ATLANTA- The battle for Atlanta was an intense affair in the first half before Georgia Tech pulled away in the third quarter to pick up a 35-12 win over Georgia State in the first meeting between the schools on the football field.

The Jackets moved to 2-0 for the first time since the 2016 season. The Jackets started that season 3-0 including a win in Ireland in week one against Boston College in an ACC game just like the Jackets won in Ireland over Florida State last week in the season opener. Tech ended up 9-4 that year with a win over Kentucky in the Gator Bowl and a win in Athens over UGA.

Penalties kept the game close as Tech had eight for 72 yards that wiped out two scoring plays.

“It was a good win and it was good to be back at home and have a night game. We did some good in the game and we have some things to work on. There were a lot of drives on both sides where there were self-defeating penalties where we extended our drive or ended ours. We had a long touchdown called back by Haynes (King) and we will look at the film and see if it was the back stretch out too wide or guys having their hands too far inside actually holding,” head coach Brent Key said.

Tech finished just under 500 yards for the game with 499 yards. Quarterback Haynes King threw for 275 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception on 24-29 passing while running for 27 yards and another touchdown on five carries. King had a long touchdown run wiped out by a hold.

Tech running back Jamal Haynes had to battle and had two long runs wiped out by holding calls, but he ended the day with 84 yards on 17 carries and a touchdown as well as two catches for six yards.

True freshman running back Anthony Carrie saw his first action in the fourth quarter after Chad Alexander went down with an injury and had a 30-yard run and picked up 41 yards on four carries.

“Running back is a position where you get banged up. It was good to see Anthony get in there and we had accumulated blows throughout the game and it started to see it. He held onto the football and kept the ball high and tight and held onto it,” Key said.

The Jackets entered the game without Trey Cooley who was hurt on the opening kickoff return of the game in Ireland and lost Alexander as well testing the depth.

Backup quarterback Zach Pyron ran two times for 15 yards helping cap the day with 225 yards on the ground for the Jackets.

Receiver Eric Singleton Jr. had four catches for 43 yards and a 35-yard touchdown run on a reverse.

“The key is to get guys touches, we have a lot of guys who can get explosives and we talked about it this week being creative getting those guys the balls. The pass concept doesn’t always have the ball go where you want, but reverses and pop passes get the ball where you want it to go,” Key said.

Slot receiver Malik Rutherford led the receivers with 131 yards and a touchdown on seven catches on nine targets.

“It doesn’t get any easier than that,” Rutherford said of his long 52-yard touchdown catch. “They blew a coverage and I was open.”

The 131 yards were a career-high for Rutherford and his first 100-yard game in college.

“Brody (Rhodes) told me he thought I had 140 and I thought nah, I have 97 yards, it felt good to get over that 100-yard game for the first time,” Rutherford said.

Tight end Avery Boyd had four catches for 27 yards and a touchdown and

Ryland Goede (1 for 16), Bailey Stockton (1 for 9) and Josh Beetham (1 for 6) had their first career catches as a Yellow Jacket.

Tech held State to 210 yards passing and 150 yards rushing. Christian Veilleux in his debut for the Panthers threw for 210 yards and a touchdown while running for 22 yards. Tech stopped the Panthers' two on the goal line to force turnovers on downs in the game as well and forced a field goal on a third drive yielding just three points on three drives with first and goal.

“It shows how we are as a defense, we kind of bow up with our backs against the wall,” Efford said.

State was just 3 of 12 on third down in the game as well.

Tech linebacker Kyle Efford led the way defensively with 13 tackles and Zeek Biggers had a big fumble recovery early in the game to set up Tech’s first touchdown of the game.

“I was very excited and the first thing I thought was big man touchdown, but I got tackled. I was happy to get the ball for the offense to help them get the first touchdown,” Biggers said.

The Jackets had eight TFLs but no sacks in the game and only one quarterback hurry. Linebacker Trenilyas Tatum had 2.5 TFLs in the game and three tackles.

Senior cornerback Warren Burrell had two pass breakups and six tackles.

Kicker Aidan Birr was perfect on his PATs in the game and punter David Shanahan had three punts for 123 yards and one inside the 20.

Rodney Shelley had two punt returns for 22 yards.

Liam Rickman hit a pair of field goals for Georgia State including one after another Tech defensive stand inside the red zone.

