Haynes King threw for four touchdowns and Georgia Tech, which didn’t lead until the final five minutes, finally caught up with No. 17 North Carolina and pulled out a 46-42 victory Saturday night in Atlanta.
King threw 5 yards to tight end Brett Seither for a touchdown with 4:28 left.
On its next possession, North Carolina lost the ball on receiver Devontez Walker’s fumble with 2:54 remaining. The Tar Heels never got the ball back.
Georgia Tech racked up 635 yards of total offense, with Dontae Smith gaining 178 yards on 22 carries. King ran for 90 yards, and Jamal Haynes had 80 yards and a touchdown on the ground. The Yellow Jackets (4-4, 3-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) rushed for 348 yards.
The Tar Heels (6-1, 3-2) lost to a team with a losing record for the second week in a row after a stunning setback to visiting Virginia a week earlier. North Carolina has also lost 11 times in last 13 road games in the series with Georgia Tech.
North Carolina running back Omarion Hampton gained 153 rushing yards with two touchdowns on 29 carries. Drake Maye threw for two touchdowns and 310 yards.
The Tar Heels began the fourth quarter with a 35-24 lead but couldn’t break free from the Yellow Jackets.
Georgia Tech had an 88-yard touchdown drive on its first possession of the fourth quarter, scoring on Haynes’ 4-yard run. After North Carolina scored in two plays, the Yellow Jackets needed just two plays to go 75 yards, and it was within 42-39.
The Tar Heels tried to pad their lead, but Noah Burnette was wide left on a 39-yard attempted field goal. It was his first miss in 12 tries this season.
Georgia Tech had another quick drive, going 79 yards on six plays for the go-ahead points.
Seither has five catches this season, four counting for touchdowns. Two of those came Saturday night, while teammate Malik Rutherford also made two TD catches. Eric Singleton Jr. had 117 yards on eight catches.
North Carolina held first-half leads of 14-0 and 21-7 before settling for a 28-24 halftime edge after Georgia Tech’s Aidan Birr kicked a 40-yard field goal on the last play of the half.
Maye had a touchdown throw to Bryson Nesbit of 14 yards in the first half.
The Yellow Jackets managed all their points without scoring in either the first or third quarters.
–Field Level Media