Georgia Tech offensive coordinator Dave Patenaude, who moved from the coaches box to the sideline to call Saturday’s game against Duke, said the switch had been contemplated since the beginning of the season, particularly as Patenaude is working with freshman quarterback Jeff Sims.
Patenaude, whose play-calling helped the Yellow Jackets score more points against Duke (56) than in any of Tech’s previous 87 games against the Blue Devils, said that he prefers to be on the field. He said it’s easier to be impactful there, as he can talk face to face with the quarterback and address different players or the offense as a whole. Speaking to them as a group, he can tell them the plan for the coming series or to be on the lookout for something in particular from the defense.
He said he believes he can call the game better, also, so long as he is getting spotting help from assistants perched in the box.
“Some guys call the game a little bit better, or a little bit easier, if they’re in the box and they have their plan and they’re kind of sitting there drinking Diet Coke and they can have a more of a scientific feel for it,” Patenaude said. “That’s not really how I do it. I kind of just kind of get a feel for what they’re doing and know exactly where we want to go and what we want to do.”
Right guard Ryan Johnson said it was fun having Patenaude on the sideline with the team.
“It’s not just on a headset, it’s not a guy in the box,” Johnson said. “It’s back and forth, it’s really just right there, eye to eye. And so it goes a little bit faster. It’s a really interesting dynamic to have him on the sideline.”
2. Linebacker David Curry turned in one of the more productive games of his career in the win over Duke. Beyond a team-high 12 tackles – the most any Tech player has recorded in a game this season – Curry also was credited with two pass breakups, including one that turned into an interception by safety Tariq Carpenter, and a forced fumble that was recovered by cornerback Tre Swilling.
“Luckily, when you’re around the ball as much as a guy like me is, a lot of times, good things are going to happen,” Curry said. “I was just blessed to have a D-line that played super well and they kept the offensive line off me.”
Curry also credited his and fellow linebacker Quez Jackson’s preparation. Jackson had eight tackles and continues to lead the team in tackles with 65.
“Me and Quez knew where the ball was going even before they did it, so it was a cool game,” Curry said.
3. While he enjoyed extended playing time Saturday at running back, Dontae Smith has been a regular on special teams, notably on kickoff return and gunner on punt coverage. Smith said he likes being on special teams, particularly on kickoff coverage or return, because it puts him on the field for the first play of the game.
“So you get your hits in, you get your running in, you get the feel for the game,” he said.
Besides getting him into the flow of the game, special teams also gives him a feel for the opponent, he said.
“Really, from special teams, you can tell how a team is,” Smith said. “How hard they go on special teams will tell you how hard their offense and defense goes, in my opinion.”
4. Patenaude said it was the plan going into the Duke game to get more offensive linemen into the game, namely offensive tackle Charlie Clark and center Kenny Cooper. Clark and Cooper each played about 30 plays, Patenaude said, rotating with Jordan Williams and Mikey Minihan, respectively. Clark made his first career start and was playing in his first game of the season.
“I was really happy with Charlie,” Patenaude said. “He got in there and he battled. And it was a tough task. He jump set that guy, No. 51 (All-ACC defensive end Victor Dimukeje). He got his hands on him and did a good job, and that let Jordan kind of get into the flow of the game a little bit, too.”
Until the Duke game, offensive-line coach Brent Key had relied almost exclusively on his starting five. While Cooper has plenty of experience, having Clark as a potential rotation player would be useful to give either Williams or Zach Quinney a break in remaining games.
5. Safety Derrik Allen played arguably his best game of the season against Duke, defensive coordinator Andrew Thacker said. While he didn’t start, Allen played a high volume of snaps and was credited with four tackles.
Thacker said that he was “very, very pleased” with Allen and his progress this season. Allen, from Lassiter High, transferred to Tech from Notre Dame in August 2019.
“He is as talented as anybody on this team and maybe any safety in the league as far as his movement patterns and what he can do with his top-end skill,” Thacker said. “But the mental piece, the consistency piece, just his practice habits and him earning the right to get reps on Saturday has continued to increase every week. That’s the cool part of it. He’s practiced better and that makes him play better. Obviously, he’s earned the reps, but he’s just playing well.”
