Clemson vs. Georgia Tech: Score and Twitter Reaction

The No. 22 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets kept their dreams of playing for an ACC title alive Saturday as they cruised past No. 19 Clemson 28-6 at Bobby Dodd Stadium in Atlanta.

Georgia Tech used 251 rushing yards to improve to 9-2 on the season and 6-2 in the ACC, which keeps it in contention for the Coastal Division title along with Duke.

According to ESPN College GameDay, the Jackets' defense also came up huge in the victory:

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Georgia Tech’s defense outscores (14) Clemson’s offense (6) as the Yellow Jackets defeat the Tigers 28-6. #CLEMvsGT pic.twitter.com/BLmGWwQv6A

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) November 15, 2014"

As for the Tigers, they are now 6-2 in the ACC, which means their chances of catching undefeated Florida State in the Atlantic Division have evaporated. Per Tom D'Angelo of The Palm Beach Post, Clemson's loss allowed the Seminoles to clinch a spot in the ACC Championship Game:

The main focus entering Saturday's game was the status of Clemson freshman quarterback Deshaun Watson. After missing three games with a broken finger, he returned to action against the Yellow Jackets.

According to Clemson football's official Twitter account, Watson was confident that his hand would hold up just fine:

Following a fumble by senior running back Tony Zenon on Georgia Tech's first offensive drive, Watson showed that while his hand had just healed, there was nothing wrong with his legs. He rushed four times for 28 yards, which resulted in the Tigers taking a 3-0 lead by virtue of a short field goal.

Although Clemson couldn't cash in with a touchdown, Aaron Brenner of The Post & Courier liked what he saw out of the returning signal-caller:

While driving for another score late in the first quarter, though, disaster struck for the Tigers. There was so much emphasis placed on Watson's hand, but he went down awkwardly on a running play and seemed to be favoring his leg, per Manie Robinson of The Greenville News:

Watson was able to walk off on his own power, but he was replaced by senior Cole Stoudt. As pointed out by NFL.com's Bryan Fischer, Watson's exit was a major blow to the Clemson offense:

That much was abundantly clear just three plays after Watson left the game as Stoudt was intercepted by Georgia Tech defensive back Jamal Golden, who returned it 85 yards for a touchdown. The Jackets went up 6-3, and they were unable to add the extra point after a botched snap.

Clemson went 3-0 with Stoudt as the starter during Watson's previous absence, but the Tigers were clearly lacking dynamism when Stoudt entered Saturday's game.

Georgia Tech added a field goal to make it 9-3 early in the second quarter after a 46-yard run by junior running back Broderick Snoddy. Unfortunately, Snoddy appeared to suffer a fate similar to Watson just a couple series later as he suffered a serious leg injury, according to Ken Sugiura of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

In a show of support for the their fallen teammate, the entire Georgia Tech squad surrounded Snoddy while he was being tended to, as seen in this photo courtesy of Fox 5's Merissa Lynn:

The Yellow Jackets had a chance to take a 12-3 lead into halftime, but kicker Harrison Butker missed a 48-yard field goal, which left the advantage at six.

During the half it was officially announced that Watson would not return with a knee injury, which meant it would be left up to Stoudt:

That unfortunate news certainly didn't inspire Clemson as Georgia Tech came flying out of the gates in the second half. On the first play from scrimmage, Yellow Jackets quarterback Justin Thomas ran for 65 yards into the Tigers' red zone.

He then cashed in with a touchdown pass to DeAndre Smelter to make the score 16-3.

Things continued to go south for Clemson on the ensuing drive as Stoudt was intercepted by junior defensive back D.J. White. According to Brenner, it was a continuation of the senior quarterback's uneven play this season:

That allowed Georgia Tech to take on another field goal, which put the Tigers in a deep, 16-point hole. Clemson was able to answer with a 32-yard field goal from Ammon Lakip, but it squandered an opportunity as Stoudt missed an open receiver in the end zone.

The Yellow Jackets were moving the ball once again following the field goal, but their drive was stalled by their second fumble of the game. This time it was senior running back Zach Laskey who coughed it up in his first action since October, per ESPN ACC:

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Laskey, in his first game back from injury, fumbles. Robert Smith recovers. Smith missed 1st half after targeting call last wk. #CLEMvsGT

— ESPN ACC (@ESPN_ACC) November 15, 2014"

Clemson was done in by poor quarterback play yet again, however, as another Stoudt interception was returned 62 yards for a touchdown by junior defensive back Chris Milton. According to ESPN's Brett McMurphy, it marked the second time that Stoudt essentially handed the Jackets a touchdown:

After that nightmarish play put Georgia Tech up 25-6, Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney finally made the decision to replace Stoudt with sophomore Nick Schuessler.

The change didn't do much to spark the Tigers, though, as the offense continued to sputter. With just over eight minutes remaining in the contest, Georgia Tech added another field goal to take an insurmountable lead of 28-6.

Georgia Tech's win means that an ACC championship is still possible. The Jackets will need some help since the Blue Devils beat them a few weeks ago, but Georgia Tech needs to take care of its own business.

A rivalry game against Georgia in two weeks is the only game remaining on its regular-season schedule, which means it can't suffer another ACC loss.

As for Clemson, a game against struggling Georgia State is on tap next week before hosting South Carolina in the finale.

The Tigers are bowl eligible and likely won't finish worse than 8-4, but Clemson fans can't be overly optimistic if Watson is forced to miss a significant amount of time.

There is no question that Clemson was damaged significantly by Watson going down Saturday, but Georgia Tech deserves all the credit in the world for taking advantage of it.

Follow @MikeChiari on Twitter