No. 6 Georgia rallies to beat Georgia Tech 44-42 in eighth overtime, bolsters playoff hopes

ATHENS, Ga. – Freshman Nate Frazier ran for a 2-point conversion in the eighth overtime of a marathon for the ages after No. 6 Georgia pulled off an improbable fourth-quarter comeback, giving the Bulldogs a 44-42 victory over Georgia Tech on Friday night.

After falling behind 17-0 at halftime and being dominated most of the game, the Bulldogs (10-2, No. 7 CFP) may have locked up a spot in the College Football Playoff — no matter how they fare in next weekend’s Southeastern Conference championship game.

Carson Beck threw five touchdown passes, two of them in overtime, in a game the Bulldogs never led until after regulation ended 27-all.

Georgia Tech (7-5) was led by Haynes King, who ran for for three touchdowns and threw for two more. But the Yellow Jackets took their seventh straight loss to the Bulldogs, the end coming just a few minutes after midnight on a frigid night between the hedges.

Frazier took a handoff from Beck and burst up the middle, sending fireworks into the sky above Sanford Stadium.

It was the longest game in SEC history and just one overtime shy of the record for any FBS game — Illinois’ 20-18 victory over Penn State in 2021 that went to nine extra periods.

King scored on an 11-yard run to give Georgia Tech a seemingly comfortable 27-13 lead with 5:37 remaining, but the Bulldogs drove 75 yards in eight plays to give themselves a chance. Beck connected with Dominic Lovett on a 17-yard touchdown pass with 3:39 to go.

Then, the Bulldogs’ defense forced a huge turnover by King after struggling to contain the slithery quarterback most of the game. He kept it himself on third-and-1 — only to cough up the ball on a big hit by Dan Jackson.

Chaz Chambliss recovered the fumble at the Yellow Jackets 32, and Beck quickly guided the Bulldogs to a tying touchdown on a 3-yard pass to Lovett with 1:01 left in regulation.

Then, it was on to overtime — and a game that just kept going and going.

Beck and King threw matching touchdown passes followed by conventional extra points. Then it was King scoring on a 1-yard run, only to have Beck respond with a 25-yard scoring pass to Cash Jones. Both teams failed to convert their 2-point tries, so it came down to nothing but 2-point tries.

Both teams converted in the fifth OT, but Frazier finally ended it by running it in from the 3 in the eighth extra period.

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