ATHENS — Early in the fourth quarter, Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs looked like they had everything going their way Saturday in their annual 'Good Old-fashioned Hate' battle with Georgia Tech.
They had outrushed the vaunted Jackets offense to that point, forced two turnovers, and held a 27-14 lead and the ball at the Georgia Tech 49 in Sanford Stadium after stopping the Jackets on a crucial 4th-and-4 when David Marshall blew up a pitch left to Quay Searcy for a 7-yard loss with 11:58 left in the game.
“We felt pretty good right there,” Smart said. “We had the lead and the ball on their half of the field.”
However, the Bulldogs defense wilted in the final 10 minutes while a dormant Tech offense came to life with a pair of touchdowns in the final 6:28 to steal a 28-27, come-from-behind win.
It was the second consecutive victory for the Jackets (8-4) in Athens, who also took a 30-24 win in 2014. It was the first back-to-back wins in Athens for Georgia Tech since victories in 1998 and 2000.
“We didn’t finish some plays and dropped a couple of passes that would have changed things. It’s disappointing for sure,” Smart said.
Tech coach Paul Johnson smiled when asked about how his team managed the improbable comeback.
“We just keep playing,” he said. “This team doesn’t get a whole lot of respect, nor does the program. We don’t listen to anybody. We just play.”
In the third quarter Georgia (7-5) ran 21 plays to the Jackets 8 and turned a 14-14 halftime tie into the 27-14 lead on a 3-yard touchdown run by Nick Chubb sandwiched between two Rodrigo Blankenship field goals of 27- and 32-yards on three consecutive drives.
Who knew that it would be Georgia Tech’s much-maligned defense, with some help, that would save the day for the Jackets. Sony Michel dropped what would have been a 20-plus-yard gain and a first down and the Dogs were held to their only three-and-out of the game.
The Georgia Tech offense, which had just 44 yards and no first downs in the third quarter, used that as a spark despite having to start from its own 6 after the best Brice Ramsey punt of the day.
The Jackets needed just seven plays.
Justin Thomas completed passes of 23 yards to Brad Stewart and 39 to Searcy to get to the Dogs 34. Marcus Marshall blasted for a 19-yard gain to the Georgia 8 and Dedrick Mills finished it off with a 5-yard run to pull them within 27-21 with 6:28 left.
Still, Georgia appeared ready to regain control picking up a quick first down at its own 40. But two plays later Tech’s Lance Austin snagged a tipped pass off the hands of Terry Godwin with 3:39 left for their first turnover of the game.
Tech quickly moved to the Georgia 6 and had the Georgia defense on its heels again. Davin Bellamy, who had trouble with the Tech option attack all afternoon, recorded back-to-back tackles for no gain forcing a 3rd-and-goal at the 6 with just 36 seconds left.
Searcy, who had been stopped on one of the previous plays and the fourth down earlier in the quarter, would get the final redemption. He took a pitch right and appeared to be looking to throw back to Thomas. But the Georgia defense had Thomas covered and Searcy improvised, slashing back to the middle and diving over three Georgia defenders into the end zone for the touchdown and a 28-27 lead with 30 seconds left after a Harrison Butker extra point.
“He saw that the pass was not there and dove at the 5-yard line,” Bellamy said. “(Searcy) just made a play.”
Johnson agreed.
"It was an either-or and we told him if it’s not there don’t force it,” Johnson said. “He looked like he was going to throw and it froze (Georgia). A great play; a great individual play by Qua.”
Smart said the Tech offense just out-executed the Georgia defense down the stretch.
“They did a good job of blocking our guys. They hit some passes to loosen us up and make us play more cautious,” he said. “They scored touchdowns in the red area.”
However, Georgia would get a final shot. Freshman quarterback Jacob Eason hit Javon Wims for a quick 8-yard gain to the 33. But, another sure 20-plus-yard gain was dropped by Isaac Nauta this time. The Dogs did convert a 4th-and-2 to Nauta on the next play but two incompletions and then a Brant Mitchell interception of Eason on the final Hail Mary play ended yet another disappointing outcome for the Dogs.
Smart addressed the frustrations.
“I’m sick for the seniors who have given so much for our program,” Smart said. “To the fans, I’m just as sick as you are; I’m just as upset as you are; and I’m just as disappointed as you are. We’ve got to do a better job. We recognize that...and we will.”
Georgia started the game quick with a 12-play drive to the Tech 25 but Blankenship sailed a 42-yard field goal attempt wide left. Little did anyone know how big that would be at the time.
Then the two offenses matched 75-yard drives.
The Jackets scored first when Clinton Lynch took a pitch around right end for 41 yards for a 7-0 lead to cap a quick 4-play drive. Georgia answered with a 11-play drive, capped by a 10-yard touchdown run from Michel. But the key plays were a 35-yard scrambling throw to Nauta, who carried a tackler the final 10 yards. Nick Chubb also kept the drive alive with a 4-yard run on 3rd-and-1.
The two teams traded punts into the second quarter before the Jackets again showed their quick-strike ability. Thomas connected with a wide-open Stewart for a 55-yard pass to the Dogs 9 and Marshall finished off the 3-play drive with a 5-yard touchdown run to reclaim the lead, 14-7. Georgia answered three minutes when Eason and Isaiah McKenzie connected for a 6-yard touchdown pass.
The final stats were upside-down for both teams.
Michel finished with 170 yards rushing and the Dogs had 263 yards on the ground to Tech’s 226. But, Georgia had just 88 yards rushing in the second half and just 14 in the pivotal fourth quarter.
Meanwhile, Tech finished with 164 yards passing to Georgia’s 139. Thomas was just 6-of-10 but got several chunk plays. Eason was 14-of-28 for the game.
Both teams were efficient in the red zone as well. Tech was 3-for-3 with all three converted into touchdowns. Georgia was 5-for-5 with three touchdowns but failed twice inside the 15 that led to two Blankenship field goals instead of touchdowns.
SCORING SUMMARY
Ga. Tech....7.....7.....0....14 -- 28
Georgia.....7.....7....13.....0 -- 27
First Quarter
GT -- Lynch 41 run (Butker kick) 7-0, 7:28
UGA -- Michel 10 run (Blankenship kick) 7-7, 1:28
Second Quarter
GT -- Marshall 5 run (Butker kick) 14-7, 8:54
UGA -- McKenzie 7 pass from Eason (Blankenship kick) 14-14, 5:04
Third Quarter
UGA -- Blankenship 27 FG 17-14, 12:01
UGA -- Chubb 3 run (Blankenship kick) 24-14, 7:30
UGA -- Blankenship 32 FG 27-14, 0:26
Fourth Quarter
GT -- Mills 5 run (Butker kick) 27-21, 6:28
GT -- Searcy 6 run (Butker kick) 28-27, 0:30