The time of possession was even 30:02 for Tech and 29:58 for State in the game. Both teams had 10 drives.

Georgia Tech won the toss and deferred to the second half. Ja’Cyais Credle returned the opening kickoff 30 yards to the GS35. Freddie Brock picked up 11 yards on first down to the GS46. Wilkerson picked up 41 yards on 2nd and 10 to set up first and goal from the one for the Panthers. Omar Daniels and Sylvain Yondjouen combined for a TFL on first down. Kyle Efford stuffed Wilkerson on second down at the GT1. Ahmari Harvey had a TFL to force fourth and goal. Georgia State called a timeout after seeing the Jackets defensive alignment with 10:04 left in the first quarter. LaMiles Brooks snuffed out the pass on fourth down and the Panthers turned it over on downs.

Tech starting at their own 1 after the defensive stand. Jamal Haynes ran for one yard on first down and Haynes King couldn’t connect with Eric Singleton on second down, but hit him on third down for 12 yards to the GT14. Jamal Haynes picked up a first down on a check down by King to the GT26. King and Haynes combined for five yards and then King hit Avery Boyd came up a yard short on a pass from King under pressure to force a punt. David Shanahan’s punt was covered well at the GS20 by Warren Burrell who tackled the return man for no gain.

State fumbled on the second snap of the drive and Zeek Biggers came up with the ball at the GS20. Jamal Haynes picked up four yards on first down and Singleton picked up 10 yards on a pop pass to set up first and goal at the GS7. King scored on the next play but a hold on Ryland Goede wiped out the score. Jackson Hawes caught a pass to the GS1 and Key opted to go for it at the one. Jamal Haynes punched it in on fourth down to make it 7-0 Georgia Tech with the Aidan Birr PAT.

Birr’s kickoff sailed through the end zone to set up Georgia State at their own 25. Trenilyas Tatum had a TFL on first down. D.J. Riles caught a Christian Veilleux pass for nine yards to set up third and 2 at the GS33. Rodney Shelley had a TFL on third down on a screen pass to force a State punt. Rodney Shelley returned the punt seven yards to the GT33.

King hit Chase Lane on second down for an 11-yard gain to end the first quarter at the GT40. On the first play of the second quarter, King hit Malik Rutherford for 20 yards on a play-action pass to the GS34. The Jackets stalled out at the GS42 and Shanahan had to come in and punt after two negative plays to Haynes. Shanahan’s punt was fair caught at the GS11.

The Panthers picked up a pair of first downs via a pass to Tailique Williams and back-to-back runs by Veilleux and Brock to the GS34. Dorian Fleming broke a tackle in the backfield and ran for 21 yards to the Tech 40. A false start moved them back to the GT47. Shelley had another good TFL to force third and two a the GT41. Veilleux scrambled out of pressure for a first down at the GT35. Tatum snuffed out a play for a five yard loss to set up third and 15. Ted Hurst picked up 14 to set up fourth and one at the GT26. Williams caught a floater by Veilleux for 24 yards to the GT3. Shelley broke up the first down pass and Clayton Powell-Lee hd a tackle on the next play and the Jackets stuffed Wilkerson via Jordan van den Berg and Tatum to force a short field goal to cut Tech’s lead to 7-3 with 3:49 left in the half.

After a touchback, the Jackets started at their own 25, Jamal Haynes ran two times for nine yards. Haynes picked up six yards for a first down at the GT40. Chad Alexander ran for seven yards on his first carry. The second down run ended with a holding call on Jackson Hawes backing the Jackets up to the GT40 again for 2nd and 10 at the two-minute warning with 1:53 left. Leo Blackburn was called for a hold on a long touchdown run backing the ball up to the GS43, Haynes ran 35 yards to the GS7 to set up first and goal with 93 seconds left in the half. Haynes ran two times for two yards to set up third and goal at the GS5. Tech tried a trick play on third down and Rutherford was stopped at the GS2 to set up fourth and goal at the GS2. Haynes King punched it in with some help from his offensive line with four seconds left in the half to make it 14-3 Georgia Tech (Birr PAT is good).

Georgia State took a knee to end the half.

The opening kickoff sailed out of bounds to give Tech the ball at the GT35. After a three-yard run by Haynes on first down, Jordan Williams was called for a false start. King hit Rutherford for 18 yards to the GS49 and then connected with Lane on a screen for 14 yards. Eric Singleton Jr. on a reverse scored from 35 yards out to put the Jackets up 21-3.

