Ex-West star Nathan Cottrell of Georgia Tech runs for 79 yards against Tennessee Vols

ATLANTA - Nathan Cottrell of Georgia Tech needed only the first quarter to match his total yards he had his freshman season.

The sophomore and former West High School running back had two carries for six yards against Tennessee in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game on Monday night at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

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However, his most electric run of the game came in the third quarter on an option play in which he rambled for 38 yards.

Just before the end of the third quarter, Cottrell ran for 14 yards for a first down.

Cottrell swept right for nine yards for another first down in the fourth quarter.

In overtime, Cottrell ran for 12 yards on one carry.

He finished with six carries for 79 yards.

Georgia Tech finished with 535 yards on 86 carries in a 42-41 loss in double overtime to the Vols.

Cottrell had only one carry last season, picking up six yards against Mercer on Sept. 10. He appeared in 11 games last season,  primarily on special teams.

Cottrell was Georgia Tech’s primary kick returner in five of the final six games of the season. He averaged 20.8 yards on nine returns.

At West, Cottrell was named first-team PrepXtra running back in 2013 and 2014.