Noted Tech non-apologist Heather Dinich picks the Duke Blue Devils to beat the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets by four. I’ll certainly be surprised if this happens, but can’t say I fault her reasoning one bit:
[Duke is] playing their best football of the season, not turning it over, and Miami exposed some weaknesses [in Tech that] Duke is likely to repeat. Duke will also benefit from having played two other option teams this year.
Cappers Picks, the only other place on the entire internet to publish picks for this game as far as I can tell, likes the Jackets by 17.
Even with Joshua Nesbitt gone, we shouldn’t really treat Georgia Tech differently in our wagers (whether we’re for them or against them). The Jackets still run the ball like crazy and should carve up Duke’s 96th-ranked run defense. Georgia Tech is a respectable 28th against the pass as well, so it can weather the storm once Duke falls behind and Sean Renfree starts airing it out like a madman.
Then again, Tech’s run defense has given up 140 or more yards to every team it’s faced this season. Duke has one of the nation’s worst running games, but it’s within a few yards per game of the Kansas Jayhawks and North Carolina Tar Heels attacks, plus it’s got to better than the South Carolina St. Bulldogs’, right? All three of those succeeded against Tech’s D. Yes, you’re literally reading me literally worrying about Duke’s running game.
I’ll say Georgia Tech wins, 33-27.