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After making her debut in the final moments of her cousin’s silver screen return earlier this Summer, the arrival of

BYU is set to take on Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Florida on December 27. It’s an exciting matchup with an ACC squad coming off of a successful 9-3 season that saw them rise as high as No. 7 in the AP poll this year. BYU and the Yellow Jackets have faced off four times over the decades. Let’s take a look back at each one in chronological order. 2002, Georgia Tech 28, BYU 19 (Atlanta) Despite both programs existing for over 100 years now, the Cougars and Yellow Jackets did not face off on the gridiron until 2002. BYU lost running back Marcus Whalen early in this game, which hampered the offense. Quarterback Bret Engemann was benched in favor of backup Lance Pendleton at halftime after three turnovers. BYU struggled to gain momentum in the second half. They initially took a 19-14 lead in the third quarter, but Georgia Tech’s offense with running back Tony Hollings gained traction. The Yellow Jackets scored 14 points in the fourth quarter, rallying to a comeback victory over BYU. 2003, BYU 24, Georgia Tech 13 (Provo) A year after BYU suffered a defeat in Atlanta, they met in Provo. After an early field goal from the Yellow Jackets, the Cougars came out swinging. Quarterback Matt Berry found tight end Daniel Coats for a 38-yard touchdown to give BYU the lead. Tech led at halftime 13-7 thanks to a blocked punt returned for a touchdown for the Jackets, temporarily swinging momentum to their side. Head coach Gary Crowton had BYU responding well in the second half. Berry tossed two touchdowns in the third quarter, one to Coats, the other to Toby Christensen. It was a sloppy game on both sides, with BYU committing 16 penalties. Two fourth quarter turnovers doomed the Yellow Jackets as BYU took advantage, adding a late field goal and draining the clock for the 11-point win. 2012, BYU 41, Georgia Tech 17 (Atlanta) BYU’s second trip to Bobby Dodd Stadium went much better. The Cougars came to Atlanta licking their wounds after losing two tough games to top 10 teams in Oregon State and Notre Dame. The Cougars opened the game with an emphatic touchdown drive, capped by a Jamaal Williams six-yard score. GT responded with a pick-six on an ill-advised throw from Riley Nelson deep in their own territory. Nelson and company would respond quickly with another rushing score from Williams. The Yellow Jackets’ triple option attack gained yards on BYU but a missed field goal swung momentum squarely in BYU’s direction for the rest of the game. A blocked punt set up an easy Riley Nelson scrambling touchdown to go up 21-7. The Cougars led 24-14 at the half. A third quarter interception by Daniel Sorensen set up Jamaal Williams’ third rushing score of the game and put the game out of reach. Williams ended up having one of his best games of his illustrious Cougars career, with four total touchdowns and 161 scrimmage yards. 2013, BYU 38, Georgia Tech 20 (Provo) BYU made an early statement with Taysom Hill connecting deep to Cody Hoffman for a long touchdown pass. Tech’s triple option attack tied the game soon after that. Jamaal Williams helped BYU get those points back with a rushing score. It was a high-scoring affair in the first half, with BYU leading 24-13 at the break. Kyle Van Noy had yet another game where he just took over and dominated the opposing offense, wracking up three sacks and three tackles for loss. Linebacker Alani Fua helped seal the deal with a 51-yard pick-six early in the fourth quarter, which put the score at 31-13. Both Taysom Hill and Jamaal Williams reached 80 yards rushing. The Jackets got a late touchdown but it was too little, too late. 2025 Pop Tarts Bowl The upcoming Pop Tarts Bowl will be the two programs’ fifth ever meeting. The Cougars enter with a three-game winning streak in the series.

