Georgia Tech couldn’t keep pace Saturday night against No. 18 Tennessee.
The Yellow Jackets hosted a second consecutive marquee matchup in front of a sold-out crowd at Bobby Dodd Stadium. But unlike the Colorado loss that went down to the final play in the season opener, Tennessee built an early two-score lead and eventually pulled away for a 45-24 victory.
The loss marked the first time Tech has started a season 0-2 since 1989 and extended the Jackets’ losing streak against SEC opponents to 13 games.
“I’m not going to walk up here and say, ‘we improved,’ and try to find good things and all that,” said Jackets’ coach Brent Key. “But our style of play was how we want it to be at Georgia Tech. Does that mean we went out and played a good football game? No, obviously we didn’t.”
After trailing by 21 early in the third quarter, the Jackets sprang to life.
Justice Haynes scored Tech’s first offensive touchdown of the season on a 2-yard pass from quarterback Alberto Mendoza with 7:10 to play in the third quarter, cutting Tennessee’s lead to two touchdowns.
The Jackets drove inside the 10-yard line on their next possession, but Mendoza was sacked and then threw an incompletion on fourth down.
“It’s brutal,” Mendoza said. “We needed that score, so honestly I’m going to try to put the ball in the end zone, force the ball in there. We needed it, and I didn’t convert.
“That’s non-negotiable on that one.”
Tennessee added two more touchdowns late in the fourth quarter, with Haynes scoring a 2-yard rushing touchdown with 1:39 to play between them.
Many of the issues that plagued Tech last week resurfaced against the Volunteers (2-0).
Key was forced to shuffle the offensive line due to injuries, and Mendoza threw two first-half interceptions, one returned for a Tennessee touchdown and the other with the Jackets in field goal range.
Meanwhile the Tech defense allowed 299 rushing yards, and Tennessee true freshman quarterback Faizon Brandon threw two touchdowns. Volunteers senior running back DeSean Bishop finished with 147 rushing yards and two scores.
Haynes finished with 81 yards rushing on 14 carries and six catches for 36 yards. Mendoza was 26-for-40 with 221 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He was sacked four times.
The game began with back-and-forth swings.
Tech returned a blocked punt for a touchdown in the first quarter to take a 10-7 lead. Freshman Trae Stevenson Jr. had the block, sophomore Elgin Sessions scooped it for the score.
In the second quarter, Tennessee’s Dejuan Lane intercepted Mendoza near the line of scrimmage and raced the other way for a 41-yard touchdown and the lead.
“The swing in momentum with Dejuan reading it, recognizing it and attacking the football was a huge play in the football game,” said Tennessee coach Josh Heupal. “Big-time play by him.”
Amid the excitement, Tennessee’s offense consistently drove down the field.
The Volunteers’ first drive of the game needed only three plays to reach the end zone. Brandon hit Ethan Davis for a 25-yard touchdown. Brandon passed for another touchdown, to Braylon Staley in the second quarter, to give the Vols a 24-10 lead at halftime.
The Jackets host Mercer next week before beginning ACC play Sept. 26 at Stanford.
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