Georgia Tech Football: Jackets earn 10 votes in coaches poll
If you can smell something, that’s football season nearing closer as the Amway Coaches Poll was released on Thursday.
There is an official ranking for college football teams now as the Amway Coaches Poll has released their preseason rankings for the 2017 season. Georgia Tech did not make the top 25 and received 10 total votes which would put them at the 43rd spot in the rankings.
The Jackets did not finish ranked in any poll last season and have not appeared in a poll since week three of the 2015 season when they reached the #14 spot before dropping out in the week four poll. That would mean it’s been 28 polls since the Jackets have been last ranked.
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There was a total of five ACC teams ranked in the first coaches poll of the 2017 season which was tied for second most of any conference. The conference breakdown was the following;
- SEC: 6
- ACC: 5
- Big 12: 5
- Big 10: 4 (all inside top ten)
- Pac 12: 4
- AAC: 1
Complete Top 25:
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- Alabama
- Ohio State
- Florida State
- USC
- Clemson
- Penn State
- Washington
- Oklahoma
- Michigan
- Wisconsin
- Oklahoma State
- LSU
- Auburn
- Stanford
- Georgia
- Florida
- Louisville
- Miami
- Kansas State
- West Virginia
- South Florida
- Virginia Tech
- Texas
- Tennessee
- Utah
Five of Georgia Tech’s 2017 opponents are in the coaches poll top 25 and are the following;
- Tennessee: 24th
- Miami: 18th
- Clemson: 7th
- Virginia Tech: 22nd
- Georgia: 15th
Here a few thoughts on each of those fives rankings;
- #7 Clemson: The Tigers enter the season the defending National Champions but also lost a ton of talent from their championship squad. That being said, they return just as much talent and if they can settle their quarterback situation, they’ll be in the top ten and top five all season.
- #15 Georgia: In reality, it’s one of the most talented teams in the country but living up to the hype is half the problem for the Bulldogs. Going off their pure talent and the idea of them most likely developing, the 15th spot may be a tad high but it’s in the general right spot.
- #18 Miami: The Hurricanes enter 2017 as one of the most hyped teams in the country so it’s no surprise to see him them in the middle of the pack. It’s probably at the right spot as well as the Hurricanes enter the season with a strong defense but questions on offense.
- #22 Virginia Tech: While the Hokies do have plenty of questions regarding replacing talent on their offense, they’ve been a program of consistency in recent time. It’s understandable to see the Hokies ranked but wouldn’t have been shocking if they weren’t.
- #24 Tennessee: As previewed in the Tennessee preview, the Volunteers enter 2017 with a great amount of talent but there are certainly still a lot of question marks regarding the team. While you can argue that a team like Washington State to be in over the Vols and Utah Utes (25th), it’s understandable to see them ranked.
In conclusion:
The Jackets 2017 schedule is a bit of a difficult schedule but the Jackets have the talent to play with all of the teams on their schedule. If the Jackets can get off to a 4-0 start on the season picking up victories over Tennessee, UCF, and Pittsburgh along with an FCS victory, the Jackets could be ranked going into their game against North Carolina.