Coming in, there was reason for optimism. Georgia Tech was on its first winning streak in four years having beaten defending ACC Champion Pitt on the road, then defeated second place Duke to move up to their spot in the standings, just a game out of first.

  The Cavaliers were on a three game losing streak.

  But, the Yellow Jackets offense sputtered throughout the game, mostly because starting quarterback Jeff Sims missed most of it with an injury.

   His replacement, Zach Gibson, was mostly ineffective and was sacked seven times.

  The Tech offense could only muster 201 total net yards. The running game had just 55 total rushing yards on 37 attempts for a measly 1.5 yards per carry. They had six straight three and outs.

   The defense did its job forcing three turnovers and blocking two kicks, holding Virginia to just 16 points.

   But, the Jackets’ only points came on on a LaMiles Brooks 37 yard pick six in the first period. They were scoreless in the final three quarters.

  Interim head coach Brent Key talked about the offensive struggles after the game.
   “When you look at protection for the quarterback, it comes back down to number one, the offensive line. Number two, the running backs if they are involved in protection. Number three, the quarterback making the decisions.
   “In all three phases, I thought we were poor. At different times, all three of those phases or all three of those things ended up being part of the problem. But like I said to start, regardless of who is in the game, everyone else has to be able to elevate and play complementary football.”

  Tech will try to figure things out between now and Saturday, October 29 when they travel to Tallahassee to take on Florida State. Kickoff is noon with the game available on the ACC Network.