By: Kenneth Harrison Jr.

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

Georgia Tech finished 2017 with a 5-6 record. It makes the second time in three years that the Yellow Jackets missed a bowl game and had a losing record. So, the logical thing for athletic director Todd Stansbury to do was give head coach Paul Johnson a two-year contract extension through the 2022 season.

This was the eleventh spring game in the CPJ era. One major change was made in an effort to get Tech back on track. Defensive coordinator Ted Roof was fired after the season and replaced by Nate Woody. The defense now runs a 3-4 scheme.

Only 8,500 fans showed up to watch. This could be because there are many things to do in Atlanta on a Friday night or the fan base is tired of coach Johnson. The Blue team beat the White team 21-14.

Several players sat out with injuries. Quarterback TaQuon Marshall did not play after showing up to the training room Friday morning with strep throat. Center Kenny Cooper suffered a lower-leg injury in last Saturday’s scrimmage that required surgery. Guard Parker Braun and offensive tackles Andrew Marshall and Jake Stickler also were out, Marshall for the entirety of the spring.

Defensive end Desmond Branch missed the scrimmage to attend his brother’s wedding in New Mexico. Likely starting safeties A.J. Gray and Jalen Johnson were out all of the spring with injuries.

Freshman quarterback Tobias Oliver led the white team and redshirt sophomore Lucas Johnson led the blue team.

After a slow start, Johnson drove the Blue-team offense on touchdown drives of 70, 74 and 55 yards, along with a field-goal drive of 54 yards. He was 5-for-17 with one touchdown and one interception. He had completions of 53, 33 and 35 yards­ and finished with 143 yards.

I think the low completion percentage (29%) is a problem. I know Johnson is competing for the backup position but this has been an issue under Johnson. For instance, last season’s starter TaQuon Marshall completed 37.1% of his passes. Johnson has failed to develop and intermediate passing game since coming to Atlanta. It seems like every pass play is a long down field pass.

Senior A-back Clinton Lynch looked like he returned to his old form. He had 28 yards on three carries and 33-yard touchdown reception. Lynch failed to reach the end zone as a junior after scoring 16 touchdowns as a freshman and sophomore.

The defense played fairly well, led by linebacker Brant Mitchell with five tackles for loss, contributing to eight total for the Blue-team (first-string) defense.

“We blitzed like crazy (Friday),” Mitchell said with a smile.

It was only a scrimmage so we have to take the defensive performance with a grain of salt. The first-string defense had nine tackles for loss in last year’s spring game and went on to record 4.3 per game last season, lowest in the ACC. The first-string offensive line was also missing two starters.

“You’ve got a good nucleus back,” Johnson said. “I mean, we’ve got nine starters coming back on offense. Defensively, if we can create some negative plays and get some sacks, get off the field, who knows?”

There is not a lot to be optimistic about as a Georgia Tech fan but hopefully they are on the right path to get back to a bowl game in 2018.