Georgia Tech football has sights set on another upset vs. UCF

After a season-opening road win over Florida State, the Georgia Tech football looks to continue its great start with an upset win over UCF.

Last season was a down year for Georgia Tech but the Yellow Jackets wasted no time on showing their improvement with their season-opening win last Saturday over the Florida State Seminoles.

The Yellow Jackets went on the road and came away with a signature win. Oh, and they were led by a freshman at quarterback. Jeff Sims had some early game struggles, throwing two interceptions in the first, but settled in and took care of business in the second half, finishing the game with 277 yards and one touchdown through the air, and added another 64 yards running the ball.

The Yellow Jackets are in the second year of head coach Geoff Collins’ tenure at Georgia Tech, who is hoping their new-look offense takes off in 2020. And after their win over Florida State, Georgia Tech plays host to UCF, one of the best teams in college football since 2017.

The Knights are looking to get back into playoff talks because 2020 might be the best chance a Group of Five school has to make the College Football Playoff. And while they had some key players opt out this season, their recruiting has them ready to fill those voids.

UCF wants respect and a shot of an actual national championship, but will Georgia Tech spoil the Knights’ postseason hopes in game one for UCF?

Here’s everything you need to know for the game between UCF and Georgia Tech.

Date: Saturday, Sept. 19
Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
Location: Atlanta, Ga.
Venue: Bobby Dodd Stadium
TV: ABC
Live Stream: WatchESPN

Keys to Victory

For Georgia Tech, their offense will need to try and control the tempo. The Knights offense is explosive and quick to score, so the Yellow Jackets’ offense will need to put together some long drives that will eliminate several possessions the Knights are typically used to seeing.

Defensively, Georgia Tech needs to eliminate the big plays and force some big turnovers that flip field position. The Yellow Jackets need to avoid getting down early, as it is unknown if this team is built to make big comebacks.

For UCF, they need to attack and never let off the gas. Although it’s just game one for the Knights, UCF has a lot riding on this game. A win gives them an additional quality win versus a Power Five school that could be meaningful if they were to run the table, but a loss would almost shut the door entirely on making the playoff.

On defense, the Knights need to rattle Sims. Sims is talented but is still a freshman and is likely to make mistakes when the pressure is on. A turnover or two could put this game away for the Knights.

Betting Odds

Odds courtesy of The Action Network

Point Spread: UCF -7.5
Over/under: 63

Prediction

If Georgia Tech is not careful, they could find themselves trailing big early on in the game. But this is gut feeling kind of game for me. I could see this game going many of ways but something tells me Georgia Tech is going to put up a fight. Sims struggles but finds his footing soon enough and dealing all game.

UCF says you have to be in a shootout to beat us, and the Yellow Jackets are up to the challenge. In moderately-confident mindset, Georgia Tech gets the win in my upset of the week.

Final Score: Georgia Tech 38, UCF 37