Georgia Tech is 6-2 when junior quarterback Haynes King plays the majority of the snaps at the position.
Georgia Tech is 6-4 overall and 4-3 in the ACC, with NC State up next, followed by at Georgia on Nov. 29.
NC State plays at Georgia Tech at 7:30 p.m. Thursday at Bobby Dodd Stadium on ESPN.
Five Georgia Tech players to watch
Junior strong safety Omar Daniels
The 6-foot, 190-pound Daniels thrived in the 28-23 win over Miami (Fla.) on Nov. 9, getting eight tackles, two tackles for loss and one pass defended. Daniels has 36 tackles and three passes defended this season. He played his first two years at Kansas State.
Sophomore linebacker Kyle Efford
The 6-2, 230-pounder has been a tackling machine and leads the Yellow Jackets with 58 tackles, five tackles for loss and two sacks in eight games. He missed the losses against Notre Dame and Virginia Tech. Efford returned for the Miami game and had six tackles and a sack. He had a season-high 13 tackles against Georgia State on Aug. 31.
Junior running back Jamal Haynes
The 5-9, 190-pounder ripped off a 65-yard run against Miami, but exited the game with an injury with three carries for 83 yards and a 16-yard score. He is expected back for NC State, and he’s tallied for 681 rushing yards and nine scores, plus 17 catches for 97 yards and a touchdown this season. Haynes rushed 19 times for 170 yards and two scores Oct. 12.
Junior outside linebacker Romello Height
The 6-3, 240-pound Height played for Auburn in 2021, USC in 2023 and now Georgia Tech. He has 33 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and two forced fumbles this season. Height had a season-high five tackles against Louisville on Sept. 21. His 2.5 sacks have come in the last two meetings against Miami (Fla.) and Virginia Tech.
Junior quarterback Haynes King
Haynes missed two games before returning to host Miami (Fla.) on Nov. 9. He wasn’t 100 percent healthy from his shoulder injury, and carried the ball 20 times for 93 yards and a touchdown, and went 6-of-6 passing for 32 yards and a touchdown. The 6-3, 215-pounder has thrown for 1,600 yards, nine touchdowns and just one interception, and he’s run 82 times for 446 yards and seven scores. The Texas A&M transfer threw for 2,842 yards and 27 touchdowns, and rushed for 737 yards and 10 scores in 2023.
What to watch for from Georgia Tech
1. Rotating quarterbacks? Georgia Tech will likely rotate junior Haynes King and freshman Aaron Philo, which is what happened in the 28-23 win over Miami (Fla.) on Nov. 9.
King missed two games with a shoulder injury and wasn’t 100 percent against Miami, which limited his throwing the football. He completed all six passes for 32 yards and a touchdown, and rushed 20 times for 93 yards and a score.
King rushed 11 times for 107 yards and two touchdowns in the 41-34 win over North Carolina on Oct. 12. He threw for a season-high 312 yards in the 31-19 loss at Louisville on Sept. 21.
King’s ability to throw the football (or not), will help decide how much Philo plays. The 6-2, 215-pound Philo was a four-star prospect by Rivals.com in the class of 2024. He came in and went 5-of-10 passing for 67 yards and a touchdown against the Hurricanes. Philo was elected to second string due to the injury to sophomore Zach Pyron, who threw for 269 yards and a touchdown, but two interceptions in the 31-13 loss against Notre Dame on Oct. 19.
2. Defense plays as a unit. Only North Carolina has scored more than 31 points against Georgia Tech this season, and the Yellow Jackets won that contest 41-34 on Oct. 12.
Thirty-one points seems to be the magic number to defeat Georgia Tech. Syracuse, Louisville and Notre Dame all scored 31 points in wins this season.
What worked well against Miami (Fla.) is that Georgia Tech held the Hurricanes to 3 of 10 on third-down conversions and 1 of 4 on fourth-down attempts. Conversely, Georgia Tech went 9 of 14 on third downs against Miami.
The other major difference against Miami was holding the Hurricanes to 88 rushing yards, with running back Damien Martinez having 81 of the yards. Georgia Tech rushed 48 times for 271 yards and two scores against the Hurricanes.
