FSU gets kicked in the gut

Associated Press

ATLANTA

Call this one Kick Six, The Sequel. It may have ended Florida State’s national championship hopes.

Lance Austin picked up the ball after a blocked field goal and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown on the final play of the game, giving Georgia Tech a stunning 22-16 upset of the No. 9 Seminoles on Saturday night.

“Wow!” said Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson. “What a game, huh?”

What a game, indeed.

Roberto Aguayo, one of the most accurate kickers in the country, attempted a 56-yard field goal to win it for the Seminoles (6-1, 4-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) with 6 seconds remaining. But the kick was low, and Patrick Gamble managed to get a hand on it.

While most of the Georgia Tech players celebrated, Austin went back to retrieve the ball, rolling along inside the 25-yard line. Johnson was actually yelling for no one to pick it up, content to go to overtime with the score tied at 16.

Austin hesitated at first, looking like he would let it roll dead. But then he scooped it up, taking off the other way in front of the Georgia Tech bench. He avoided Aguayo’s diving attempt, then cut back on the final guy who had a shot at the tackle to win the game for Georgia Tech (3-5, 1-4).

“I go from yelling ‘get away from it’ to ‘run, run, run,”’ Johnson quipped.

On the Florida State sideline, coach Jimbo Fisher stoically removed his headset, clearly shocked at only the second loss in the last three seasons for the Seminoles.