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The 2012
Hyundai Hyundai is a former South Korean industrial conglomerate ("''chaebol''"), which was restructured into the following groups: * Hyundai Group, parts of the former conglomerate which have not been divested ** Hyundai Asan, a real estate construction ...
Sun Bowl, the 79th edition of the game, was a post-season American
college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
bowl game In North America, a bowl game, or simply bowl, is one of a number of postseason college football games primarily played by NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams. For most of its history, the FBS did not use a playoff tourname ...
, held on December 31,
2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
, at
Sun Bowl Stadium The Sun Bowl is an outdoor football stadium in the Southwestern United States, on the campus of the University of Texas at El Paso. It is home to the UTEP Miners of Conference USA, and the late December college football bowl game, the Sun Bowl. ...
in
El Paso, Texas El Paso (; ; or ) is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States. The 2020 United States census, 2020 population of the city from the United States Census Bureau, U.S. Census Bureau was 678,815, making it the List of ...
, as part of the 2012–13 NCAA Bowl season. The game, the 79th edition of the Sun Bowl, was televised in the United States on
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
. The game featured the
USC Trojans The USC Trojans (also Southern California Trojans) are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Southern California (USC) in Los Angeles. While the men's teams are nicknamed the ...
from the
Pac-12 Conference The Pac-12 Conference is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the Western United States. It participates at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I level for all sports, and its Co ...
(Pac-12) against the
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets is the name used for all of the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech), located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. The teams have also been nicknamed the ...
from the
Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...
(ACC). The Trojans accepted their invitation to the game after attaining a 7–5 regular-season record, while the Yellow Jackets entered the game with a 6–7 record (5–3 ACC), after losing to Florida State in the
2012 ACC Championship Game The 2012 ACC Championship Game was the eighth football championship game for the Atlantic Coast Conference. It featured the winners of the ACCs two divisions, the Atlantic Division's Florida State Seminoles and the Coastal Division's Georgia ...
. Georgia Tech had to request for a postseason waiver that was granted in order to participate as a result of the conference championship game the Yellow Jackets played under extenuating circumstances caused by sanctions on the two teams ahead of them in division standings. Georgia Tech won the game in a 21–7 upset, thanks to a strong performance by the Yellow Jackets' defense. USC, which came into the game averaging more than 30 points per game, was limited to 7 points and 205 total yards. Georgia Tech cornerback Rod Sweeting was named the game's
most valuable player In team sports, a most valuable player (MVP) award is an honor typically bestowed upon an individual (or individuals, in the instance of a tie) whose individual performance is the greatest in an entire league, for a particular competition, or ...
.


Teams

The 2012 Sun Bowl marked the 4th meeting between USC and Georgia Tech, with USC holding a 2–1 advantage coming into the bowl game. The previous meeting was on September 22, 1973, in a 29–18 win for the Trojans.


