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SI Scouting Reports 1. Oregon State 2. Florida 3. Miami 4. Texas 5. Oklahoma 6. Florida State 7. Oregon 8. Nebraska 9. Tennessee 10. Virginia Tech 11. Georgia Tech 12. Northwestern 13. LSU 14. Michigan 15. Kansas State 16. Washington 17. Wisconsin 18. Notre Dame 19. South Carolina 20. Clemson 21. Texas A&M 22. Mississippi State 23. UCLA 24. East Carolina 25. UNLV ----------------- The Top 25 The Master List: 1-117 Lower Division Rankings

11. Georgia Tech

Pass master George Godsey could be the Goose that lays the Jackets' golden egg

By Richard Deitsch

Enemy Lines An opposing team's coach sizes up the Yellow Jackets " George Godsey turned out to be a very shrewd player. His strengths are his leadership and his ability to get the team in the right call. He also throws the ball well. We had a mix-up in our coverage, and he found it and made us pay for it by throwing for a touchdown. ... I don't know a lot about [new coordinator] Bill O'Brien , but the offense probably won't change much. ... Wide receiver Kelly Campbell is a guy you don't want to leave on an island. He can break plays on you."

Senior quarterback George (Goose) Godsey got his nickname in the eighth grade, when one of his youth league teammates misread the D on the back of his jersey as an O and pronounced his last name as Goosey. "They eventually cut the Y," Godsey explains, "because I think they felt Goosey sounded a little too light."

Taking a gander at the 6'2", 205-pound Godsey lumbering downfield, few would accuse him of being light -- especially on his feet. Even Godsey admits that his speed is more Lorne Greene than Maurice Greene. "I scored a touchdown last year on a 33-yard run against Georgia," he says. "The only other time I had run that far was during conditioning in the summer. They usually blow the whistle in practice before I get to 30 yards."

Luckily, passing is where Godsey makes his mark. After serving as Joe Hamilton's little-used caddie for two years, Godsey emerged last season to become one of the nation's leading quarterbacks (No. 6 in passing efficiency after throwing for 2,906 yards and 23 touchdowns). In Godsey the Yellow Jackets trusted, and Tech coach George O'Leary was rewarded with a 9-2 season and a ranking among the top 20 in passing, scoring and total offense. The last game of Godsey's dream season, however, ended in a nightmare: He tore the ACL in his left knee while trying to avoid a tackler in a Peach Bowl loss to LSU. He missed spring practice but began taking snaps again in mid-June and is confident he'll be 100% for the Kickoff Classic against Syracuse on Aug. 26.

The postseason fortunes of the Yellow Jackets may be determined early, with September dates against Florida State and Clemson. The game in Tallahassee figures to be as difficult as the deterministic optimization seminar Godsey took this summer as part of his graduate studies in industrial engineering. Georgia Tech has lost nine straight to the Seminoles, though the Goose feels loose about his squad's chances this season. "We respect them as highly as you can," he says, "but this team will be as well prepared for Florida State as any team I've been on."

If Godsey engineers a fairy-tale victory over the Seminoles, he'll be one golden Goose indeed.

Issue date: August 13, 2001

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