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After big game at BC, receiver Marcus Davis glad he could give detractors ‘something else to talk about’

Marcus Davis got most of the headlines for his demotion last week, but receivers coach Kevin Sherman said the moves the Hokies made last week with their receiving corps weren’t designed to light a fire under any one person.

“I think all of our guys need to understand that there was a standard that we need to play to and we need to go out and make plays,” Sherman said. “And I think [Marcus] did that in the second half.”

Davis silenced some of his critics and earned back some of the coaches’ trust in the second half at Boston College with a five-catch, 104-yard performance, a striking rebuke to the viral video that made it up on Deadspin of his lackluster blocking in the Florida State game.

“It kind of hit me kind of hard, emotionally, but I tried not to let it control how I play,” Davis said. “I tried to let it go throughout the week. … But once the game started on Saturday, it was just like, that’s another chance for you to wash that off, give them something else to talk about. So my thing was, just make it good.”

At Boston College, after starting the first 10 games of the season, Davis sat out the first half, then went in for the start of the second. Sherman said it was a staff decision. Quarterbacks coach and play-caller Mike O’Cain, who is in the booth, said he did not even know Davis would be back in the game until he saw the senior on the field.

“I wasn’t expecting to go in,” Davis said. “When I was going out, [coach] was like, ‘Marcus, get ready.’ So I went and told [quarterback] Logan [Thomas], I was like, ‘It’s time to go.’ And he was like, ‘Well, I’m coming to you.’ And it just went on from there.”

It’s unclear who will start at receiver this week. Both head coach Frank Beamer and Sherman were non-committal about it Monday, saying they’ll continue to evaluate the receivers in practice this week.

But Davis’ big game puts him back on track for some significant milestones at Tech. He needs 105 yards to pass Andre Davis‘ single-season receiving yards record of 952 set in 1999.

With 858 yards, he could also become the first Virginia Tech player to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in a season. That would take the Hokies off a dubious list of Football Bowl Subdivision teams who have not accomplished that, a group that includes Army, Navy, Nebraska, South Florida and Temple.

“I’ve heard the talk,” Davis said of the milestones. “But at the same time, I really haven’t paid much attention to it. Just game-by-game, I just try to go out and play my hardest. If it happens, it happens. But if we win, that’s what I’m more concerned about.”

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Here are some more notes and quotes from interviews with offensive coaches/players Monday night …

  • Running backs coach Shane Beamer said he’s been inundated with emails and Twitter mentions asking if senior Martin Scales is going to have a bigger role going forward. Scales had seven carries for 27 yards against BC, which doesn’t sound impressive, but they were hard-nosed runs. Four times he got the ball on third-and-short. Four times the Hokies converted, including a crucial one in overtime when he shook off contact from two BC defenders in the backfield and got a first down that set up Randall Dunn‘s game-winning score.
  • Shane said Scales’ role is somewhat limited by the fact that he’s splitting his reps between tailback and backup fullback. He’s getting the fullback reps in place of an injured Riley Beiro. “You hate to put too much on the guy’s plate, if that makes sense,” Shane said. “So it’s hard. It’s two totally different positions, mentally what they’re doing.”
  • Also, it hasn’t fit into the game plan the Hokies have employed this year. “With what we’re doing offensively, we haven’t been much of a downhill, pound-you team all year long,” Shane said. “So we kind of felt like right, wrong or indifferent, Tony [Gregory] and J.C. [Coleman] were the guys who brought speed to the table, quickness, make you miss, play out in space. And that’s kind of what we’ve done.” Shane said there’s still a place for Scales’ north-south running, though.
  • Shane was a little surprised that Scales was able to break both of the tackles to get the first down late. “It was two big guys that hit him,” he said. “It wasn’t 190-pound defensive back. Those were two 300-pound defensive tackles that banged into him and bounced him around. He did a great job. When I watched the video, I was like god dog, how did he get out of that? It was just refusing to be denied and playing with a purpose. But that was a heck of an individual effort. Can’t say enough about it.”
  • Scales, who if you couldn’t tell I’ll be writing about this week for the paper, isn’t bothered by the lack of carries he’s gotten (30 for 136 yards this year). “I’m just happy to run,” he said. “Anybody would say it’s frustrating, because you want to run. But at this point, the way I was raised, I’m just happy to be called on in that situation. That shows that they have some confidence in me.”
  • A lifelong Virginia Tech fan, Scales said the memory that stands out for him in the rivalry isn’t a positive one. It’s the 2003 game in Charlottesville, the last time the Hokies lost to the Cavaliers. “I felt so bad,” he said. “I went to school mad. I remember seeing UVa people go, ‘Ahhhh.’ So that’s the one that stands out the most in my head. And I don’t want to have that feeling.”
  • Making a bowl game, even a lower-tiered one this year with the number of losses the Hokies have, is still a big motivator. “Me growing up, I don’t remember when Tech was bad,” Scales said. “So I just remember Tech being good. And it’s hard. You don’t like this feeling. So just to keep going 20 straight years of bowl games would just be great. … To say we were the year that messed it up and didn’t make it [to a bowl], that’s horrible. Just to beat UVa. I’m happy to go to a bowl, but I’d just love to beat UVa. Because that’s our big rival. And you just always want to beat them.”

