Mercer football (2-2, 0-1 Southern Conference) dropped their second straight game in a one-sided affair against Georgia Tech (1-2) in Atlanta on Saturday, Sept. 19, 44-11. The Bears were offensively outmatched all game against the FBS Yellow Jackets, especially after QB JP Pickles '28 had to sub in for injured starter Jaylen King '27 in the second quarter. The Bears only attempted 14 passes all game.
Mercer's defense held up admirably at times, and showed flashes of resilience against the Jackets, including a blocked extra point attempt in the third quarter that was returned for two points by Cameron Goggins '27. The Bears were simply outmatched in the trenches, though, and gave up 142 yards and two touchdowns on the ground to Georgia Tech running back Justice Haynes.
After building a comfortable lead in the waning minutes of the second quarter off of a two-play 60-yard touchdown drive orchestrated by quarterback Alberto Mendoza that put the Jackets up 24-3, Georgia Tech was able to churn out first downs on the ground in the second half consistently enough to shut out a potential Mercer comeback.
A stalwart Bears defense held the Jackets to only a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, forcing two punts from the home squad and shutting down the passing game entirely, not allowing a single completion from Mendoza. Georgia Tech went up 14-0 in the second quarter off of a costly King fumble on the Mercer 38-yard line.
The Bears bounced back with a 71-yard drive that took advantage of two 15-yard penalties by the Jackets. Facing a first-and-goal, though, Mercer could not convert and had to settle for a Simon Zeidan '29 field goal to make the score 14-3. Starting quarterback King was injured with a concussion while attempting a quarterback sneak, leaving Pickles to start the rest of the game. Tech dug in against a demoralized Mercer squad, and ended the half on a 10-point run.
Pickles used his legs to generate a solid drive to open the third quarter on chunk gains of fifteen and sixteen yards. The Bears rushed seven straight times all the way to the Georgia Tech 27-yard line before a holding call stalled momentum and forced them into a Zeidan field goal to make the score 24-6. The Jackets responded with a three-run 65-yard drive on the back of Haynes, putting them up 30-6. The extra point attempt was blocked by Javious Bond '27 and returned by Goggins for a rare two-point non-safety play.
Pickles led another succesful Mercer drive on the Bears' next possession that was highlighted by a 37-yard completion to Brayden Smith '27. Mercer made it down to the Jackets' 16-yard line before another costly penalty backed them up enough to force a Zeidan field goal to make the score 30-11. After that, a far more experienced Georgia Tech team took over. Another quick drive by Mendoza made the score 37-11, and an interception by Pickles on the next drive sealed the game for the Bears at the end of the third quarter. The Jackets replaced their starters and ended the contest with the game's last touchdown in the fourth.
While Mercer no doubt expected this loss to a tough FBS opponent, King's injury and Pickles' relatively succesful performance on the ground and in the air might shake up the quarterback room for the Bears in their next games before conference play. The team's punishing ground game and scrappy defense remains Mercer's strong suits heading into their next game against Abilene Christian University in Abilene, Texas on Saturday, Sept. 26. Conference play begins against Virginia Military Institute on Saturday, Oct. 3 in Lexington, V.A.
Jacob Hossler '28 is an English and Law and Public Policy double major at Mercer University who has worked at the Cluster since his freshman year. While not serving as the Cluster's current Editor-in-Chief, he enjoys running, mapmaking, and using the Oxford comma.
