ATHENS -- For the first half of Saturday's game against Georgia, Georgia Tech's offense consistently moved the ball like the 2009 version that powered the Yellow Jackets to the ACC championship. But the mistakes that have plagued this season undid all the good work.
The Yellow Jackets committed three fumbles that the Bulldogs turned into 21 points through the first three quarters of Saturday's game at Sanford Stadium.
The last fumble occurred when Tevin Washington tried to pitch the ball at the 21-yard line. Linebacker Akeem Dent hit the A-back as the pitch arrived, causing him to lose the ball. Justin Houston scooped it up and returned it for a touchdown to give Georgia a 35-21 lead with 16 seconds left in the third quarter.
Tech's first two turnovers happened inside Georgia's 20-yard line. Orwin Smith dropped a pitch in the first quarter that Georgia recovered on the 5-yard line. The second occurred when Roddy Jones was stripped of the ball inside the 15-yard line in the third quarter. After a scramble, Georgia recovered it on the 36-yard line.
The Bulldogs converted each fumble into a touchdown.
When Tech wasn't helping by fumbling, Georgia's defense had no answer for its rival's option-based attack in the first three quarters, highlighted by the Yellow Jackets marching 95 yards in the second quarter to tie the game at 14. The 14-play drive ran more than six minutes off the clock.
Drives lasting 10 plays or more were something that Tech did 18 times last season, but the Jackets have had only eight such drives this season because of a combination of factors: turnovers, penalties and mental miscues.
The drive against Georgia featured one penalty -- on the extra-point attempt -- and the only mistake occurred when Washington slipped for a three-yard loss on a second-and-5 play at Tech's 36-yard line.
The Jackets began that drive after stopping Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray on fourth and inches at the 5-yard line with 8:42 remaining.
Washington ran for 4 yards on first down before pitching it to Jones for a 21-yard sprint up the right sideline.
And then Tech began mixing Anthony Allen up the middle with option keepers or pitches to right to the A-backs. The only pass was a 12-yard curl to Smith to convert a third-and-9 play on Tech's 32-yard line.
The domination of the right side of the line was similar to the 2008 contest, which Tech won 45-42 by overcoming a 16-point deficit at halftime. The Jackets rushed for 409 yards in that game. The Jackets rushed for 299 yards through three quarters on Saturday.
Jones, a thorn in the Bulldogs' paw for three seasons, completed the march with a 12-yard touchdown run to the right. In three games against Georgia, Jones has rushed for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns.
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