Tech-UVa a noon kickoff on ESPNU, plus five thoughts from the Hokies’ win at Boston College

I’ve finally landed in Greensboro, which gives me a chance to get to some Internet access that doesn’t come at an airport rate. (Take some cues from Greensboro’s free WiFi, Newark. I paid $12 for a sandwich. At least give me some free Internet. It’s not too much to ask.)

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Anyway, just before my flight left, the ACC announced game times for next weekend. Virginia Tech’s game against Virginia in Lane Stadium will kick off at noon. It will be televised by ESPNU.

Here’s the full lineup of games:

Saturday, November 24

  • Georgia Tech at Georgia, ESPN, Noon
  • Virginia at Virginia Tech, ESPNU, Noon
  • Miami at Duke, ACC Network, 12:30 p.m.
  • Maryland at North Carolina, RSN, 3 p.m.
  • Boston College at NC State, ESPN3, 3 p.m.
  • Florida at Florida State, ABC (National), 3:30 p.m.
  • Vanderbilt at Wake Forest, ESPNU, 3:30 p.m.
  • South Carolina at Clemson, ESPN, 7 p.m.

As usual on Sunday, here are five thoughts after Saturday’s 30-23 overtime win against Boston College …

1. Like it or not, when properly motivated, Marcus Davis makes this offense go.

The vitriol some fans had for Davis last week reached peak levels — and some would say went over the top — for his lack of effort in blocking. And he paid the price, forced to watch in the first half Saturday at BC from the sideline. But the Hokies paid a price too. Their offense looked out of sorts with Davis out. Say what you will about his effort (and at times it’s completely warranted), but when he’s on, he’s the biggest play-maker Tech has. He takes the top off a defense like nobody else on the team. He can go up and make a catch on a defender like he did in the third quarter for a touchdown. And this week, he made a clutch catch on a deep ball, something he was only 1-for-2 on last week.

There’s a reason why he leads the team with 43 catches, 858 yards and five receiving touchdowns. In fact, 105 more yards and he’ll be the school’s single-season receiving yards leader, passing Andre Davis’ mark of 962 set in 1999. He could take the Hokies off the list of established FBS schools that have never had a 1,000-yard receiver before, a group that includes run-first teams (Army, Navy and Nebraska), a relatively new program (South Florida) and a one that has struggled historically (Temple).

