Haynes King’s 45-yard TD run lifts Georgia Tech over Colorado in opening road triumph
Published:
Haynes King showed a flair for the dramatic in Georgia Tech’s Friday night season opener, rumbling for a 45-yard touchdown through the Colorado defense with 1:07 left to lift the Yellow Jackets to a thrilling 27-20 road victory over Deion Sanders and the Buffaloes in Boulder.
On the national TV stage on ESPN and facing Coach Prime to begin the post-Shedeur Sanders era, Georgia Tech showed some moxie in outlasting Colorado in the back-and-forth affair. After taking an early punch in the first quarter, Georgia Tech led 13-10 by halftime and answered the bell every time Colorado answered and tied the game. The last time came midway through the 4th quarter when the Buffaloes tied it at 20-20 on quarterback Kaidon Salter’s 7-yard TD run that completed a 15-play, 75-yard drive.
No matter.
Georgia Tech had the last answer of the night, with Haynes’ heroics finishing off Colorado once and for all after the Buffaloes had rallied to tie the game twice in the second half. Salter, the replacement for the departed Sanders, who is now with the Cleveland Browns, finished 17 of 28 for 159 yards and 1 touchdown.
He was upstaged though by Haynes, who was only 13 of 20 for 143 yards and an interception through the air but did his real damage with his legs, finishing with 156 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns, including that highlight-reel TD that sealed the win.
The ACC Football social media account celebrated the victory with this post:
And it also celebrated Haynes’ third rushing TD of the night with this post:
King made sure it was a happy flight back to Georgia for the Yellow Jackets, who stole the show in the Rocky Mountains on the opening Friday night of the season.
Cory Nightingale, a former sportswriter and sports editor at the Miami Herald and Palm Beach Post, is a South Florida-based freelance writer who covers Alabama for SaturdayDownSouth.com.
