2006 Chick-fil-A Bowl

Beginning with the 2006 game, the Chick-fil-A Bowl had purchased the right to select the highest-ranked Atlantic Coast Conference team after representatives from the Bowl Championship Series made their selection. According to the official selection rules still used today, the team chosen to represent the ACC must be within one conference victory of the remaining, highest-ranked conference team or be ranked more than five spaces ahead of the ACC team with the best Conference record available in the final BCS Standings. In choosing the SEC opponent, the Chick-fil-A Bowl selection committee had the right to select the first SEC school after the Bowl Championship Series, Cotton Bowl Classic, Capital One Bowl, and Outback Bowl made their selections. Just as in the ACC, the selection committee could not select an SEC team with two more losses than the highest available team. The bowl earned the right to select these teams via its multimillion-dollar payout system, which guarantees a certain amount of money to the participating conferences. Prior to 2006, the Chick-fil-A Bowl (then known as the Peach Bowl) matched the No. 5 team in the SEC versus the No. 3 team in the ACC. After the bowl increased its payout to $2.8 million per squad, it then was given the second pick from the ACC, with the Gator Bowl dropping to third. Leeman Bennett, the former head coach of the Atlanta Falcons and Tampa Bay Buccaneers, served as chairman of the selection committee, which had the task of picking the best teams from those made available by the selection criteria set by the two conferences. The committee would have approximately one month to select the two teams that would attract the most people to the game and generate the largest possible television audience. This fact helped eliminate ACC runner-up Georgia Tech from the selection process, as the Yellow Jackets had already played Georgia earlier in the season, thus making a potential Georgia-Georgia Tech showdown less attractive. In addition, that matchup, while attractive to football fans in the Atlanta area (the site of the Chick-fil-A Bowl and home to Georgia Tech), would have less appeal to television viewers outside the Georgia area. Supervising the selection committee was the Chick-fil-A Bowl Executive Committee, which consisted of representatives from various Atlanta businesses and the Chick-fil-A corporation. == Pregame buildup ==

On the morning of December 3, 2006, Chick-fil-A Bowl representatives selected Virginia Tech to represent the ACC in the 2006 Chick-fil-A Bowl. A few hours later, Georgia was selected as the second half of the matchup. Two days after the selections were announced, the game was declared sold out, the 10th consecutive sellout in the combined history of the Peach and Chick-fil-A Bowls. Georgia and Virginia Tech each were assigned initial allocations of 18,500 tickets for distribution, and following the quick sales of those ticket blocs, each asked for and received additional tickets to distribute. The game was the third time Virginia Tech and the University of Georgia faced each other on the football field. The two previous games—one in 1931 and the other in 1932—resulted in one loss and one win for each team. Various casinos and betting organizations favored Virginia Tech by 2.5–3 points when setting their point spread. Media coverage Media discussion of the game in the weeks leading up to kickoff centered on the Hokies' No. 1-nationally ranked defense and Georgia's 5th-ranked SEC defense. Most pundits predicted a low-scoring game, and a few predicted an "all-out defensive war". A week before departing for Atlanta, Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer revealed that Ike Whitaker, Virginia Tech's backup quarterback, would not be attending the game for undisclosed reasons. It was later revealed that Whitaker had been admitted to an alcohol treatment center in Salem, Virginia. For Georgia, discussion centered on the play-calling duties of assistant coach Mike Bobo. Bobo had been named the temporary offensive coordinator for the Bulldogs after then-assistant coordinator Neil Calloway had been named the new head coach at the University of Alabama-Birmingham. Calloway would remain with the Bulldogs as the offensive line coach during the Chick-fil-A Bowl, but Bobo would take over his role as offensive coordinator for the game. It was only the second time that Bobo performed as a play-caller for the Bulldogs, the previous game having come in Georgia's regular-season closer, a 15–12 win against Georgia Tech. On the opposite side of the field, Virginia Tech would be starting redshirt sophomore Sean Glennon. Named the starting quarterback at the beginning of the 2006 season, Glennon replaced Marcus Vick, who had been expelled from Virginia Tech at the end of the previous year. While not as statistically successful as Marcus Vick, Glennon still managed to lead the Hokies to their third consecutive 10-win season, and had the edge over Stafford in terms of experience. On the ground, it appeared that Virginia Tech had the edge in experience, forcing Georgia's defense to concentrate on stopping Tech's run game. Virginia Tech running back Branden Ore suffered an ankle injury in the Hokies' regular-season game against Wake Forest, but still took the field in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. The same could not be said for Georgia, whose original starting running back, Thomas Brown, suffered a season-ending knee injury in October. Of particular concern for quarterback Matt Stafford were Virginia Tech's cornerbacks, whom he would have to go through in order to complete passes to his receivers. "They play kind of a different scheme than a lot of teams so it would be tough if you only had one week to try to prepare for these guys", Stafford said in an interview prior to the game. "They trust their corners a lot, but they've got good ones and can. They lock up a lot of time single receiver side because they've got a good corner down there that plays on the boundary." Heading into the game, Georgia was ranked ninth in total defense, giving up only 264 yards per game, and 22nd in scoring defense, allowing an average of just 17.1 points a game. == Game summary ==

