored on four of their seven drives.
The final drive was a decisive one, starting at their own 25-yard line with an unassuming 4-yard pass from quarterback Haynes King to Malik Rutherford. Of the next 10 plays, seven were runs, but disaster nearly struck on a second down at the FSU 28 when a bad snap led to a 10-yard loss, creating a third-and-17.
However, King connected with the speedy Eric Singleton Jr. on the left sideline for a crucial 12-yard gain, setting up Aidan Birr’s game-winning kick—a kick that could alter the course of Georgia Tech football for the foreseeable future.
“I was ready for it,” Birr said. “My big thing is you never want to miss two in a row. I was going to make that next one no matter where it was.