University of Connecticut Athletics
Georgia Tech Rambles Past UConn
11/13/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
ATLANTA, Ga. – Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball passed for 288 yards and two touchdowns while kicker Travis Bell hit three field goals to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 30-10 college football win over Connecticut on Saturday at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
With the win, Georgia Tech improves to 6-3 on the season while Connecticut drops its third game in the last four contests and is 5-4.
Georgia Tech limited the Connecticut rushing game to just 20 yards on 24 carries as leading rusher Cornell Brockington had just five yards on nine carries in the first half. As a team, UConn had minus-11 yards of rushing in the first half. Brockington ended the game with 18 carries for 43 yards while quarterback Dan Orlovsky was 28 of 49 in the air for 205 yards.
Tech got on the board quickly as it marched the ball 80 yards on seven plays and Jimmy Dixon caught a four-yard TD pass from Reggie Ball to make it 7-0 Tech. The drive was highlighted by a 45-yard pass on the opening play from Ball to put the ball at the UConn 35-yard line.
UConn scored its only point of the first half on its first possession as kicker Matt Nuzie connected on a career-long 51-yard field goal with 8:47 left in the first period. The field goal was the conclusion of an eight play-13 yard scoring drive.
Georgia Tech took control of the game with three scores in the final 5:40 of the first half. Bell hit a 27-yard field goal with 5:40 left in the second quarter to end a 12 play-85 yard drive to make it 10-3.
Yellow Jacket Ajenavi Eziemefe then blocked a UConn punt which was recovered by Djay Jones and returned five yards for a touchdown that made it 17-3 with 2:13 left to play. UConn then went three-and-out to give Tech the ball back with 1:12 to go. The Yellow Jackets moved the ball 32 yards to set up another field goal by Bell – this time a 34-yarder – to give Tech a 20-3 halftime lead.
Georgia Tech scored the only points of the third quarter as Bell hit his third field goal of the game, this time a 29-yarder, after the Yellow Jackets blocked another Connecticut and got the ball at the Husky 15-yard line.
UConn fought to the very end as the Huskies drove 72 yards as the game wound down, culminating in a one-yard TD plunge by Chris Bellamy as time expired.
UConn returns to action next Saturday against Buffalo at 12:00 p.m. when it plays Buffalo in its final home game of the season at Rentschler Field. The game is an advance sellout.
POST GAME NOTES
TEAM NOTES
* UConn is 5-0 when scoring first and 0-4 when the opponent scores first. Georgia Tech struck first today.
* Georgia Tech’s two 85-yard TD drives were the longest against UConn since Kent State drive 95 yards for a touchdown on Oct. 18, 2003. They tie for the third longest drive against UConn in the Division I-A era.
* Georgia Tech’s blocked punt was the first one against UConn since Nate Jones of Rutgers got one on Nov. 8, 2003. It was also returned it for a touchdown. It is the fifth defensive or special teams touchdown yielded by UConn in 2004.
* UConn has now lost its last four games played on the 13th day of a month and six of seven since 1987.H NB
* The Huskies drop to 2-3 vs. active ACC teams since officially become a Division I-A program in 2004 and 1-2 on the road.
* UConn has lost consecutive games for the first time since Oct. 5-26, 2002 when the team lost three in a row.
* Five of UConn’s last six losses have come on the road.
INDIVIDUAL NOTES
* Matt Nuzie’s 51-yard field is his career long. It is the fifth longest in school history and the longest since Jim McManus hit a school-record 56-yard field goal on Oct. 3, 1998 at New Hampshire. It was also his 10th consecutive made field goal, breaking David DeArmas’ record string of nine set in 1994. The string was snapped on his 44-yard attempt later in the first quarter. It was his first miss since a 49-yard attempt against Army on Sept. 25. He moved into a tie for fifth place in UConn history with his 25 career field goals.
* Tyvon Branch made his first career start today as a cornerback. He is the sixth true freshman to start a game in the Division I-A era and the first this year. He is the second cornerback, joining Allan Barnes who started three games last year.
* Cornell Brockington was held under 100 yards rushing in a game which he started for just the second time in his career. The other was on Oct. 13 when he was held to 90 yards by West Virginia.
* Orlovsky has now thrown for over 2,500 yards in a season, the fifth time its been done in UConn history and he is the first UConn player to do so twice. Shane Stafford (1997), Cornelius Benton (1991), and Matt DeGennaro (1988) also did it. He also passed the milestone last fall, throwing for a school-record 3,485 yards.