I still think Corey Fuller is Tech’s most dependable receiver, because he provides a consistency that allows quarterback Logan Thomas to trust where he’s going to be on a particular play. That’s huge in a passing game, and I think it’s clear Thomas is more comfortable looking Fuller’s way. But Davis, with his physical skills, can do things at the position that no other receiver on the roster can do. Tech needs him to be at his best for the offense to go. It looks like this week’s first-half benching touched a nerve with him. Hokies fans are probably wondering what took so long.

2. The win is nice, but a lot still ails this offense.

A win is a win is a win, but there were still big problems with the offense. Tech had three points at halftime against a Boston College defense that had been giving up 29.9 points a game (the Hokies reached that mark but needed overtime to do it). The first half was a disjointed effort. If not for a fortunate tipped ball that ended up in Fuller’s hands, the Hokies might not have scored. The second half was better, but still full of issues. A long kick return yielded a touchdown when Thomas spun his way into a second-effort touchdown on a fourth-down sneak, barely getting it across the goal line. On one wide receiver screen, both players went to block on the play (apparently not wanting to be featured on Deadspin) and the ball zipped by incomplete. Even at the end, when the Hokies were moving the ball well, they bogged down in BC territory, with a few errant throws, clogged up runs and even a fumble thrown into the mix. The clock management by the staff in that situation was equally bad, only to be out-done by BC’s coaches running out the clock on the ensuing possession and playing for overtime, a dueling banjos of time mismanagement.

Thirty points is the most points Tech had scored since Duke. And the Hokies crept over the 400-yard mark for the fourth time in the last five games. But this was a bad Boston College defense. The Eagles were giving up 228.4 rushing yards per game coming in. Virginia Tech ran for 154. The Eagles are now giving up 463.7 yards per game. Tech managed 401, 25 of which came in overtime. The Hokies didn’t give up any sacks to one of the worst pass rushing teams in the country, but Thomas was still under pressure quite a bit. And even Thomas would admit he wasn’t his best, completing less than 50 percent of his passes for the third time this year, although he snapped a six-game interception streak. The win is a salve for a team that needed something to feel good about again, but Virginia Tech can’t ignore the fact that there remain plenty of offensive issues to address in the offseason.

3. This is the pass rush the Hokies always envisioned.

Poor Chase Rettig. The BC quarterback was under siege all day, pummeled by a Hokies pass rush that sacked him a season-high seven times and hit him several more times. By the end, he was understandably gun shy, finishing 13-for-30 for 129 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. But the Hokies have been doing that to a lot of quarterbacks lately. They have five or more sacks in four or the last five games. After getting only eight sacks the first six games, they have 22 in the last five. Their 30 sacks this year rank 19th nationally.

What was most impressive Saturday was the variety of players who got in on the plays. Coming into the game, you probably would have figured James Gayle, Luther Maddy and Dadi Nicolas would have had the best shot at getting to the quarterback. They had pressure, but never notched a sack. Instead, a group of players got in on it. Bud Foster continued to blitz his linebackers like crazy. Bruce Taylor and Alonzo Tweedy had two sacks apiece. The defensive line showed its depth, getting a sack from Tyrel Wilson and J.R. Collins and watching Corey Marshall and Derrick Hopkins combine for one. Line coach Charley Wiles has substituted liberally with his group, and head coach Frank Beamer thinks it’s keeping them fresh, which helps in the rush. Nicolas and Wilson’s emergence has helped that as well. It allows Collins to play inside, where he appears to be more effective. And it opens up snaps for Marshall at end. Overall, the front seven, even though it gave up 167 rushing yards to a bad BC ground game, is playing at a high level.

4. Antone Exum is starting to turn into a pretty good cornerback.

It seems like all anyone remembers about Exum is the Cincinnati game, where he was isolated for most of the afternoon against a good receiver and had several penalties that convinced the fan base that moving him from safety to corner was a bad offseason decision. Well, he played a great game at BC and has generally been the Hokies’ best cornerback all year. He made a couple of well-timed plays yesterday, getting a hand in on the receiver one time to knock the ball away right as it arrived, his ACC-leading 15th pass breakup this season. Would that have been interference earlier this year? Maybe. Perhaps he’s getting acclimated to the position.

