Five key plays from Pitt's win over Georgia Tech

A fake that failed, a flea-flicker that worked, a bad penalty and more are among the five big plays that impacted Pitt’s 24-19 win over Georgia Tech on Saturday.

The fake punt
Pitt’s offense found success on its second drive of the game to take an early 7-0 lead, but Georgia Tech’s offense is never an easy one to keep under control, so more points were always going to be necessary. At the same time, the Yellow Jackets aren’t exactly built to play from behind, as the option-based offense operates much more effectively with a lead.

It was curious, then, that GT head coach Paul Johnson opted to try a fake punt at the end of his team’s third possession. The Yellow Jackets had just gone three-and-out and were facing a fourth-and-7 at their own 28. Already trailing by a touchdown, it would have seemed to be ideal to try to force Pitt to go the length of the field - more ideal than risking favorable field position with a fake punt. The play turned out to be a direct snap to defensive lineman Antwan Owens, who not only didn’t gain the necessary seven yards but lost two yards thanks to Jim Medure’s tackle.

The Panthers took over at the GT 26 and scored three plays later to create a 14-0 hole Georgia Tech couldn’t dig out of.

The flea-flicker
Pitt was still leading 14-0 in the second quarter when Georgia Tech failed on another fourth-down attempt. This time, a TaQuon Marshall pass on fourth-and-5 was incomplete and the Panthers took the ball at their own 23. On first down, with two receivers on the field, quarterback Kenny Pickett handed off the Darrin Hall.

Hall headed toward the line of scrimmage and then stopped, turned around and pitched it back to Pickett, who stepped up in the pocket and heaved a deep pass to receiver Taysir Mack. Mack had a step on the defensive back who was in coverage and made the catch for a 60-yard gain. The play moved the Panthers inside the 20 and three handoffs got the home team its third touchdown of the game.

The Wirginis sack
There aren’t going to be a lot of sacks in a game against an option team, and Pitt only had one on Saturday. But it was a big one.

On the Georgia Tech drive after Pitt’s touchdown to go ahead 21-0, the Yellow Jackets were driving. They opened the possession with a 42-yard run on first down and found themselves inside the Pitt 35 after a dropped pass. But on third-and-9 from the Pitt 32, Marshall held onto the ball too long and redshirt senior linebacker Quintin Wirginis got to him for the lone sack of the game.

Wirginis had seven tackles in the game, including that sack, as he manned the middle of the defense for the Panthers. That play turned away the Georgia Tech offense, and the Yellow Jackets wouldn’t score in the first half.

The facemask
There were a few angles to the facemask penalty on Patrick Jones during Georgia Tech’s first drive of the second half. Most notably, it wasn’t actually a facemask, since on replay it appeared that Jones’ hand was only on the top of Marshall’s helmet rather than the facemask itself.

More significantly, the penalty came in a crucial situation for Pitt’s defense. The Panthers, with the help of a false start penalty, had forced Georgia Tech into a third-and-17 from the GT 33. That’s a terrible spot for the option offense and Pitt’s defense was ready to get off the field when Jones was hit with a flag that gave the Yellow Jackets a free first down.

Even worse was the fact that Marshall fumbled on the play. On replay, the ball appeared to be coming out before Jones hit Marshall, but the officials ruled that it happened after the hit, thus allowing the penalty to negate Rashad Weaver’s fumble recovery that would have given the Panthers the ball in field goal range, at the very least.

The penalty was also Jones’ third in the last two games, and all three have come in third-down situation where Pitt’s defense was ready to get off the field. Instead, Georgia Tech’s offense kept the drive alive and turned it into a touchdown.

The Motley pick
By the time the fourth quarter started, Pitt was sitting on a 24-12 lead that felt quite tenuous. The Panthers had punted on their drive after the Yellow Jackets scored their second touchdown, and Georgia Tech punt returner Brad Stewart set up the visitors at the Pitt 46.

A few plays later, Georgia Tech was inside the Pitt 35 with roughly 10 minutes left on the clock. On third-and-6, Marshall dropped back to pass but was well off the mark on his intended receiver. Pitt cornerback Phillipie Motley had a read on the ball and grabbed it for his first career interception.

The play was a mess for Georgia Tech, as several linemen seemed to miss the snap cadence and Marshall’s receiver wasn’t on the same page either. But Motley made the heads-up play and turned away the Yellow Jackets, who were threatening to make the game a one-score affair. His pick also gave the offense a chance to put the game away, and while Pickett and company didn’t quite reach the end zone, they did take nearly five minutes off the clock, severely narrowing the time available for Georgia Tech to stage a comeback.