Tennessee beats Georgia 34-31 with Hail Mary on final play

The Volunteers have had to come from behind in four of their five victories, and it took a Hail Mary on the final play of the game to beat Georgia on Saturday.

In a sea of red jerseys in Athens, Georgia, end zone, receiver Jauan Jennings came down with the winning TD.

But an excessive celebration penalty on the go-ahead touchdown, what was essentially a Hail Mary score that brought with it the typical Hail Mary celebration, pushed the Dogs back for the ensuing kickoff. Evan Berry then returned the short kick 20 yards to Georgia’s 48, but an offside penalty by Georgia on the kick moved the ball to the 43.

The 34-31 result sent Georgia (3-2, 1-2 SEC) out of the national polls Sunday, making Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. game at SC (2-3, 1-3) a matchup of unranked teams for the first time in the series since 1997.

Fifteen years later, on October 1, 2016 in Athens, Georgia, Tennessee returned the favor. The quarterback saw the clock run out in the 2012 SEC championship game loss to Alabama five yards from the end zone after a Chris Conley catch. Consider, too, that Dobbs is from nearby Alpharetta, Ga., and he wasn’t recruited by the same Georgia program that got its heart ripped out by his pass that traveled 43 yards toward Jennings’ welcoming hands. Young finished with three tackles. Michel took a handoff but fumbled into the end zone when hit by Vol linebacker Colton Jumper.

Tennessee defensive back Todd Kelly Jr.: “Speechless”.

The SEC announced the television schedule and kickoff times for the October 15 slate of games on Monday afternoon. Sony Michel had 16 carries for 91 yards and Brian Herrien had 74 yards on 15 carries.

Tennessee outscored Georgia 20-7 in the fourth quarter on Saturday – with 19 seconds it was 14-0 – to push its season scoring total in the final frame to 69-21. From my vantage point I could see him come down with the ball, land on his back, and all I could see was a mad rush to the field.

Georgia did a great job running the ball getting large chunks of yardage on the ground and opening up the passing attack for Jacob Eason.

Ten seconds earlier, Georgia’s Riley Ridley had given the Bulldogs a miracle, catching a 47-yard touchdown to make it 31-28, Georgia. The No. 11 Vols overcame a 17-point deficit to rally past No. 25 Georgia 34-31 at Sanford Stadium.

That was senior quarterback Josh Dobbs with the well-timed, accurate pass, and sophomore wide receiver Jauan Jennings hauling it in, earning instant immortality in Knoxville for his role in a 34-31 win. But the Bulldogs’ drought of reaching the league title game in Atlanta looks likely to be extended another year after division leader Tennessee put some more distance between itself and the Bulldogs.

In the blink of an eye, Davis was running 100 yards the other way and scored a stunning game-winning touchdown to defeat the Crimson Tide. Dobbs rolled right out of the pocket and found Hurd in stride to bring UT within three, 17-14.

Georgia turned it into a 27-yard field goal from Rodrigo Blankenship, the first of his college career.

Auburn (3-2) kept the momentum from last week’s win over LSU going, as the Tigers scored touchdowns on eight of their 11 drives against the overmatched Warhawks (1-3).

(23) Florida 13, Vanderbilt 6: In Nashville, Tenn., Jordan Scarlett had a 4-yard touchdown run and Eddy Pineiro made two field goals in Florida’s victory. The sack on Eason that led to Tennessee scoring was because Barnett had an easy path to the backfield. An offense guided by an experienced passer and a defense stuffed with National Football League athletes shouldn’t have had to play it so close just to get here.