But given Kyle Fuller’s struggles, some of which has to do with the injuries he’s been battling all season, Exum has been a blessing for the Hokies’ secondary. (Although Fuller made a heck of a play early on to flip the ball into the air on an early interception by Tweedy that the refs missed on the field and in the booth, the latest in what seems like a never-ending series of mistakes by the ACC’s replay officials.) Many have criticized the decision to move Exum away from safety, where he the leading tackler last year. But given Virginia Tech’s situation in the secondary, corner is where he would have made the most impact this year. It might be too late to make enough of an impression to get in the All-ACC discussion, but give him another year at the position and it seems like he could get to that level.

5. Given the way UVa played last week and how the Hokies have played at home, it would seem like Virginia Tech should win next week.

I know, way to go out on a limb. But there have been a lot of things Virginia Tech should have done this year. Only a handful of those things have actually happened. The team that showed up at Boston College was not the same one that played Florida State. It was a flat group for a half, showing a lot of the same problems that have plagued it all season. So yeah, Tech should beat the Cavaliers and, considering it has played noticeably better at home this year, will probably be favored pretty heavily to do so, but that’s not guarantee.

As up-and-down as Virginia Tech has been this year, Virginia is just as hard to figure out. Who knows which UVa team will show up next Saturday — the one that clobbered N.C. State and out-scored Miami for an upset win or the one that lost six straight earlier this year and didn’t show up in its first home Thursday night game in six years with its hopes for bowl eligibility on the line? Virginia Tech still has that postseason goal to motivate it, needing one more win to go to a bowl for a 20th straight season, as if there was really a need for extra motivation against a state rival. The Hokies have owned the series, winning eight straight and 12 of the last 13, but if ever there was a year that they were vulnerable in this game, even at home, it would be this one, its worst season since 1992. As the Hokies have proven time and time again this year, if they’re not sharp, they’re vulnerable. Barely squeaking by the worst team in the ACC proved that Saturday.

Post-game wrap: Hokies keep bowl hopes alive with 30-23 overtime win against last-place Boston College

Not the prettiest of wins today for Virginia Tech, which barely got by last-place Boston College 30-23 in overtime. But it’s a win nonetheless.

Here is a quick version of tomorrow’s game story. Hopefully it gets updated with my final version soon.

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Now for a few more notes and quotes from the post-game …

** The Hokies struggled most of the night against what was a reeling Boston College team that has only beaten Maryland and Maine this season. But they made plays in the end, tying the game on a late field goal by Cody Journell, getting a touchdown in overtime by tight end Randall Dunn and making a defensive stand after that to win the game.

For a team that had lost three straight overall and seven straight away from Lane Stadium, its longest drought since 1987-88, it was a welcome change.

“It just feels good,” linebacker Jack Tyler said. “We had a little losing streak there. It’s just nice to get a win again and just kind of get that monkey off our back finally.”

“We just talk about fighting. Keep on fighting,” head coach Frank Beamer said. “That’s kind of the story of the day right here.”

The Hokies (5-6, 3-4 ACC) barely stayed in the bowl picture with the win. They need to beat Virginia next Saturday at Lane Stadium to go to a bowl for a 20th straight season.

Win or not, Virginia Tech was still eliminated from contention in the Coastal Division once Georgia Tech beat Duke. After a 1-3 start, the Yellow Jackets are 5-3 in the league. The Hokies can’t finish with more than four league wins.

** The revised version of my game story focuses on Marcus Davis. The fifth-year senior was much-maligned this week after video of his lackluster effort in the Florida State game went viral and ended up on Deadspin. He was benched for the entire first half, something Beamer insisted was not planned for a fixed amount of time, even though the receiver played the very first snap of the second half.

