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Georgia Tech Perfectly Executes Fire-Drill 55-Yard Field Goal to Upset Clemson

The Yellow Jackets were unfazed in the closing moments Saturday.
Patrick Andres|
Aidan Birr, seen here kicking a field goal in the Birmingham Bowl, was a hero for Georgia Tech on a bigger stage Saturday.
Aidan Birr, seen here kicking a field goal in the Birmingham Bowl, was a hero for Georgia Tech on a bigger stage Saturday. | Vasha Hunt-Imagn Images

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Georgia Tech Yellow JacketsClemson Tigers

Georgia Tech is an engineering school at heart—and on Saturday its game-winning field goal had all the makings of a perfectly executed science project.

With 25 seconds left in a tie game against No. 12 Clemson, the Yellow Jackets called their third and final timeout. Quarterback Haynes King plowed forward to buy Georgia Tech two extra yards—and then it was time for a fire drill.

As the clock ran, the Yellow Jackets shuttled their entire field-goal kicking unit onto the Bobby Dodd Stadium turf. After appearing to pause to gather its collective breath, Georgia Tech snapped the ball—and kicker Aidan Birr put it directly through the uprights for a 55-yard winner.

The win was the Yellow Jackets' first over the Tigers since 2014, when quarterback Justin Thomas & Co. won the Coastal Division and the Orange Bowl.

With Georgia Tech's schedule about to slacken significantly, something special may be brewing in Atlanta.

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Patrick Andres
PATRICK ANDRES

Patrick Andres is a staff writer on the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. He joined SI in December 2022, having worked for The Blade, Athlon Sports, Fear the Sword and Diamond Digest. Andres has covered everything from zero-attendance Big Ten basketball to a seven-overtime college football game. He is a graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism with a double major in history .

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