1. Clemson - 87 times, fourth among Tech’s frequently played opponents
Clemson winning the past seven games by 27.1 points dulled the rivalry, and Tech athletic director Todd Stansbury didn’t seem especially keen on continuing to face juggernauts Clemson and Georgia annually. “I don’t think that matchup necessarily rose to that level (of Florida State-Miami), but it’s a very meaningful matchup for the ACC,” Strickland said. “So maybe it scored higher under the column of ‘it matters to the ACC’ than it matters to either individual fan base or institution.”
2. Wake Forest - 31 times, Tech leads series 23-8
Tech-Wake Forest was attractive because the two teams have been in opposite divisions (they’ve faced each other once in the past 11 seasons) and are fairly close geographically. (It’s Tech’s third-closest ACC opponent, following Clemson and Florida State.) To the argument that Tech-Wake Forest lacks appeal on the lack of recent history, Strickland responded, “That’s the point. You used to (have a history), and you’ve gone 12 or how many years it’s been now without a chance to play, and you will have history.”
3. Louisville - 2 times, Tech leads the series 2-0
“But you’ve got to look at it from the other teams’ perspective,” he said. “Louisville needs three, as well. And so who are you going to pair them up with?” As the newest ACC member, Louisville doesn’t have an obvious rival and was matched with Miami and Virginia besides Tech. Atlanta is the third-closest ACC city from Louisville. “And I think Nashville’s a nice stopping-off point in the middle,” Strickland said helpfully. “And that’d be a fun trip for people in Atlanta to make, and it’s only six hours up the road, but it made a lot of sense from the Louisville perspective.”
There were Tech fans who also were irritated about Duke not being a primary partner, as the Yellow Jackets and Blue Devils have played each other annually since 1933, Tech’s longest active streak after Tech and Georgia did not play in 2020. It was deemed not a premium rivalry in the way that Clemson-Tech or Miami-Florida State were. “Just in general, just because you’ve done something for a long time, it doesn’t mean it’s the same stature as something else,” Strickland said. In instances like Tech-Duke, the league tried to assess what would be gained in not making the schools primary partners and what would be lost. Not having Duke may have helped Tech-Wake Forest to become a pair.
Strickland did say that there were versions of the schedule that paired Tech and Florida State, teams that are in opposite divisions, have proximity and a history. They have the consolation of facing each other far more in the future than they have in recent years, although they do play this season. “You just weigh the pros and cons of each different setup,” Strickland said. Strickland said that the two matchups that schedule makers had the most angst about not being able to include were Virginia Tech-Miami and Wake Forest-North Carolina.
Link
https://www.ajc.com/sports/georgia-tech/...43S2UG6IA/
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ACC explains how Georgia Tech’s primary partners were determined
