In the 109th face-off between the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Georgia Bulldogs, it ends in thrilling fashion with the Jackets winning it in overtime 30-24 at Sanford Stadium. This would be seen as one of the most bizarre games in this Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate rivalry.
Georgia Tech came into the game on a 4-game winning streak and knowing that they will be facing the Florida State
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Seminoles in the ACC Championship.
The Bulldogs, on the other hand, came into the game knowing they will not be facing the Alabama Crimson Tide in the SEC Championship as the Missouri Tigers won over the Arkansas Razorbacks the previous day.
Turnovers were the curse for the Bulldogs in the loss on Saturday. Nick Chubb fumbled the ball on the 2-yard line in the first quarter and Sony Michel fumbled on the 1-yard line in the second quarter.
Tech’s quarterback, Justin Thomas, returned the favor in the third quarter as Damian Swann snatched the ball away on the 1-yard line and returned it 99-yards for a touchdown, the longest fumble return in Bulldog history.
Georgia Tech’s defense was a thorn in the side of Georgia, forcing two fumbles within 5-yards and allowing only two touchdowns. In a critical moment in the game, the Jacket’s limited the Bulldogs to a field goal after attaining a first and goal on Tech’s 3-yard line after a successful fake field goal.
Some of the more bizarre plays happened in the 4th quarter for both teams. After scoring the go-ahead touchdown with 4:22 left to play, Yellow Jackets kicker Harrison Butker sent the kickoff to the right side of the field. Strange enough, not one of the Bulldogs attempted to catch the football. The ball took a perfect bounce back for Austin Lawerence to grab it.
In a strange turn of events, Tech decides to throw the ball on third down with 2:52 to play. Thomas fumbles the ball and
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UGA recovers the loose prize.
At 2:23 and twelve plays later, Hutson Mason hits Malcolm Mitchell to take the lead 24-21 with 18 seconds left to play.
Sanford Stadium was electric with the singing of “Glory, Glory” and the student section started chanting “SEC” to the small group of Tech fans.
In an ill-advised decision, the Bulldogs elected to squib kick the ball short and the Yellow Jackets returned the ball 16-yards to the Bulldogs 43-yard line with 13 seconds left.
On the next play, Thomas tried to throw the ball, but scrambled 21 yards before running out-of-bounds to the Georgia 36-yard line. With four seconds left, Butker nailed the 53-yard field goal to tie the game and send it to overtime.
Georgia Tech started with the ball first in overtime. Zack Laskey scored on a 2-yard run which finished him as the game leading rusher with 140 yards and three touchdowns.
But it wasn’t over yet as the Bulldogs blocked the extra point attempt which gave the Jackets an uncomfortable six-point lead.
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The Bulldogs took the field with the task to score a touchdown and nail the extra point. Five plays later, Mason was picked off and sealed their fate.
Another chapter closed in this rivalry left some questions to be answered. Did the Yellow Jackets win the game or did the Bulldogs lose it? There are cases that could be made for those questions. Did Mark Richt make some questionable decisions that ultimately lost the game?
