UPDATE – Twenty. We’re still counting. Ryan Williams has four TDs today, his second straight four-TD game. He’s the first VT back to record two straight four-TD games. With only 12:50 left, the Cavaliers are looking at a 28-13 deficit. Updates may be light the rest of the way as we’re writing something else, too, though we will certainly note anything significant. Check back later for a full story.
UPDATE – OK, some computer glitch I don’t understand just ate several of my updates. Where do they go? I’ll keep trying to find them. The brief version: VT converted a turnover into Ryan Williams’ third TD of the day and 19th of the season. The Cavaliers tried the same pitch VT has used several times today and Jameel Sewell timed it just right but Mikell Simpson couldn’t hold on. Kam Chancellor recovered for the Hokies and Williams scored two plays later. VT is about to get the ball back late in the third quarter, up by eight.
UPDATE – It’s early but Virginia made some kind of adjustment at halftime. Tyrod Taylor hasn’t had near the time he had in the first half on the Hokies’ first few plays. It will certainly make it easier for the Cavaliers to cover those receivers if Taylor doesn’t have much time to throw. He just went short to Danny Coale for a first down and then unloaded a perfectly timed pitch to Ryan Williams for a big gain. Perhaps letting Taylor be more mobile will make him a little harder to catch.
UPDATE – First offensive play of the half, Jameel Sewell runs for 29 yards. That puts him well over 100 yards and puts the Cavaliers in Hokies’ territory. Second play of the half, Sewell was run out of bounds for no gain. The Cavaliers are comfortable putting this game in Sewell’s hands (and feet) and it just might pay off for them. Sacked as I was typing this, bringing up a third-and-long. Sewell has more than twice as many rushing attemps as any Cavalier to this point.
THE REAL NUMBERS UPDATE – Stats delivered. Tech has 2211 yards to 200 for Virginia. Jameel Sewell has 99 rushing yards, a career high. Ryan Williams has rushed for 60 yards, Tyrod Taylor has passed for 143 on only five completions. Danny Coale has three catches and is only seven yards away from a 100-yard receiving day. Time of possession was overwhelmingly Virginia – Cavs had the ball for 18:42 of the first half. They ran 38 plays to 22 for the Hokies. Hokies are starting the second half with the ball on their own 20.
NUMBERS UPDATE – Will have to wait. There appears to be a glitch in the stat system here, which explains why they weren’t delivered after the first quarter (I can’t explain why I never noticed that until now, a whole ‘nuther story there). So we don’t have a numbers update yet. When we do get some updated stats, we’ll interrupt our regularly scheduled updates and provide them. Someone just yelled RUN STATS, GO! So my guess is we’re close to getting a stat sheet here. Stay tuned.There’s three minutes left before the second half starts. Virginia just came out. Virginia Tech’s specialists are out but the full team is still inside. Hokies will get the ball first.
UPDATE – Seemed like the half would never end, after a couple of timeouts and a personal foul penalty on Virginia on what should have been the last play of the half. Then another timeout! Finally, Tyrod Taylor’s Hail Mary into the end zone fell incomplete and the teams jogged off the field. It’s 14-13 Virginia Tech after the Cavaliers’ Robert Randolph drilled a 40-yard field. The press box PA took time to remind press box occupants (many of them All-ACC voters) that Randolph is 17-19 on field goals this season. Sounds like the young man has quite a case for All-ACC. Anyway, we’ll be back soon to look at some numbers for the first half. It’s a good, competitive game thus far and the second half should be fun.
UPDATE – The last drive ended badly for the Hokies, with Matt Waldron missing a 40-yard field goal try. On the drive, Tyrod Taylor hooked up with Dyrell Roberts for a long gain. Taylor is now 5-7 for 143 yards. The Hokies have been taking advantage of Ras-I Dowling, who is Virginia’s best cornerback.
UPDATE – Tech clearly feels good about its punt return chances here. When have you ever seen a Frank Beamer team rush one guy – and it is basically a token rush at that? They’re eager to set up returns against a punter who’s barely averaging 40 yards per kick. Tech has had good field position all day and will start its current drive on its own 39 after a low, short punt that was not returned.
UPDATE – Eighteen, if you’re keeping track of Ryan Williams’ touchdown total. We are. Great run after a pitch from Tyrod Taylor and Williams dove in to complete a 20-yard scoring run. Hokies have taken a 14-10 lead. Only Lee Suggs and Kevin Jones have had more touchdowns in a season than Williams. Suggs did it twice, so Williams’ season is the fourth-best total in school history. Season’s not over yet.
UPDATE – Defenses have checked in. Virginia stopped Ryan Williams for a loss on third and the Hokies elected to punt from the Cavs’ 37. The Hokies defense then forced a three-and-out. So is this an offensive battle or a defensive battle? One thing for certain – Tech has had two kick returns and a punt return and done well on all of them. Hokies will start this drive in Virginia turf after a 23-yard punt return by Jayron Hosley.
UPDATE – A stop of sorts. Hokies kept Cavs out of the end zone but Virginia still took a 10-7 lead on a field goal by Robert Randolph. He’s 16-18 on the year. Hokies need to find a way to solve Jameel Sewell. He has 91 rushing yards already. That’s only one off his career high.
