Georgia
5 Key Takeaways From Georgia Tech’s 24-14 Win Against Duke
Georgia Tech picked up a 24-14 win against rival Duke on Saturday and moved to 4-2 on the season. It was a great all-around effort on all sides of the ball. Let’s dive into some key takeaways from the game.
1. Defense had one of its best games of the year- The Yellow Jackets gave up their third-lowest point total this season, and held Duke to a season-low 14 points. I think what I was most impressed with was when the offense hit a lull and the Yellow Jackets were clinging to a slim lead, the defense kept making plays and forcing punts. Yes, there were some big plays given up in the game to Sahmir Hagans and Eli Pancol but Georgia Tech bottled up the Duke offense for most of the night. They held Duke running back Star Thomas to just 48 rushing yards after he carved up North Carolina for 166 rushing yards the week prior. As a team, Duke only had 74 rushing yards. It says a lot about this defense slowing down a potent rushing attack and the identity of the Blue Devils’ offense. Georgia Tech also got an interception late that helped seal the game. The defense played complementary football on Saturday and constantly made plays until the offense got it going.
2. Jordan van den Berg, Ahmari Harvey, and Taye Seymore had standout performances – Jordan van den Berg was all over the field on Saturday night and had an impact performance. He was massive in the first half clogging up lanes and making plays in the backfield. He finished with 3 tackles, two tackles for loss, and a sack. It was his best game as a Yellow Jacket as he consistently made plays for his team and helped slow down Star Thomas.
Ahmari Harvey led the team in tackles and was all over the field on Saturday making plays and providing juice for the defense. He also caught the lone interception for the Yellow Jackets this season and wrapped up the win for Georgia Tech. It’s been a breakout year for Harvey as he continues to make plays in each game.
Taye Seymore brought his chinstrap on Saturday and made big hits all night long. He was the second-leading tackler with five tackles and a half tackle for loss. He also had a crucial pass breakup over the middle of the field when Duke was driving and was threatening to score. Seymore is another player who is beginning to come into his own and make a big impact for the Yellow Jackets as the season goes on.
3. Jamal Haynes looked like his usual self – Haynes dealt with a nagging injury that slowed down his production this season. Like a great player would, he fought through it and didn’t make any complaints or excuses. After a much-needed bye week, we saw the Jamal Haynes of old. Explosive making defenders miss in the hole and long runs. His best run of the game came in the second quarter when he hit the left sideline for a 39-yard gain and got the ball into opponent territory. He finished with 19 carries for 128 yards and averaged 6.7 yards per carry. He also had a receiving touchdown that gave the Yellow Jackets the lead after they trailed for the first time in the game in the fourth quarter. He had another impressive run that caught my eye on a scoring drive in the fourth quarter. He made a defender miss on the second level and completely juked him out to set up a first down in the red zone. He was fast and quick tonight reading the rush lanes well and making explosive plays. Georgia Tech is dangerous if Jamal Haynes runs the ball like that. Always nice to have a big game on your birthday. Now Haynes can enjoy his Juicy Crab on Sunday.
4. Offensive Line came to play- It was a much-needed bounce-back game for the offensive line who struggled in earlier ACC games this season to create rush lanes and holes for the running backs. Saturday was a dominant effort by this unit. The Yellow Jackets rushed for 245 rushing yards. We talked about Haynes earlier, but the holes and running room were there all night. When Chad Alexander came into the game, the offensive line didn’t miss a beat and he carved up the Duke defense. Alexander rushed for 59 yards on just ten carries. The offensive line created a push the entire night and was moving the defensive line for Duke. There were also no sacks allowed in this game for the Yellow Jackets as they kept Haynes King clean throughout. They also helped put the game on ice after Duke had a missed late field goal in the fourth quarter converting two first downs and running out the clock on the Blue Devils.
