Georgia Tech Was No. 1--Until Flag Fell : Citrus: After watching Colorado, Yellow Jackets say they should move to the top of the polls.

It was a moment that in retrospect was painfully brief, when Georgia Tech players, coaches and fans alike knew they were without question the national champions.

Raghib (Rocket) Ismail of Notre Dame had returned a punt in the closing moments of the Orange Bowl for an apparent touchdown.

Players hugged fans, coaches hugged coaches. High-fives were abundant as hundreds of Georgia Tech followers had crowded into a banquet room of the team hotel to watch the Orange Bowl.

But nobody saw the flag.

Notre Dame’s apparent game-winning touchdown was nullified and No. 1 Colorado was left with the inside track on the national championship. The room became silent and some fans were kicking chairs. It was a catharsis of emotion played out within a minute.

Georgia Tech, the only unbeaten team in the country at 11-0-1, was left to wonder if its 45-21 victory over Nebraska in Tuesday’s Florida Citrus Bowl was enough to vault it into the top position.

“The punt return was great, just great,” said William Bell, who scored three touchdowns in the Citrus Bowl. “But things sure changed with the penalty.

“I still feel that as the only undefeated team in Division I that we should be No. 1. Colorado did win as the No. 1 team, but they only won by one. We won by a substantial margin.”

It’s not surprising that Georgia Tech players were unanimous in their claim that they should be awarded the national championship.

“I think if you go undefeated you should automatically be No. 1,” flanker Jason McGill said. “But it’s up to the voters.”

Safety Ken Swilling was especially pointed in his remarks.

“I’ll be upset if we’re not No. 1,” Swilling said. “But it’s something that I don’t decide. That’s why a playoff system should be used in Division I football. I feel a lot of people who have never played the game, and have nothing to do with the game of football besides write, shouldn’t decide who’s the No. 1 team in the country. It will hurt me really bad if something like that (not being voted No. 1) happens.”

The edge has to go to Colorado and not only because it was the incumbent. A larger number of poll voters were in Miami for the Orange Bowl than in Orlando.

“I still feel pretty good about things,” cornerback Willie Clay said. “We showed some people that we could play with anyone. The hardest part (was watching the Orange Bowl) where I can’t put on a uniform and play and help decide the outcome.”

Tight end Tom Covington was optimistic. “Colorado did a good job, but we still should be No. 1. We proved to the world that we are good. I think our chances are very good. Colorado is a very good club, but we should be No. 1.”

Georgia Tech Bobby Ross didn’t watch the Orange Bowl. Instead, he had flown to Virginia to be with his mother, who is in a coma. But he made his pitch before leaving Orlando.

“I feel like we deserve it right now, to be honest with you,” Ross said. “I’m not going to gloat over it or wave a flag, but I feel like we’ve done what we needed to do. The strength of our conference has been tested. We weren’t sloppy in winning the football game. I don’t know what else we can do, but I feel like we are deserving of it because we are the only undefeated team in college football.”