No. 2 Texas vs. No. 5 Georgia final score: Trevor Etienne’s TD run in OT wins it for the Bulldogs, 22-19

The Longhorns once again made too many mistakes to beat the Bulldogs.

History doesn’t favor the No. 2 Texas Longhorns in their rematch with the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Saturday — in five of the seven previous rematches in the game, the winner of the first game took home the conference title.

To buck that history, the Horns will have to improve in some important areas that went lacking in the 30-15 defeat by the Bulldogs in Austin in October.

That means running the football more effectively and reducing the communication errors and other assorted mistakes that led to seven sacks by the Bulldogs. Defensively, Texas has to deal with improved play from Georgia quarterback Carson Beck, who was mistake-prone during that portion of the season, including three interceptions thrown against the Longhorns, but has since rediscovered his accuracy and improved his decision making.

ESPN’s matchup predictor gives Texas a win probability of 61.7 percent.

Injury reports

On the official injury report, All-American junior left tackle Kelvin Banks is listed as a game-time decision on Saturday after sustaining an ankle injury last week in College Station that limited him to a handful of snaps. According to Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian on Thursday, Banks practiced this week, but in pre-game warmups, he didn’t look likely to play.

Redshirt freshman backup left tackle Trevor Goosby played well against the Aggies after Banks went down, which may reduce the pressure for the junior to push through his injury.

And indeed, Banks is not dressed for the game.

Following the grind of SEC play, several other Texas players are pushing through pain — redshirt junior quarterback Quinn Ewers managed to make plays with his legs in the win over Texas A&M despite his high ankle sprain, junior wide receiver Isaiah Bond has only looked healthy for one game after injuring his ankle against Oklahoma in October, and sophomore wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. is playing with a turf toe injury.

Before the game, Ewers made an estimate of his health.

For Georgia, the storyline is poor health at the running back position, headlined by starter Trevor Etienne, who was questionable until he was removed from the pre-game injury report by the Bulldogs. Etienne hasn’t played since suffering a rib injury nearly a month ago in the 17-point loss to Ole Miss.

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First quarter

Georgia won the toss and deferred, affording Texas the ball to start the game. On the opening kickoff, the Longhorns appeared to set up a trick play on the return with a potential lateral to two players around return man Matthew Golden, who brought the ball out of the end zone, but Texas instantly gave up significant field position when Golden was tackled at the 11-yard line.

On offense, Ewers opened with a completion to Golden on an out route for six yards before more sloppy play — the low arm slot of Ewers combined with the recognition of the Georgia defense produced a tipped ball at the line of scrimmage. Golden initially secured it, a fortunate development for the Longhorns, then appeared to fumble it. On review, it was ruled an incompletion, setting up 3rd and 4.

With the running back motioning in an empty formation, Ewers hit Moore on a rub route that produced a catch and run for 22 yards, then hit Golden again on a hitch route for 19 yards.

Georgia stopped the momentum by sacking Ewers as he tried to scramble up the middle for a yard loss before sophomore running back Quintrevion Wisner gained two yards on outside zone. Facing 3rd and 9, Ewers targeted Bond before his break. The throw was on target, hitting Bond in the hands, but it deflected into the air and was intercepted by Georgia cornerback Daylen Everette.

A seven-yard completion on second down set up third and short for Georgia, a quarterback sneak by Beck, but Texas senior defensive tackle Vernon Broughton went over the top of the line to stop the Bulldogs short. Initially lined up to go for it, Georgia was called for a delay of game and punted the ball away, settling for winning the field-position battle.

The issues with the Texas running game against Georgia continued, as misdirection in 21 personnel for the Horns didn’t fool anyone’s eyes and Wisner was tackled for a three-yard loss. Going to junior running back Jaydon Blue, the Bulldogs defensive line reset the line of scrimmage and Blue lost a yard.

On 3rd and 13, pre-snap motion by Golden and busted coverage by the cornerback and safety allowed the Texas wide receiver to work free up the sideline for a 50-yard gain.