3. Kicking game is solid. Senior punter David Shanahan has been a true weapon this season, averaging 44.2 yards on 40 punts with a long of 61. He’s landed 11 punts inside the 20-yard line.
Redshirt sophomore kicker Aidan Birr has been accurate inside the 40-yard line, but is a combined 2 of 7 on 40 yards or more, with a long of 51. He’s 8 of 14 overall and he has 39 touchbacks on 51 kickoffs.
Speedy wide receiver Eric Singleton is averaging 22.2 yards on 10 kickoff returns, and Rodney Shelley has 14 punt returns for 94 yards this season.
Three keys to the game for NC State football
1. NC State had one touchdown and made 4 of 5 field-goal attempts against Duke in the 29-19 loss Nov. 9.
Breaking down the drives, the Wolfpack reached the Duke 10-yard line before settling for a 30-yard field goal. NC State got as far as the nine-yard line, and then made a 28-yard field goal.
The Wolfpack reached the seven-yard line and made a 25-yard field goal. NCSU reached the 17-yard line and then was forced into a 36-yard field goal.
NC State’s lone touchdown was a 16-yard pass to junior wide receiver Wesley Grimes with 9:01 left in the third quarter. NC State had reached the 14-yard line on the drive.
NC State's 37-yard field goal was the lone play of the drive, which came after redshirt freshman nickel Tamarcus Cooley forced a fumble and ran 70 yards to the 20-yard line.
The Wolfpack have reached the red zone 43 times this season, resulting in 23 touchdowns, 13 field goals, two missed field goals and had four turnovers.
2. Redshirt junior tight end Justin Joly has become the top weapon for NC State’s offense this season.
The UConn transfer has been consistent and he leads the team with 565 receiving yards on 34 receptions and three touchdowns. The 6-foot-3, 235-pounder has caught at least four passes in six games this season. Joly had four catches for 95 yards.
Miami star tight end Elijah Arroyo ripped off a 74-yard touchdown reception Nov. 9, and he finished with three catches for 82 yards and the score.
Virginia Tech sophomore tight end Benji Gosnell had five catches for 59 yards and a touchdown in a 21-6 Hokies win over GT on Oct. 26. Notre Dame tight end Mitchell Evans was held in check with four catches for 26 yards in a 31-13 win Oct. 19.
3. NC State has 20 sacks this season with senior defensive end Davin Vann having 5.5 sacks and 12 tackles for losses on the season.
Redshirt junior defensive end Travali Price has 3.5 sacks and redshirt junior outside linebacker Sean Brown has three sacks.
Georgia Tech has allowed just four sacks on 306 passing attempts this season, which is an astonishing number. Former Kansas transfer Corey Robinson anchors the line at left tackle, and he has a 72.2 grade from Pro Football Focus, including 91.1 on pass blocking.
Redshirt junior Joe Fusile is at left guard, junior Keylan Rutledge is at right guard, and they are joined by two seniors — right tackle Jordan Williams and center Wester Franklin. Fusile has the lowest PFF grade of the crew at 61.5 percent, including 56.1 percent on pass blocking.
Three numbers of note
3 Former Georgia Tech players who are in the Pro Football Hall of Fame — halfback/tackle Joe Guyon (1920-27), guard Billy Shaw (1961-69) and wide receiver Calvin Johnson (2007-15). Johnson had 178 catches for 2,927 yards and 28 touchdowns at Georgia Tech (2004-06).
4 North Carolina natives on the roster including nose tackle Zeke Biggers of Mt. Ulla West Rowan High, linebacker Jack Collins of Matthews Weddington, offensive lineman Kai Greer of Waxhaw Marvin Ridge and running back Trey Cooley of Knightdale High, who is the older brother of NC State redshirt freshman nickel Tamarcus Cooley.
46 Bowl games that Georgia Tech has played in, going 26-20. Last year’s 30-17 win over UCF in the Gasparilla Bowl was the Yellow Jackets’ first bowl game since 2018.
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