5. The offense is still missing those explosive passing plays we are accustomed to. Yes, the Yellow Jackets did gain 412 yards of offense, 245 on the ground and 167 yards passing. Their longest play came on a Jamal Haynes 39-yard scamper. The longest play through the air was a reception by Malik Rutherford that went for 24 yards. Now in the game, Georgia Tech ran a lot of smoke screens and got the ball out to the playmakers in space which is what you want. Haynes King also didn’t have any turnovers which is another great sight as he continues to take care of the football this season. I bring this up because the Yellow Jackets still have a tough schedule down the road with matchups against Notre Dame, Miami, and Georgia on the deck. They will need explosive plays to beat these teams. Georgia Tech is certainly more than capable and has a great offensive coordinator in Buster Faulkner, but they need to hit more plays to their explosive receivers Rutherford and Eric Singleton. If Georgia Tech can hit explosive plays in the passing game and run the ball like they did on Saturday, the Yellow Jackets can be a problem. It feels like the Yellow Jackets haven’t hit their stride just yet on offense and that is a terrifying sight for opposing defenses.
All in all, it was a solid game for the Yellow Jackets mixed with good things and areas they can work on. A win is never easy to come by and to hand Duke its first loss and put themselves back into the ACC race does a lot for confidence.
NORCROSS, GEORGIA — Geoff Duncan, former Republican lieutenant governor of Georgia, won’t stop apologizing.
He’s sorry for supporting the state’s 2019 “heartbeat bill,” which bans abortion at around six weeks, after a fetal heartbeat is detected. He’s sorry for facilitating the passage of a “constitutional carry” bill in 2022, which allows most people to carry a concealed handgun with no license or background check. He’s also sorry for opposing Medicaid expansion, arguing at the time that it was not fiscally responsible.
“I’m sorry for those positions and any harm that they may have done,” Duncan told me.
Duncan first rose to prominence as one of the Republicans who resisted President Donald Trump’s attempt to overturn Joe Biden’s narrow 2020 win in Georgia. Duncan has been speaking out against what he calls Trump’s “toxic” and “dangerous” Republican Party since leaving office in 2023, and even endorsed Kamala Harris and spoke at the Democratic National Convention in 2024. After being excommunicated from the Georgia Republican Party in January 2025, Duncan switched parties in August. He is now running for governor as a Democrat in what will be one of the most closely watched races in the midterms.
Georgia Tech didn’t let the weekend get away.
The No. 2 Yellow Jackets were flying high with a 13-game win streak heading into the weekend showdown against No. 3 North Carolina. The Tar Heels took the first two games, but Tech salvaged the finale 5-2 on Sunday.
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CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – No. 2 Georgia Tech got back to its winning ways, defeating No. 3 North Carolina (33-7-1, 15-6 ACC) by a final score of 5-2 from Boshamer Stadium in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Yellow Jackets (32-7, 16-5 ACC) held UNC in check from the third inning on, using 6.1 scoreless innings from Caden Gaudette and Mason Patel to salvage the series and collect its 10th Top 15 victory of the season for this first time this century.
After both teams traded runs in the first inning, the Jackets struck for three runs on three hits in the third. The inning started with a leadoff double from Drew Burress who was quickly brought to the plate by a single from Jarren Advincula. Vahn Lackey drew a walk off a full count before Kent Schmidt connected for an RBI double, bringing in Advincula for what would become the game-winning run. Lackey made it a three-run inning when he scored on an RBI groundout by Ryan Zuckerman. UNC would work the bases loaded and score a run in the bottom of the inning before Gaudette entered the game and induced an inning ending groundout. UNC wouldn’t get another runner into scoring position until the eight inning as Gaudette and Patel slammed the door on any potential comeback.
QUICK HITS: TEAM
- The Jackets improve to 32-7, the best start to a season since 2010. Tech is 16-5 in ACC play, the best start since 2011.
- Tech has won 32 of its first 39 games for only the 6th time in the program’s 131 seasons: 2010, 2003 2002, 1997, 1993 and now 2026.
- James Ramsey owns the best record by any GT head coach in his first season through 39 games (32-7).
- The Jackets improve to 8-1 in nationally televised games this season.
- Tech has now won 10 games over Top 15 opponents for the first time this century.
- Tech has scored 417 runs through their first 39 games. It’s the most runs Georgia Tech has recorded after 39 games in the program’s 131-year history and the most runs any Power 4 team has scored through 39 games in the BBCOR era (since 2011).
- The Jackets scoring average now stands at 10.7 runs/game this season. The program record is 10.3, set back in 1984.
- GT is outscoring its opponents 417-174, that +243 margin is the highest through 39 games in program history.
