Happy ending

Published 6:07 pm Saturday, January 2, 2016

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — The circumstances leading into Saturday’s Taxslayer Bowl were hardly ideal for Georgia at Everbank Field. With the roles of head coach in addition to defensive, offensive and special teams play-calling being filled on an interim basis, the Bulldogs entered Jacksonville in a position under which some teams would sleepwalk their way into the offseason. 

That wasn’t the case for Georgia, which for the first time since December of 2000 was playing in a game without Mark Richt as the Bulldogs’ head coach. 

Georgia built a 24-3 lead before holding off a furious second-half rally by Penn State to prevail 24-17 as Nittany Lions quarterback Trace McSorley’s hail mary pass was batted down at the goal line by Lorenzo Carter as time ran out. The win ends Georgia’s season with a record of 10-3 and sends ends the career of its senior class with 40 victories. Penn State ends the year with a record of 7-6. 

“These guys have done a job, in my opinion that’s just been second to none, as far as being able to block out so much stuff and just really realize what football is for,” Georgia interim head coach Bryan McClendon said. “I think football was made for men to be able to understand that they need to work hard and work hard for each other and other individuals than themselves and that’s what these guys did. I couldn’t be more proud of these guys.” 

Affairs looked well in hand for Georgia (10-3) after two and a half quarters. After a 44-yard pass from Terry Godwin to former Valdosta High standout Malcolm Mitchell out of the “Wild Dawg” formation and 17-yard toss from quarterback Greyson Lambert to Godwin in the corner of the end zone made it 17-3 at halftime, the Bulldogs built on the advantage in the second half. 

The long touchdown to Mitchell was a long-time coming, according to the senior receiver who had five catches for 114 yards on Saturday. 

“It’s been in the game plan for about a month now and I knew our coaches were going to call it because we’ve been practicing it every day,” Mitchell said. “Terry (Godwin) and I have been talking about it all week. It feels good to have a touchdown in my first game as a Bulldog and to leave with a touchdown in my last game.” 

Tailback Sony Michel extended the Georgia lead to 24-3 with 4:15 to go in the third quarter, capping a seven-play. 56-yard drive by muscling his way into end zone from 21 yards out. Michel had 20 carries for 85 yards. 

“You can’t come out and start slow the way we did and think you’re going to beat that type of opponent in a bowl game,” Penn State head coach James Franklin said. 

Any thoughts to wrapping up the game with ease wouldn’t come to fruition for Georgia. Penn State’s offense, slowed earlier with starting quarterback Christian Hackenberg and still mired after he left the game with an injury, managed three points as the third quarter neared its finish. 

But the Nittany Lions woke up. 

With a more mobile McSorley under center, Penn State was able to make a few more plays through the air, driving 75 yards in a little more than four minutes to close the gap to 24-10 seven seconds into the fourth quarter on a 20-yard pass to Geno Lewis. 

“He’s mobile, you had to respect him running the ball,” Georgia linebacker Jake Ganus said of McSorley. “We had to kind of adjust a few things, but I think overall we did a pretty good job.” 

And with Penn State preventing Georgia from eating a large amount of time off the clock, the Nittany Lions continued to rally, making it a one-score game on a 20-yard pass from McSorley to DaeSean Hamilton with 6:14 to play. The Nittany Lions passed for 281 yards, 142 coming from McSorley who has 8-of-14 passing. 

A lead that a quarter earlier seemed safe was in jeopardy, the Bulldogs needed a sustained drive either to put the game away with a score or at least burn time off of the clock. Georgia did the latter, driving 45 yards and using up 5:15 of clock, with Keith Marshall keeping the drive going with 31 yards. And even though Georgia failed to convert on fourth and short from the Penn State 23, it put the Nittany Lions in a precarious position, needing to drive 77 yards in 1:52. They stalled at the Georgia 39, where the last-ditch pass toward the end zone fell short. 

“We knew that we had the game in our hands,” Georgia offensive tackle John Theus said. “We had a great drive, you kind of have to impose your will and that’s what we did.”