This season's edition of "Clean, Old-Fashioned Hate" was a low-scoring affair, and it was Georgia that emerged victorious, coming away with a 13-7 road win over Georgia Tech on Saturday. Here's the rundown:
What the win means for Georgia: The Bulldogs end the regular season with four straight wins and sit at 9-3 overall. Is that good enough for coach Mark Richt to continue in his current role? Only time will tell. From a rivalry standpoint, Georgia avenges its 2014 loss to the Yellow Jackets (30-24 in overtime) and improves its advantage in the all-time series to 65-38-5. Now it awaits a bowl destination. Fans had hoped this team would win an SEC East title and get in College Football Playoff contention. But the season fell below those expectations, causing debate about Richt and his future.
What the loss means for Georgia Tech: It ends a rough season for the Yellow Jackets, who close out 4-8 overall. They went from the high of an Orange Bowl win in January to the nightmare of their worst season since 1994, when they went 1-10. They lost six games by eight points or fewer, including Saturday's, making it easy to wonder what could have been. They battled injuries and had plenty of youth on the field -- 23 freshmen played, fifth most among Power 5 programs this season -- which didn't help matters.
How the game was won: Georgia scored on the game's first drive via 34-yard Sony Michel touchdown run on fourth-and-1 and kept Georgia Tech off the scoreboard for most of the day. The Yellow Jackets didn't register their first points until the 3:24 mark in the fourth quarter, and by that time Georgia kicker Marshall Morgan had tacked on two field goals to extend the lead to double digits. After Georgia Tech cut the deficit to six points on a 15-yard scoring pass from Justin Thomas to Ricky Jeune, Georgia put the game away with a six-play, 48-yard drive that ate up 3:07, and ended it with a Malkom Parrish interception of Thomas on the final play. Georgia's defense held Georgia Tech to only 276 yards, below the Yellow Jackets' season average of 387.3 yards entering Saturday. The Bulldogs' defense also came up with three turnovers; the offense committed none.
Player of the game: Michel. The sophomore running back surpassed the season 1,000-yard rushing mark, finishing the day with 149 yards and a touchdown. Michel has done an admirable job of filling in for Nick Chubb, who was lost for the season after suffering a knee injury in mid-October. Michel finished the regular season with 1,076 rushing yards and seven touchdowns and had at least 22 carries in six of Georgia's final seven games.