Georgia Tech Stuns Georgia on 95-Yard Kickoff Return

Just when it appeared that Georgia’s Bulldogs had taken command Saturday night, Georgia Tech’s Gary Lee struck them down.

Lee, a junior, returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter to spark the Yellow Jackets’ 20-16 victory over the 20th-ranked Bulldogs.

“This team will find a way to get it done,” Georgia Tech Coach Bill Curry said.

“It’s true that Gary Lee’s run electrified us. We seemed to respond to that somewhat.”

Lee went the distance down the right sideline after Georgia had taken a 16-10 lead on Davis Jacobs’ 39-yard field goal.

“I guess the one play that made the biggest difference was the long touchdown return by Gary Lee,” Georgia Coach Vince Dooley said.

“We had just scored on a field goal, and they came back and caught us a little flat-footed.”

The Yellow Jackets (8-2-1) added a 46-yard field goal by David Bell with 7:05 remaining.

It was the second year in a row that Tech had defeated the Bulldogs, and the first time since 1969-70 that the Yellow Jackets had won two in a row in the series.

Bell also kicked a 23-yard field goal in the first quarter. The other Tech touchdown came in the second quarter on a one-yard plunge by Nate Kelsey.

The Yellow Jackets will take a four-game winning streak into the All-American Bowl on Dec. 31 against Michigan State.

Georgia, which will meet Arizona on Dec. 28 in the Sun Bowl, fell to 7-3-1 with its second loss in a row.

The Bulldogs got a 21-yard field goal from Steve Crumley in the first quarter and a 22-yarder from Jacobs on the final play of the first half when a dead ball foul on Georgia Tech gave the Bulldogs a play after time had expired.

Lars Tate’s 15-yard run at the start of the second half gave Georgia a 13-10 lead, and Jacobs stretched it to 16-10 with his 39-yard field goal with 4:36 remaining in the third quarter.

Eleven seconds later, Lee crossed the goal on his 95-yard return that changed the momentum.