Win over Georgia provides vindication for Johnson, Georgia Tech

Nov 30, 2008 - 1:06 AM By Bob Birge PA SportsTicker Staff Writer

First-year Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson enjoyed great success with the triple option at Navy, a school that is traditionally among the national leaders in rushing season after season.

However, critics questioned whether Johnson could make it work against the big boys in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

The 23rd-ranked Yellow Jackets put that question to rest Saturday after running roughshod over No. 13 Georgia in a 45-42 victory between the hedges.

Georgia Tech snapped a seven-game losing streak against the Bulldogs after rushing for 409 yards, the most allowed by Georgia since 1994.

"We cracked a lot of long runs," Johnson said. "We started cracking their safety and took advantage of their man-to-man coverage."

Johnson was not the most popular choice to replace Chan Gailey at Georgia Tech, but now he's the toast of the campus.

While the Yellow Jackets won't be playing in the ACC championship game, they have regained state bragging rights for the first time since 2000.

Gailey was 0-6 against Georgia, hastening his departure.

Georgia Tech overcame a 28-12 halftime deficit Saturday by scoring 26 consecutive points in the third quarter.

Almost all of the Yellow Jackets' offense was on the ground - they completed just 1-of-6 passes for 19 yards.

Freshman Roddy Jones hammered Georgia for 214 yards and two touchdowns on only 13 carries - an average of 16.5 per attempt.

Jonathan Dwyer, the ACC's leading rusher, complemented Jones with 144 yards and two scores on 20 carries.

Saturday marked the second straight game in which the Yellow Jackets surpassed 400 yards on the ground. They rushed for 472 yards in a 41-23 victory over Miami on November 20.

The combination of Jones and Dwyer left the Bulldogs gasping for air - even Uga was panting on the sidelines.

"A couple times, we squeezed them to within six inches of the sideline and they were able to stay in bounds," Georgia coach Mark Richt said.

Saturday's win put the finishing touches on a surprising regular season for the Yellow Jackets, who were not expected to do much.

Many forecasters predicted a losing season, and Sports Illustrated tabbed Georgia Tech for a 3-9 campaign.

"I'm really proud of our team," said Johnson, who has a history of building solid programs. "We told them to hang in there for 60 minutes, and what a 60 minutes it was."

Johnson won two Division I-AA national championships at Georgia Southern in 1999 and 2000 and guided Navy to five straight bowl games before taking the Georgia Tech job.

He always will be remembered as the winning Navy coach when the Midshipmen ended their NCAA-record 43-game losing streak to Notre Dame last season.

Now, Johnson appears to have Georgia Tech headed in the right direction and has convinced Yellow Jackets' fans that he was the right hire.

If Georgia Tech wins its bowl game, it will reach 10 wins for the first time since 1998 and only the third time since 1990, when Bobby Ross guided the Yellow Jackets to a share of the national championship.