and Georgia prepare to kick off. The 2006 Chick-fil-A bowl kicked off on December 30, 2006, at 8:00 p.m. The game was nationally televised on ESPN, with over 5 million households tuning into the game at home, enough to earn ESPN a television rating of 4.8 for the broadcast. but the Virginia Tech fans, known for traveling well to their bowl appearances, quickly bought out their school's allotment of tickets and ensured a divided crowd. First quarter Defense dominated in the first quarter of the game. Virginia Tech received the opening kickoff, but failed to capitalize on its opening drive thanks to a personal foul penalty that forced the Hokies to punt. On its first possession, Georgia moved into scoring position courtesy of a 26-yard run by Kregg Lumpkin. Failing to advance the ball further, Georgia sent in kicker Brandon Coutu who kicked a 39-yard field goal to give Georgia the early lead, 3–0. Second quarter The second quarter began with Virginia Tech inside the Georgia 10-yard line. After two unsuccessful plays, Virginia Tech was finally able to reach the end zone on a Branden Ore one-yard rush in a fourth-and-one situation. The touchdown and extra point gave Virginia Tech a 7–3 lead with 13:23 left in the half. Third quarter Because Virginia Tech had received the opening kickoff, Georgia received the ball to open the second half. Stafford was able to connect with wide receiver Mario Raley for a 24-yard gain, taking Georgia to the 50-yard line, but Virginia Tech's defense stiffened and Georgia was forced to punt. Pinned at their ten-yard line by the Georgia punt, Virginia Tech went three-and-out and was itself forced to punt. Fourth quarter The fourth quarter began with Virginia Tech searching for a way to answer Georgia's previous two scores and quash the momentum Georgia had picked up. On the third play of the quarter, however, Virginia Tech quarterback Sean Glennon threw an interception to Georgia's Tony Taylor. Beginning on their own 35-yard line, Georgia capitalized on the mistake quickly, courtesy of a 15-yard personal foul penalty and a 41-yard completion from Stafford to Milner. Georgia, hoping to tie the time, attempted and completed a two-point conversion. The resulting scores tied the game at 21–21 with 12:39 remaining in the game. == Final statistics ==

The 18-point comeback was the largest for Georgia under coach Mark Richt up to that point. In recognition of their performances during the game, Georgia linebacker Tony Taylor and quarterback Matthew Stafford were named the defensive and offensive MVPs of the game, respectively. Over half of Georgia's total offensive yards (200 total yards) came through the air from Stafford, who finished with 129 passing yards, one interception, and one touchdown. Approximately a third (41 yards) of Stafford's passing yards came on a single completion in the fourth quarter. Georgia's kicking game had a far more active day than its offense. Punter Gordon Ely-Kelso booted seven punts and kicker Brandon Coutu nailed three field goals. The field goals, kicked from 39, 51, and 28 yards away and two extra points made Coutu Georgia's leading scorer in the game, earning 11 points. Two of the interceptions were caught by linebacker Tony Taylor, who also had nine tackles, two for a loss of yards. The tackles tied him with Paul Oliver, who also had nine. The third interception came from Kelin Johnson, while the fumble was forced by Charles Johnson. During the third and fourth quarters, when all four Virginia Tech turnovers took place, Georgia's time of possession jumped to 10:41 and 7:47, respectively. In the third quarter, their average starting possession gained ten yards to the Georgia 36, and during the final quarter, their average starting position was the Virginia Tech 36-yard line. This fact allowed Georgia to capitalize on the Virginia Tech turnovers, turning them into points on the scoreboard. He completed 13 of his 26 passes for 94 yards and a completion percentage of 50%. The passing total of 94 yards was the second-lowest total in the entire season, coming behind only a November 4 game in Miami where Glennon passed for just 86 yards in the face of a tough defense. In a statistic unusual for the 2006 season, Glennon was not the only Tech player to complete a pass. Wide receiver Eddie Royal's 53-yard TD pass made him just the third Virginia Tech player to complete a pass during the 2006 season. The play on which Royal made his throw, a lateral WR pass, had been attempted once previously in the season during a 38–27 loss to Georgia Tech. allowed just two sacks to the Virginia Tech defense. Chris Ellis and Noland Burchette each earned a single sack, accounting for a loss of 15 total yards. == Postgame effects ==

The win over #14 Virginia Tech enabled the Bulldogs to break into the Top 25 rankings in the final college football poll of the season. Georgia was ranked #23 in the country thanks to its win over the Hokies, who dropped to #19 nationally following the loss. The loss snapped a six-game winning streak by Virginia Tech and ended the Hokies' bid at becoming just the fourth team in school history to win 11 games in a season. The 2006 Georgia Bulldogs, consequently, became the first team in school history to defeat three consecutive ranked teams. No. 5 Auburn, No. 16 Georgia Tech, and No. 14 Virginia Tech all fell to Georgia in November or December. 2007 season In August 2007, Frank Beamer closed team practices to outside observers for the first time in 20 years. He cited concerns about unknown individuals watching Virginia Tech practice in Atlanta before the Hokies' loss to Georgia, potentially leading to the defeat. During the 2007 season, Virginia Tech quarterback Sean Glennon was replaced as the Hokies' starter by freshman Tyrod Taylor, causing many pundits to point to the four interceptions Glennon threw in the Chick-fil-A Bowl as an example of his failure as a quarterback. Brian Mimbs, the former walk-on who kicked and recovered the onside kick that began Georgia's rally was named the Bulldogs' starting punter for the 2007 season, partially due to his performance in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. At the end of the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season, both Georgia and Virginia Tech were named to Bowl Championship Series bowl games, indicating an increase over their 2006 performances. Georgia earned a bid to the 2008 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, Louisiana against the Hawaii Warriors, who they defeated, 41–10. Virginia Tech, having won the 2007 ACC Championship Game, earned an automatic bid to the 2008 Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida, losing 24–21 to the Kansas Jayhawks. == See also ==