In just his fifth game as a college quarterback, Jacob Eason delivered his second miraculous moment for the Bulldogs. This time, a 47-yard touchdown pass to Riley Ridley to give No. 25 Georgia a 31-28 lead over No. 11 Tennessee.

Unfortunately for Eason and his teammate, the touchdown pass came 10 seconds too soon.

A penalty helped put Tennessee in position to attempt a last-second Hail Mary, and the Vols capitalized in a moment that will go down in the annals of college football.

The all-too-familiar sickening loss is undeniably painful for Georgia fans. Kirby Smart’s team had stood toe-to-toe with a team many believed would play in Atlanta at season’s end only to watch the victory slip away in front of a stunned home crowd.

Smart summarized that feeling after the game saying, “I am not into moral victories. I am sick to my stomach for these kids, because we deserved to win that game, but we had undisciplined penalties that cost us that game.”

He’s right. The Bulldogs did enough to defeat the Volunteers, which is why the loss tastes so bitter.

Georgia looked clearly outmatched against Ole Miss, but that wasn’t the case Saturday. The hustle plays were made by the home team, the Bulldogs’ defense held Tennessee to 357 yards of offense and came up with several turnovers, none bigger than Deandre Baker’s ball-jarring hit as Jalen Hurd strolled into the end zone.

That eliminated a sure Vols touchdown and led to a Georgia score, but it wasn’t enough.

This wasn’t a loss that happened on the field, but in the mental aspect of the game. Tennessee is a veteran team that knows how crucial a late penalty can be. Georgia is full of young players, who just learned that lesson the hard way.

However, on a painful night, there is a reason for optimism. Eason, who beat Missouri on a late fourth-down touchdown throw on the road, again proved he’s capable of leading Georgia to big places, and he proved it on national television against a ranked rival.

His last touchdown pass was as pretty as they come. Eason stepped up into the pocket to avoid Tennessee’s pass rush, gathered himself, and let loose a ball that split two defenders and found Ridley in stride in the end zone. On that pass, the freshman quarterback once again justified his immense recruiting hype.

https://vine.co/v/56ZpKV39VWK

“Jacob extended the play, they got stretched out, and his arm gives him the ability to make that throw,” Smart said of Eason’s touchdown pass. “A lot of guys can’t make that throw, because it’s so long that the safety would have broken on it and gotten it out.”

It was his fourth-straight completion on Georgia’s final drive that covered 81 yards in 57 seconds, and many of Eason’s other throws were zipped into tight windows.

Eason, who finished 17-of-28 for 211 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception, didn’t have a great statistical night. He missed a few wide open players and made some questionable decisions. His fumble in the end zone appeared to give Tennessee the victory, but there’s very little a quarterback could have done in that situation. Still, it’s clear that there are areas in which Eason needs to improve.

“I’m proud of the kid,” Smart said. “He’s got to play better and with more consistency, but look at what he can do. He’s got talent, he’s got composure. He’s got better composure than I do.

“He’s just got to play with a little more consistency. He’s got two or three reads a game where he gets off kilter and starts looking at the rush. And, hey, he’s a freshman, but we can’t accept it.”

Despite his mistakes, Eason displayed an intangible crunch-time quality that should have fans excited. When the Bulldogs were slowly bleeding away momentum, he found freshman tight end Isaac Nauta for a 50-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 10.

Excluding his final throw, Eason’s most impressive play wasn’t made with his arm.

After Baker’s forced fumble prevented Tennessee from putting its point on the board, Georgia began to march back down the field. A touchdown would give the Bulldogs a 17-0 lead and capitalize on the 14-point swing.

At the Vols’ 2-yard line, Eason handed off to Sony Michel, who fumbled while trying to cross the goal line. As bodies swirled around the football, it was the freshman quarterback, who had been trailing the play, who dove to the turf and secured the touchdown.

Georgia’s effort was obvious in the first half, but with quarterbacks making a lot of “business decisions” lately, Eason’s first instinct was to leap into the fray and get the football. That’s not something that can be taught, it’s a quality that winners have.

Today’s quarterbacks appear to be more prepared coming out of high school than ever before, but the transition to college is still massive. Eason was expected to have his struggles this season, but he’s shown that he’s at his best when the air is thick with pressure.

The Bulldogs’ true freshman quarterback played well enough to beat the nation’s No. 11 team, and made the plays that needed to be made. It’s a loss that darkened an exciting evening in Sanford Stadium, but with Eason behind center, Georgia’s future looks bright.

William McFadden covers the University of Georgia for Saturday Down South. For news on everything happening between the hedges, follow him on Twitter @willmcfadden.