By Will Vandervort.
Saturday’s game in Atlanta is not about Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson returning from injury. It is not about Georgia Tech’s spread-option offense. It’s not about the Tigers’ nationally ranked defense. either.
Those are just subtitles for what is really important when the 17th-ranked Tigers visit the No. 22-ranked Yellow Jackets for a noon kickoff on ESPN. The winner of this game could be in line for a possible Orange Bowl invitation.
With Florida State ranked No. 3 in the current College Football Rankings, the Seminoles are in line for a possible spot in the first College Football Playoffs which means the next-highest ranked team in the ACC will get the Playoff Committee’s invite to have the conference’s automatic bid in the Orange Bowl.
As of right now, Clemson is ranked No. 19 in the Playoff Rankings, while Tech is No. 22, one spot behind No. 21 Duke.
“This is definitely a big game for both programs,” Clemson defensive tackle Grady Jarrett said. “We both know that and we know the importance of this game and where we want to be by seasons end.
“It is a big game and we have to win this one to get to where we want to be. The same goes for them.”
At the beginning of the season the Tigers (7-2, 6-1 ACC) had hopes of winning an ACC Championship and playing in the College Football Playoffs, but early season losses at No. 15 Georgia and at FSU ended those dreams early.
But since then, Clemson has won six straight and comes into the Georgia Tech game as the favorite to snag that Orange Bowl invitation.
“It’s going to be a really good game and the team that prepares the best will come out on top,” Jarrett said.
Georgia Tech (8-2, 5-2 ACC) got to this point somewhat as an underdog. The Yellow Jackets were picked to finish fifth by the media in the Coastal Division back in July, but a 5-0 start put them in good position to prove everyone wrong.
But losses to Duke and North Carolina in Week 7 and 8 put them a game back of the Blue Devils in the Coastal. However, they have won the last three games over Pitt, Virginia and NC State, thanks to their always dominant running game and a defense that has forced 11 turnovers in the three games.
Tech has outscored its last three opponents 147-61.
“We’ve played better on defense,” Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson said. “We’ve gotten turnovers and created turnovers, and that’s enabled us to – you know. We’ve been fairly efficient on offense all year, but the defense has come to the party the last three weeks.
Clemson’s defense brought the Tigers to the party, but the offense was there for a little while when Watson was torching North Carolina’s and NC State’s defenses for 10 total touchdowns and more than 700 yards of offense. But when Watson got hurt in the Louisville game it changed the dynamics of the Clemson offense and since then the Tigers have struggled to score points.
But Watson will be back on Saturday and now the question is will he return to the level of effectiveness he had before the injury. The freshman completed 67 percent of his passes for 1,176 yards and 12 touchdowns before the injury. He threw just two interceptions and has a passing rating for 187.0.
“Mentally, he is ready to go and physically, as far as how he is going to play, I don’t know,” Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney said. “I think he is going to play well. He practices well.”
“This is not his first time to play. He has played,” Swinney continued. “There is not near as many unknowns with him for us as there was at the start of the season when he had not played a game.
“He has played on the road in front of a hostile crowd (Georgia and Florida State). He has been in difficult situations. The biggest thing with Deshaun is he has done a great job as far as totally staying engaged in the game planning process, what is happening at practice, and being very dialed in and focused mentally at games. He has made good suggestions during the game.”