Georgia defeated by West Virginia in 2006 Sugar Bowl
January 02, 2006 | Football
| West Virginia | 21 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 38 |
| Georgia | 0 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
Atlanta, Ga.---The Georgia Bulldogs were unable to overcome a 28-0 deficit and fell to West Virginia 38-35 in the Nokia Sugar Bowl in front of 74,458 fans at the Georgia Dome and an ABC national television audience. The Bulldogs finished the season with their fourth 10-win campaign in as many years.
Despite three touchdowns and a 277-yard passing performance by quarterback D.J. Shockley in his final collegiate game, the Bulldogs’ late rally fell short after they outscored the Mountaineers 35-10 to finish the game. Tailback Thomas Brown led Georgia with 78 yards rushing, including a 52-yard touchdown.
The Bulldogs managed to close the gap to 38-35 after Shockley connected with fellow senior Bryan McClendon for a 43-yard touchdown with 5:13 left in the fourth quarter. But after West Virginia punter Phil Brady shot up the middle to convert a fake punt on 4th-and-6 in the game’s final drive, the Mountaineers converted yet another first down and let the clock run out.
West Virginia jump-started the game’s scoring with three touchdowns in the first quarter - two by Darius Reynaud and one by Steve Slaton - and went up 28-0 with 14:10 remaining in the second quarter. The Bulldogs managed to register their first points at the 12:58 mark in the second quarter on Kregg Lumpkin’s career-long 34-yard touchdown run. Just more than four minutes later, Brown, the Bulldogs’ starting tailback, flew past West Virginia’s defense for a 52-yard touchdown to cut the Mountaineers lead to 28-14.
Following a West Virginia field goal, Shockley hit Leonard Pope for a 4-yard touchdown after the Bulldogs’ 76-yard drive. Georgia crept even closer to the Mountaineers in the third quarter on A.J. Bryant’s 34-yard scoring catch and went into the final period down 31-28.
But with the lead in reach for the first time, Steve Slaton, who finished with 204 yards and three touchdowns for West Virginia, scored a touchdown on his second 52-yard run of the game to clinch the victory for the Mountaineers.
While junior tight end Leonard Pope led the Bulldogs with six catches for 50 yards and a touchdown, linebacker Jarvis Jackson recorded a game-high 11 tackles for Georgia’s defense and Tony Taylor and Greg Blue each finished with eight tackles.
Worth Noting...
- Georgia’s captains for the Sugar Bowl were Mike Gilliam, D.J. Shockley, Kedric Golston and Max Jean-Gilles.
- D.J. Shockley tied Georgia’s mark for most touchdown passes in a season (24) after connecting with his receivers for three scores in the Sugar Bowl. Eric Zeier had 24 in 1993 and 1994.
- Kregg Lumpkin’s 34-yard touchdown run in the second quarter was his longest rush of the season and of his career.
- Thomas Brown notched a 52-yard touchdown against West Virginia, which tied for the game’s longest run and was the longest run of his career with the Bulldogs.
Mark Richt said . . .
“My hat’s off to West Virginia. They did a great job. At least we didn’t lay down and die. Being down 28, we just couldn’t make enough plays to win it. Going for the fake punt showed a lot of guts and great execution (by West Virginia). You’ve got to give them credit. But I’m proud of our seniors especially, these two guys right here (D.J. Shockley, DeMario Minter), just good men.”
Quarter by Quarter
WV-S. Slaton 52-yd. run (P. McAfee kick), 12:12, 1st Q
WV-Reynaud 13-yd. pass from P. White (P. McAfee kick), 06:27, 1st Q
WV-D. Reynaud 13-yd. run (P. McAfee kick), 04:27, 1st Q
WV-S. Slaton 18-yd. run (P. McAfee kick), 14:10, 2nd Q
GA-K. Lumpkin 34-yd. run (B. Coutu kick), 12:58, 2nd Q
GA-T. Brown 52-yd. run (B. Coutu kick), 08:52, 2nd Q
WV-P. McAfee 27-yd. field goal 05:37, 2nd Q
GA-L. Pope 4-yd. pass from Shockley (B. Coutu kick), 00:58, 2nd Q
GA-A.J. Bryant 34-yd. pass from Shockley (Coutu kick), 01:44, 3rd Q
WV-S. Slaton 52-yd. run (P. McAfee kick), 08:32, 4th Q
GA-B McClendon 43-yd. pass from Shockley (Coutu kick), 05:13, 4th Q
GAME STATISTICS
| | Georgia | West Virginia |
| First Downs | 27 | 27 |
| Rushing: Att.-Yards | 28-224 | 63-382 |
| Passing: Comp.-Att.-Yds.-Int | 20-33-277-0 | 11-14-120-0 |
| Total Plays-Total Net Yards | 61-501 | 77-502 |
| Fumbles: Number-Lost | 4-3 | 1-0 |
| Penalties: Number-Yards | 4-50 | 9-74 |
| Punts: Number-Yards (Avg.) | 3-137 (45.7) | 4-144 (36.0) |
| Kickoff Returns: Number-Yards | 2-28 | 5-111 |
| Time of Possession | 24:01 | 35:59 |
| Third Down Conversions | 5-10 (50%) | 7-14 (50%) |
| Fourth Down Conversions | 1-1 | 2-2 |
| Sacks By: Number-Yards | 2-14 | 0-0 |
STATISTICAL LEADERS
| Att. | Yds. | TD | Long | |
| S. Slaton (WVU) | 26 | 204 | 3 | 52 |
| T. Brown (UGA) | 9 | 78 | 1 | 52 |
| | ||||
| Passing | Att. | Comp. | Yds. | TD |
| P. White (WVU) | 14 | 11 | 120 | 1 |
| D.J. Shockley (UGA) | 33 | 20 | 277 | 3 |
| | ||||
| Receiving | Rec. | Yds. | TD | Long |
| D. Reynaud (WVU) | 6 | 48 | 1 | 17 |
| L. Pope (UGA) | 6 | 50 | 1 | 15 |
| | ||||
| Punting | No. | Yds. | Avg. | Long |
| P. Brady (WVU) | 4 | 144 | 36.0 | 41 |
| G. Ely-Kelso (UGA) | 3 | 137 | 45.7 | 51 |
| | ||||
| Tackles | UT | AT | Tot. | |
| M. Lorello (WVU) | 7 | 1 | 8 | |
| J. Jackson (UGA) | 11 | 0 | 11 |
