Hokies hang on to top Yellow Jackets

Published 8:28 am Friday, November 13, 2015

ATLANTA — It was a nice stop for Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer on his farewell tour. It wasn’t so pleasant for Georgia Tech, whose postseason hopes are now teetering. 

Virginia Tech running back Travon McMillian ran in the go-ahead score midway through the fourth, and the defense sealed the deal as the Hokies held on for a 23-21 win at Bobby Dodd Stadium on Thursday.

Beamer and Co. took a 9-4 all-time series lead against Georgia Tech on a cool night in Atlanta.

“I can’t tell you how much this win means,” Beamer said in his opening postgame statement. “The players played exceptionally hard. I thought the TV viewers got their money’s worth.”

A fumble by Marcus Allen, a redshirt junior who made his first career start, on the GT 18-yard line gift-wrapped McMillian’s go-ahead score for the Hokies (5-5, 3-3 Atlantic Coast Conference).

McMillian ran for 57 of his 135 yards by halftime, having gained 111 of them by the end of the third. He finished with two rushing scores. It was his third 100-plus yard rushing performance in five games. He rushed for an average of 110.5 yards through the previous four games.

Georgia Tech (3-7, 1-6) has dropped seven of its last eight games. The Jackets haven’t missed out on the postseason since 1996.

It took the Yellow Jackets just four plays to race 75 yards for the opening score. Thomas hit a wide-open Ricky Jeune in the middle of the field for a 54-yard gain. Allen capped the drive, rumbling for a 4-yard touchdown.

“We weren’t getting any production the other way,” Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said of his decision to start Allen, who led the rushing attack with 75 yards. “The other guy was fumbling. We put him in and he fumbles the first or second time he has the ball. I thought I’d give Marcus (Allen) a chance.”

Hokies quarterback Michael Brewer found receiver Cam Phillips on a slant route for first-down yardage, but Georgia Tech linebacker Tyler Marcordes forced Phillips to cough up the ball and Jamal Golden recovered for the Jackets at the VT 45.

Redshirt freshman Clinton Lynch cashed in the Hokie error for his fourth touchdown of the season to make it 14-0 Georgia Tech.

Things began to slow down for the Jackets in the second quarter, and before long Virginia Tech tied the game.

Brewer’s 17-yard pass to Isaiah Ford knotted the game at 14-all with 35 seconds until intermission. McMillian had a 23-yard carry early in the drive to set fire to the rally.

“Well we just stopped executing,” Johnson said. “I mean we just stopped executing.”

Virginia Tech came out of the half with momentum on its side, but it was quickly ripped away.

Brewer threw a pass behind his intended receiver and into the hands of Georgia Tech linebacker Brant Mitchell, who raced 32 yards for a pick-six. It was Mitchell’s second career interception and his first career touchdown.

“Yeah, I was a little bit surprised,” Mitchell said. “… I thought I would have to push a little bit more, but luckily I was in the right place.”

Brewer threw for 178 yards on 15 of 29 passing with a touchdown.

Virginia Tech kicker Joey Slye made a 29-yard field goal at the 8:42 mark in the period to pull the Hokies within four points at 21-17. He later missed a 40-yarder inside the final minute of the third that would have made it a one-point game.

Georgia Tech was engineering a possible game-winning drive when a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty put a monstrous dent in the plan. The Yellow Jackets’ chance was completely derailed when quarterback Justin Thomas, who completed 4 of 13 passes for 97 yards, was sacked on third down by Ken Ekanem.

UP NEXT: Georgia Tech visits Miami next Saturday. Virginia Tech hosts North Carolina next Saturday.