Georgia Tech opened up the 2025 season with a road game at Colorado in Week 1. The Yellow Jackets got a 27-20 road victory. Now the Buffaloes will be the road team on Thursday night in Atlanta. Let’s breakdown betting angles on the game.
Colorado Buffaloes at Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (Thursday – 8pm ET)
Baylor Bears vs. Auburn Tigers (Saturday – 3:30pm ET – Atlanta, GA)
Georgia Tech has some moving parts entering the season, and it remains to be seen just how good it can be. Alberto Mendoza, Fernando’s brother, transfers in from Indiana at QB. He’ll be working with a completely rebuilt group of receivers. The biggest reason why the Yellow Jackets went from 8-0 to 9-4 last year was the defense falling apart late in the season.
The defense returns four starters, and the strength should be the linebackers. There are question marks here, but I think they will show up over the course of the season in the ACC rather than a Week 1 semi-home game against Colorado. The one advantage the Buffs could have in this matchup is hitting deep passes. GT lost five of its top six members in the secondary from last season, while the strength of Colorado’s depleted roster is the WR room, and its not even close. Colorado made an offensive coordinator change, and is expected to take deep shots this season.
Georgia Tech stopping those deep shots will be one of the keys to this game, but I believe it can hold up. Why? The Buffs’ offensive line was dreadful last season and is in a complete rebuild. They ranked among the worst in the country in pass protection, and were not much better getting the run game going. All preseason publications rank Colorado’s OL among the worst in the Big 12, many placing it dead last. It’s one of the worst offensive lines in the Power-4. I expect the Yellow Jackets’ defensive line to have success in this matchup.
The key on the other side of the ball will be Georgia Tech’s run game. It was one of the best rushing offenses in the country last season, and will be emphasized again in 2026. Justice Haynes spent time at RB1 for Michigan, and transfers in to lead a talented GT backfield. Pick Six Previews ranks the RB room No. 2 in the ACC and just outside the top-10 nationally. It pairs with an elite offensive line, that PSP also ranks No. 2 in the ACC and in the top-15 nationally. That plays right into the Buffs’ weakness — they ranked as the second-worst run defense in the country last season.
Long story short, I expect Georgia Tech to get to the quarterback and run the ball down Colorado’s throat to win this game.
If you’re looking for a battle in the trenches, Baylor vs. Auburn is not the game for you.
Both offensive and defensive lines here could be a work in progress, but I feel the Tigers have plenty of other advantages. These teams met in the season opener last year and I backed Baylor. Auburn ran the ball for over 300 yards and dominated the game, despite Baylor being able to move the ball through the air, and handed me a loser.
That entire Baylor offense is gone this season. 10 starters depart on offense, and while some solid pieces were brought in via transfer, the new look offense projects nowhere on the same level. The defense was historically bad last season, giving up nearly 200 rushing yards per game, along with one of the worst pass rushes in the country. Baylor hired a new DC and transfers in talent, so it should at least be improved. But the losses on offense look to be far more significant than the gains on defense.
While Auburn is shaky on the lines, the rest of the roster has plenty of talent. The big upgrades should come on offense. Alex Golesh ran an elite offense at South Florida, and comes over as the new head coach of the Tigers. He brings most of his best weapons from USF — a RB, half the OL, an entire WR room, and the headliner being QB Byrum Brown. USF was a top-five offense last season, and now combines the best pieces from that team with some leftover SEC talent that remained at Auburn.
On top of that, the defense should be solid — Auburn was a top-20 defense last season. It returns its DC, five starters (including an All American in Xavier Atkins) and transfers in some good talent. Better on both sides of the ball with what should be a pro-Auburn crowd in Atlanta should result in another win in this matchup for the Tigers.
If you’re looking for just a straight bet on Thursday’s game, I’d consider laying anything inside of a touchdown on GT to cover the spread. But a stronger angle might be playing the double result. I think the run game for the Yellow Jackets should get them off to a strong start and carry them to a win. Georgia Tech is available on the Halftime/Fulltime line at -120.
CFB Pick: Georgia Tech/Auburn ML Parlay (-108)
