Georgia Tech vs UCF – Breakdown and Prediction

John Mersits CSM Sipa USA Photo by Icon Sport
Georgia Tech vs UCF: Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets will take on the UCG Knights in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl at Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on Sunday. Both teams finished the regular season with equal records and barely made it to this game.

Georgia Tech season recap

Georgia Tech finished the regular season fourth in the ACC with a 6-6 record. An interesting fact is that they won and lost alternately the entire year, connecting two consecutive wins only once in the season. The Yellow Jackets are coming off a 31-23 loss to the local rival Georgia Bulldogs. Quarterback Haynes King had an amazing sophomore season, with 2,755 yards and 26 touchdowns.

UCF season recap

The UCF Knights finished ninth in the Big 12 Conference with a 6-6 record. They had a promising start to the season, winning the first three games, but then failed in the next five before closing the regular season by winning three of the last four games. They are coming off a 27-13 win over the Houston Cougars. Quarterback John Rhys Plumlee finished his senior regular season with 2,073 yards and 13 touchdowns.

Betting Trends

Georgia Tech played over total points in 9 of 12 games this season including 5 of the last 6. UCF played over total points in 6 of 12 games this season.

Head to Head record

This will be only the third time these two teams are facing each other and both times UCF was the winner. In 2022, they won 27-10 at home and two years earlier, the score was 49-21 in Georgia.

Injury Reports

DB Kenan Johnson and DL Kyle Kennard are out for Georgia Tech while DB Corey Thornton is out for UCF.

Prediction and Conclusion

The Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl will bring us an interesting matchup between two teams that split the 12 games of the regular season. Georgia Tech is a five-point favorite going into the game, mainly because of QB Haynes King, who was one of only five players in the country with at least 2,700 passing yards, 600 rushing yards, 25 touchdown passes, and five touchdown runs this season. The total line is set at 66.5 points, which may seem a little high at first sight, but here is why these two teams will go over it. Both teams are in the top third in the country in points per game, with Georgia Tech averaging 31.2 and UCF averaging 34.7 points per game. They are both in the Top 10 in the country in yards per carry and will miss key defensive players. Kyle Kennard led the Yellow Jackets in sacks this season, while Corey Thornton led the Knights in passes defended and is tied for team-best in sacks.

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