The 2024-25 college football postseason continues on Thursday, Dec. 27 with Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt meeting in the Birmingham Bowl. This game takes place at Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Ala. This is the 39th all-time meeting between the Yellow Jackets and Commodores on the gridiron. Georgia Tech holds a 20-15-3 series edge.
Georgia Tech started its 2024 season with an upset win over Florida State in Ireland and later pulled off another stunner against a team from the Sunshine State (Miami) en route to a 7-5 record. Coach Brent Key’s team also nearly defeated Georgia (44-42 in overtime) and lost to Syracuse by three points. After taking over as the program’s interim coach during the ’22 campaign and later earning the full-time job, Key is 18-15 overall in Atlanta and has guided the program to back-to-back seven-win seasons.
Vanderbilt was one of the SEC’s biggest surprises this year. After a 2-10 record and an 0-8 mark in conference play last season, the Commodores showed marked improvement in coach Clark Lea’s fourth year at the helm. Thanks to a revamped staff that included new play-caller Tim Beck and long-time head coach Jerry Kill, along with the arrival of transfer quarterback Diego Pavia, the Commodores finished 6-6 and pulled off upset wins against Alabama, Virginia Tech, Kentucky, and Auburn…