Quarterback Joshua Dobbs launched a 43-yard Hail Mary pass into the arms of leaping wide receiver Jauan Jennings as time expired and the University of Tennessee defeated the Georgia Bulldogs 34-31, earning the Volunteers the College Football Game of the Week honor from the United States Sports Academy.
The Volunteers (5-0) rallied from a 17-point deficit in the first half and trailed by 10 points, 24-14, to start the fourth quarter.
In one of the most amazing finishes in recent memory, the lead changed three times in the final three minutes of play after Dobbs’ 16-yard touchdown pass to Alvin Kamara pulled the Volunteers within three points at 24-21.
With 2:56 to play in the game, Tennessee’s Corey Vereen recovered a Georgia fumble in the end zone to give the Volunteers a 28-24 lead. Georgia regained the lead 31-28 after quarterback Jacob Eason connected with receiver Riley Ridley on a 47-yard Hail Mary pass with 10 seconds left in the game. Tennessee answered with its own Hail Mary pass to win the game as time expired.
Dobbs completed 16-26 passes for 230 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. He rushed 11 times for 26 yards and a touchdown in the win.
A blue ribbon panel of 17 members consisting of former college football coaches and athletic directors and including Academy faculty selects the weekly winner of the Academy’s College Football Game of the Week Award by ballot. The committee is chaired by former U.S. Naval Academy athletic director Jack Lengyel. At the conclusion of the college football season, the panel selects the Academy’s College Football Game of the Year.
The College Football Game of the Year Award is part of the Academy’s Awards of Sport series, a function of the American Sport Art Museum and Archives (ASAMA), which was established as “a tribute to the artist and the athlete.”
Each year at the conclusion of the college football season painter Daniel Moore, the ASAMA 2005 Sport Artist of the Year, is commissioned by the Academy to render a painting depicting a memorable and pivotal moment to commemorate the selected College Football Game of the Year. In addition, the Academy contributes $5,000 to the winning university’s scholarship fund.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Academy’s Game of the Year process and compare their selected games of the week to the committee’s selection.
Based in Daphne, Ala., the United States Sports Academy is an independent, non-profit, accredited, special mission sports university created to serve the nation and world with programs in instruction, research, and service. The role of the Academy is to prepare men and women for careers in the profession of sports. For more information about the Academy, call (251) 626-3303 or visit www.ussa.edu .
Founded in 1984, ASAMA is dedicated to the preservation of sports art, history, and literature. The ASAMA collection is composed of nearly 2,000 works of sport art across a variety of media, including paintings, sculptures, assemblages, prints and photographs. The museum is open free to the public from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays. For more information, go to www.asama.org.
By Eric Mann
Eric Mann is the Communications Assistant at the United States Sports Academy.