Running the ball again still didn’t work with Wisner losing two yards, but a deep over route by Bond on play action produced 22 yards.

When Ewers targeted senior tight end Gunnar Helm on the following play, he was open, but Ewers overthrew it and Bond was called for offensive pass interference. On 1st and 25, Ewers went back to Golden and delivered a nice ball to Golden, who wasn’t able to come up with the diving catch. A misdirection screen to Blue had a chance, but Goosby missed the key block and Blue was taken down for another negative play. The third-down call, a run for Wisner, picked up 15 yards and produced an easy field goal for senior kicker Bert Auburn, who was dead on from 41 yards for a 3-0 lead.

After a big play by redshirt junior safety Michael Taaffe setting the edge downhill on a first-down run, Texas sophomore safety Manny Muhammad was called for pass interference. The Longhorns defense responded, swarming to the football to tackle Etienne for a five-yard loss. Offsetting penalties on the next play set up second and long and Texas got off the field, limiting a screen pass and then getting a strong play in coverage by senior safety Andrew Mukuba to break up a throw by Beck and force a punt that bounced into the end zone.

Running inside worked better for Texas on a five-yard gain by Wisner, who hit another interior seam and kept his feet working for 10 yards. But Helm then got whipped badly in pass protection on a play-action pass, giving up a seven-yard loss on a sack and Wisner only gained three yards on second down, forcing a 3rd and 14 for the Horns.

Ewers continued to deliver throws at a high level, putting some air under a ball for Golden that the Houston transfer brought down with his trademark sticky hands for a 32-yard gain to end the first quarter.

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Second quarter

Ewers was able to avoid pressure to check down to Wisner to stay ahead of the chains with a five-yard gain before a 19-yard run by Wisner was negated by a holding penalty as Wisner’s face mask was pulled when he took the edge. When Ewers targeted Moore, the ball went through the receiver’s hands for an incompletion, but Texas got into fourth and short with a completion to Moore and a trick play with redshirt freshman backup quarterback Arch Manning — a direct snap through Manning’s legs to Blue, who got outside to secure the first down.

A holding call on Bond and a sack of Ewers in a passing situation put the Longhorns on the edge of field-goal range with 2nd and 20. Faking a toss to Blue and then checking down, Texas was pushed out of range on third down. The shotgun snap surprised Ewers, but he was able to regain enough composure to connect with Moore for 17 yards to give Auburn a look at a 42-yard field goal that he hit to take a 6-0 lead.

Texas stopped Etienne for a two-yard gain to start Georgia’s drive and had another run stuff negated by an offside penalty on junior Jack end Ethan Burke. With the linebackers playing short, the Bulldogs were able to hit a tight end over the second level for 19 yards, moving into Longhorns territory for the first time. Two more plays picked up another first down for Georgia.

A dropped pass by Bulldogs wide receiver Arian Smith cost critical yardage and led to a pass broken up by senior cornerback Jahdae Barron that was nearly tracked down by Mukuba. Georgia settled for a 44-yard field goal to cut the deficit in half.

On a key offensive drive for Texas, Golden couldn’t get out of his break well enough to catch the pass from Ewers, but senior wide receiver Silas Bolden spun out of a tackle on a glance-route run-pass option and was hit well out of bounds for a personal-foul penalty.

In max protection, Ewers delivered a strike to freshman wide receiver Ryan Wingo, who failed to secure it before he was hit and lost the ball out of bounds. Bolden made up for it, catching a deep over route and taking a huge hit for a 16-yard gain. Back on the ground, Wisner picked up five before Ewers had to throw the ball away under pressure, setting up an important 3rd and 5 in field-goal range. Inexplicably, Ewers launched an awful pass that floated into double coverage that should have been intercepted. Then the field-goal unit was called for a false start on a made field goal by Auburn that he then missed from 42 yards.

Texas was able to force Georgia into 3rd and 6 after the missed field goal. In man coverage on the outside, Longhorns senior cornerback Gavin Holmes was in phase and looked up as the ball arrived to force an incompletion and avoid a penalty.

