Shawn Elliott had his team positioned to win a second game against an SEC opponent on the road in the last three seasons. Georgia State couldn’t finish the job, though, squandering a 12-point second-half lead in a 34-24 loss to Auburn on Saturday.
The Tigers rallied in the second half, with backup quarterback T.J. Finley stepping in and delivering the go-ahead touchdown with 45 seconds left, while Auburn’s defense turned things around in the second half and suffocated Georgia State -- culminating with Smoke Monday’s pick-six to seal the game in the waning seconds.
Here’s what Elliott had to say about the game:
SHAWN ELLIOTT, Georgia State head coach
Opening Statement…
“First of all, I want to say congratulations to Auburn. Certainly, the name of the game is to come out of this thing winners, and they did. I think our football team played one unbelievable contest. They played as hard as they could and faced adversity, but they fought and clawed. It’s amazing that it comes down to a fourth-down play. We got amazing pressure on the quarterback right there; but we lost containment on the backside, and he delivered the game-winning touchdown with 30 seconds left in the game.
“I could not be prouder of our football team. The wins are about them and their faces. I don’t do a whole lot. I was disappointed when I walked in the locker room because I saw a team that had given everything they had and came up on the short end. It’s a disappointing feeling. Sports can rip you apart. That was a tough one to lose tonight. Like I said, Auburn’s got a really good football team, and they came out on top. We will bounce back though because we have a good football team as well. We had a tough non-conference schedule.
“Now we open conference play. We have got to gain great confidence from coming down here and playing so well. It’s a hard deal though when you lose the way we did. We are going to regroup and refocus and have good intentions. We have to be ready to play Appalachian State next Saturday at our place.”
On the late replay review of a John Samuel Shenker catch that went in Auburn’s favor...
“They had a little bit of help on that review where the ball was incomplete. It should have been put back on the 30-yard line. But you know when you play in the SEC you got to take the hits. And they gave us a real gut punch on that call. So we appreciate that.”
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