USC

Coming off a two-year postseason ban, the Trojans had high hopes to return to their former glory in 2012, which were undoubtedly heightened by their preseason #1 ranking.USC voted No. 1 in AP's Top 25
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. 18 August 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
USC started the season 6–1 and they appeared likely to at least make it back to the Rose Bowl. However, these plans were quickly dampened by the Trojans losing four of their last five games to finish at 7–5 and a second-place tie in the Pac-12 South Division. In addition, the Trojans lost their star quarterback
Matt Barkley Matthew Montgomery Barkley (born September 8, 1990) is an American professional football quarterback. He played college football for the USC Trojans, setting set the Pac-12 Conference season record for touchdown passes as a junior. Due to suffer ...
to injuries suffered in a game against
rivals A rivalry is the state of two people or Social group, groups engaging in a lasting competitive relationship. Rivalry is the "against each other" spirit between two competing sides. The relationship itself may also be called "a rivalry", and each ...
UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school then known as the southern branch of the C ...
, leading to redshirt freshman
Max Wittek Max Nolan Wittek (born July 31, 1993) is a former American football quarterback. He played at USC from 2011 to 2013, and transferred to Hawaii, sitting out the 2014 season. Early life Born in Contra Costa County, California, Wittek grew up in N ...
to start the remaining USC games, including the 2012 Sun Bowl.Shoulder injury will keep Matt Barkley out of the Sun Bowl
USA Today. 27 December 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2012.
The Trojans came into the bowl game averaging more than 30-points per game. The USC offense was led by wide receivers Robert Woods and
Fred Biletnikoff Award The Fred Biletnikoff Award is presented annually to the most outstanding receiver in American college football by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation, Inc. (TQCF), an independent not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization. The award was creat ...
winner Marqise Lee, with the later coming into the game with 2,588 all-purpose yards. USC's offense was prone to turning the ball over, however, coming into the game with 31 turnovers. On defense, USC was led by defensive end
Morgan Breslin Morgan Breslin is a former American football linebacker. He played college football at USC. College career Diablo Valley College Breslin attended Diablo Valley College in 2010 and 2011 where he led California JUCO's in sacks and was named JUCO ...
, who came into the game with 12 sacks. The Trojans' rushing defense was average, however, as USC ranked 59th nationally against the run.Glicksman, Ben
USC vs. Georgia Tech: Sun Bowl Breakdown
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
. 29 December 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
This was the Trojans' third Sun Bowl; they had previously appeared in the 1990 game against the
Michigan State Spartans The Michigan State Spartans are the athletic teams that represent Michigan State University. The school's athletic program includes 23 Varsity team, varsity sports teams. Their mascot is a Spartan Army, Spartan warrior named Sparty, and the sc ...
and
again Again may refer to: Entertainment * ''Again'' (video game), a 2009 adventure game for the Nintendo DS * '' Again!!'' manga * ''Again!'', a 2011 children's book by Emily Gravett * ''Again'' (film), a 2015 Japanese film Music * Again (band), a ...
in the 1998 game against the
TCU Horned Frogs The TCU Horned Frogs are the athletic teams that represent Texas Christian University. The 18 varsity teams participate in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA Division I and in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) for football, competi ...
, losing both games by scores of 17–16 and 28–19, respectively. The Sun Bowl also marked USC's first bowl game since the 2009 Emerald Bowl.


Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech started the season poorly, going 2–4 in their first six games. However, the Yellow Jackets won four of their last six games to end the regular season with a 5–3 conference record and a 6–6 record overall, making them bowl-eligible initially. The Yellow Jackets finished in a three-way tie for first-place in the ACC's Coastal Division. However, both teams they were tied with (the
North Carolina Tar Heels The North Carolina Tar Heels (also Carolina Tar Heels) are the college sports in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The name Tar Heel is a nickname used to refer to ...
and
Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes, known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes, are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...
) were banned from the postseason that year (one by the NCAA and another self-imposed), leaving the Yellow Jackets as the only such team eligible for the
2012 ACC Championship Game The 2012 ACC Championship Game was the eighth football championship game for the Atlantic Coast Conference. It featured the winners of the ACCs two divisions, the Atlantic Division's Florida State Seminoles and the Coastal Division's Georgia ...
. The ACC and the school filed a bowl waiver with the NCAA, which was promptly granted, to assure that the Yellow Jackets would be able to play in a bowl game in case they were to drop to a 6–7 record after a loss in the championship game. They lost to the
Florida State Seminoles The Florida State Seminoles are the athletic teams representing Florida State University (FSU) located in Tallahassee, Florida. They compete as a member of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I, prima ...
by a score of 21–15, but still were in solid position for the Sun Bowl's invite. Like with USC, Georgia Tech came into the game with an offense that averaged more than 30 points per game. With its
triple option The triple option is an American football play used to offer six ways to move the football forward on the field of play. The triple option is based on the option run, but uses three players who might run with the ball instead of the two used in ...
offense, Georgia Tech averaged 312.5 rushing yards per game, which was fourth in the FBS. Leading the offense was quarterback
Tevin Washington Tevin Washington (born May 19, 1990) is an American former college football player. He played as a quarterback for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets from 2009 to 2012. Washington came to the Georgia Institute of Technology after a successful pre ...
, who led the team with 19 rushing touchdowns.Tevin Washington Game By Game Stats
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. Retrieved 2 January 2013.
The Yellow Jackets' defensive unit came into the game allowing an average of 30 points per game.Instant analysis: Ga. Tech 21, USC 7
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. December 31, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
Defensive coordinator Al Groh was fired midway through the season after poor defensive performances against
Miami Hurricanes The Miami Hurricanes, known informally as The U, UM, or The 'Canes, are the intercollegiate sports teams that represent the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes compete in NCAA Division I, Division I of the National Coll ...
,
MTSU Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public research university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted afte ...
and Clemson.Sugiura, Ken
Updated: Al Groh fired at Tech
. ajc.com. October 8, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2012.
Due to Georgia Tech's porous defense, the Yellow Jackets came into the game as underdogs. This was the Yellow Jackets' third Sun Bowl; they had previously won the 1970 game over the
Texas Tech Red Raiders The Texas Tech Red Raiders and Lady Raiders are the athletic teams that represent Texas Tech University, located in Lubbock, Texas, United States. The women's basketball team uses the name Lady Raiders, while the school's other women's teams us ...
by a score of 17–9, and
they In Modern English, ''they'' is a third-person pronoun relating to a grammatical subject. Morphology In Standard Modern English, ''they'' has five distinct word forms: * ''they'': the nominative (subjective) form * ''them'': the accus ...
would later lose the 2011 game to the
Utah Utes The Utah Utes are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletics teams that represent the University of Utah, located in Salt Lake City. The athletic department is named after the Ute tribe of Native Americans in the Unite ...
by a score of 30–27 in overtime. The 2012 Sun Bowl also marked Georgia Tech's 16th consecutive bowl game. Georgia Tech was coming into the game with a seven-game bowl losing streak.Southern Cal-Georgia Tech Preview
Yahoo! Sports Yahoo! Sports is a sports news website launched by Yahoo! on December 8, 1997. It receives a majority of its information from Stats Perform. It employs numerous writers, and has team pages for teams in almost every North American major sport. ...
. December 27, 2012. Retrieved January 3, 2013.


Game summary


First half

In the first quarter, USC appeared to have scored first on a 38-yard field goal. However, the play was reviewed and the field goal was overturned after replay showed the kick sailing wide left.Bielawski, Sean
Postgame analysis: Sun Bowl -- Georgia Tech 21, USC 7
CBSSports.com. 31 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2012.
The rest of the first quarter remained scoreless. In the second quarter, the Yellow Jackets went up 7–0 on a 3-yard touchdown pass from quarterback
Vad Lee Lavaedeay Monlique "Vad" Lee (born April 27, 1993) is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He previously played for the Saskatchewan Roughriders and BC Lions of the Canadian Football League (CFL), Columbus Lions of American I ...
to David Sims. Georgia Tech's defense was then able to force USC to punt. However, on the ensuing drive, quarterback Vad Lee threw an interception to USC's Lamar Dawson. USC was unable to take advantage of the interception, however, and quickly gave the ball back to Georgia Tech after Georgia Tech's Rod Sweeting intercepted Max Wittek. Georgia Tech's next possession was also short lived, after USC's Morgan Breslin forced Tech's Vad Lee to fumble. Taking advantage of the fumble, USC tied the game 7–7 on a 9-yard touchdown pass from
Max Wittek Max Nolan Wittek (born July 31, 1993) is a former American football quarterback. He played at USC from 2011 to 2013, and transferred to Hawaii, sitting out the 2014 season. Early life Born in Contra Costa County, California, Wittek grew up in N ...
to
Silas Redd Silas Raynard Redd Jr. (born March 1, 1992) is an American former professional football player who was a running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are ...
. The score remained tied 7–7 going into the half.Georgia Tech's option stomps USC in Sun Bowl
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. 31 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
USC Trojans vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets play-by-play
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. 31 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013.
USC Trojans vs. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets box score
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. 31 December 2012. Retrieved 1 January 2013.


