Against Wake Forest Saturday, Georgia Tech ran for 400 yards for the fourth time this season, didn’t turn the ball over and averaged 6.4 yards per play, but it didn’t much please coach Paul Johnson
“We didn’t play particularly well on offense Saturday night,” Johnson said Monday after practice. “We had some yards and scored some points, but it was some big plays. We made some plays, but, boy, we left a lot out there.”
In the 38-24 win, Tech gained 191 of its 495 yards – 39 percent – on four plays. Quarterback TaQuon Marshall scored on run plays of 49 and 70 yards, A-back Qua Searcy scored on a 42-yard run and wide receiver Ricky Jeune gained 30 yards on a reverse. Tech averaged 4.2 yards per carry on the other 73 plays.
Johnson was particularly irked by the offense’s failure to score a touchdown on the game’s opening drive, when it had a first-and-goal from the Wake Forest 8-yard line and then given a first-and-goal from the 2 after a penalty and couldn’t get into the end zone.
“Blocking and execution,” he said.
Tech is scoring touchdowns on 70.4 percent of its red-zone possessions, which is 27th nationally, but the Jackets have three field goals this season of 25 yards or fewer, the result of possessions that stalled inside the 10-yard line. Tech had four field goals from 26 yards and in the entire 2016 season.
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