Georgia Tech held a lead inside the final minute Thursday night against Colorado.
The Yellow Jackets couldn’t hang on — and for a moment, they still had a chance to win the season opener.
Colorado blocked Aidan Birr’s 45-yard field-goal attempt at the buzzer to secure a 14-13 victory in front of a stunned, sold-out crowd of 52,113 at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
“Whether we won the game or lost the game, there’s a lot of lessons and a lot of things we’ve got to get better at,” Tech coach Brent Key said.
Until the final 90 seconds, the Jackets had controlled the second half.
Redshirt freshman Kevin Roche Jr. blocked Colorado’s fourth-quarter field goal attempt and Tech extended its lead to 13-7 on a Birr field goal with 1:40 remaining.
Colorado quarterback Julian Lewis marched the Buffaloes for the go-ahead touchdown with 37 seconds left, connecting with tight end Charlie Williams from 20 yards out.
Lewis finished 14-of-27 for 124 yards. The former Carrollton High star struggled for most of the night until completing four passes on Colorado’s winning drive.
“Critical times in the game, you have to be at your best,” Key said.
The Jackets entered the season with new coordinators on offense and defense, a first-time starting quarterback in Alberto Mendoza and key contributors brought in through the transfer portal across the depth chart.
While unveiling the new look, Tech racked up nine penalties and the offense rushed for just 51 yards and failed to score a touchdown.
Still, it looked as if Mendoza, the Indiana transfer, had notched his first signature moment with the Jackets.
After Colorado’s go-ahead touchdown, Mendoza found Dalen Penson on a 42-yard pass to set up the potential game-winning kick.
It didn’t get past the line of scrimmage cleanly.
Mendoza finished 17-of-23 for 237 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions. But he also was sacked three times and fumbled an early exchange with Trelain Maddox.
“I wish we would have executed better, and I know everyone on the offense wishes that,” Mendoza said. “Really kicking ourselves right now because we wanted that. We’ll get better.”
Tech’s only turnover of the night led to Colorado taking a 7-0 lead with a 5-yard run by Micah Welch early in the second quarter.
Tech senior Rahkeem Smith answered Colorado’s score with a 100-yard kickoff return touchdown. Birr added a 22-yard field goal to give the Jackets the lead before halftime.
Now, No. 20 Tennessee looms next week. The Volunteers play Furman on Saturday before traveling to Atlanta on Sept. 12 for the Jackets’ second consecutive home matchup with a nationally-relevant foe.
Coming off a losing season, expectations for Colorado on the field entering Thursday were muted.
But with Deion Sanders as the opposing coach and ESPN televising the weekday game, Georgia Tech had an opportunity to make a statement, about this season and the future. Scouts from at least 10 NFL teams and recruits from nearly 300 high schools were in attendance.
Tech announced earlier this week that tickets had sold out, the third straight sellout at Bobby Dodd Stadium dating back to last season. Such a streak hadn’t happened since 2002.
The Jackets were unable to take advantage of the environment and attention.
“I’m pretty sure ESPN was happy with the game and how it played out,” Sanders said. “They never flinched, man. I told people on the sideline, ‘We’re going to make it very, very interesting but we’re going to win this game.’”
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