THE FLATS – Behind 246 fourth-quarter rushing yards and Haynes King’s fourth touchdown pass of the game with 4:28 to go, Georgia Tech erased an 11-point deficit with 22 points in the final 13 minutes of its 46-42 win over 17th-ranked North Carolina on Saturday night at Bobby Dodd Stadium at Hyundai Field.
King’s 5-yard touchdown pass to Brett Seither with 4:28 remaining capped a 79-yard drive – the Yellow Jackets’ third scoring drive of the fourth quarter – and proved to be the game-winner.
In rallying to win its third-straight game in the series with North Carolina (the Tar Heels were nationally ranked in all three meetings), Tech evened its record 4-4 overall, improved to 3-2 in Atlantic Coast Conference play and extended its perfect record in matchups against nationally ranked ACC foes under head coach Brent Key to 4-0. The Tar Heels fell to 6-2 overall, 3-2 in the ACC.
The Yellow Jackets amassed 635 total yards in the game, their most ever against an ACC foe, and averaged 7.3 yards per rush for 348 yards on the ground. The dominant performance on the ground was highlighted by the 246-yard fourth quarter, which fueled three scoring drives to overtake the Tar Heels.
Trailing 35-24, Tech started its comeback when Haynes capped an 88-yard march with a 4-yard touchdown run at the 12:02 mark. King connected with Malik Rutherford on an inside screen for the two-point conversion, bringing the Jackets within 35-31.
North Carolina answered with a long kickoff return to set up a quick two-play drive for a touchdown, scoring on a 35-yard pass from Drake Maye to Doc Chapman and extending its lead to 42-32. But it took just 33 seconds for Tech to score next, with Smith bolting 70 yards up the middle for a touchdown to get the Jackets back within 42-39 with 10:40 remaining in the game.
It appeared that UNC might extend the lead once again when Maye drove the Heels down the field with a pair of long passing gains, but the drive stalled at the Tech 21, and Noah Burnett’s 39-yard field goal missed to the left. Tech capitalized by moving 79 yards on six plays, capped by the go-ahead touchdown pass from King to Seither with 4:28 to go.
Maye started leading the Tar Heels down the field once again, but the Jackets came up with their biggest defensive play of the night to snuff out UNC’s scoring threat. Maye completed a 36-yard strike to Tez Walker, but Tech’s Ahmari Harvey drilled Walker to knock the ball loose and K.J. Wallace recovered the fumble for the Jackets at their 24-yard line.
From there, Tech picked up a pair of first downs to drain the last 2:54 off the clock, setting off a field-storming celebration by an elated Bobby Dodd Stadium crowd.
Senior running back Dontae Smith, who came into the game with 61 rushing yards on the season, including just 11 in the last five games, ran for a career-high 178 yards on 22 carries for the Yellow Jackets (the most by any Georgia Tech player since 2018 and the most by a Tech running back since 2017). King added 90 yards on eight carries and sophomore running back Jamal Haynes picked up 80 yards on 14 attempts. The Jackets’ 348 rushing yards as a team were their most in a game since 2020.
The Jackets were also potent through the air, with King completing 23-of 30 passes for 287 yards and four touchdowns. His .767 completion percentage was the second-highest in Georgia Tech history for a passer with at least 30 attempts in a game.
True freshman Eric Singleton Jr. led Tech’s receiving corps with eight caches for 117 yards, both career highs. Seither caught two touchdown passes – a 35-yarder in the second quarter and the 5-yard game winner in the fourth – while sophomore Malik Rutherford also had a pair of touchdown receptions as part of a six-catch, 83-yard performance.
Georgia Tech returns to action next Saturday, Nov. 4, when it travels to Virginia for a 2 p.m. game. The contest will be televised across the nation on The CW.