# 2015 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team

The 2015 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team represented the Georgia Institute of Technology in the 2015 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Yellow Jackets were led by eighth-year head coach Paul Johnson and played their home games at Bobby Dodd Stadium. They were a member of the Coastal Division in the Atlantic Coast Conference. They finished the season 3–9, 1–7 in ACC play to finish in last place in the Coastal Division, losing six games by a margin of just seven points or less. This was the first time since 1996 that the Yellow Jackets finished with a losing record, breaking their streak of 18 consecutive bowl games.
The season is perhaps best remembered for the “Miracle on Techwood,” in which the Yellow Jackets defeated No. 9 Florida State on a blocked field goal return for a touchdown as time expired. The defeat was the Seminoles’ first ACC loss in 1,113 days.

## Before the season
### Previous season

Georgia Tech won its first five games of the previous season, which included comeback victories over Georgia Southern and Virginia Tech, and an end of a five-game losing streak to Miami. After losing back-to-back games to Duke and North Carolina, the Yellow Jackets won out the rest of its regular season, which was capped off with a 30-24 overtime victory over Georgia. The Yellow Jackets represented the Coastal Division in the ACC Championship Game, where they were defeated by Atlantic Division champions Florida State. The Yellow Jackets would be invited to the Orange Bowl, where they defeated Mississippi State 49-34. Georgia Tech ended the season with an 11-3 record and a #8 ranking in the final AP Poll. Georgia Tech also had 3-1 record against top 25 ranked teams, including 2-0 record against SEC teams ranked in top 10.

### Preseason

Head coach Paul Johnson returns for his eighth year at the helm of the program. Justin Thomas, who was Georgia Tech's starting quarterback in 2014, returns for his redshirt junior year.

### Spring game
## Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Seasons at Georgia Tech | Alma mater |
| Paul Johnson | Head Coach | 8 | Western Carolina (1979) |
| Bryan Cook | Quarterbacks/B-Backs | 3 | Ithaca (1998) |
| Lamar S. Owens Jr. | A-Backs | 8 | Maryland (2008) |
| Al Preston | Wide Receivers | 8 | Hawaii (1982) |
| Mike Sewak | Offensive Line | 8 | Virginia (1981) |
| Ted Roof | Defensive Coordinator | 3 | Georgia Tech (1986) |
| Andy McCollum | Linebackers/Recruiting Coordinator | 6 | Austin Peay State (1981) |
| Mike Pelton | Defensive Line | 3 | Auburn (1999) |
| Joe Speed | Defensive Backs | 6 | Navy (1996) |
| Ray Rychleski | Special Teams Coordinator | 2 | Penn State (1979) |
| Reference: ||||

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 3 | 7:30 pm | Alcorn State* | No. 16 | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ACCRSN | W 69–6 | 49,196 |
| September 12 | 3:30 pm | Tulane* | No. 15 | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ACCRSN | W 65–10 | 50,435 |
| September 19 | 3:30 pm | at No. 8 Notre Dame* | No. 14 | Notre Dame StadiumNotre Dame, IN (rivalry) | NBC | L 22–30 | 80,795 |
| September 26 | 12:00 pm | at Duke | No. 20 | Wallace Wade StadiumDurham, NC | ESPN2 | L 20–34 | 20,101 |
| October 3 | 3:30 pm | North Carolina | | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPNU | L 31–38 | 50,585 |
| October 10 | 3:30 pm | at No. 6 Clemson | | Memorial StadiumClemson, SC (rivalry) | ABC/ESPN2 | L 24–43 | 80,983 |
| October 17 | 12:30 pm | Pittsburgh | | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ACCN | L 28–31 | 46,208 |
| October 24 | 7:00 pm | No. 9 Florida State | | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA | ESPN2 | W 22–16 | 55,000 |
| October 31 | 3:00 pm | at Virginia | | Scott StadiumCharlottesville, VA | ACCRSN | L 21–27 | 32,308 |
| November 12 | 7:30 pm | Virginia Tech | | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA (Battle of the Techs) | ESPN | L 21–23 | 48,522 |
| November 21 | 12:30 pm | at Miami (FL) | | Sun Life StadiumMiami Gardens, FL | ACCN | L 21–38 | 51,355 |
| November 28 | 12:00 pm | Georgia* | | Bobby Dodd StadiumAtlanta, GA (Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate) | ESPN2 | L 7–13 | 55,000 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll (1–8) and CFP Poll (9–15) released prior to gameAll times are in Eastern time ||||||||
* Schedule source:

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Final |
| AP | 16 | 15 | 14 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Coaches | 17 | 16 | 16 | 20 | RV | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | — | — | — | — | — | — | Not released |