Georgia Tech will face Vanderbilt in the Birmingham Bowl

As confirmed by the Atlantic Coast Convention, Georgia Tech’s 2024 season finale will happen within the Birmingham Bowl on Friday, December 27 in opposition to Vanderbilt at 3:30 PM EST on ESPN.

As bowl bulletins got here out of the ACC, it adopted expectations that Tech would seemingly go to both Birmingham or Boston, in the end taking Birmingham.

This will probably be Tech’s first recreation in opposition to Vanderbilt in a postseason setting after 38 earlier conferences. Tech hasn’t misplaced to Vanderbilt since 1941, going 12-0-1 within the final 13 video games. The groups final performed in 2016, a 38-7 victory for the Jackets. All-time, Tech is 20-15-3 in opposition to Vanderbilt in soccer, the primary recreation happening in 1892 when the Institute was not even 5 years previous.

Notably, the groups play for a cowbell trophy, created by Ed Cavaleri in 1924, one of many few rivalry trophies the Jackets have a historical past with. In keeping with Tech radio host Andy Demetra, the trophy’s location was lately unknown till Jackson Mathews, a services supervisor, discovered it whereas trying to find printer toner in 2016 within the now-demolished Edge constructing. It isn’t usually a bowl recreation coincides like a trophy rivalry recreation!

Contemplating Tech was utterly out of the limelight for the Peach Bowl by not making the Faculty Soccer Playoff, the Birmingham Bowl is geographically the closest place Tech may have performed compared to campus. Even when this is not the favourite bowl (as many gamers expressed on Twitter), that is nonetheless top-of-the-line locations we may have drawn to get plenty of graduate college students within the constructing.

By way of personnel, the bowl recreation does not depend in opposition to video games performed whereas redshirting or not, so it is attainable we may see backup quarterback Aaron Philo take some snaps in case Haynes King is not 100 but % wholesome. That stated, here is what Brent Key needed to say concerning the King in Bowl Sport press convention:

Zach Pyron is not going to be seen as he entered the switch portal.

If Tech had been to win, it might be their first 8-win season since 2016.

Employees suggestions

Chris: It is… good I assume? Most likely a 6/10 for me. It isn’t notably thrilling, but it surely’s a great place for the fan base, and Vandy’s a group that obtained plenty of consideration this season, so a possible win over them can be good for the model. On the finish of the day, location and opponent will not be crucial; what issues is that we come away with a convincing victory.

Ben: I stated earlier that I actually did not care who we ended up taking part in so long as the gamers and coaches have a very good time. I stand by her. I feel Birmingham additionally works as a result of it is commuting distance for each fan bases. Vandy’s QB has made some noise this season, so I am excited to see how Tech handles him. I am excited, and I hope you’re too.

Logan: I feel it is great. Plenty of good tales. Foolish Bowl, renewal of a rivalry, Two distinctive offenses dealing with off, two groups which are upset by many wins. Not everybody thinks the world of Vandy, however they’ve had a very good yr and needs to be a problem. I am glad we’ve got a very good opponent within the bowl. I want it was a extra enjoyable place, but it surely’s a very good place to achieve followers, in order that helps. I hope we’ve got a very good turnout.

Jack: I am all for it. Certain, Birmingham is not the sexiest vacation spot to play our bowl recreation in, however the recreation is in UAB’s model new stadium, 1000’s of scholars are inside driving distance, and we’ve got a historic rivalry as well. Plus, we’ve got a very good TV spot for that a part of the vacation season the place individuals type of neglect what day of the week it’s and simply depart the TV on all day. It ticks the bins we would like ticked. It was all scrumptious to me as we managed to get win quantity 7. I am additionally unsure if we might even get to an 8 win if we ended up shifting to a different bowl, so this feels just like the pure place for us this season. I do know this group will probably be able to play, so I am largely excited to spend one other day with this Georgia Tech soccer group that all of us love a lot.

Nishant: I am unable to say I am terribly excited. It is good to get a bowl in opposition to an SEC group, and I cherished our residence and residential with Vandy in 2009 and 2016. And seeing Diego Pavian will probably be enjoyable. All that stated, this as a postseason recreation simply feels… anticlimactic. It is a group I’ve clear recollections of taking part in, which spoils essentially the most enjoyable facet of cup season for me—taking part in groups you’d by no means see in any other case. Nevertheless it’s additionally simply one other reminder that regardless of how dramatic this season was, this was a 7-5 group that (like each different 6-6 or 7-5 GT group ever) bowl selectors may safely ignore in the course of the ACC bundle. The excellent news is that Birmingham is a straightforward day journey from Metro Atlanta, so for the primary time in a decade I can go see Tech’s bowl recreation. So in the long run I am unable to be too mad.

Carter: This recreation was bred in a laboratory to be the least thrilling bowl recreation Georgia Tech has had since taking part in within the Independence Bowl fourteen years in the past. The nightmare bowl situation is taking part in in an uninteresting bowl in opposition to an uninteresting opponent. Georgia Tech obtained each. Vanderbilt is a group 4 hours away from Atlanta that Tech has already performed home-and-home in current reminiscence. In the meantime, six-win Virginia Tech will play in Charlotte.

collar: I fall someplace within the Jack/Chris/Ben vary of opinions, having had the advantage of studying everybody’s responses. I knew going into this that I would not be capable to take part, and I am assured that the gamers will probably be handled nicely no matter the place they find yourself, so I wished followers of the sport to have the ability to fairly enter the a very good stadium vacation spot, and we had been actually hoping for a greater date and time than we have gotten within the final two bowl assignments taken by Tech. After I made the journey to Detroit myself the day after Christmas in 2018 and having necessary household commitments within the final yr because it was the Friday evening earlier than Christmas weekend final yr, I really feel I can communicate with authority that these had been really terrifying moments. A fantastically weathered afternoon recreation with one other day’s house between the again of Christmas (inside cheap driving distance for a fan base that’s notoriously travel-poor) and being in a model new stadium are all undoubtedly optimistic. If it was in opposition to a G5 group, I might need different aid ideas, but it surely’s an SEC matchup in opposition to others The college, we’ve got a historic rivalry trophy, which additionally marked some notable and talked about historic upsets this season, leads me to consider that it’s going to garner a considerable amount of consideration and story buzz within the lead as much as the sport. Name it the Cinderella bowl, or one thing. It isn’t good, however a bowl-time-worthy and driveable in opposition to a Energy 4 opponent with historic and present narratives of curiosity is about as good a setup as a 7-5 group may ask for. It is a win.

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