It looked like the Central Florida Golden Knights were going to cruise to their first bowl win as part of the Big 12 in the Gasparilla Bowl. However, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets overcame a slow start to score 30 unanswered points en route to the first bowl for the ACC this season. Haynes King struggled passing the ball, but the Georgia Tech running game found a groove, and the defense adjusted following a bad first quarter.
Buzzing Down the Field
Early in the game, Georgia Tech couldn’t make anything happen on offense while Central Florida was able to move the ball. The Golden Knights were up 17-3 in the second quarter when Georgia Tech’s offense finally figured out how to move the ball. From that point on, the rest of the Gasparilla Bowl was filled Yellow Jacket players buzzing down the field.
Five Georgia Tech players rushed the ball 53 times for 284 yards and two touchdowns. Jamal Haynes led all rushers with 128 yards on 18 carries as he earned MVP honors. While Haynes King struggled passing, he excelled rushing. King finished with 89 rushing yards and a touchdown. He only completed seven of 13 passes for 87 yards. But he also threw a touchdown pass and an interception.
Defense Comes Up Big
After trailing 17-3, the Georgia Tech defense didn’t give up another point the rest of the night. By halftime, the game was tied at 17. The Yellow Jackets then scored 13 points in the second half while not giving up any. When it appeared that Central Florida had a last gasp for a comeback, the Georgia Tech defense came up big. Ahmari Harvey picked off John Rhys Plumlee. It was only the second turnover forced by Georgia Tech, but it came at the right time. The interception sealed the Gasparilla Bowl win for the Yellow Jackets. It’s Georgia Tech’s first bowl win since 2016.
Gasparilla Bowl Gus
It was an odd turn of events for Central Florida coach Gus Malzahn. He was the Auburn coach when Central Florida reach the pinnacle of success for the team. In 2017, UCF went undefeated beating Malzahn’s Auburn team in the Peach Bowl. It created controversy surrounding the college football playoff and forever marked the Auburn Tigers football team.
Malzahn would continue coaching Auburn for a few more years before being fired following the odd 2020 regular season. In February 2021, Malzahn was hired to coach Central Florida, the very school that handed him his most surprising loss at Auburn.
Conference Bowl Records (Must Field 3 Teams Through Entire Bowl Season)
- American (2-0)
- C-USA (2-1)
- ACC (1-1)
- Big 12 (1-1)
- MAC (1-1)
- Mountain West (1-1)
- PAC-12 (1-1)
- Sun Belt (1-4)
- Big 10 (0-0)
- Independents (0-0)
- SEC (0-0)
Saturday Matchups
It’s essentially Sun Belt Saturday as the Group of Five conference appears in six of the seven games Saturday. Troy takes on Duke from the ACC in the Birmingham Bowl. Arkansas St. faces Northern Illinois from the MAC in the Camellia Bowl. James Madison squares off with Air Force from the Mountain West in the Armed Forces Bowl. Georgia St. takes on Utah St. from the Mountain West in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. It’s another Sun Belt vs. MAC showdown as South Alabama faces Eastern Michigan in the 68 Ventures Bowl. And in the third Sun Belt vs. Mountain West showdown, Coastal Carolina takes on San Jose St. in the Hawai’i Bowl. The only game not featuring the Sun Belt Conference is the Las Vegas Bowl where Utah and Northwestern will square off in a showdown between the PAC 12 and Big Ten. It’s sure to be a fun Saturday.
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