Georgia Tech left Stanford with a 34-27 loss, and the game turned on a few ugly stretches that the Yellow Jackets never quite cleaned up.
The biggest problem was the flag parade. Georgia Tech was hit with a heavy dose of penalties, and the holding calls on Malachi Carney, Jordan Floyd, and Markell Samuel repeatedly wiped out momentum.
Several drives that looked like they were finally getting somewhere got dragged backward instead. The Yellow Jackets did create some extra room in the run game, but every time they landed a third-down conversion or popped a big play, a penalty seemed to drag it right back.
That was a major part of why the third quarter went sideways and Stanford found its way back into the game.
That quarter was the swing point. Georgia Tech entered halftime up 20-10, then watched Stanford rip off a 17-0 run.
The Yellow Jackets managed only 26 yards on offense in the period, while the defense gave up 237 yards. Stanford struck with chunk plays, including a 49-yard pass to Caden High and a 33-yard touchdown to Nico Brown.
A lot of those snaps came with the corners left alone in coverage, and Stanford quarterback Davis Warren kept finding the answers no matter whether Georgia Tech was in one-on-one looks or even double coverage.
Warren finished with a career day: 396 passing yards and three touchdowns. High had one too, with four catches for 121 yards and two scores. Georgia Tech’s pass defense, which had been solid this season, just didn’t hold up once the injuries piled up and the game started tilting Stanford’s way.
The secondary was already thin with Trae Stevenson Jr. and Jaylen Mbakwe out, and the situation got worse when Daiquan White went down after a strong start of his own. From there, Stanford went after the inexperienced group on the field.
True freshman Jaedyn Terry got targeted heavily in his first real action, and Jon Mitchell and Zachary Tobe were attacked in coverage as well. Terry was in single coverage on a lot of the plays that went against him, but it wasn’t limited to one defender.
Stanford found openings across the board and Georgia Tech never really solved it.
There was at least one bright spot on defense. Jordan IV stepped up in Kyle Efford’s absence and was around the ball all night.
He led the team with six tackles, including four solo stops, and added a tackle for loss. With the run-defense issues that had been hanging over Georgia Tech, his work helped the Yellow Jackets hold Stanford to 88 rushing yards.
Offensively, Mendoza had his moments. He completed 67% of his passes, posted a 136.2 quarterback rating, and threw for 268 yards and two touchdowns.
He also extended plays with his legs and kept the offense moving at times. But the finish was rough.
On the final two drives, he had a miscommunication on a look toward Dalen Penson that ended in an interception, then later took an intentional grounding penalty that turned a 4th and 13 into a 4th and 45. That sequence slammed the door on Georgia Tech’s best chance to stay in it.
Mendoza did plenty to keep the Yellow Jackets alive, but the late situational mistakes were too costly. Georgia Tech had chances, then penalties, coverage busts, and one bad stretch after another took them away.
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