BYU has its final big test of the non-conference season they travel to New York City to play Clemson at Madison Square Garden in the Jimmy V Classic. The Tigers look like a potential tournament team and would be another quality win for BYU as they look to have a strong non-conference resume come March. Clemson has some BYU and state of Utah connections. Starting Center Carter Welling attended Corner Canyon HS, Jake Wahlin is a former BYU commit who played at Timpview HS, and forward Nick Davidson’s dad (Kirk Davidson) briefly played basketball at BYU. The game tips off Tuesday at 6:30 pm ET on ESPN. BYU and Clemson by the Numbers Clemson KenPom: 25 NET ranking: 26 Record: 7-2 Best Wins: West Virginia (N), Georgia (N) Losses: Georgetown (A), Alabama (A) AP Ranking: N/A BYU KenPom: 9 NET Ranking: 8 Record: 7-1 AP Ranking: 10 KenPom Prediction: BYU 79, Clemson 74 — BYU 67% win probability Point Spread: BYU -5.5 Point Total: 152.5 Clemson Overview The Tigers were picked to finish 7th in the Preseason ACC Poll and are off to a solid start. They have a good neutral court win over Georgia, and gave Alabama all they could handle on the road last week in Tuscaloosa. Clemson had a lead in the final three minutes before Alabama pulled away and won by 6. Clemson in many ways is opposite of BYU. The Cougars rely on their Big 3 for scoring, while Clemson is very balanced and will go deep into their bench. The Tigers top nine players average anywhere between 16-25 minutes and between 6-12 points per game. Offensively, Clemson doesn’t turn the ball over and are adept at getting to the foul line. They aren’t afraid to shoot the three, but haven’t shot it particularly well this season (32.8%, 197th nationally). They run their sets well and have multiple bigs they play. One of Alabama’s bigs had 8 blocks versus the Tigers, so this will be a big game for Keba Keita to protect the rim. Defensively, they don’t force many turnovers but are sound on that end of the floor. They are physical on defense and really try to force opponents to go deep in the shot clock. They are top 25 nationally in three-point defense, allowing opponents to shoot 28% on the season. Alabama was 12-34 (35%) from three versus Clemson. They don’t have a true rim protector on their team and no one averages more than a block per game, which could be problematic when AJ Dybantsa and Rob Wright drive to the rim. Players to Watch RJ Godfrey, Forward — Godfrey leads Clemson in both scoring (12.1 ppg) and rebounding (6.4 rpg) and shoots 67% from the field. Listed at 6-foot-8 and 235 pounds, Godfrey is a physical four man. He is not a threat from distance, but punishes opponents inside with his physicality. He scored 19 points at Alabama and looked like this best player on the floor at times. He will be a tough matchup for the Cougs. Dybantsa, Kennard Davis, and Khadim Mboup will probably all have cracks at guarding Godfrey. Carter Welling, Center — The Utah native transferred to Clemson this offseason after spending last season at UVU. The 6-foot-10 big is having a nice season, averaging 10.6 points and 6.2 rebounds. Welling isn’t a huge three-point threat, but is a respectable 5-13 in 9 games. He struggled against Alabama’s athletic frontcourt, logging 2 points in 17 minutes. Jestin Porter, Point Guard — Porter is Clemson’s starting point guard and this transferred in after three season at Middle Tennessee State. Porter leads Clemson in field goal attempts and hasn’t been particularly efficient. He is shooting 34.6% from the floor and 33.3% from three. He was held to single-digits in both losses, but scored 18 points and made four threes in Clemson’s OT win versus Georgia. If Porter gets hot he opens up Clemson’s offense by being able to score outside of structure. Dillon Hunter, Guard — Hunter is a 6-foot-3 guard who has spent his entire four-year career at Clemson and is Porter’s backcourt starting mate. He averages 9.2 points and shoots 42% from three on three attempts…

FanDuel Sportsbook has released its opening bowl game lines and BYU is an early 3.5-point favorite over Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl on December 27. The point total is 55.5. This line may fluctuate over the coming weeks if either team has notable holdouts from the game. Georgia Tech is 9-3 and ranked #22 in the latest College Football Playoff rankings. The Yellow Jackets started 8-0 but have lost three of their last four games. Their losses were 48-36 at NC State, 42-28 to Pitt, and 16-9 vs Georgia. Tech’s top players is QB Haynes King, who was named the ACC Player of the Year. King passed for 2,697 yards, 12 TDs, and 5 interceptions while completing 72% of his passes. He also leads the Yellow Jackets with 922 rushing yards and 15 TDs. Georgia Tech also has two running backs with over 500 rushing yards. Georgia Tech’s offense has put up points this season but their defense has been gashed on multiple occasions. Georgia Tech had three players receive First Team Honors — one offensive lineman, a defensive tackle, and their kicker. The game kicks off Saturday, December 27 at 3:30 pm ET on ABC.

BYU is heading to Orlando for the Pop-Tarts Bowl to play Georgia Tech, according to Brett McMurphy. After an 11-2 season that ended with a loss to Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game, BYU will play 9-3 Georgia Tech. The game will be December 27 at 3:30 ET on ABC in Orlando, Florida. BYU is #12 in the CFP rankings and Georgia Tech #22. Georgia Tech & BYU will play in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, sources told @On3sports. Complete list of confirmed bowl bids ⤵️https://t.co/Z4QMu98Uix— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 7, 2025 BYU would have almost certainly played Notre Dame in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, but the Irish announced they decided to opt out of a bowl game after missing the College Football Playoff. Notre Dame declined bid to play BYU in Pop-Tarts Bowl, sources told @On3sports https://t.co/2ucqdsmCfW— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) December 7, 2025 As is the case with every bowl game, player availability will be a key storyline to watch for both teams. Players often opt out due to either entering the transfer portal or in preparation to enter the NFL Draft and avoid injury. Georgia Tech is powered by a strong run game and dual-threat QB Haynes King. King passed for 2,697 yards and led the team with 922 rushing yards. The Yellow Jackets lost three of their final four games after a 8-0 start. Their three losses were to NC State, Pitt, and Georgia.