8 overtimes later... the Bulldogs come out victorious again

Yeah, it’s late. Yeah, it’s the eve of College Football’s “rivalry weekend.” Yeah, your team might be far out of contention for a CFP bid. But where were you? 

Where were you when the most insane game of the 2024 season went down? 

Regardless, don’t panic. You will see many highlights for hours and hours to come. However, maybe waking the dog up in the wee hours of the night and pressing the up button on my remote every minute was worth it. 

I’m here to tell you College Football is pure cinema. This is just the start of rivalry weekend, and I’m all here for it. 

Georgia and Georgia Tech kicked off in what was a quiet Friday night slat. Following the Colorado vs. Oklahoma St, Boise St vs. Oregon St, and Ole Miss vs. Mississippi St games, there honestly was not much to anticipate. Moreover, Georgia had already secured its spot in the SEC Championship and was facing an unranked opponent at home. 

It wasn’t much of a “Playoff-like” atmosphere like many other rivalry games entail. Although, that narrative was flipped. These two teams fostered the means to “feed families,” as the kids would say. 

The #7 Bulldogs went down early. It was another sluggish start for Kirby Smart’s offense behind a defense that also struggled. Haynes King and Jamal Haynes anchored the Yellow Jackets’ offense and got to a hot start. Brent Key’s team went up early, but the Bulldogs were not finished yet. 

Despite being down by 17, Georgia took to a 21-point fourth quarter offensive slaying to secure a regulation tie. The Bulldogs scored 14 of these points in under 4 minutes. The momentum was made from Haynes King, the man who seemingly did it all for the Yellow Jacket. King fumbled late in the fourth quarter which allowed Georgia to quickly score and tie the game. 

If you can’t tell already, the rest was history. Georgia and Georgia Tech settled the game 8 overtime sessions later. This ultimately was the second-longest game in FBS history. Penn State and Illinois hold the current record of 9 overtime durations, which dates back to 2021. 

Symbolically, the game ended where Georgia struggled the most, on the ground. Filling the void of the injured Trevor Etienne, freshman Nate Frazier Jr. ran it straight up the gut to call the game and settle on a final score of 44-42.

It was a battle of the quarterbacks in Athens as Carson Beck threw for five touchdowns on 28/43 completions and 297 yards. The big story of the night was zero interceptions for Beck who truly established himself as an NFL-caliber quarterback tonight. 

On the opposite side was Haynes King who completed 26 of 36 attempts for 303 yards and two touchdowns. Additionally, King did it with his feet as well as he rushed for 101 yards on the ground. 

This victory marks yet the 8th consecutive Georgia win over Tech. More importantly, we can confidently say that our first College Football Playoff ticket has been punched. No matter what happens in Atlanta at Mercedes Benz Stadium, the Bulldogs are heading back to where they belong. 

I guess the wait since the 63-3 scoreboard wasn’t long after all for Kirby Smart. Gotta love college football…