Why Georgia Tech’s coaching future holds the key to ‘Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate’ mattering again

ATHENS — Maybe the best way to explain how strange the Georgia-Georgia Tech rivalry has gotten in recent years is through the lens of Stetson Bennett.

The sixth-year Georgia quarterback has just about done it all for the Bulldogs since first arriving on campus, from winning a national championship to imitating Baker Mayfield in practice.

But one thing he has not yet done is play in a home game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. In 2018, he was in the JUCO ranks at Jones College. The 2020 Georgia-Georgia Tech game was called off thanks to the scheduling changes made by the SEC due to the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Saturday will be Bennett’s final home game. For as long as he’s been at Georgia, the rivalry with the Yellow Jackets has changed a lot. The year before he arrived saw Georgia Tech upset Georgia in Sanford Stadium.

The Bulldogs have not lost to their rival since then. What’s more, the Bulldogs have won the four meetings by an average of 36.3 points per game. Georgia is once again a massive favorite this weekend, with the Bulldogs opening as a 34.5-point favorite.

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