Nov 1, 2025; Raleigh, North Carolina, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets quarterback Haynes King (10) throws a pass in the fourth quarter against the NC State Wolfpack at Carter-Finley Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images / Zachary Taft-Imagn Images
Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King and Clayton Powell-Lee talked to the media after their loss to NC State. Here is everything they had to say after the loss.
Clayton Powell Lee on what made it tough to bring down their running backs on the initial hit...
“They have quality backs. I have to give it to them. They're very talented on their side, but at the end of the day, it takes all of us, 11 guys, to bring down the ball carrier. So some plays we didn't do. Some of the plays effort wasn't there, and we just got to you know look at ourselves in the mirror and just know that we got to do more. It takes more than just one person to bring down the guys. So, just taking all 11 of us to stop the run.
On some of the big plays on key downs…
“We just got to execute honestly, like when the D-line's doing their job, us as the back end, we just got to do the same and just help them out. So whether that's the quarterback may have a little extra time, we've got to plaster. We got to, you know, stay on our guys and just like you said, don't let anyone get behind us, and we might have slipped in a couple like you said, a couple key downs, but that's just something we just got to work on, honestly. Like we know we're better than that. We know we shouldn't have given up as many big plays as we should have. So, we just got to look ourselves in the mirror, like I said, and just, you know, take it upon ourselves to really focus up and just do our job. Honestly, that's the biggest thing I can say. Just doing your job, executing the call, executing your job.
Powell-Lee on if the defense saw anything different…..
“We expected a lot of what they did, like the swizzle plays, those trick plays that they may have run. But we expected it, but like I said, we just got to execute and just read and react. Don't wait for anybody else to make the play. Go make a play yourself.”
On if settling for field goals took away the momentum…
“Oh yeah, 100%. You've got to score touchdowns in the red zone. You can't kick field goals. Whether it's converting on third down, whether it's making a throw, making a play, bowing your neck, trying to find a way, it doesn't matter. It’s unexcusable. We have to do a better job of helping the defense out as well. Like they played their ass off, but I mean it just sometimes teams have your number, and that's what happened.
King on if the team was pressing late in the game…
“We can't really press, and I didn't think it was too much pressing. It was just you know, people executing what we're supposed to do, and you know, not looking at the scoreboard, taking one play at a time. When you turn that film on, it doesn't matter what the scoreboard says, how much time's left. When you turn that film on, how are you playing? Are you playing with great effort and energy? Are you executing? Toughness, physical, like stuff like that. That's what you look at in the film. It doesn't matter how many seconds are left, what the score is, you've got to play your heart out.”
King on what he tells the team after the loss and not letting it become two losses…
“I mean, that's definitely important. You know, how do you respond? Response is everything. You know, coach tells us all the time, you know, with the wristbands that we wear. E plus R equals O. You know, the event plus response equals outcome. What is your response? You've got to own your response. You know, are you going to come together and fall apart? I feel like this team is going to come together just because of who we are. You know, we don't play blame blame or anything like that. I expect the seniors, if anybody starts to do that, you're going to shut it down. You're going to shut it down. It doesn't matter. Like, we are a team. We're in this together. Like I said before, in this game, you know, offense has to score touchdowns in the red zone, not field goals. You know, that's four points each time. I don't know how many field goals we had. Three? I mean, you know, that's a big difference right there. That could go to a game-winning drive instead of trying to be a two-possession game, stuff like that. That's the difference in the whole game, you know, and it just comes down to execution and sometimes just bowing your neck, finding a way. Offensively, we didn't. We're a team, and we have to play complementary football and like you said, the response that we have as this team is going to be everything. We've got to come closer and pull together, and like you said, not make one loss in the two.
On trying to defend CJ Bailey…
From playing him last year, he was a very capable quarterback. He can make every throw on the field. We were just trying to, you know, mix up the picture, get some guys in his face. And like I've been saying, it just comes with the execution. That's all you can really say. It's like you got to like D-line got to be tied into the back end and vice versa. It just takes all 11 of us to, you know, to stop a guy like that, honestly. So like just knowing that it's more than just it's more than just us. It's like we got to help out the offense. It's like all complimentary football. Special teams are also included. So, it's like just knowing that when situations like that can happen, just trusting the guy next to you and just keep on playing ball. Honestly, I trust him till we finish this thing. So, it's like just knowing that and just trying to take that to heart, like just trusting the people around you to, you know, do their job, make the plays, cuz like that's what we came here to do, and that's just execution and just playing together.”
On whether Bailey’s ability to extend plays was a big factor…
“I mean, any quarterback that has the ability to do that, it's a big factor because rushes may take a little longer, coverage may be two to three seconds longer, and that's something we've got to be used to, like we know that quarterbacks are able to do those things nowadays. So, it's just predetermined and pre-liked, like already knowing that it's just something we have to already have in our minds. It's just like okay when he gets out the pocket, we've got to stay on our guys longer. Find the nearest guy to you. Don't let anybody get behind you. And that's just really it, honestly, is just playing that down for however many seconds it may be, because you know if you hold on to your guy the D line is gonna end up doing their thing, and that's getting a sack end of the day.”
King on what the focus is with the bye weeks coming up….
“I don't know how many, like if we'll have a day off or not. If we definitely separate, you know, step away, regroup and then when you come back in, it's just get better, find ways to get better. It's the small things. It's execution. It's the details. This week, the quarterbacks coach was just preaching, you know, details and discipline. We got to continue that and stuff like that. But find ways to get better, and it's always the small things. And then through this last stretch of what three games of the regular season, you know, it's going to come down to details and discipline and how are you executing, that's what we've got to find small things to get better.”
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