CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Georgia Tech has moved dangerously close to both a winning streak and bowl eligibility.
Haynes King ran for two touchdowns and threw for another, and Dontae Smith also ran for two scores as the Yellow Jackets beat Virginia 45-17 on Saturday, with their second victory in a row ending a season-long pattern of alternating wins and losses.
The Jackets improved to 5-4 overall and 4-2 in Atlantic Coast Conference play, giving them their highest win total in the last five seasons and moving them within a victory of qualifying for a bowl game.
Coach Brent Key was especially pleased that the victory came a week after his team rallied for a 46-42 home win against North Carolina, which was ranked 17th at the time. Earlier this year, the Jackets pulled off a stunning last-minute upset of Miami when the Hurricanes were No. 17, then lost the following week to Boston College,
“I thought it was important that we were able to put one game behind us, prepare the way you’re supposed to prepare, but also have the mindset the right way to be able to play for four quarters. And I thought that’s what the guys did,” Key said.
Virginia (2-7, 1-4) lost starting quarterback Tony Muskett on the fifth play of the game when he was hit hard as he released a deep pass that cornerback Myles Sims took away from intended receiver Malachi Fields.
The Jackets trailed 7-3 before King scored on a 2-yard run with 8:42 left in the second quarter. He added a 34-yard scoring burst with 2:24 left in the half, and Smith broke off a 33-yard run on a third-and-14 play 28 seconds before halftime.
Key said he was playing for a field goal before Smith broke the long run.
King hit Eric Singleton Jr. for a 58-yard touchdown on the opening series of the second half, and Smith bulled through the defense for a 10-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter. Jamal Haynes added a 43-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter as the Jackets piled up 514 yards a week after having 635, their most in an ACC game, in the victory over the Tar Heels.
Tech rushed for 305 yards against Virginia, which defeated North Carolina the week before the Jackets to hand the Heels their first loss of the season.
“We know with the running game comes the perimeter game, the perimeter screens, the passing game, you know, some of the shot plays,” Key said. “All in all, it opens up everything. And I think it allows the quarterback to sit back and really do what he does best. And that’s, you know, be the coach on the field, manage the game, put the ball where it needs to be and run the offense.”
King completed 23 for 30 passes for 208 yards and gained 83 yards on seven runs. Haynes finished with 119 yards on 17 carries, and Smith had 78 on 15.
Freshman Anthony Colandrea, who replaced Muskett, threw touchdown passes covering 9 yards to Joshua Rawlings and 8 yards to Kobe Pace, but he also lost a fumble, threw an interception and had another nullified by a penalty.
Cavaliers coach Tony Elliott said he took the blame for the loss.
“For a little while, we were going back and forth and it was competitive football,” he said. “And then we started making some critical mistakes, and they found some answers and made some adjustments that we could not adjust back to.”
Meanwhile, King’s ability to spread the ball around — he hit 10 receivers — and the effectiveness of Smith and Haynes as runners gives defenses plenty to pay attention to, making the quarterback even more effective as a runner. He was barely touched, if at all, on either of his touchdown runs.
“The dudes that we have everywhere, just get the ball to them. That’s my job now. Just get the ball to him. Distribute the ball and let them make plays,” King said.
Elliott was hoping to be able to redshirt Colandrea this season, and he even put Grady Brosterhous in when Muskett went down, but he switched to Colandrea in the same series after Brosterhous completed his first college pass for 21 yards to Malik Washington. Colandrea’s fifth appearance deprives him of a chance to redshirt.
The Jackets visit Clemson next Saturday, but the Cavaliers have a short week of preparation because they play at No. 15 Louisville on Thursday night.