THE FLATS – Kickoff time for Georgia Tech football’s Nov. 1 game at NC State has been placed on a six-day hold, the Atlantic Coast Conference and its television partners announced on Monday. Game time for the Georgia Tech-NC State contest will be determined following the conclusion of games this Saturday, Oct. 25.

No. 7 Georgia Tech enters this Saturday’s homecoming game versus Syracuse with its highest regular-season ranking since 2009 and its first 7-0 record since 1966. The Yellow Jackets are also riding a nine-game winning streak at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field dating back to the beginning of last season, their most consecutive wins at Bobby Dodd since they won 17 in a row at home from 1989-91.

Saturday’s homecoming game versus Syracuse kicks off at noon. In addition to celebrating homecoming on The Flats for the 76^th time, Georgia Tech will also commemorate the 10^th anniversary of the “Miracle on Techwood Drive” win over Florida State in 2015 during Saturday’s game. Tickets still remain for Saturday’s Tech-Cuse homecoming showdown – click HERE to secure your seats online.

2025 GEORGIA TECH FOOTBALL TICKETS

With a fanbase that has been reenergized by the Yellow Jackets’ success, attendance at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field is up 24% over this time in 2024. Fans can still be a part of the excitement on The Flats, as tickets remain for the Yellow Jackets’ final two home games at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field in 2025.

Oct. 25 vs. Syracuse (Homecoming) – Click HERE for tickets.

Nov. 22 vs. Pitt (Senior Day/Military Appreciation Day/Michael Isenhour Toy Drive-25^th Anniversary) – Click HERE for tickets.

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 Yellow Jackets, follow us on X, Facebook, Instagram and at www.ramblinwreck.com.

Georgia’s enjoyed a coaching advantage in rivalry with Florida since the day it hired Kirby Smart. Lane Kiffin would help level the scales.

• The Florida Gators fired head coach Billy Napier, a move the author suggests improves the team’s potential.
• Napier’s tenure was marked by coaching mistakes, holding the team back despite bringing in some talent.
• The firing gives Florida an opportunity to pursue Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, who is seen as a worthy rival to Georgia’s Kirby Smart.

Sunday turned just a bit sour for Kirby Smart, because it became a good day for Florida. By firing Billy Napier, the Gators got better. Maybe that sounds harsh, but it’s the truth. Napier’s coaching had been holding Florida back.

By firing Napier, Florida gave itself an opportunity to level the longstanding coaching mismatch inside the “Cocktail Party” rivalry Smart’s ruled.

By firing Napier, Florida gave itself a chance to chase Lane Kiffin. If you’ve watched the Georgia-Mississippi games the past two seasons, you know Kiffin can go toe-to-toe with Smart. The Gators haven’t had a coach capable of doing that since Georgia hired Smart.

Who will replace Billy Napier? Eight candidates Florida should consider

Dan Mullen gave Florida a shot with X’s and O’s, but Smart ran circles around him on the recruiting trail. Mullen managed to beat Smart once in four tries. Florida replaced Mullen with its very own version of “Ray Goof,” as Steve Spurrier once called the former Georgia coach whom he beat seven straight times. Napier brought some talent into Florida, but coaching gaffes defined his tenure.

If Florida lands Kiffin, it finally would employ a coach capable of matching sideline wits with Smart and who also could counteract his recruiting prowess. Smart still rules the old model of signing high school talent, but Kiffin’s aced the transfer free agency roster-building strategy better than anyone.

With Kiffin, Florida could hope to field a team as talented as Georgia’s, while having a coach as savvy as Smart. It also would have one of college football’s best quarterback developers. That goes a long way anywhere. It goes miles with Gators fans thirsting for the second coming of Steve Spurrier.

Even in Ole Miss’ 43-35 defeat in Athens, Kiffin’s schemes and play-calling gave Smart’s squad fits for three quarters until his Bulldogs rallied late, as is their style.

“A lot of credit goes to Lane and his staff,” Smart said after his team overcame a two-score deficit, one year after getting smashed by Kiffin’s Rebels. “Their team was really prepared to come into this game and start fast, as they did.”

Smart labeled Kiffin “the best in the country” at clock management.

What a contrast that would be for Florida. It spent the past four seasons competing with the nation’s worst clock manager on the sideline, and also a coach who struggled to master how to get 11 men — and only 11 men — on the field.

Ole Miss scored touchdowns on five straight possessions against Smart’s defense, while Napier had his hands full with Jeff Lebby and Mississippi State. True, Kiffin’s Rebels failed to land the knockout blow, but X’s and O’s couldn’t be faulted, at least.

Everything matters in coaching nowadays. The boss man must be a good CEO, a steady recruiter, a keen evaluator of potential transfer talent, and a glorified grifter who can help attract booster bucks. Actual coaching matters, too, especially in this era of increasing parity.

It’s still a game of Jimmies and Joes, but any school with a billionaire or at least a few motivated millionaires can hope to land a five-star Jimmy and some four-star Joes or snag some value buys out of the portal.

They’re not all going to Alabama, Georgia and Ohio State.

Check out a typical Saturday inside the modern SEC. Vanderbilt whupped LSU, and it didn’t count as an upset. Texas needed overtime to survive Kentucky. Missouri bested Auburn in two overtimes. Georgia survived Ole Miss in a thriller.

On a day when eight conference games were played, six were decided by one possession. The days of Nick Saban assembling a three-deep of all-stars and routinely creaming the field on a run of dynastic dominance are finished.