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Pete Thamel, ESPN
Georgia Tech quarterback Haynes King is considered a true game-time decision against No. 4 Miami on Saturday, sources told ESPN. King is expected to warm up and attempt to play as he deals with an upper-body injury.
King, a redshirt junior, will dress and participate in pregame warmups for the first time in nearly a month. He has missed Georgia Tech’s past two games, both Tech losses, and rested over the bye last week.
He has received a majority of the first-team reps in practice this week, though he’s taken Thursday and Friday off in order to rest to prepare to attempt to play, per sources. He’s in line to be a captain regardless of status.
If King can’t go or can’t play an entire game, Georgia Tech will start or put in true freshman quarterback Aaron Philo, according to sources. It would mark Philo’s first career start, as he played significant snaps in Tech’s 21-6 loss to Virginia Tech. He completed 11 of 26 passes for 184 yards and an interception against the Hokies. He’s appeared in two games for Georgia Tech this season.
King’s status is fluid enough that ESPN sources said Tech coaches have prepared multiple game plans: for King if he plays and for Philo.
Sources said a final decision on King may not come until close to kickoff.
With Georgia Tech coming off a bye, they are set to return to near full health at other positions.
Sources told ESPN that linebacker Kyle Efford will return Saturday and start. He’s missed the last two games and is still the team’s leading tackler.
Tailback Chad Alexander, the team’s second-leading rusher, is also set to return after missing the game Virginia Tech on Oct. 26.
King is one of the most productive quarterbacks in college football, as he is 12-8 in 20 starts for Georgia Tech. That includes leading the Yellow Jackets to an upset of Miami last season.
In King’s career, which stretches back to Texas A&M, he has thrown for 5,989 yards and rushed for 1,240. He’s thrown for 45 touchdowns and rushed for 17 over the course of his career.
Philo is a 6-foot-2, 215-pound freshman from Bogart, Georgia, who played at Prince Avenue Christian School. He’s the all-time leader in passing yards in Georgia high school football with 13,922. He passed Trevor Lawrence‘s record of 13,902 at Cartersville High School from 2014 to ’17.