ATLANTA— Bowl game eligibility was on the line for the Syracuse Orange and the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets as they met at Bobby Dodd Stadium tonight.
The Yellow Jackets beat the Orange 31-22.
This game can be best explained in one word.
Grit.
After the game, running-back Jamal Haynes explained Georgia Tech’s offensive final drive in one word.
Grit.
Quarterback Haynes King bolstered a full box score of 262 yards and three total touchdowns. King tied for leading rusher with an identical stat line with running-back Jamal Haynes. Both King and Haynes ran 11 times for 82 yards and a touchdown a piece on the ground.
After the first half ended, whistles blew, and the teams were sent back to the sideline. Syracuse took the field down 17-3 again with two seconds left on the clock. The Orange took a knee after letting the clock expire on what was assumed to be their last play.
The Orange’s offense wielded an emaciated playbook. This seemed to be their most significant pitfall on offense.
After losing quarterbacks Garret Shrader and Carlos Del Rio Wilson earlier this season, they used a ‘quarterback by committee.’ The Orange sent out starting running-back Lequint Allen Jr. and tight-end Dan Villari to serve as a quarterback.
During the first half, the Orange’s ‘quarterback duo’ ran 19 designed runs out of their 29 total plays called in the half.
Haynes King led the Yellow Jackets on the game’s opening drive for 75-yards, resulting in a touchdown. Haynes racked up 53 passing yards, completing each of his five passes. Jamal Haynes caught a screen pass and ran across traffic from the left-hash to the right-hash, running through a Syracuse defender at the goal line. This opening drive set the tone for the Yellow Jackets offense.
Bobby Dodd began to feel deflated at 5:56 in the third quarter. All because of one man.
The Lequint Allen Drive.
Lequint Allen fielded a punt deep into the Syracuse side of the field. Allen struggled to field the punt, bobbling the ball in his hands as he began his stride. Allen found a hole in the Yellow Jacket coverage and ran down the left sideline untouched until reaching the Tech 15-yard line. Allen followed this monstrous return with four touches in the red zone as a receiver, quarterback, and running back.
Syracuse trailed 24-22.
Quarterback Haynes King explained how Georgia Tech overcame struggles in the fourth quarter, “we stopped shooting ourselves in the foot,” and they simply did that.
The Yellow Jackets put together a drive behind their offensive line, running nine times and marching down the field. This nine-play 75-yard drive is capped off with Haynes running into the end-zone. The offensive line seemingly pushed the defensive tackles to opposite ends of I-285, giving Haynes a running lane to go 19 yards untouched for the score. This set the Yellow Jackets ahead by two scores at 31-22.
Haynes was floored by the offensive line on the score, simply stating, “Hell, how [a]bout that o-line.”
Georgia Tech Kyle Efford put the game away with an interception over the middle field on the first play of Syracuse’s drive. Efford shared insight on this play, “[there] ain’t much to it, just playmaking.”
Big players show up in big moments. Efford recorded the dagger interception and led the defense in tackles with 11.
Syracuse gave up back-breaking penalties in the form of defensive offsides that resulted in short yardage positioning, unnecessary roughness, and unsportsmanlike conduct.
These acts of frustration from the Orange set the Yellow Jackets up to get in victory formation inside the Syracuse 1-yard-line.
The Syracuse defense looked to instigate fights while the Georgia Tech players on the sideline ran toward the student section to start the celebration.
