Georgia Tech Survives Duke Comeback and wins 23-20 in Overtime
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It was a thriller in Atlanta today with Georgia Tech and Duke, The game would go to overtime and have a crazy ending. It was a great victory for the Yellow Jackets, who now move to 3-3 on the season and won back-to-back games for the first time since 2018.
Here is the complete game summary for Georgia Tech vs Duke on Saturday afternoon.
First Quarter:
Georgia Tech won the toss and received the ball to open the game. After a couple of nice plays from Hassan Hall and Dylan Leonard, quarterback Jeff Sims and the offense stalled out. Sims took a deep shot to Ryan King that was incomplete but could have been a touchdown with a better touch. The young receivers were getting plenty of early playing time and that is a good sign going forward.
Duke had a nice first drive, including some short check downs to running back Jordan Waters. After a sack by Sylvain Yondjouen, Tech held the Blue Devils on third down to set up a punt.
Georgia Tech got the ball back and Sims was running the ball really effectively, After a pass interference extended the drive Sims got the Yellow Jackets into the Duke red zone, and then Dontae Smith entered the game. After a nice run, Georgia Tech faced a third down and goal and a fade to Jenkins was incomplete. Tech has run that play to Jenkins at the goal line the past couple of weeks and it has not worked so I think they need to move away from it. Gavin Stewart continued to kick the ball well and hit the field goal to put the Yellow Jackets in front 3-0.
Duke got the ball back and started driving down the field on Georgia Tech, some part in thanks to a late hit penalty on Kyle Kennard. Duke would end the quarter in Georgia Tech territory.
Jeff Sims had a nice day running the ball against Duke
Second Quarter
It looked like Duke fumbled the ball at the beginning of the quarter, but the play was ruled an incomplete pass and Duke remained on offense. Duke was then called for a personal foul after some confusion and was forced into a third and long. Leonard's pass would be incomplete and Duke would have to punt the ball away. The Yellow Jackets' defense did a great job at the start of the game and the run defense was especially doing well.
The Yellow Jackets' offense would take over at their own six-yard line after an excellent punt and would have a long way to go to the end zone.
The drive would start off with some nice runs from Sims and then a short pop pass to Nate McCollum. McCollum would then have a 21-yard catch to move the ball into Duke territory. McCollum was fantastic on the drive and finished it with a 24-yard touchdown catch. Sims was efficient on both the ground and through the air and looked great on the scoring drive.
Duke would drive the ball on Georgia Tech the next drive but penalties backed the Blue Devils way up and Duke would be forced to settle for a field goal. The kick was good and Duke would cut into the lead and make it a 10-3 game.
Georgia Tech would move the ball on the next drive, courtesy of more running from Hall and Sims. A targeting call on Duke linebacker Shaka Heyward helped move the ball into Duke territory, but the drive would stall out and Tech would make the questionable call to punt the ball from their own 36-yard line and give the ball back to Duke with less than a minute left.
Duke would run the clock out and Georgia Tech would have a 10-3 lead at the half. Some stats at the half: Georgia Tech outgained Duke 224-133, Tech had 132 yards rushing and averaged 6.6 yards per rush, Tech averaged over six yards per play and had two sacks on defense.
Georgia Tech's defense bottled up the Duke running game
Third Quarter:
Duke got the ball to open the half and Georgia Tech did a great job on defense to force a three and out. The play calling by the coaches was solid on the opening drive and forced a Duke punt.
Tech would begin the second half on their own 29-yard line. The drive could not have gone any better for Tech. After finding Jenkins and McCollum for solid gains, Sims hit Blackburn for an unbelievable 37-yard touchdown grab. It was Blackburn's first career touchdown and that play alone showed the high potential we have been waiting to see.
Duke got the ball back and marched right down the field. After a fourth-down pass set them up inside the 10-yard line, K.J. Wallace made one of the biggest plays of the game by intercepting Leonard and giving the ball back to the offense.
Tech would not do much with the ball and went three and out on the next drive. A nice punt return got the Blue Devils started in Georgia Tech territory.
Duke took advantage of the short field and drove deep into Georgia Tech's territory. The Yellow Jackets' defense would hold and force a Duke field goal. Duke hit the kick and cut the lead to 17-6.
That would be the end of the quarter and it looked like Georgia Tech was well on its way to victory for the 2nd week in a row.
Georgia Tech's secondary made some big plays against Duke
Fourth Quarter:
Tech would start the quarter on their own 43-yard line with a 2nd and 6. The Yellow Jackets would move it through the air and have a 1st and goal but would be stopped after that. Stewart was brought on for another field goal. Stewart would hit the kick and extend the lead to 20-6. Stewart was once again money this week and the kicking game was good all around.
Duke would take over at the 25-yard line and look to cut the lead into a one-score game. However, the Georgia Tech defense would force a three and out and a punt. Tech's defense did a great job of bringing pressure on this drive and making Leonard uncomfortable, knowing they would probably have to throw it down two scores.
Georgia Tech would get the ball back at their own 23-yard line up 20-6 with 9:36 left in the 4th quarter.
Tech would pick up one first down, but a failed screen to Malik Rutherford and a face mask call on the offense forced the Yellow Jackets to punt.
The special teams had been great these last two weeks, but that would change on the next punt. Duke would return the punt for a touchdown and cut the lead to 20-13. Poor tackling was a huge part of the return. There was only 5:55 left in the game and Tech would get the ball back looking to run down the clock.
Tech would start at their own 17-yard line on the next drive. Sims would hit McCollum for a first down, but McCollum would go down with an injury. It would put McCollum over 100 yards for the day. Sims would be heavily pressured on the next third down and Tech would have to punt. Another big punt return would have Duke starting at the 45-yard line of Georgia Tech.
A false start would set Duke back and then Tech would get a stop on third down to set up a huge 4th down and five. Tech would break up the pass and take over with three minutes left in the game.
It would be a three-and-out for Tech and they would have to punt it away and hope the defense could win them the game.
The worst call of the game came on a roughing the passer call on Georgia Tech that gave the Blue Devils life and helped them move the ball into Georgia Tech territory. The penalties would be the story of the final drive a pass interference would set up Duke with the ball at the two-yard line. Duke would score with eight seconds remaining and tie the game up.
A punt return and the last drive riddled with penalties would cause Tech to lose a 20-6 lead with less than six minutes remaining. Overtime would be coming to Atlanta.
1st Overtime:
Georgia Tech would be up against it in the first overtime. Sims would get injured early and have to leave the game, causing backup Zach Gibson to enter the game. The offense would stall out and a field goal attempt from Stewart would follow and he would hit it and make it a 23-20 game.
Georgia Tech kicker Gavin Stewart was again a key part of the Yellow Jackets victory
After moving backward in the drive thanks to an offensive pass interference call, Duke would have to line up for a 52-yard field goal to extend the game to another overtime. Duke's kick would be wide left and the Yellow Jackets walked away with a dramatic overtime victory.
Georgia Tech statistically dominated this game, but special teams' miscues and penalties caused it to be closer than it really was, this was a big win for Georgia Tech and interim head coach Brent Key.
Georgia Tech is now 3-3 and will have a bye next week. They will face Virginia at Bobby Dodd Stadium on October 20th.
More coverage of this game will be coming on AllYellowJackets.com.
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