Tech head coach says Jackets got their butts kicked in by Clemson

Clemson tallied 11 tackles for loss and four sacks.

by David Hood - Senior Writer - Sun Nov 12 07:00:05 GMT-04:00 2023

CLEMSON – Georgia Tech head coach Brent Key and his Yellow Jackets had won two in a row and three of four heading into Saturday’s road game at Clemson, but there were no silver linings in the 42-21 loss.

Clemson’s defense dominated the Tech offense for three quarters – the Yellow Jackets added two touchdowns against Clemson’s reserves in garbage time – and Key said losses are never easy to take.

“Losses eat you up. It is one of those things. You win, and you start to get accustomed to winning and how to win. It is the same thing with losing, you can get used to losing,” Key said. “There are things we can take away from this. We got to see where we are against tough competition, but there is no silver lining. A loss is a loss, whether it is by one or 30. I'm disappointed. I hate losing."

Tech quarterback Haynes King threw four interceptions and was just 13-of-31 passing for 129 yards with two touchdowns, both coming late in the game in the air. Clemson had 11 tackles for a loss, with four sacks and three quarterback hurries.

"(Clemson) played hard, physical, and fast, and we just couldn't convert. We couldn't make that play that seemed to have been happening last few weeks for us," King said. "It happens, and sometimes you just have to find a way."

King said the loss will stick with him for a while and that he was disappointed the Jackets couldn’t make the plays they needed to make.

"It sucks. But like I said, you have to find a way,” King said. “In games like this, you have to find a way, and you have to be gritty. You know things are going to go bad, and things are going to go good, and you have to find a way to be consistent. They are big and physical, but the speed is the biggest difference. When you are big, physical, and fast, you close those windows fast, and it just makes a world of difference."

Key said it best, however, when summarizing what he saw Saturday.

“All in all, we got our butts kicked out there today,” he said.