Stop me if you’ve heard this story before. UVA football dominated the first half, and still came away a loser.
The Cavs lost 31-17 at Georgia Tech on Saturday, despite outgaining the Yellow Jackets, having more than twice as many first downs, and holding a 17-minute advantage in time of possession.
The issue: red-zone inefficiency, and, again, turnovers.
Virginia (2-9, 1-6 ACC) scored on three of their four red-zone possessions, but one of the scores was a field goal, and the blemish was a missed field goal.
The ‘Hoos also failed to convert a field-goal attempt just outside the red zone after stopping Georgia Tech on a fourth-and-one from their own 29, then going three-and-out.
Meanwhile, senior quarterback Matt Johns, in his first start of the season, threw three fourth-quarter interceptions setting up 10 Yellow Jacket points, the final blow coming on a 24-yard picksix return by Lance Austin with 4:03 left.
The picksix was the fourth thrown by a Virginia quarterback this season, the other three thrown by Kurt Benkert, who was benched this week after starting the first 10 games of 2016.
Johns was expected to provide a spark, and decidedly did not, completing 27 of his 44 pass attempts for 220 yards and one touchdown, with the three interceptions, and a passer rating of 97.2.
Virginia did outgain Georgia Tech 409-321, and the defense held Tech (7-4, 4-4 ACC) to 18 yards of offense in the first quarter, and nine yards in the fourth quarter.
The undoing was big plays – a 67-yard Marcus Marshall second-quarter touchdown, a Clinton Lynch 54-yard TD catch in the third quarter, a Qua Searcy 60-yard run later in the third.
The first Johns interception set up a field goal after a three-and-out, and a second was the picksix.
The third came on a meaningless Hail Mary pass on the final play of the game.
UVA ran for 189 yards, with Taquan Mizzell gaining 131 yards on 24 carries, and backup Albert Reid adding 63 yards on 12 rushes.
Doni Dowling had nine catches on 13 targets for 68 yards. Mizzell had six catches on seven targets for 45 yards.
Virginia had a massive advantage in plays from scrimmage – 88-41 – and had the ball for 38:37 while piling up a 25-8 advantage in first downs.
The Cavs finish the 2016 season next weekend at Virginia Tech.
Story by Chris Graham
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