From then on, he was outstanding. He had five catches for a game-high 104 receiving yards, including a 37-yard touchdown he hauled in over cornerback Sean Sylvia that gave the Hokies a 17-13 lead in the third quarter.

Davis said the benching was tough. Linebacker Bruce Taylor said he could tell Davis was down.

“You know a person, you know the personality,” Taylor said. “Me and Marc usually joke around a lot, we spend a lot of time together. You can tell when something’s bothering somebody.”

But he didn’t let it affect his play once he got a chance.

“I never take it personally,” Davis said. “I take it as, I need to get better. … I never doubt coach is believing in me. And when he told me [I’d play] the second half, a little fire lit up in me. … I just went out and did what I had to do.”

** The Hokies struggled mightily in the first half, trailing 13-3 despite out-gaining Boston College 183-145, the story of the season.

It was Davis who offered encouragement, though.

“The first half is over,” he remembered telling the team. “Just like they’ve been telling me all week, Thursday was over. And I was down about it. And I couldn’t let that affect me, just like we couldn’t let that first half affect how we played in the second half.”

** Virginia Tech did rally, though. Down 23-20 with 4:11 to play, the Hokies went 62 yards in 10 plays — getting catches of 12 yards and 33 yards from Davis — before Journell made a 41-yard field goal that glanced off the left upright and through, forcing overtime.

In the OT, Martin Scales had a key three-yard run, breaking a tackle behind the line to move the chains on third-and-1.

“I kept moving my feet and I was like, I can’t go down,” Scales said. “We’re taught you don’t let one person bring you down, so I was just like, ‘Look I’m tired of losing. I’ll just run my hardest every time I get an opportunity.’”

Three plays later, quarterback Logan Thomas rolled to his left and connected with tight end Randall Dunn for a 7-yard touchdown. The pass was high, but Dunn went up to get it and get a foot in before falling out of bounds. It was one of the Hokies’ two-point conversion plays, in which Dunn was the second option.

 ”Randall actually talked to me about it Thursday when we were practicing,” Thomas said. “It was our 2-point play, but we pulled it out when we needed to. He said go ahead and throw it up there. I can go get it. I laughed at him, but I guess it came in handy today.

** It was a big moment for Dunn, who has been limited by an injury injury he suffered in the Bowling Green game in September when he took a helmet to the hand.

He’d been wearing a cast in practice and that put a dent in his confidence. It didn’t show Saturday in the overtime.

“I told [Thomas] throw it up,” said Dunn, who started the first game of his career. “I told him I’m going to make a move and we’re going to win.”

** Thomas had an up-and-down day. The junior was 16-for-33 for 247 yards and two touchdowns, the third time this year he’s completed less than 50 percent of his passes.

He started slow, just 8-for-20 at halftime for 123 yards, 69 of which came on a ball he threw into double coverage that got tipped into the air and caught by Corey Fuller.

“I guess things went our way in the way the ball was bouncing,” Thomas said.

Thomas had several near interceptions in the second half that glanced off receivers’ hands or were poorly thrown. He also nearly lost a couple of fumbles. One was at the Hokies’ 1-yard line in the third quarter when a BC defender hit his arm as he was winding up to throw. Another came late, but he jumped on the loose ball, allowing Tech to still kick the game-tying field goal.

Still, he snapped a six-game streak of throwing at least one interception. And he had several well-placed passes on the Hokies’ final drive in regulation, then had the game-winning pass in overtime.

“I think he’d probably say parts of it were erratic,” Beamer said. “I thought a couple of his throws weren’t typical of Logan. But you know, again, I go back and he made some big plays at the end. He kept battling and playing tough. That’s kind of the story of our day.”

** Boston College quarterback Chase Rettig was very clear about how the pressure Virginia Tech put on him compared to every other game he’s played this year.

“Definitely the most,” he said.

