Halftime: North Carolina 28, Virginia Tech 20
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — It has been a shootout through one half at Kenan Stadium, and North Carolina has the bigger weapons so far.
The Tar Heels took a 28-20 lead into halftime against the Hokies, getting 115 passing yards from Bryn Renner and 101 rushing yards from Giovani Bernard.
The Hokies (3-2, 1-0 ACC) got 144 passing yards, 27 rushing yards and two total touchdowns from quarterback Logan Thomas, but the defense, which forced three-and-outs its first three times on the field, gave up scoring drives of 59, 86 and 76 yards.
The Hokies avoided the slow start that’s plagued them all year, getting a three-and-out on defense before moving 57 yards on four plays and getting into the end zone on a 13-yard Thomas run. It was Virginia Tech’s first opening drive touchdown this year and its first points in the first quarter since the Austin Peay game four weeks ago.
North Carolina came right back with a 94-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by Sean Tapley to tie the game at 7. It was the first kick return for a touchdown the Hokies had allowed since 1993, snapping a 237-game streak that had been the longest active streak in the NCAA.
Another special teams gaffe cost the Hokies later in the first quarter. J.R. Collins jumped offsides as UNC was lining up for a field goal. The penalty gave the Tar Heels a first down, and Renner capitalized with a 4-yard touchdown run to make it 14-7.
Virginia Tech answered with a 49-yard touchdown pass from Thomas to Marcus Davis near the end of the first quarter to tie it at 14.
UNC started the second quarter in grand fashion, catching the Hokies off guard with a quick snap on fourth-and-one. Bernard ran off tackle untouched for a 62-yard touchdown and 21-14 lead.
After a 40-yard field goal by Cody Journell cut the lead to three, UNC drove the length of the field and went ahead 28-17 on A.J. Blue’s 1-yard touchdown run.
After Bernard muffed a punt, Tech drove down the field to get a 35-yard field goal by Journell to cut the lead to 28-20 heading into the locker room.
UNC out-gained Tech 239 to 189 in the first half. The Hokies had only 45 rushing yards, just 16 coming from Michael Holmes, their leading rusher of the tailbacks.
Thomas was 13-for-22 in the first half. Davis was his favorite target, with three catches for 66 yards.
October 6, 2012 - 2:21 PM
That 3rd down offside penalty could be the game. Foster will adjust, Hokies can win this game but must stay alert.
Tech needs to recruit nothing but d-tackles to close out the rest of this recruiting year. Even if that means recruiting o-lineman and converting them.
I think we need to recruit Dlinemen, Dback, linebackers, O-linemen, and receivers!!!! Worst team at VT in a long long time.
Those chokies just got picked off!! Beautiful because my favorite part so far in the game was when UNC was going for it on 4th and 1 and ran around that great defense you hokie “Chokie” backers claim is the best and ran it in. On the TV they showed a close up of your sorry defense coach Bud Foster his face should off been on the floor like his players. Its one thing to suck like other schools but its another when the media local ones here think that the Hokies “Chokies” are the only ones in town. Here is a tip your Hokies “Chokies” are not going anywhere until whole sale changes are made until then the Hokie Nation continue to see them “Choke”!!! You bunch of over rated sorry excuse of a football team. It truly feel for the players because they deserve better as for the coaches every last one of them deserve to be fired!!!!
NC – 4 red zone possessions and 4 TD’s – 100%! Wow, and the defense was supposed to be “good”? That question has now been answered.
Something is out-a-whack. You can’t tell me that Tech does not have the talent to win. It has to be coaching. When something is out-a-wack it is painful to get it back in whack. I hope it happens soon. Newsome and Sherman Stiney and O’Cain must go, they are terrible beyond words. Beamer needs to fire himself. Special Teams are no longer special, unless you are referring to the FORD Fix Often Repair Daily style mental breakdowns. GO HOKIES!!!! Fire someone, please.
OK, tech has now given up 500+ yards for the second time this season (plus gave up 495 to Cincy last week).
this is about the time that the Foster apologists roll in and start blaming the offense for the defense’s deficiencies.
3-3 and have not played a ranked team yet. Thank goodness DUKE is next!
Also where is the running game? Son need’s to get some production. Has he ever coached a running back? WOW>>>>>> Sure was easy to coach a freak like David Wilson….. Better go earn that paycheck Shane!
Why are we at such an overall talent disadvantage ? This IS both sides. I am thinking it may not even be so much coaching. UNC flat beat us in every phase of the game. Tackling, blocking…….horrible. Tackling worse than blocking.
It is painfully obvious to me now the spread offense is Bud Foster’s Achilles heel. His defense has always been designed to stop pro-style offense, but the ACC are turning into a little version of the Big 12.
Tar Heels!
What can the coaches possibly say? Neither the coaches or players have answers. Everyone is flummoxed. That is how it sounds.
We can’t be good all the time.
The line can not block in the run game ! JC is to small to run up the middle, the defense needs some switching of player in coverage.Its time for some changes to made! We have good players.
foster will adjust lmao yall beatin up on stiny but offense had the cincy game won it was fosters d that lost it and its fosters offense that is giving this one away
WOW Andy nothing from haltime till end if game? Ok Tech bandwagon fans “Letvthe excuse begin”. Totally got their a$$es whipped. Great defense Budddd looked like a train wreck. Frankie you coordinators couldn’t come up with a game plan to beat Craig County. 3 losses on my prediction of 5-6 this year. Weaver you need some cupcakes LMAO that’s righ Pitt was a cupcake and everyone thought Cincy was. Stinespring what can be said about you that hasn’t already?
and people talking about tech going to the sec wow smdh you wanna be perrenial cellar dwellers
I am not exactly sure why Hokiechick is determined to blame all the teams woes on the D. I will definitely agree they have not had the best year and are not playing up to their potential, hence the blame falls on Fosters shoulders. HOWEVA… going back oh since lets just say 2007 Tech’s D has been ranked 3rd, 9th, 9th, 26th, 7th and until today 26th. in Scoring D nationally. Their total D ranks during that time frame is 4th, 7th, 12th, 52nd, 10th and until today 55th. Last time I checked thats a pretty solid record of success. 4 times in the past 6 years our D has been in the top 10% in the nation. Conversely our scoring O has been 53rd, 90th, 24th, 21st, 57th, and 59th since 2007. And our total O has been 100th, 103rd, 49th, 41st, 35th, and to this point in the season 86th. So not once in those 6 years has the O been in the top 10% in the nation and multiple times its been in the bottom 10%. If you want us to agree the Defense hasn’t played great, then absolutely you are correct, but pretending that its the core of the problem doesn’t make much sense. Plus foster with multiple top 10 and top 5 defenses in the nation, grants him a much longer rope then Stiney and company with multiple bottom 10 nationaly ranked offenses. The overall problem with this football team is that we just aren’t very good. Nor are we consistent in anyway. That is a recipe for disaster, and well right now its a disaster. If anything Fosters defense being the middle of the road defense that it is has actually exposed the offense for how absolutely horrible it truly is and how much we have relied on the D to save us. (although today the O was better, and the play calling servicable, the execution, not so much) I will cheer next week, hoping we can eek one out against Duke so we can set our selves up for a mediocre bowl. (Meaning we will need to beat BC and UVA to get 6 wins). But its gonna be hard to watch that 3 game gauntlet we have looming after the Duke game.