Georgia Tech @ South Florida preview

South Florida may not have a better chance in the first two months of the season to show it is a factor on the national scene than Saturday afternoon when the Bulls host ACC foe Georgia Tech. USF of the American Athletic Conference unveiled its retooled offense last week and registered 515 yards in a 34-14 victory over Elon while Georgia Tech was rolling over Alcorn State 41-0, as both teams opened against FCS opponents before their first-ever meeting.

“You look at it, we’re a Group of Five, we’re not Power Five,” South Florida second-year head coach Charlie Strong told reporters. “So then when you do get a chance to play a Power Five team, you have to go play well. Because what that does is, it opens up people’s eyes.” Former Alabama quarterback Blake Barnett threw for 305 yards and three touchdowns in his team debut for the Bulls, who will need to be better defending the run than in their opener (192 yards against) as the Yellow Jackets feature a flexbone triple-option offense. Georgia Tech rushed for 439 yards against Alcorn State, including 77 and a touchdown by senior quarterback TaQuon Marshall, but head coach Paul Johnson was not pleased with the overall performance. “I didn’t think we were consistent,” Johnson told reporters. “I didn’t like how we played considering who we were playing. We didn’t throw the ball well. We didn’t block well. We turned too many guys loose inside at times.”

TV: Noon ET, ESPN2 or ABC. LINE: Georgia Tech -3.5

ABOUT GEORGIA TECH (1-0): Marshall completed 9-of-18 passes for 104 yards and one touchdown to senior Brad Stewart, who gained a team-high 49 yards on four catches. Freshman running back Jordan Mason rushed for a team-high 85 yards and a score while junior KirVonte Benson, who finished last season with 1,053 yards, added another 75 along with a pair of TDs for the Yellow Jackets. The defense recorded its first shutout in 57 games last Saturday, allowing just 146 total yards, and is likely to have more depth as cornerback Lamont Simmons (hamstring) and linebacker Bruce Jordan-Swilling (undisclosed) could return to the lineup.

ABOUT SOUTH FLORIDA (1-0): Barnett, who played one game for Alabama in 2016, completed 24-of-34 passes last week and also ran for a score while freshman Randall St. Felix emerged with seven catches for 143 yards and a TD. The Bulls gained just 3.9 yards per carry in the opener with freshman Johnny Ford’s 43 yards leading the way, but they expect to have Florida transfer Jordan Cronkrite back in the lineup after he missed the Elon game with an undisclosed injury. Senior linebacker Khalid McGee and senior safety Jaymon Thomas each had a career-high 11 tackles last week and the Bulls picked off a pair of passes after totaling 20 in 2017 - second in the nation.

EXTRA POINTS

1. USF senior WR Tyre McCants needs 35 receiving yards to move into 10th on the school’s all-time list, and 47 for ninth.

2. Marshall has 19 career rushing touchdowns, tied for fourth all time among Georgia Tech QBs with Shawn Jones.

3. The Yellow Jackets have rushed for at least 400 yards five times in their last 12 contests, dating back to 2017.

PREDICTION: South Florida 34, Georgia Tech 31