Mississippi State
2-3 , 1-2
#25 Georgia Tech
4-1 , 2-1
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Georgia Tech | 14 | 14 | 7 | 7 | 42 |
| Mississippi State | 7 | 10 | 0 | 14 | 31 |
#25 Georgia Tech Holds Off Bulldogs, 42-31
October 03, 2009 | Football
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STARKVILLE, Miss. - For the second-straight week, Mississippi State faced a Top 25 foe at Scott Field. And for the second-straight week, the Bulldogs fell short despite a valiant effort to pull off the offset.
Saturday night in front of a raucous crowd of 50,035 fans, No. 25 Georgia Tech raced out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter and held off MSU late en route to a 42-31 victory.
It was the second win in as many years against the Bulldogs for Tech, which improved to 4-1 overall. Mississippi State, which returns home next week against 12th-ranked Houston, fell to 2-3 on the year.
Georgia Tech quickly opened the contest by scoring on its first two possessions. The Yellow Jackets went up 7-0 after an 8-play, 47-yard drive capped by a 24-yard run by Stephen Hill and then swelled their lead to 14-0 with less than a minute left in the first quarter.
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However, Mississippi State responded quickly and closed the gap to 14-7 when junior Leon Berry returned the ensuing kickoff 89 yards for a touchdown.
In the second quarter, though, turnovers began to plague MSU, and Tech took advantage of the miscues, starting with a Chris Relf fumble that set up another 8-play drive that gave the Yellow Jackets a 21-7 advantage.
State answered again and cut the lead to 21-14 on a 10-yard run by Chad Bumphis. However, the momentum was thwarted when the Bulldogs' next possession ended in disaster when Georgia Tech picked up a fumble and returned it 40 yards for a 28-14 lead.
Still, State wouldn't fold. Instead, the Bulldogs added more points as time expired when backup placekicker Derek DePasquale nailed a 31-yard field goal, his first wearing the Maroon & White, to make the score 28-17 at the break.
In the third quarter after the Yellow Jackets went up 35-17, State again responded with points of its own. This time, it was Bumphis again finding the end zone on a 69-yard catch-and-run pass from Tyson Lee. The Tupelo, Miss., native hauled in a career-high six passes for 123 yards.
But just as the Bulldogs answered, so did Georgia Tech.
The Yellow Jackets, who manufactured 479 total yards of offense and totaled 23 first downs, got their final points of the evening on an Anthony Allen 5-yard rushing touchdown.
The final points, though, belonged to Mississippi State.
With just 3:41 remaining, senior running back Christian Ducre scored from 4-yards out. State had one more drive to try and add more points, but those hopes ended when Lee's final pass of the game was intercepted by Mario Butler at the Tech 16 with just 28 tics left on the clock.
It was the fifth turnover of the game for MSU, which had four last week against LSU in a 31-30 setback.
State finished with 25 first downs and a season-high 487 yards of offense. Lee accounted with 278 yards through the air on 20-of-31 passing, while senior running back Anthony Dixon grounded a game-best 106 yards.
State also converted both of its fourth-down attempts, while the Yellow Jackets were 4-for-4.
Team Stats
GT 7, MS 0
GT - Hill,S. 24 yd run (Tanner, C. kick), 8 plays, 47 yards, TOP 4:00
GT 14, MS 0
GT - Dwyer,J. 2 yd run (Tanner, C. kick), 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 5:44
GT 14, MS 7
MS - Leon Berry 89 yd kickoff return (Sean Brauchle kick)
GT 21, MS 7
GT - Jones,R. 5 yd run (Tanner, C. kick), 8 plays, 39 yards, TOP 4:11
GT 21, MS 14
MS - Chad Bumphis 10 yd run (D. DePasquale kick), 7 plays, 68 yards, TOP 2:14
GT 28, MS 14
GT - Tarrant,J. 40 yd fumble recovery (Tanner, C. kick)
GT 28, MS 17
MS - D. DePasquale 31 yd field goal 13 plays, 47 yards, TOP 4:22
GT 35, MS 17
GT - Thomas,D. 23 yd pass from Nesbitt,J. (Tanner, C. kick) 10 plays, 90 yards, TOP 5:16
GT 35, MS 24
MS - Chad Bumphis 69 yd pass from Tyson Lee (D. DePasquale kick) 3 plays, 81 yards, TOP 1:09
GT 42, MS 24
GT - Allen,A. 5 yd run (Tanner, C. kick), 5 plays, 76 yards, TOP 2:37
GT 42, MS 31
MS - Christian Ducre 4 yd run (D. DePasquale kick), 10 plays, 67 yards, TOP 3:15
