In the College Football Playoff era, Clemson vs Georgia Tech is still old school football
It’s not South Carolina.
It’s not Florida State.
But the cross-divisional rivalry between Clemson and the Yellow Jackets from Georgia Tech is still an annual battle that must not be forgotten about.
The last few years have not been the closest games as Clemson dominated two years in a row, while Georgia Tech got a dominant win of its own in 2014.
The Yellow Jackets have beaten Clemson more than any other team in the country.
They hold a 52-29-2 lead in the series overall, but Clemson has won four of the last five meetings and looks to continue that streak this weekend.
The games have generally been close over the course of the last 21 years. Twelve games have were decided by seven points or less in that span.
The Yellow Jackets have managed to win a lot of the close games in this matchup, in fact, eleven of Georgia Tech’s last 14 wins in the series have been by less than a touchdown.
Those close wins used to haunt the Tigers’ dreams and so has playing in Atlanta. Until last year’s success, something was always just a little off about playing in Bobby Dodd Stadium and Clemson had not one there since 2003.
Two memorable - or forgetful – matchups, depending on who you cheer for, came in 2009 when Clemson lost by three points in Atlanta in the regular season and then lost again to Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship in Tampa.
Those games still make Clemson fans cringe and made the rivalry against Georgia Tech even stronger.
Another memorable matchup came in 2006 and this time Clemson was able to enjoy a huge win for its program. ESPN’s College Gameday came to campus for the first time and the Tigers shined on the national stage in a 31-7 victory.
The Yellow Jackets had no answer for Thunder and Lightning. James Davis and C.J. Spiller combined for 332 rushing yards and four touchdowns.
What makes the rivalry good for fans is that the two teams get to play each other every year, even though they are not in the same division.
Brent Venables said that playing Georgia Tech every year helps him in preparation for Paul Johnson’s triple-option attack as opposed to only seeing the scheme every now and then.
“Planning ahead is important,” Venables said. “From year to year when you have a lot of carry-over with your personnel and your staff, I think that really helped because you kind of get to the shortcuts quickly as opposed to helping your guys trying to figure it out.”
Some people may not believe that Georgia Tech-Clemson is a legitimate rivalry, but do the players think it is?
“Definitely,” Kelly Bryant said.
“Not many people talk about it, but this rivalry is a big game. We’re so close to each other, right down the road from each other. A lot of people on both sides are going to be looking at this game. It’s a division game, biggest game of the year. It’s going to be a good one.”
Clemson safety Tanner Muse said that Clemson-Georgia Tech is “real, hard-nosed” football.
“They are such a blue-collar team like us, and they pride themselves on being physical. They got offensive linemen coming 15-20 yards down the field trying to get you. Just being able to take that mindset into the games it becomes a rivalry.”
The rivalry continues this Saturday night at 8:00 ET in Death Valley.