Georgia Tech Football: 2014 Top 10 Plays - #3: Justin Thomas and Deon Hill Save the Day

For the next two weeks, From The Rumble Seat will be bringing you the top 10 plays of the 2014 season from the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets football team. There were plenty to choose from in such a spectacular season, but these are the ones we feel made the cut. Feel free to leave your opinions and let us know at the end if you feel some plays were left out, and maybe we can have an honorable mentions post.

#3 on our list for the top 10 plays from the 2014 season is a game-winning touchdown throw by Justin Thomas to Deon Hill that put the Jackets on top to narrowly beat the Georgia Southern Eagles. In what was the second most ridiculous game of the year played by Tech, the sophomore quarterback showcased his poise and composure for the first time for Jackets' fans by making an extremely clutch play when the team needed it the most. He went on to do it numerous times throughout the year, but dare I say, this one may have been the most important. If Justin Thomas doesn't find Deon Hill on that play, Georgia Tech potentially goes on to lose to Georgia Southern early in the year at home. It would've been a detrimental loss - one that teams rarely recover fully from in a season. I highly doubt that the Jackets would've gone on to have a very successful year had they lost early on to the Eagles. That's why I call it the play that saved the season. Luckily, we didn't have to see the fallout from an embarrassing early loss, because Justin Thomas made an unreal play, and Deon Hill was there to secure the pass and find the end zone.

The Play: On 3rd-and-7 from the 13-yard line, Tech finds themselves in need of a big play with just 32 seconds remaining on the clock. Justin Thomas takes the snap and is met immediately by an unblocked linebacker from Southern. Despite only having a split second to react after turning around and seeing the rushing defender, Thomas makes a ridiculous cutback to change direction and avoid the would-be-tackler. He rolls to his right and gets rid of the ball just over a swarm of Eagles' defenders coming at him. The ball wobbles to Deon Hill, and Hill reaches up to make the grab while an Eagle secondary member misplays the ball and falls to the ground after only getting a hand on his helmet. Hill trots into the end zone for the winning score for the Ramblin' Wreck. It was a play we weren't used to at the time - a clutch pass play when we needed it the most - but it was something we'd get used to later on thanks to the play that saved the season.

It'll be weird not having the always dependable Deon Hill on the field in 2015.

What do you think about this play? Is it ranked too high? Too low?

We're now down to the last two plays in the countdown, and I think everyone knows what they are. The argument for which should be the top play is an interesting one, and I want to hear the debate. I've decided to let the readers decide in the poll below which play should be #1 on Friday.

Is it The Pick? Or The Kick?

What do you think