RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) – North Carolina State nearly clawed its way back from a 21-point deficit – only to fall into an even deeper hole.
By the time the Wolfpack started to come back from that one, it was too late.
No. 21 Georgia Tech beat N.C. State 45-35 on Saturday behind three touchdown runs from Orwin Smith. The Yellow Jackets (5-0, 2-0 ACC) started a season with five wins for the first time since their national championship season of 1990, but not before N.C. State put a brief scare into them.
After the Wolfpack closed within a touchdown in the third quarter, Georgia Tech scored three touchdowns in a 2-minute, 20-second span of the fourth to pull away. N.C. State then made things interesting with two touchdowns in the final minute, but coach Tom O’Brien’s team had fallen too far behind.
“We gave up some big plays,” O’Brien said. “We made some plays of our own, though. We do a little better there offensively, and other things like (stopping) the fake punt, who knows where the game is in in the fourth quarter.”
The medically compromised N.C. State defense – which started its third combination of defensive linemen in five games – spotted Georgia Tech a 21-0 lead a few seconds into the second quarter. The Wolfpack (2-3, 0-2) closed to 21-14 on James Washington’s 46-yard touchdown run in the third.
But twice in that quarter and three times in the game, N.C. State faced fourth-and-short – and twice the defense jumped offsides to hand over first downs. The second time came during a 13-play drive that saw the Yellow Jackets eat up 7:55.
Then, already down 28-14, Mike Glennon was picked off by Tech’s Isaiah Johnson – who returned it 34 yards for a score.
“(The pick-6) hurt us,” N.C. State linebacker Audie Cole said. “Penalties hurt us. It’s hard to come back from those things especially when they decided who wins and loses. We didn’t do the things today to stop (the mistakes).”
Glennon finished 20 of 29 for 163 yards with touchdown passes covering 9 yards to Jay Smith and 1 yard to Tyler Purvis for the Wolfpack (2-3, 0-2), who remained winless against Bowl Subdivision teams.
Tevin Washington completed just four passes for Georgia Tech – but two were touchdowns, covering 9 yards to David Sims and 38 yards to Roddy Jones. He rushed for 43 yards but finished 4 of 12 for 117 yards through the air.
“I’ve got to do a better job of putting the ball in an area where receivers can make a play,” Washington said. “I think I was rushing myself. I was in a hurry a lot, when I had more time than I thought I did.”
James Washington, starting for the injured Curtis Underwood, rushed for a career-high 131 yards for the Wolfpack.
N.C. State made things interesting with two touchdowns in the final 34 seconds, including Brandan Bishop’s 33-yard return of Synjyn Days’ fumble with 20 seconds left to finish the scoring.
“We made plays when we had to, but I think you have to give their kids credit,” Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson said. “The game was probably closer than it needed to be.”
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