Rivalry week in college football is here, when teams from across the country will face their biggest rivals, many of them in-state matchups.
Alabama and Auburn, South Carolina and Clemson, Kentucky and Louisville, Indiana and Purdue, Texas and Texas A&M, Florida and Florida State, and Tennessee and Vanderbilt, among others, will all play this week. However, for us in the Peach State, it’s Georgia versus Georgia Tech, deemed as “Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate.”
This game is significant on many levels. First, bragging rights are on the line. The Yellow Jackets haven’t had much to boast about lately, as the Bulldogs have won seven straight games in the rivalry series and 20 of the last 24. Second, it’s the first time since 1966 that both teams will meet while being ranked in the top 15.
Georgia Tech went 7-5 last season but is a much-improved team in 2025. The Yellow Jackets enter Friday’s matchup with a 9-2 record, but they still have a long way to go in terms of being a College Football Playoff contender. They’ve skated by this year with an easy schedule, getting several close wins over some terrible teams.
According to ESPN metrics, Georgia Tech is currently ranked 81st nationally in strength of schedule and 47th in its Football Power Index. The Yellow Jackets could have lost to Colorado, Clemson, Wake Forest, and Boston College, but they didn’t, so that’s where progress is being made. However, their two losses are inexcusable.
Georgia Tech somehow lost to a weaker opponent in N.C. State, while it also seemed to be focused ahead on Georgia and came out sleepwalking in last week’s loss to Pittsburgh. The Yellow Jackets had so much in front of them. An ACC championship game berth and a spot in the College Football Playoff were on the line.
Now, not so much. A win over the Bulldogs, though, could land Georgia Tech in the postseason, depending on what happens in the next few weeks of the season. Regardless, the Yellow Jackets should’ve easily won the ACC this year.
Georgia, on the other hand, sits in a good spot. The Bulldogs are ranked No. 4 and are peaking at the right time.
Georgia might miss the SEC Championship and get a first-round bye in the playoffs, or it could play in their conference title game, lose, and possibly host in the first round. Either way, the Bulldogs are in the dance.
Per BetMGM, Georgia is a 13.5-point favorite over Georgia Tech, with a point total of 59.5. Even though the Yellow Jackets probably won’t make the playoffs, they’ll try to upset the Bulldogs and ruin their win streak.
Everyone knows that anything can happen in rivalry games.
Brent Key is an alumnus of Georgia Tech, just as Kirby Smart is of Georgia. The two head coaches dislike each other’s programs but respect one another, and rivalries like this are what make college football special and exciting.