UPDATE – It sure looks as if Jameel Sewell will be a handful for Tech today. He had a nice run called back by a penalty so he followed it up with another nice one and has the Cavaliers driving again, on the Hokies’ 37. The Cavaliers are gaining yardage in chunks. First quarter is close to over and the Hokies have had the ball once. This offense may indeed be Virginia’s best defense.
UPDATE – OK, so maybe this will be a shootout. The Hokies tie the score on their first drive, thanks to two long passes from Tyrod Taylor to Danny Coale. Coale was the key on each of them, making great adjustments on his route to reel in the ball. The score went to Ryan Williams, the 17th of the season for the redshirt freshman. Taylor has had plenty of time and is confident throwing to Coale in one-on-one coverage. Interesting sidelight: A couple of the Hokies offensive players have been jawing with Virginia linebacker Denzell Burrell.
UPDATE – Yes, Virginia is inspired to start this game. First drive was exactly what the Cavaliers needed, punctuated by Jameel Sewell’s touchdown. The Cavs took almost six minutes off the clock – Tech won’t be able to score as much without the ball – and moved down the field pretty easily. It’ll be interesting to see what kind of intensity Virginia’s defense comes out with, because a quick stop of the Hokies would be huge.
UPDATE – Kickoff is moments away. Anthems have been played, lineups introduced, the horse is making its way off the field. Good time to look at the crowd here. It’s about full, which everyone expected. How much of it is Wahoo, how much of it is Hokie? Hard to tell at a glance because the orange shirts could be either side. Lots of maroon, lots of blue, too. Best guess at this point is 30 percent Hokies. They seem to own one end zone and there are other pockets sprinkled throughout the stadium.
Coin toss streak: After losing the first 10 tosses of the season, Tech has now won two straight. The Hokies have deferred and will kick off to open the game. We’re moments away from kickoff. Let’s get this party started, let’s get it started – The Black-Eyed Peas do a much better version.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Greetings from sun-splashed Scott Stadium, home of the final game of the regular season for Virginia and Virginia Tech. Final game, period, for the Cavaliers since they aren’t bowl eligible. The sky is blue, the fans are filling up the stands, both teams are on the field going through their paces. We’re a little over 30 minutes away from kickoff of The Great Rivalry Game between the state’s two Football Bowl Subdivision schools.
The biggest vibe here, of course, concerns Virginia coach Al Groh. He’ll conclude his ninth year in charge of the Cavs today and he’ll have a winning record no matter what happens. He’s 59-52 to this point. He’s also twice won the ACC Coach of the Year award.
Most seem convinced this will be his final game with the Hoos, including yours truly. A victory today would leave the Cavs at 4-8 on the season and only 2-7 against Tech in Groh’s tenure. It would be the third losing season in the past four. Attendance has been low this year, though the place will be packed. Empty seats (which cost the school a lot of money) and a very poor record against your arch-rival will do in a coach pretty quickly.
I’m sure there are some out there who think the media relish such a scenario, enjoy seeing someone “run out of town.” Maybe a few somewhere feel that way. I’m not among them and I can’t think of any colleague off the top of my head who would fit. I’ve never covered Virginia full time, so I haven’t had the day-to-day exposure to Groh. Maybe that would change my thinking. In the dealings I have had with him, he’s always been gracious. Plus, I think he’s a pretty good coach.
That said, making a change is probably the right call. You can’t have a lot of empty seats. You can’t lose to your rival almost every year. Interest is down. Virginia football – and the school has what it needs to be a player – needs a kickstart. Unfortunately, a change of coaches is the prime way of doing that.
Speculation will begin in earnest soon about the potential replacement. Mike London? Al Golden? A “Tony Bennett” type candidate that no one would think of off the top of their heads? We’ll get into all that later, if necessary.
As for the Hokies, they’re shut out of the ACC championship game and won’t be able to defend the title they won the past two seasons. They go into today with an 8-3 record and hopes of padding their bowl resume as well as continuing their domination of their arch-rival. With a victory, I’m going to really stick my neck out and predict Tech will play in Atlanta at the Chick-Fil-A Bowl. The worst they’ll do is end up in Jacksonville in the Gator Bowl.
A loss could send the Hokies to Orlando for the Champs Sports Bowl. Hard to imagine they’ll fall any lower than that.
I think Tech wins today. It is a 16-point favorite. I do not think it out of the question at all that Virginia will find a way to win. Groh is popular among the players and you can bet they’ll play with a passion probably not seen this season. A few tricks? Why not? What does Virginia have to lose? Tech won’t win if it is not at its best.
Some other notes from this series:
*Tech has a 48-37-5 overall lead, has won 12 of the past 16 and the past five.
*The Hokies have won four of their past five games in Charlottesville. Overall, they are 18-17-3 here.
*Both Groh and Tech’s Frank Beamer played at the school where they coach. Beamer’s first collegiate start came in 1966 against Virginia and the Hokies won 24-7. A defensive lineman, Groh finished his career at U.Va. just before Beamer started at Tech. Groh played from 1963-65.
Tune into the game on your favorite radio station or watch it on TV on ESPN. Keep your computer nearby and keep up with updates right here at Virginia Sports Now. We’ll offer insights and information, some of it spot on and some of it misguided, throughout the afternoon. We’ll come back with a full story as soon as possible after the game.
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