ACC title game rare rematch

CLEMSON -- Saturday's ACC championship game represents a rare occurrence in college football -- a rematch.

As a head coach at Georgia Southern, Navy and Georgia Tech, Yellow Jackets coach Paul Johnson has been a part of rematches just twice -- meeting Southern Conference opponents Appalachian State and Furman in the regular season and Division I-AA playoffs in 2001.

As an assistant and a head coach, Dabo Swinney has faced an foe twice in the same season just once. Swinney hopes the rematch at Tampa's Raymond James Stadium plays out similarly to the rematch he was a part of as an assistant at Alabama in 1999 when the Crimson Tide defeated Florida in Gainesville and in the SEC title game.

"This is a little different for (Georgia Tech) and for us in that I don't think either team knew what we were getting into in the second game of the season," Swinney said. "Neither one of us really had a lot to go on from a film standpoint, and there's a lot of new people playing on both sides."

When Georgia Tech (10-2, 7-1 in ACC) defeated Clemson, 30-27, in September in Atlanta, Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker was making his second career start. Right tackle Corey Lambert was beaten badly by Tech end Derrick Morgan and has since been replaced, and Clemson's tight ends had yet to become an integral part of the offense.

Conversely, Clemson (8-4, 6-2) faces a Yellow Jackets' offense that has remained remarkably similar.

It is a rarely seen triple- option formation, fielding the same key trio of running back Jonathan Dwyer, quarterback Josh Nesbitt and receiver Demaryius Thomas.

The offense produced 301 rushing yards on 49 carries against Clemson.

Swinney referred to the offense, which often perplexes teams with little time to prepare, as "the red gumball."

Clemson has the rare chance to face the triple-option twice in the same season.

"From a preparation standpoint it is so different," Swinney said. "Our guys should have a little bit of recall. And they can see themselves on film doing things and where they made mistakes.

"But Georgia Tech has gotten better, too."

Might the Tigers have an advantage with that recall? History says -- maybe.

Johnson's Georgia Southern team beat Appalachian State and Furman in the regular season in 2001. Georgia Southern beat Appalachian again in the playoffs, and by a greater margin, but fell to Furman the following round.

An advantage for Clemson?

"It probably helps them," Johnson said. "But we also know how they lined up the last time. There's no guarantee everybody is going to line up the same way or do the same thing … The first time we played them with a new coordinator, we had no idea what they were going to line up in."

No respect

Both Clemson and Georgia Tech are coming off losses to their SEC rivals and both teams fell in the polls. Clemson dropped from 15th to 25th in the Associated Press poll on Sunday, and the Yellow Jackets fell from No. 7 to No. 12.

Might the losses to the SEC foes diminish interest in the ACC title game.

"I don't know, it might," Johnson said. "I think a year ago we beat Georgia, and Clemson beat South Carolina, and nobody made a big deal about the SEC being diminished."

Nesbitt OK

Nesbitt left the Georgia- Georgia Tech game with an ankle injury but returned. Nesbitt has 24 combined rushing and passing touchdowns this season.

Rushing quarterbacks have had success against Clemson this season.

"He's doing OK," Johnson said. "He should be OK."