Georgia Tech Wins Wild One in Athens over the Georgia Bulldogs

In a day where it appeared Georgia Tech’s fate was sealed again in crushing fashion, the Yellow Jackets pulled off a wild one in Athens, 30-24 in OT over the Georgia Bulldogs.

In a first half where Georgia’s running game seemed to dominate, the Bulldogs couldn’t punch it in the endzone to finish drives.

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One fumble by RB Nick Chubb and another by RB Sony Michel kept the score close at a 7-7 tie at halftime. Tech had some decent numbers, but the clear advantage was to Georgia.

At the beginning of the second half, Georgia Tech put together a rather impressive drive.

It seemed to be culminating in a touchdown run for QB Justin Thomas, but after forward progress was clearly stopped on a run, the referees never blew the whistle to call the play dead and Georgia CB Damian Swann ran back the “fumble” 99 yards for a touchdown.

This was a huge 14-point swing, turning what should have been a 14-7 Tech lead into a 14-7 Georgia lead.

But coming out after halftime, Georgia Tech would start bullying Georgia’s defensive line and B-Backs Zach Laskey and Synjin Days kept racking up huge gains up the middle. After finally taking the lead in the 4th quarter, Georgia Tech recovered a short kickoff that caught Georgia off guard.

The Jackets drove close to another touchdown that would have sealed the game, but Justin Thomas was driven out of the pocket and fumbled when he was trying to throw the ball away after pressure was applied by Georgia defenders. It did appear that Thomas’ arm was moving forward, but after Paul Johnson challenged the play, replay officials upheld the call.

This set up a Georgia touchdown pass from QB Hutson Mason to WR Malcom Mitchell with :18 to go, and all but sealed Tech’s fate.

Not this day. After a huge, gutsy QB scramble by Thomas on the first play of Tech’s ensuing possession (set up by a squib kick return), Tech was set up for a 53-yard field goal with :04 remaining. Harrison Butker delivered the most clutch kick in recent memory for Tech fans, and off to overtime we went.

After scoring quickly on the back of Zach Laskey, Butker missed an extra point, again putting great pressure on Georgia tech’s defense. D.J. White, a clutch player all year for DC Ted Roof’s unit, again came up huge in the clutch for the Jackets, sealing the victory!

Nov 29, 2014; Athens, GA, USA; Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets defensive back D.J. White (28) intercepts a Georgia Bulldogs pass to end the game in overtime at Sanford Stadium. Georgia Tech defeated Georgia 30-24. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

This win should completely silence what is left of Paul Johnson’s critics. Not only did the Yellow Jackets go into Athens today and beat a top-10 Georgia team, they have already won the ACC’s Coastal Division, and have a great shot to take down Jameis Winston and Florida State Saturday night in Charlotte in the Dr. Pepper ACC Championship.

For all the fans out there that claim this offense “can’t win national championships”, please explain yourselves, because Georgia Tech is a late North Carolina touchdown with :11 left back in October in Chapel Hill away from having the ACC Title Game in Charlotte be a de facto play-in game for the CFB Playoff.

Enjoy this win Tech fans. This program is one on the rise, and we have a championship coaching staff in place ready and hungry for more in the years to come.