CHAPEL HILL, N.C. —
It's not unusual for two ACC schools to score 118 points in a game — unless they're playing football.
Georgia Tech and North Carolina got into a gridiron track meet on Saturday and the Yellow Jackets held off the Tar Heels 68-50 in the highest scoring football game in Atlantic Coast Conference history.
Robert Godhigh rushed for two touchdowns and caught a third for Georgia Tech. Jamal Golden returned a kickoff 100 yards for a score, and backup quarterback Vad Lee rushed for 112 yards and two touchdowns and threw for a third.
That helped the Yellow Jackets (5-5, 4-3) continue their push toward bowl eligibility and remain alive in the murky Coastal Division race.
The teams combined for 1,085 yards, 118 points — and just five punts — in surpassing the previous ACC record of 110 points set in Virginia's 63-47 victory over Tulane in 1968.
Georgia Tech outgained the Tar Heels 588-497 and set a school record for points in an ACC game, eclipsing its 63 against Wake Forest in 1998.
Bryn Renner threw two touchdown passes for the Tar Heels (6-4, 3-3).
Gio Bernard and A.J. Blue each scored two touchdowns for North Carolina, which hadn't allowed this many points since Louisville hung 69 on them in 2005.
For a game dominated by offense, it swung on a curious play by North Carolina's special teams.
North Carolina lined up for just its second punt of the day on a fourth-and-10 at its own 25. Punter Tommy Hibbard took off with the ball, and was stopped eight yards shy of the sticks at the 27.
On the next snap, Godhigh took a pitch around the left end for the touchdown that put the Yellow Jackets up 51-36. His 32-yard touchdown catch on Georgia Tech's next possession made it a 58-36 game.
The Tar Heels pulled to 58-50 on Renner's 11-yard touchdown pass to Quinshad Davis and Tim Scott's 32-yard interception return on the first play of the fourth quarter. Orwin Smith followed that with a 22-yard touchdown run to put the Yellow Jackets up 65-50.
Chris Tanner kicked a 34-yard field goal to complete the scoring with 3:40 left.
Smith finished with 83 yards rushing and 39 yards receiving. Starting quarterback Tevin Washington tied former teammate Joshua Nesbitt's ACC record for quarterbacks with his 35th career rushing touchdown, a 25-yarder on his team's opening series.
Lee, a native of nearby Durham, N.C., took over on Georgia Tech's third offensive series, immediately led three straight scoring drives and played the rest of the way. He finished 6 of 10 for 169 yards passing.
The second half started with a bang: two touchdowns — one by each team — in a 34-second span.
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Related Photos
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Georgia Tech's David Sims dives into the end zone for a touchdown against North Carolina during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Chapel Hill, N.C., Saturday, Nov. 10, 2012. (AP Photo/Gerry Broome) AP Photo/Gerry Broome
Georgia Tech rolls to 68-50 win
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