Defeating North Carolina’s football team this weekend has continued Head Coach Paul Johnson’s tradition of not losing any back-to-back games for Tech in his three seasons as coach. Johnson has always preached that great teams never lose two games in a row, and to this point, his teams have lived up to that standard.
When Tech was upset by Kansas on Sept. 18, the Jackets came back to defeat the Tar Heels in Chapel Hill, N.C. after UNC’s bye week, 30-24.
In Johnson’s first season at the helm in 2008, Tech had losses to Virginia Tech, Virginia and North Carolina. After those three loses, the Jackets came back in their next games to defeat Mississippi State, Florida State and Miami, respectively.
Last season, the Jackets lost to Miami on the road and turned around the following week with a win against North Carolina.
Miami quarterback Jacory Harris completed 20 of 25 passes for 270 yards and three touchdowns while Tech’s triple option was handled with relative ease. The Jackets were held to only 95 rushing yards on the day and lost 33-17.
Tech looked like a different team the following week, holding the ball for a total of 42 minutes over the Tar Heels in a 24-7 win. Jonathan Dwyer ran for 158 yards, improving on the seven yards he rushed for the previous week and Nesbitt had a career-high 32 carries for 97 yards. All together, the Jackets rushed for 317 yards while holding North Carolina to a mere 17 yards on the ground.
After the Georgia loss at home last year, the Jackets were able to move the ball against a Clemson defense in a shootout.
The Bulldogs came out running, having two 100-plus rushers on the day. In the end, Georgia rushed for 339 total yards. Tech’s rushing game was held to below its season average with 205 yards on the day. The Bulldogs who were 6-4 before the game handed Tech its second loss on the year with the score 30-24.
The second time the Jackets faced the Tigers was in the ACC championship game. The Jackets were again able to run the ball in their 39-34 win. Clemson’s C.J. Spiller rushed for 233 yards and four touchdowns. Blair kicked a career high four field goals of 48, 49, 28, and 40 yards on the day while the Jackets had 333 yards rushing.