- The bullpen delivered 6.1 scoreless innings, marking the 15th scoreless outing of the season and second of the weekend.
QUICK HITS: THE BATS
- Junior Drew Burress produced his 17th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with a double and two runs scored.
- He has scored 51 runs this season, one shy of Vahn Lackey for the most on the team. Burress has scored 201 runs over his career, tied with Danny Payne (2005-07) for the 11th most in Georgia Tech history.
- He becomes the first Yellow Jacket in the BBCOR era to record 200+ runs over a career.
- Junior Kent Schmidt went 2-for-4 with a go-ahead RBI double and a shift-beating bunt.
- He leads the team with 26 RBI in ACC play and has delivered 35 for the season.
- Schmidt has now collected extra base hits in three straight games for the first time this season and third time in his GT career.
- He finishes the series with a .500 average, going 4-for-8 with two doubles, a home run, three RBI, two runs scored and three walks
- Junior Jarren Advincula recorded his 24th multi-hit game of the season, going 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored.
- He leads the ACC with 68 hits this season, averaging 1.7 hits per game and putting him on pace for 94 hits over the course of the regular season. With potential postseason games, that would put him in striking distance of being the first 100-hit player at GT since 2005 (Wes Hodges & Tyler Greene).
- He drove in his 45th RBI of the season, the third most on the team behind Vahn Lackey and Ryan Zuckerman.
- Junior Ryan Zuckerman became the first Jacket to reach 50 RBI when he drove in Lackey for the fourth run of the game.
- Sophomore Caleb Daniel came off the bench in the 5th inning and blooped an RBI double, it was his 24th RBI of the season and his 5th as a pinch hitter.
QUICK HITS: THE ARMS
- Sophomore Jackson Blakely made his sixth consecutive weekend start, pitching 2.2 innings with two earned runs allowed and three strikeouts.
- He has only allowed runs in only three of his eight appearances this season (37.1 innings) this season.
- His ERA stands at 2.65, the lowest among all starting pitchers on the roster.
- R-junior Caden Gaudette made his team-leading 16th appearance of the season and 2nd of the weekend, pitching 2.1 scoreless innings.
- He entered the game with a two-run lead (4-2) and the bases loaded with two outs before inducing an inning ending groundout to short.
- Gaudette lowers his ERA to 2.86 in 22.0 innings of work.
- The man they call “Rock” pitched a total of 3.1 innings this weekend, allowing only one hit with four strikeouts.
- He has now pitched as many innings this season as he had in his previous two years combined (22.0) while allowing less than half as many earned runs (7 in 2026, 15 in 2024-25) and exactly half as many hits (12 in 2026, 24 in 2024-25).
- Mason Patel got the ball to start the 6th inning, keeping the score at 5-2 for the final four frames and collecting his fourth save of the season.
- Since recovering from an injury that saw him miss 20 days, Patel has made six appearances out of the bullpen, pitching 13.2 scoreless innings with a victory and four saves.
- Over the last two seasons, Patel has made 29 appearances out of the bullpen, posting 12 wins and nine saves.
- This was his longest relief appearance of the season (4.0 innings) after pitching at least 3.0 innings in 15 of his 23 appearances during his All-American season last year.
Up Next
Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate. Tuesday at 7 pm at Truist Park. Tickets are available HERE with all proceeds benefiting the Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center of Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
Full Steam Ahead
Full Steam Ahead is a $500 million fundraising initiative to achieve Georgia Tech athletics’ goal of competing for championships at the highest level in the next era of intercollegiate athletics. The initiative will fund transformative projects for Tech athletics, including renovations of Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field (the historic home of Georgia Tech football), the Zelnak Basketball Center (the practice and training facility for Tech basketball) and O’Keefe Gymnasium (the venerable home of Yellow Jackets volleyball), as well as additional projects and initiatives to further advance Georgia Tech athletics through program wide-operational support. All members of the Georgia Tech community are invited to visit atfund.org/FullSteamAhead for full details and renderings of the renovation projects, as well as to learn about opportunities to contribute online.
For the latest information on the Georgia Tech baseball team, follow us on X (@GTBaseball), Facebook, Instagram (@gt_baseball) or visit us at www.ramblinwreck.com.
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