Marcus Allen had a strong start but a poor finish in his first start at B-back for Georgia Tech in Thursday’s night game against Virginia Tech at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
Allen rushed 16 times for 75 yards with one touchdown. But his fumble on the 18-yard line in the fourth quarter helped the Hokies take a 23-21 lead with 6:58 left. It was Allen’s first fumble this season. Those proved to be the winning points.
On the next series, an open Allen dropped a pass from Justin Thomas that would have resulted in a first down on third-and-6 at the 29-yard line.
Allen got the start because coach Paul Johnson said they weren’t getting production out of the other players, and he wanted to give Allen a chance.
Partick Skov or Marcus Marshall had split the starts at B-back.
Skov started the first six games, but didn’t have enough long runs to satisfy Johnson. He has eight carries in the past four games, one of which he didn’t play in because of an injury. He had 339 yards rushing on 83 carries before Thursday. He had one carry for two yards Thursday.
Marshall, who started the previous three games, has big-play potential, but has also lost two of his three fumbles this season, including one in the previous loss to Virginia. He was the team’s leading rusher with 526 yards on 64 carries before Thursday. He had four carries for four yards Thursday.
Allen had just 85 yards on 16 carries going into Thursday’s night game. But early he offered a blend of Skov’s power and ball security and Marshall’s speed against the Hokies. He totaled 33 yards on five carries on Tech’s first two series, including a 4-yard touchdown that gave the Jackets a 7-0 lead with 13:11 left.
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