The Hokies pummeled Rettig all afternoon, sacking him a season-high seven times. It was the fourth time in the last five games that Tech finished with at least five sacks.

“I just think it’s the will to get to the quarterback,” Tyler said. “For a while there, we were kind of hesitant. Now we’re just pinning our ears back and we have nothing to lose.”

Everyone got in on the action. Taylor and fellow linebacker Alonzo Tweedy had two sacks apiece as the Hokies continued to send blitzes from all angles, just like they did against Florida State.

Defensive linemen Tyrel Wilson and J.R. Collins each had one. Derrick Hopkins and Corey Marshall combined for one. Virginia Tech now had 30 sacks this season.

Amazingly, Tech did it Saturday without getting a sack from either James Gayle or Luther Maddy, arguably the team’s two best pass rushers.

“Some of it, we’ve blitzed our way into it,” Beamer said. “But a lot of it is just those four guys. … When you’ve got a front four that can get some pressure, then it allows you to play a lot of different coverages in the back end.”

The Hokies only allowed Rettig to throw for 129 yards, 151 below his season average. He was 13-for-30 with a touchdown and an interception.

** Virginia Tech wasn’t sharp wits its special teams early but came around in the end.

Michael Branthover resumed kickoff duties but booted his first try out of bounds for a penalty. The Hokies had a block in the back on their first punt return and allowed 40-yard punt return by BC’s Spiffy Jones to set up a field goal, all in the first quarter.

Demitri Knowles finally gave the Hokies something to feel good about, though, taking the opening kickoff of the second half back 75 yards to the Eagles’ 20 to set up a touchdown. It was his third kick return longer than 50 yards this season.

“That was a perfect spark, really,” Beamer said. “You think about it. You needed something good to happen, and sure enough.”

** Here are a few quick hitters …

  • The Hokies wore a special white helmet, an unbalanced look that had a plain number on one side and a large, flexing Hokie Bird on the other.
  • Knowles, Fuller and Kevin Asante started at wide receiver. Fuller had two catches for 72 yards. Asante left the game with a leg injury.
  • BC’s Nick Clancy was credited with 20 tackles, 17 of which were solo stops.
  • Tyler led Tech with 10 tackles. Taylor had nine, including three tackles for a loss. Tweedy was next with seven, including 2.5 for a loss.
  • Antone Exum notched his third interception this year and the fourth of his career. He also had his 15 pass breakup, which leads the ACC.
  • Tony Gregory led the Hokies with 69 rushing yards on 14 carries. The Hokies managed only 154 rushing yards and 3.2 yards per carry against a Boston College rushing defense allowing 228.4 yards per game coming into the night, near the bottom of the Football Bowl Subdivision.
  • Rolandan “Deuce” Finch ran 26 times for 133 yards for the Eagles, part of a 162-yard rushing night. The Eagles entered the day third to last in the FBS, averaging 72.5 yards per game.
  • Virginia Tech did not allow a sack, despite Thomas throwing the ball 33 times and feeling pressure on plenty of his dropbacks. That’s the first game the Hokies’ didn’t allow a sack.
  • Branthover had six kickoffs and one touchback. BC’s average starting field position was its own 27.6-yard line.

** Although it was far from a perfect performance, it at least got Virginia Tech back in the win column for the first time since the Duke win on Oct. 13, 35 days ago.

“It feels really really good,” Taylor said. “I felt like we hadn’t won in like a month and a half or something like that. Like I told you guys before I hate losing. Just to be able to smile and joke with teammates after the game for a change, rather than being depressed is great. Overall I’m proud of everybody. We stuck through it and kept fighting.”

Halftime: Boston College 13, Virginia Tech 3

CHESTNUT HILL, Mass. — Unless Virginia Tech reverses its fortune in the next half, it won’t be bowling this postseason.

The Hokies trail Boston College 10-3 at Alumni Stadium at halftime. If that results holds, Virginia Tech (4-6, 2-4 ACC) won’t have a chance to get to the six wins needed for bowl eligibility.

