Georgia Tech's Late Rally Comes Up Short vs No. 1 Georgia

Georgia Tech now awaits to see where they will play in their bowl game

The Yellow Jackets were 24.5-point underdogs against the No. 1 Georgia Bulldogs tonight and nobody gave them much of a chance to hang around. Georgia was on a 28-game winning streak coming into the game and has not lost to the Yellow Jackets since 2016. They are going for their third-straight national championship and over the last month, have looked like they are rounding into form as the best team in the country.

They were missing some key receivers like tight end Brock Bowers, but Georgia Tech gave them a much tougher game than anticipated. The Yellow Jackets for 205 yards against one of the best defenses in the country and it was a one-score game in the fourth quarter. Brent Key is not into moral victories but he has a lot to be proud of tonight and knows there is still work to be done. 

Let's recap the game. 

1st Quarter

Georgia Tech won the toss and took the ball first. 

The offense was looking to get off to a good start, but it was a three and out and UGA took over.. 

The Bulldog's offense vs the Yellow Jackets' defense was the biggest mismatch coming into the game, but on the first play from scrimmage for UGA, they fumbled and Georgia Tech was set up in Bulldogs territory. 

Georgia Tech had a great opportunity in front of them and they made the Bulldogs pay. Haynes King kept it up the middle and scored from nine yards out and the Yellow Jackets led the No. 1 Bulldogs 7-0. 

Georgia took over and started marching down the field immediately on their second drive. Kendall Milton and the UGA ground game went to work and got into Georgia Tech territory. 

A potential massive swing in the game came when a ball was batted up in the air and it appeared that LaMiles Brooks got an interception, but the play was reviewed and the call was overturned. UGA took advantage of the call and Carson Beck threw a 29-yard touchdown pass to Dominic Lovett on the next play and the game was tied 7-7. 

Georgia Tech had a good response on the next drive. They went 11 plays and got 67 yards and after coming up a yard short on 3rd down try, Brent Key had a decision to make. Key opted for a field goal and Aidan Birr nailed it to give Georgia Tech a 10-7 lead. It was a questionable decision to not go for the touchdown, but Key wanted the lead and Birr gave it to them. 

Georgia would run two plays to end the quarter and they had a huge third down to start the 2nd quarter. 

2nd quarter

Georgia Tech linebacker Trenilays Tatum making a tackle / Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia faced a third and long to start the quarter and it was the perfect chance for the Yellow Jackets to get off the field with a lead. They converted though and proceeded to march down the field and take the lead after. It was a 7-play 75-yard drive for the Bulldogs and capped off by a three-yard touchdown run from Milton. Georgia led 14-10 with 12:40 left in the first half. 

Georgia Tech would take over at its own 25-yard line for their next drive and they were trailing for the first time in the game. They would add a field goal after another good drive for the offense and the running game was really working well against the Bulldogs front seven. Still, touchdowns were needed and Georgia Tech could only manage to get field goals. 

Georgia got the ball back and their offense was just running right through the Georgia Tech defense. They drove 11 plays and went 64 yard for a touchdown to take a 21-13 lead. There was still 1:13 left on the clock though and with the Bulldogs getting the ball after the half, Georgia Tech would look to get some points on the board. 

Haynes King got them down there, but a sack dropped them back and they had to settle for a 49-yard field goal and it was missed. Georgia led Georgia Tech 21-13 at the half and had 236 yards of offense in the process. 

The good news for Georgia Tech was that their offense was finding success. They had 111 yards rushing in the first half and 193 total. It was a game going into the second half when most did not think it would be, but Georgia was getting the ball first and had a chance to take a two-score lead. 

3rd Quarter

Georgia Tech linebacker Kyle Efford makes a tackle / Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Georgia got the ball and Georgia Tech started the drive with a TFL from Paul Moala to put the Bulldogs back. Facing a 3rd and 12, Carson Beck threw a nice pass that was called a catch, but it was ruled incomplete and it was a three-and-out forced by the Yellow Jackets, exactly what they had to have. 

Georgia Tech took over at their own 22-yard line and despite getting the ball to midfield, they were forced to punt. A drop by Luke Benson and then a missed throw from Haynes King to Chase Lane happened on back-to-back plays and killed the drive. A punt from David Shanahan pinned Georgia at their own 14-yard line to start their next drive. 

It looked like another march to the end zone for Georgia was about to occur, but when the Bulldogs got down to the red zone, the Yellow Jackets' run defense bowed up and forced a third and long. UGA tried to run a screen, but the ball went off the receiver's hands and it was 4th down. UGA nailed the field goal and extended the lead to 24-13. 

Georgia Tech took over and after a personal foul gave the Yellow Jackets a first down, they were faced with a 4th down and Key opted to go for it. King threw a pass intended for Seither and it was incomplete, but pass interference was called. After a review, the ball was tipped and the call was overturned and UGA got the ball back. Five plays and 55 yards later, Georgia was in the endzone again and it felt like that was a wrap on the game. 

The Bulldogs led 31-13 going into the fourth. 

4th Quarter

It was 2nd and five for Georgia Tech on its own 30-yard line to start the quarter. 

GT completed a pop pass to Singelton Jr and he had a massive gain to get to the UGA 14-yard line. Unfortunately for Georgia Tech, they went backward from there. Dontae Smith lost one yard on 1st down and after a four-yard gain on second down, Haynes King was sacked and GT had to kick a field goal. Birr did nail the field goal attempt and made it 31-16 with 12:13 left. It was a two-possession game and Georgia needed a stop on the next drive. 

After a good kick return from UGA, they started their next drive at the Georgia Tech 46-yard line. 

UGA drove down in the GT red zone and looked like it was going to put the game away, but a penalty wiped out a touchdown and after Carson Beck ran the ball down to the five-yard line, a tipped pass was intercepted and GT suddenly had life again. 

Starting at their own 25-yard line, Malik Rutherford picked up a pair of first downs to get the ball to midfield with 7:34 left on the clock. Singleton then picked up nine yards and that was followed by a 23-yard Jamal Haynes run to get to the UGA 24-yard line. Georgia Tech would score just a few plays later and it was all of a sudden a one-score game 31-23 with less than four minutes remaining and GT had all of their timeouts. 

The Yellow Jackets tried an onisde kick, but it was unsuccessful and UGA took over. Facing a third and short, Georgia Tech looked like they were going to have a stop, but a missed tackle gave UGA the first down. Still, Georgia Tech had two timeouts and a chance to get a stop. 

They were not able to get a stop and the upset bid fell short. Georgia Tech fought till the end, but the No. 1 Bulldogs did just enough to get a win. It was the first time since Georgia Tech's win over Georgia in 2016 that the game was not decided by double-digits. 

Up next for Georgia Tech will be waiting to see where they go to play in a bowl game. That will be decided after the conference championship games and it will be their first bowl game since 2018. 

Stay tuned here for the latest. 

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