On the punt by the Bulldogs, Bolden tried to make a play and lost a yardage on the attempted return.

A first-down run gained little traction, but a run-pass option to Golden picked up six yards to set up a manageable third down, a dart from Ewers to Moore to gain the necessary yardage. After the two-minute timeout, Sarkisian dialed up a screen pass to Helm that gained 11 yards. On the next play, though, the turf monster tackled Wisner for a loss after a miscommunication. When Ewers climbed the pocket and tried to scramble, Texas was called for a holding penalty on junior right tackle Cam Williams. Helm dropped a pass on second down and Wisner kept the ball in bounds on third down, forcing Georgia to call a timeout before the punt, expectedly pressured by the Bulldogs.

As Georgia tried to score some late points, Holmes made another big play in coverage, ensuring that the Dawgs weren’t able to gain any traction before halftime until an offside penalty led Beck to take a shot and Holmes lost his composure on a throw that was intercepted, leading to a pass-interference penalty with eight seconds remaining with the ball just across midfield.

Texas jumped offside again on another interception thrown by Beck that took seven seconds off the clock, leaving Georgia forced to throw a Hail Mary that resulted in a fumble and multiple laterals that led to a fumble by the Longhorns with no time left on the clock and Beck down on the field banged up after taking a big hit to his throwing arm.

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Third quarter

The injury sustained by Beck was significant enough that he was ruled out for the second half, giving way to redshirt sophomore Gunner Stockton, who had only attempted 35 career passes entering the game.

Stockton was able to convert a 3rd and 2 through the air, finding a seam in the zone coverage. Two more runs put the Bulldogs into third and short again and Stockton was able to scramble for another first down. A run-pass option went for minimal yardage on a throw by the Georgia backup, who left the pocket on second down to hit a 14-yard completion with an impressive toe tap on the sideline by wide receiver Luckie Lawson to enter the Texas red zone.

Some agility on a designed run allowed Stockton to put up some valuable yardage inside and Etienne finished it with the game’s first touchdown from 10 yards out to take a 10-6 lead.

A 13-yard gain by Golden on a throw from Ewers opened the Texas drive, but the Georgia defensive line blew up the line of scrimmage on consecutive runs for five total yards lost. Under pressure, Ewers was forced to throw the ball away on third down and the Longhorns had to punt quickly. Another penalty on Texas moved the ball backwards again before the punt finally went off.

Georgia offensive coordinator Mike Bobo decided to run a trick play to open its drive and the disciplined Texas defense dropped the end around for a seven-yard loss. Back to the screen game, the Bulldogs picked up seven yards. Able to dial up the pass rush on 3rd and 10, Longhorns freshman edge Colin Simmons got to Stockton quickly and delivered a huge hit that resulted in a lateral for a 16-yard loss. Called for a delay-of-game penalty, the Bulldogs were backed up farther, helping to enable a 26-yard return by Bolden that also saw the Georgia punter hobble off the field.

A crossing route to Golden picked up 12 yards, but a screen to Moore didn’t pick up any yardage and Ewers wasn’t able to throw a touch pass to the sophomore on a corner route, forcing the Horns into 3rd and 10. With Georgia able to dial up pressure, Ewers was sacked quickly trying to step up in the pocket. The lost yardage impacted Auburn again on his 51-yard attempt that sliced left and no good.

Georgia capitalized on its first play from scrimmage when Etienne hit a seam and raced 48 yards, only the third rushing play of 40-plus yards allowed by the Texas defense all season. Into the red zone, the Bulldogs had to attempt a fourth-down conversion because of the injury to the punter and Longhorns defensive tackle Vernon Broughton was called for hands to the face. The defense finally stiffened enough to force the short field goal with Stockton serving as the third-string holder as Georgia extended the lead to 13-6 with only a few seconds remaining in the third quarter.