Eagles quarterback Chase Rettig threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Alex Amidon, the only time either team got in the end zone during an offensively challenged first half.

The Hokies had 183 yards but were 2-for-10 on third down conversions and couldn’t capitalize with a touchdown on their one trip to the red zone.

Quarterback Logan Thomas had an erratic first half, going 8-for-20 for 123 yards, 69 of which came on one long pass into double coverage that got tipped into Corey Fuller’s hands.

A 40-yard punt return by Spiffy Evans set up a 36-yard field goal by Nate Freese to give BC a 3-0 lead.

Thomas completed the 68-yarder to Fuller on a third-and-15 on the next drive. Cody Journell kicked a 26-yard field goal after the drive stalled inside the 10.

Rettig, who was 7-for-17 for 76 yards and sacked four times, hooked up with Amidon for the game’s only touchdown early in the third quarter, making it 10-3 Eagles.

Just before halftime, Virginia Tech failed to convert on fourth down when BC linebacker Nick Clancy de-cleated Demitri Knowles on a pass across the middle. The Eagles took advantage, getting a 35-yard field goal by Freese just before the end of the half to lead 13-3.

The Eagles, who entered the game third to last in the Football Bowl Subdivision in rushing, had 69 yards on the ground.

Fuller had 73 receiving yards for Tech. Marcus Davis, whose blocking was called into question earlier this week, did not play.

Gameday post: Virginia Tech at Boston College

You’re looking LIVE … at the lobby of the Park Plaza Hotel in Boston, where I’m putting together this blog post. There’s a very ’60s feel to this place. Maybe it’s because of the Frank Sinatra music playing in the background. I half expect Don Draper to walk through the lobby.

Anyway, Virginia Tech has a fairly significant football game this afternoon at Boston College. Here are a few links to get your gameday started.

** Follow me on Twitter and Facebook. I’ll be tweeting throughout the game.

** Here’s my game advance that tells you what’s at stake for the Hokies. Namely, bowl eligibility. Lose this one and Tech won’t make a bowl for the first time in two decades. Win and it has a chance if it can also beat Virginia at home.

** I predicted a 23-13 Hokies win in yesterday’s matchups post. What does everybody else think? Leave a prediction and a reason in the comments section.

** Columnist Aaron McFarling and I continue to do our weekly podcast. Give it a listen here.

** The injury report was pretty clean. Nothing major on there other than Michael Cole‘s neck injury, which we were told would keep him out of this game earlier this week.

** Corey Fuller and Demitri Knowles are expected to start today for seniors Marcus Davis and Dyrell Roberts at receiver. But senior Randall Dunn has also been elevated to the first team at tight end on the Hokies’ online depth chart. It would be his first career start if it happens.

** It’s a brisk 36 degrees outside the hotel right now, but it looks like it will be a sunny day, with temperatures getting into the mid-40′s at gametime.

** Tech is going with a pretty basic uniform choice again. Same all-white-uni, maroon-helmet look as at Miami, I believe.

UPDATE: Or not. Looks like Virginia Tech will have a special muscular Hokie Bird look today, with an unbalanced helmet that has a logo on one side and a number on the other. Interesting idea. Thoughts?

** The line opened at Hokies by 8.5 but has settled around 10. That’s a pretty big number for a Tech team that has lost seven straight away from Lane Stadium.

** Here’s a panorama shot I took of Alumni Stadium. Very nice campus up here. Picturesque.

** I’ll be back with a halftime update with how good the clam chowder was in the press box. I might even mention the game too, so check back.

Sunday, May 19, 2013

Weather Journal

Wet weekend here; chasers’ big day

Sat, 18 May 2013 13:51:15 +0000

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Andy Bitter writes about Virginia Tech football all year round. Join in! And follow him on Twitter: @AndyBitterVT.

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