KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 15/15 Tennessee pushed No. 6/3 Georgia to the brink but came up just short, falling 44-41 in overtime on Saturday in front of a sellout, Checker Neyland crowd of 101,915 at Neyland Stadium.
The Vols (2-1, 0-1 SEC) scored first in the extra frame on a 42-yard Max Gilbert field goal to go up, 41-38, but the Bulldogs (3-0, 1-0 SEC) responded with a game-winning touchdown on a one-yard run by Josh McCray to stay unbeaten.
With the game tied at 38 late in regulation, UT drove from its own 25 to the UGA 25 and nearly knocked off UGA. A 43-yard Gilbert attempt with three seconds remaining, though, was off the mark and sent the game to OT.
At the game’s outset, each team found the end zone on its opening drive. Tennessee opened the proceedings by covering 75 yards in eight plays, with quarterback Joey Aguilar scurrying into the checkerboard on a four-yard keeper. Georgia countered with its own 75-yard drive, with quarterback Gunner Stockton scoring from six yards out to help the Bulldogs even the score.
The Vols needed only two plays to retake the lead, as Aguilar went deep to wide receiver Chris Brazzell II for a 72-yard touchdown. The Big Orange struck again on its third possession, moving ahead 21-7 on a 14-yard strike from Aguilar to Brazzell and carrying that lead into the second stanza with Aguilar displaying 14-of-14 passing accuracy for 213 yards in the opening 15 minutes.
Georgia cut the gap to seven early in the second period on a 36-yard reception by wide receiver Zachariah Branch from Stockton and pulled within four, 21-17, on a 20-yard Peyton Woodring field goal at the 1:42 mark that closed out the scoring in the first half. The Bulldogs extended their run of points to 20 straight late in the third, grabbing their first lead at 24-21 with 7:19 remaining on a one-yard plunge from McCray and extending the margin to 27-21 on a 48-yard Woodring kick with 1:45 to go.
The Vols came up with a huge play at the end of the third quarter to stem the UGA momentum and retake the lead, getting a 56-yard bomb from Aguilar to Brazzell to move ahead 28-27 with the duo’s third scoring connection of the contest. After a 24-yard Woodring field goal moved the Bulldogs back on top, 30-28, Tennessee answered the bell once more, scoring on a 32-yard Aguilar to Braylon Staley strike to forge a 35-30 advantage with 11:01 to go.
The Vol defense set up its offensive mates to build the lead to eight. After edge rusher Joshua Josephs stripped the ball from Stockton and tackle Bryson Eason recovered on the UGA 34 at the 8:21 mark, the Big Orange settled for a 48-yard Max Gilbert field goal that put his team up, 38-30 with 6:40 to go. The lead was short lived, however, as Georgia scored on a 28-yard strike from Stockton to London Humphreys on fourth-and-7 and added the two-point conversion on a pass from Stockton to Branch to even the game at 38 with 2:32 on the clock.
Tennessee put together a gutsy march on its final possession of regulation, including a key 12-yard connection from Aguilar to Staley on third-and-8 to keep the drive alive. The Vols methodically moved down the field into field goal range at the UGA 20, where an Aguilar keeper better positioned the ball in between the hash marks for his kicker. The Big Orange was flagged for illegal procedure on the play, however, moving the ball back five years and resulting in a kick from the left hash that sailed wide right.
In only his third game with UT and at the Power 4 level, Aguilar completed 24-of-36 passes for a season-high 371 yards and four touchdowns. He found Brazzell for three of those scores and 177 receiving yards, both career bests for the wideout. Staley finished with nine catches for 97 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, linebacker Arion Carter and safety Andre Turrentine recorded career highs for tackles with 14 and 10, respectively, to pace Tennessee. Redshirt sophomore edge rusher Caleb Herring applied constant pressure to Georgia, totaling four tackles, including 2.5 tackles for losses, 1.5 sacks and a hurry, while freshman corner Ty Redmond notched his first career interception.
UP NEXT
The Vols play their third straight game at home next week, as UAB visits Knoxville for a 12:45 p.m. ET contest televised by SEC Network.
