Paul Johnson being questioned even at home

ATLANTA -- Being second-guessed comes with the territory of working as a head coach. And Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson has learned that sometimes the questions come from an unexpected source.

In this case it was Johnson's wife, Susan.

"She had a great perception," Johnson said. "She asked me after the game, 'On third down-and-long how come you handed it up the middle?' "

Johnson's wifen was inquiring about a third-and-12 play in the third quarter. Georgia Tech was leading 21-17 and had the ball at its own 34-yard line. The play was a give to B-back Marcus Allen, who ran for 6 yards, forcing the Yellow Jackets to punt.

Johnson had the explanation.

"She doesn't know it's a blitz check, and you can see the film, but you've got to do it right," he said. "You're supposed to turn out on the backside, and we don't turn out, and a guy comes across the space, but if you turn out, it's a touchdown, and people are going, 'Wow, what a brilliant call on third-and-12.' "

It was another one of the errors in execution that have plagued Georgia Tech all season.

"That's the thin line between winning and losing," Johnson said. "I get it. She's the biggest fan we've got, and she doesn't know why we hand it off on third-and-12.

"There's always more to it than meets the eye most of the time."

SKOV HEALTHY AGAIN

B-back Patrick Skov has been limited with an undisclosed injury the past three weeks, but he is nearly full strength.

Skov was a last-minute scratch for the Florida State game and carried only twice against Virginia and once against Virginia Tech.

His role has diminished during the second half of the season as the Yellow Jackets have opted to give more carries to freshman Marcus Marshall.

Johnson said Skov will play Saturday at Miami but would not say who the starter would be at B-back. Junior Marcus Allen started last week against Virginia Tech.

TIGHT END HELP

Miami is getting help from the Georgians on its roster, especially tight end Christopher Herndon of Norcross, who has emerged as a receiving threat after not catching a pass a year ago.

The 6-foot-4, 259-pound sophomore had a career-high three catches for 51 yards last week against North Carolina.

Herndon has played in all 10 games, with three starts. He has caught 14 passes for 153 yards, a 10.9-yard average and one touchdown. He also had three catches, one of them for a touchdown, against Nebraska.

This story was originally published November 19, 2015 at 10:34 PM with the headline "Paul Johnson being questioned even at home ."