Second half

Georgia Tech's defense forced USC to punt on the Trojans' first possession of the second half. On the ensuing punt return, Georgia Tech's Jamal Golden returned the punt 56 yards to the USC 1-yard line. Two plays later, Georgia Tech took the lead, 14–7, on a 1-yard touchdown run from quarterback
Tevin Washington Tevin Washington (born May 19, 1990) is an American former college football player. He played as a quarterback for the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets from 2009 to 2012. Washington came to the Georgia Institute of Technology after a successful pre ...
. Near the end of the third quarter, USC drove to Georgia Tech's 38-yard line. However, the Trojans were unable to convert a fourth and 4 play, turning the ball on downs. Taking advantage of the turnover on downs, Georgia Tech further extended their lead to 21–7 on a 17-yard touchdown pass from Tevin Washington to Orwin Smith. After being forced to a
three-and-out A down in gridiron football is an attempt by the offensive team to run a play to advance the ball, while the defending team simultaneously attempts to halt their advance. The down is a distinguishing characteristic of the game compared to oth ...
, Trojan punter Kyle Negrete pinned Georgia Tech at the Yellow Jackets' 5-yard line. Georgia Tech drove from their own 5-yard line to USC's 26-yard line. However, the Yellow Jackets gave the ball back to the Trojans after being unable to convert a fourth and 4 play. On the ensuing USC drive, the Trojans drove to the Yellow Jackets' 4-yard line. The Trojans were unable to score, however, after Georgia Tech's Quayshawn Nealy intercepted USC's Max Wittek's pass in the endzone. USC had one more chance to cut into the lead after forcing Georgia Tech to punt with 1:41 left in regulation. Helped by several Tech penalties, USC once again drove deep into Georgia Tech territory, this time to the 14-yard line. The Trojans were still unable to score, however, and Georgia Tech sealed its first bowl victory since 2004 after Max Wittek threw an interception to Georgia Tech's Jamal Golden with 1:04 remaining in regulation.


Scoring summary


Statistical summary

Georgia Tech's defense dominated the game, as Georgia Tech allowed only 205 yards of total offense and held USC to a season low 7 points.USC 2012 Schedule
ESPN ESPN (an initialism of their original name, which was the Entertainment and Sports Programming Network) is an American international basic cable sports channel owned by the Walt Disney Company (80% and operational control) and Hearst Commu ...
. Retrieved 3 January 2012.
USC quarterback Max Wittek completed only 14 of his 37 passes for 107 yards and threw 3 interceptions. In addition, wide receivers Marqise Lee and Robert Woods were held to only 41-yards and 33-yards of receiving respectively. The Yellow Jackets also did not have a lot of passing yards, as Georgia Tech had a combined 75 passing yards from quarterbacks Tevin Washington and Vad Lee. Georgia Tech's leading rusher was David Sims, who rushed the ball 17 times for 99 yards. Zach Laskey was Georgia Tech's no. 2 rusher, who rushed the ball 6 times for 60 yards. Overall, Georgia Tech rushed the ball for 294 yards. USC's leading rusher was
Silas Redd Silas Raynard Redd Jr. (born March 1, 1992) is an American former professional football player who was a running back A running back (RB) is a member of the offensive backfield in gridiron football. The primary roles of a running back are ...
, who rushed for 88 yards on 17 carries.
Curtis McNeal Curtis McNeal (born December 3, 1989) is a former American football running back. McNeal signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers as an undrafted rookie free agent, after playing collegiately for the USC Trojans. He signed with the Saskatchewan Rough ...
was USC's no. 2 rusher, rushing the ball only 5-yards on 3 carries.


References

{{USC Trojans bowl game navbox
Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. ...
Sun Bowl Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football bowl games USC Trojans football bowl games
Sun Bowl The Sun Bowl is a college football bowl game that has been played since 1935 in the southwestern United States at El Paso, Texas. Along with the Sugar Bowl and Orange Bowl, it is the second-oldest bowl game in the country, behind the Rose Bowl. ...
December 2012 sports events in the United States