Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson didn’t have much advice for his quarterback.
“I just told him, ‘Look, give him a chance to catch the ball,’” Johnson said, recounting his sideline conversation with quarterback Justin Thomas.
Thomas did, hitting wide receiver DeAndre Smelter for a 19-yard gain on a fourth-and-15 play with 2 1/2 minutes left in Saturday’s 27-24 win over Virginia Tech. It will be a play that enters Yellow Jackets lore, an against-the-odds play to pull out a win against a bitter rival.
“I had to complete it,” Thomas said. “Didn’t have a choice. If we didn’t, the game is probably over.”
Johnson said that he didn’t waver on going for it from the 50-yard line and Tech trailing 24-17, as the Jackets had been getting one-on-one coverage with the wide receivers all game.
“I just felt like, eventually, with our receivers one-on-one, they’re going to get open,” Johnson said.
Johnson told Smelter to run a post-dig, going down the field and then cutting across, if the Hokies showed a two-deep zone look, which they did. Smelter ran his route, the line protected and Thomas, who to that point had completed one of five second-half passes, delivered it to Smelter in stride. Two plays later, Tech was in the end zone, this time on a 31-yard pass from Thomas to Smelter, to tie the score.
It adds to Smelter’s growing history of clutch receptions, including a game-sealing catch for 42 yards against Pittsburgh on a third-and-17 last year.
“Coach told me in the huddle, ‘Just go make a play,’ and that’s what I did,” Smelter said.
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