Shuler Is in Control for Tennessee, 34-31 : Southeastern: Quarterback scores two touchdowns in fourth quarter of victory over Georgia.

Heath Shuler knew it was his job to provide the direction for Tennessee.

He certainly did that.

Shuler scored two touchdowns in the final quarter, the last on a three-yard run with 50 seconds left, to lift the 20th-ranked Volunteers to a 34-31 victory over No. 14 Georgia Saturday.

“As the quarterback, the guys in the huddle looked to me, good or bad,” Shuler said. “We came out in the second half and played under control.”

Shuler’s game-winning score capped an 80-yard drive after Garrison Hearst’s third touchdown, a 17-yard run, had given the Bulldogs a 31-27 lead with six minutes remaining.

The Volunteers, 2-0 overall and 1-0 Southeastern Conference, came up with six turnovers in the game, including a big fumble recovery with 14 seconds left after Eric Zeier had completed a 38-yard pass to Andre Hastings to the Vols’ 34.

Reggie Ingram recovered Hastings’ fumble and the Volunteers ran out the clock as Georgia fell to 1-1, both games in the SEC.

“It’s still hard to believe,” Ingram said. “They made some big plays and played a really tough game.”

“At no point did I think we were out of the game,” Georgia Coach Ray Goff said. “We had some big plays and a lot of opportunities, but we just made too many mistakes and to Tennessee’s credit, they took advantage of them.”

Phillip Fulmer, acting as the Volunteer coach since Johnny Majors had open heart surgery last month, said Tennessee gave up too many big plays.

The winning drive was kept alive when Shuler connected with Ronald Davis for 22 yards to the Georgia 18 on a fourth-and-14 play with 2:15 remaining.

Shuler, a sophomore, had given the Volunteers a 27-17 lead on a four-yard quarterback draw to cap an 80-yard drive with 12:36 to play.

Hearst, who finished with 161 yards in 20 carries, got the Bulldogs within range three plays later, shaking off two arm tackles on a 64-yard run with 12:01 remaining.

Hearst also scored on a four-yard run in the second quarter.