From a look inside the Georgia Tech depth chart for the Tennessee game Monday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium, here are five things to know:
The four-quarterback effect. Clearly coach Paul Johnson is using the keep-them-guessing strategy on Tennessee. What isn't so clear is why it matters so much. There's no relevant video of any of the four quarterbacks but Matthew Jordan, and there's little video of him. Also, over the years it seems to matter little which quarterback Tech uses, the plays are the same. Yes, there may be some plays called based on a particular quarterback and his skill set, but Tech's opponents know what they will face when they play the Yellow Jackets. The challenge, as always, is stopping what Tech throws (er, runs) at them.
Youth already showing potential. Tech lists 52 players on its two-deep depth chart for the season opener, 28 on offense and 24 on defense. (The offense includes four quarterbacks and four B-backs.) The excitement around this year's recruiting class shows on the depth chart, where there are seven freshmen among the 52 players. Four of them are on offense: B-backs Jerry Howard and Jordan Ponchez-Mason and offensive tackles Charlie Clark and Zach Quinney. The other three are linebackers Bruce Jordan-Swilling and T.D. Roof and cornerback Jaytlin Askew. No freshman are listed as starters.
Defense is veteran-heavy. Upperclassmen dominate the Jackets' defense (nine seniors and nine juniors). All 12 starters listed on defense are seniors or juniors. (Tech lists five defensive backs as starters, including the nickel back.) The greatest concentration of seniors is in the secondary, where four of the five starters are entering their final season.
It's the antithesis on offense. The offense leans young, with 17 of the 28 players either sophomores, redshirt freshmen or freshmen. Only four seniors are among the 28 on offense. Aside from quarterback, where no starter is listed, the offense has two senior starters, but four sophomores. The starting quarterback will come from juniors Matthew Jordan and TaQuon Marshall and redshirt freshmen Lucas Johnson and Jay Jones.
Young offensive line. Tech lists 11 offensive linemen on the depth chart. Of those, six are sophomores and two are freshmen. Shamire Devine is the only senior. He's the No. 2 right guard. Three of the five starters are sophomores: Parker Braun, Kenny Cooper and Jahaziel Lee. However, each played a lot and played well as freshmen last season.
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