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ATLANTA -- Coach Paul Johnson isnt concerned with low expectations at Georgia Tech.Its nothing new: Since Johnson took charge of the Yellow Jackets eight years ago, theyve been ranked in The Associated Press final poll just three times, and this season hardly looks promising.Were not at a place where were going to have all these All-Americans and you just reload, he said. Youve got to do it with blue collar and work ethic and that kind of thing. Hopefully it was a lesson a year ago.Georgia Tech is coming off a 3-9 record, 1-7 in the ACC, and missed out on a bowl game for the first time since 1996. The Jackets have been picked to finish sixth in the Coastal Division.Not exactly inspiring stuff, but Johnson has tried to use the lack of respect to his teams advantage.He routinely tells the players that outsiders insist Georgia Tech cant compete on the same level with Georgia and other major programs that border the state.If you look, youre surrounded by programs with double the budgets and all the things, he said. You have to have a chip on your shoulder to survive. Youre not the same in a lot of areas with the (programs) they want to compare you with.Johnson seems to have the players attention.Coach Johnson has definitely brought that up, senior kicker Harrison Butker said.After beating Georgia, advancing to the ACC title game and winning the Orange Bowl two years ago, Johnson thinks some players mistakenly believed they were better than they were.When people are telling you (that) youre really good and you ought to run right through this and run right through that, our guys have historically not handled that very well here, Johnson said.HANGING IN THERESenior quarterback Justin Thomas is eager to play alongside some familiar faces this year.After a sensational 2014 season, Thomas statistics and confidence took a hit last season as the injuries mounted across the offense.Weve all come together closely, and I think a lot of guys know what to expect and what to do, Thomas said. Its not just me. Weve got a whole lot of guys on both sides of the ball being more vocal.NOT-SO-HOT SEATJohnson doesnt appear to have concerns about his job security. Hes under contract through 2020, and it would cost the school over $9 million to buy out the last three years of his deal. Georgia Tech also is searching for a new athletic director after Mike Bobinski left last week for Purdue.SEASON OPENERThe Jackets begin Sept. 3 against Boston College in Dublin, Ireland. Senior center Freddie Burden has told his teammates to consider the long trip a blessing.I almost kind of look at it as making up for our bowl game we missed last year, he said. Its going to be a fun, exciting time. Everybodys hyping it up. Guys are excited to play. I think its everybodys first time going to Ireland and a lot of guys first time flying overseas and being in a different country.KEY GAMESVs. Clemson on Sept. 22, vs. Miami on Oct. 1, at North Carolina on Nov. 5, at Georgia Nov. 26Johnson is 5-4 against Clemson, including the vacated 2009 ACC title game victory. Former Georgia coach Mark Richt is now working in the same capacity with Miami. Johnson says last season turned on a lost fumble against North Carolina.Each year, no game is bigger for Tech than the annual matchup with Georgia.PREDICTION5-7 overall, 3-5 ACC.---This story has been corrected to show that the Sept. 22 game against Clemson is in Georgia, not South Carolina.Custom Nike Toronto Blue Jays Jerseys . Vaives lawyer Trevor Whiffen claims the former 50-goal man wasnt provided with a copy of the claim beforehand and that he would not have agreed to the allegations made against the NHL had he been asked to review its contents. Custom Nike St. Louis Cardinals Jerseys . Houston won 3-0 to advance to face New York in the Eastern Conference semifinals. Last in the game, Di Vaio and Romero got into a shoving match with several Houston players. Romero appeared to elbow and kick Houston defender Kofi Sarkodie. https://www.customjerseysnikebaseball.com/ . Laudrup revealed Thursday he was notified of his dismissal in "the briefest of letters which gave no reasons why such hasty and final action was deemed necessary. Custom Nike New York Yankees Jerseys . This should be celebrated because it will not always be this way. With the amount of money given to players by their clubs these days, it is a wonder that so many of those teams allow the sport to continue to take away many of their assets so they can play for a different team in the middle of their season. Custom Nike Pittsburgh Pirates Jerseys .ca looks back at the stories and moments that made the year memorable.COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Melo Trimble made two free throws with 9.4 seconds remaining to lift Maryland to a 71-70 victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday night.Trimble scored 13 points, and Jaylen Brantley and Damonte Dodd both added 12 points as the Terrapins (8-1) rallied from a 12-point deficit to defeat the Cowboys.Oklahoma States Jawun Evans missed an off-balance jumper in the closing seconds that would have given the Cowboys a victory.It was the fourth time this year that Maryland has rallied from a deficit of at least nine points in the second half to win. The Terps also did so against Georgetown, Towson and Richmond.Evans scored 16 points for Oklahoma State (6-2), while Jeffrey Carroll came off the bench to score 15 points and add 12 rebounds.Oklahoma State led 60-48 with 12 minutes to play, but Maryland uncorked a 13-0 run to tighten the game for the closing minutes.Neither team did a good job of taking care of the ball. Oklahoma State was effective in disrupting the Terps early and forced 18 turnovvers, but managed only six points off those miscues.dddddddddddd Maryland scored 20 points off 15 Cowboy turnovers.BIG PICTUREOklahoma State: The Cowboys played well for much of the night in their first true road game under coach Brad Underwood before Maryland rallied. Oklahoma State has two more key nonconference road tests this month at Tulsa and Wichita State.Maryland: The Terrapins earned a split in what set up to be the toughest week of their nonconference schedule. Maryland fell 73-59 to Pittsburgh on Tuesday before bouncing back against Oklahoma State.UP NEXTOklahoma State heads back on the road when it comes out of final exams Dec. 10 and visits Tulsa. The Cowboys will try to avenge last years 66-56 loss to the Golden Hurricane.Maryland continues its five-game homestand when Howard visits on Wednesday. It will be the Terps first meeting with the nearby Bison since 1996. ' ' '