After a short return to the GS18 by Jordan Ford, State picked up five yards on first down, Warren Burrell nearly picked off a second down pass with PBU and Taye Seymore had a great open-field tackle to force a punt. Shelley returned the punt to the GT48, 15 yards.

King on play-action on first down hit a wide-open Malik Rutherford for 52 yards for a touchdown. Birr hit the PAT to make it 28-3 Georgia Tech with 11:19 left in the third quarter.

After the touchback on the kickoff, State converted on a 23-yard rush by Brock to the GT45 on second and three. Romello Height was called for roughing the passer on the next play to move the Panthers to the GT30. Tech stopped the first two pass plays and then Williams dropped a touchdown pass. State settled for a field goal to make it 28-6 Georgia Tech with 9:52 left in the third quarter.

Following a touchback, King hit Avery Boyd for a short gain on first down and a horsecollar tackle gave the Jackets 15 yards to the GT40. Bailey Stockton caught a nine-yard pass to the GS47 for his first career catch. King under pressure was picked off by former Yellow Jacket defensive back Kenyatta Watson II.

Zachary Tobe defended the first down pass from Veilleux and Burrell broke up the second down pass to bring up third and long, but Brock sat down in the zone and caught a pass for a first down. Kyle Efford picked off Veilleux on the next play, but Tech had 12 men on the field and the flag moved the ball to midfield. Wilkerson was stuffed on second down by Height and Efford for a TFL to bring up third down, but the Panthers converted to the GT41. After a nine-yard run by Ford, State hit Petey Tucker for eight yards. State finally got on the scoreboard with a 24-yard touchdown pass from Veilleux to Dorian Fleming. State dropped the two-point conversion pass.

Tech started the next drive after a touchback at their own 25. Haynes picked up two yards on first down. King hit Singleton for nine yards and a first down at the GT35. Jordan Williams was hit with a holding penalty to set up first and 20 from the GT26. Alexander ran for six yards on first down. King hit Singleton for 12 yards and Alexander converted on the next play to midfield on a six-yard run. Alexander picked up one yard and headed to the medical tent on the next play. Rutherford caught a screen and went 31 yards on second down to the GS18 to end the third quarter. King lost four yards on first down, but connected with Avery Boyd who scored on a 22-yard pass and run to put the Jackets up 35-12 (Birr PAT).

Georgia State had a false start to start the next drive after the touchback. Michel Dukes ran for 21 yards on his second touch of the game to the GS41. On third and short, an illegal hands to the face wiped out a first down catch as the Panthers knocked off Romello Height’s helmet. Shelley defended the third-down pass to force a punt from the GS33. The punt was downed at the GT12.

King hit Christian Leary on first down for two yards and then hit Ryland Goede for 16 yards. Harrison Moore made his debut for the Jackets at center on the next play. King ran for a loss on one on first down and had passes batted down on the next two plays. Shanahan punted for the first time since the first quarter, 48-yard punt to the GS24 where it was fair caught.

Brock ran for six yards on first down and Dukes caught a pass for eight yards to move the ball to the GS38. Hurst picked up 12 and Fleming picked up 28 yards on pass to the GT22. Brock picked up four yards on second down to set up third and six at the GT18. Shelley defended the third down pass in the end zone. Veilleux ran for nine yards to set up first and goal at the GT9. Veilleux pulled up on the next play and former quarterback Zach Gibson entered the game as a medical replacement. LaMiles Brooks and Height had a TFL on third down. Burrell stopped Dukes for a short gain to force fourth and goal from the GT7. Omar Daniels defended the pass in the back of the end zone to force a turnover on downs.

Starting at the GT7, Josh Beetham caught a first down pass for six yards on first down. Haynes ran for good yards but a hold on Jordan Brown wiped out the gain and moved Tech back to their own 7 again setting up second and 10. Jamal Haynes ran for 12 yards and a first down Anthony Carrie made his debut on the next play and ran for four yards. Carrie broke off a 30-yard run on the next play. Zach Pyron entered the game and ran for four yards on the next play running it down to the two-minute warning. Carrie ran for three yards to set up third and three. Pyron picked up a first down on the next play with an 11-yard run to the GS29. Carrie ran a final time to run out the clock.