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Fourth quarter

Golden caught a hitch route and took it for 25 yards and Wisner hit a run up the middle for seven yards to start the fourth quarter before Ewers had to throw the ball away on a cornerback blitz. On 3rd and 3, Texas called a glance-route run-pass option that Ewers pulled and toss to Moore for a 41-yard touchdown as Moore made a defender miss in the open field to tie the game at 13-13.

A busted play on first down resulted in Stockton taking a two-yard loss and Texas nickel back Jayon Guilbeau destroyed a screen pass for a two-yard loss on third and short, but the Bulldogs dialed up a fake punt and picked it up easily to extend the drive.

Etienne shortened the game with another first down and a second-down completion by Stockton set up Georgia with third and short on the next set of downs, converted with a swing pass to Etienne in four-down territory.

The Longhorns defense was pushed to the brink thanks to some help from the artificial turf — a trick play resulted in a fumble that bounced right back up to the ballcarrier and another fumble down near the Texas goal line resulted in another recovery by Georgia. When Mukuba delivered a physical hit that caused an injury, the Bulldogs faced 3rd and goal at the 4-yard line with 4:58 remaining. Texas deflected the pass on third down to force a short field goal by Georgia to take a 16-13 lead.

Trying to run the ball up the middle, Wisner was stopped for a loss and Ewers was sacked on a play-action pass on second down. Throwing off his back foot, Ewers made a poor decision and threw an interception.

When Georgia was finally called for a hold on second down, the Bulldogs were behind the chains on the potentially game-sealing drive, leading to a timeout by the Longhorns with 2:38 remaining and Georgia facing 3rd and 13 from the 31-yard line.

Able to dial up pressure, Texas forced Stockton into his worst decision of the second half, a desperation throw to avoid a sack that found the hands of Barron to preserve the shot at tying or winning the game for the Longhorns.

Wisner took a screen pass for 11 yards to open the decisive drive, but wasn’t able to find much room on a two-yard run that sent the game into the two-minute timeout with the Horns still holding two timeouts.

A false start on Williams backed up Texas, but a throw to Moore on mesh was able to set up a manageable third down. Georgia blitzed and was able to bat down the pass from Ewers. On fourth down, Moore made a difficult catch to keep the game alive, then caught a slant for nine yards. Wisner was finally able to find a cutback lane on the next run, but was tackled into Bond, who hobbled off the field.

Trying to win the game, Sarkisian dialed up a shot play to Wingo on a go route and Everette was called for defensive pass interference.

Trying to run a misdirection throwback, Ewers was sacked and Texas had to call its second timeout. On second down, Ewers forced a throw to Wingo that went incomplete, setting up a critical third down, a screen pass dropped by the freshman wide receiver.

With Auburn sent onto the field, Georgia used a timeout to ice the shaky kicker, but it didn’t work, as Texas tied the game from 37 yards.

The kick by Auburn sent the game into overtime for the first time in SEC title history.

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Overtime

For a second time, Georgia won the toss and deferred, giving Texas the ball first to start overtime. Sarkisian sent Manning onto the field in overtime, running a Counter read for five yards before Ewers returned and had to throw the ball out of bounds on a play-action pass. On a double-slant route, Ewers put the ball on Wingo’s hands and the freshman came through with a defender draped all over him.

After the Bulldogs took a timeout, Ewers tried to hit Golden, who was bodied out of the end zone by Everette, and Moore on a slot fade that wasn’t delivered well. Before 3rd and 10, Texas called a timeout. When Ewers was forced to check down and Wisner was dropped for a one-yard loss, sending Auburn back out onto the field, connecting from 32 yards.

A play-action pass to Georgia tight end Oscar Delp resulted in a forced missed tackle by Guilbeau and a big eight-yard gain. Trying to pick up the first down with a screen pass, Texas rallied to the ball with Mukuba and Hill combining for the tackle for loss. Another throw to Delp, however, picked up enough yardage for a first down.

On a run by Etienne, Mukuba made a big tackle on the edge. Stockton took a quarterback draw up the middle on the next play and was hit in the head by Mukuba. The review overturned the targeting ejection, but forced Beck into the game to hand the ball off to Etienne, who found a seam for three yards to win it.