How to watch Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt: Picks, odds for Birmingham Bowl with giant-killing teams

Vanderbilt and Georgia Tech are each looking to end feel-good campaigns with a win when the two square off in the Birmingham (End-On-A-Good-Note) Bowl. Georgia Tech, which knocked Miami out of the playoff hunt and took Georgia to eight overtimes, is a narrow favorite over their monster-killing brethren from Nashville.

How to watch Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt

While both teams had promising seasons, Vanderbilt’s turnaround was quietly one of the biggest stories in the SEC. After going winless in conference play and losing 10 straight to end 2023, the Commodores were written off as schedule fodder that SEC title contenders could use to pad their win total. But with transfer quarterback Diego Pavia, the team became a force, taking a then-ranked seventh-ranked Missouri team to two overtimes before losing on a missed field goal, then proving it wasn’t a stroke of luck by beating Alabama in a shootout two weeks later. It was their first win over an AP top-five team and earned them a spot of their own in the rankings.

The Commodores nearly knocked off Texas three weeks after that, but ran out of time in their comeback effort and lost by three. By the end of the program, Vandy had won as many SEC games in 2024 as it had in the previous five seasons combined. But the Commodores played like a team out of gas down the stretch, dropping their last three and finishing 6-6 overall. Now rested, they play a punishing Georgia Tech team that boasts a similar resume, with both rosters largely intact.

The most notable absence on both sides is Yellow Jacket wide receiver Eric Singleton Jr., who rushed for a team-leading 754 yards and three touchdowns for Auburn. Malik Rutherford, who along with Singleton accounted for 40 percent of the team’s receiving yards and touchdowns, decided to return to Tech and will suit up for the bowl game after a brief stint with the transfer portal.

That’s good news for star quarterback Haynes King, as this Yellow Jacket offense isn’t the ground attack it has been in years past. Although he rushed for more than 500 yards and 11 touchdowns, King’s arm is how Georgia Tech can keep up with higher-flying offenses (he threw for 303 yards and two touchdowns against Georgia). The Yellow Jackets’ offensive balance has them ranked 33rd in total yards per game. game, ahead of teams like Indiana, Arizona State and Notre Dame. Their pass/run yardage splits are nearly identical to Alabama’s, not Navy’s.

That’s the production that has Vanderbilt playing as underdogs. Not only do the Commodores rank 75th in yards allowed and 49th in points averaged, but their offense, even with Pavia, isn’t keeping pace. They are 123rd in yards per carry. game (more than 100 yards fewer than Tech) and scored 30 or more points just three times this year against FBS teams. Georgia Tech’s defense is missing two defensive starters in Birmingham (defensive end Romello Height transferred to Texas and safety Taye Seymore transferred to Auburn), but that upset is matched by Vandy’s starting left tackle, Gunnar Hansen, transferring to Florida State.

Overall, the Yellow Jackets are the more formidable team and should be able to overwhelm a resilient Commodore team. But Vanderbilt has faced longer odds and would love to spend the rest of the winter warmed by the glow of a final 2024 upset.

Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt odds

Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt selection

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(Photo by Diego Pavia: Johnnie Izquierdo/Getty Images)