True freshman cornerback Eric Green, starting in place of the injured Larry Austin, intercepted two passes and earned Player of the Game honors for Tech. One interception killed a Temple drive with the Hokies clinging to a 21-13 lead, and the other interception came in the Tech end zone three plays after Michael Vick had fumbled the ball away at the Tech ten yard line.

Green's efforts led a Tech defensive charge that rejected the Owls at almost every turn. Temple was never able to muster any offensive rhythm, carrying the ball 28 times for (-15) yards and completing 13 of 28 passes for just 131 yards and 3 interceptions. Of the 15 possessions Temple had, 11 were 3-and-out, and only one drive was longer than 5 plays.

The Hokies held Temple's Tanardo Sharps, the Big East's leading rusher, to just 19 yards on 16 carries.

On offense, Tech accumulated a workmanlike 376 yards but struggled often, in particular Tech QB Michael Vick. Vick threw two interceptions, one of which was returned 65 yards for a touchdown, and fumbled the ball three times. Vick had one TD pass and one rushing TD, ran the ball 18 times for 55 yards, and was 14-28 passing for 162 yards. His rushing totals included 27 yards lost on 4 Temple sacks.

Lee Suggs had 17 carries for 56 yards and two touchdowns, bringing his TD total on the year to 11. Andre Kendrick had 12 carries for 50 yards and scored one TD. The Hokies were led in receiving by Andre Davis, who had 6 catches for 54 yards.

The Hokies opened the festivities with a blocked punt, their fifth blocked kick of the season, on Temple's first possession. Wayne Ward came up the middle unblocked and blocked the punt, with Ben Taylor recovering at the Temple 11. Two plays later, Suggs ran it in from 7 yards out with 12:24 to go in the first quarter.

The two teams traded brief possessions, and with 7:34 to go in the quarter, the Hokies took over on the Temple 40 yard line and put together a 6-play drive that ended in another Suggs touchdown, this one a 2-yarder.

Temple responded with their best drive of the day, a 10-play, 53-yard effort that ended in a Ronyell Whitaker interception at the Tech 7-yard line. Whitaker put on a spectacular, twisting, tackle-breaking return to bring the ball out to the Tech 29, and from there, the Tech offense scored in just 49 seconds, going 71 yards in 5 plays.

The drive ended in the Hokies' third touchdown, a beautiful 41-yard pass from Vick to fullback Cullen Hawkins, who was streaking down the middle of the field alone behind the Temple defense and scored untouched.

With 14:53 to go in the second quarter, the Hokies led 21-0, and Tech fans were already wondering what the final score in this blowout would be.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the whitewash. The Tech offense started bogging down, and as the second quarter came to a close, the Owls got a big break. Michael Vick served up a giftwrapped interception to Temple linebacker Chonn Lacey, who picked off Vick's pass on the sideline and raced 65 yards for a TD that closed the gap to 21-7 with 1:18 to go in the first half.

The big Temple score right before half time was eerily reminiscent of the 1998 loss to the Owls, and the Ghost of Homecoming Past didn't stop there. In Tech's first possession of the second half, Vick fumbled, and Temple recovered at the Tech 19 yard line. After the Hokies pushed the Owls backwards 7 yards, Temple quarterback Mike Frost, under a heavy rush, lobbed a pass back across the field that freshman Charles Cobb caught for a touchdown. The Owls missed the extra point, and the score stood at 21-13, Tech.

The Hokies took possession on their 20 and meekly went three-and-out without gaining any yardage. Tech punter Robert Peaslee, who had a horrible day punting, shanked an 11-yard punt to the Tech 31 yard line. The Hokies were sputtering on all fronts, and Temple was just 31 yards away from a potential tie.

Three plays later, the creepy re-enactment of the 1998 Homecoming game finally ended, thanks to a player who was a junior in high school on that Black Saturday when Temple won 28-24.

On a third and 14, Temple quarterback Mike Frost threw a pass that was tipped by Tech's Jake Houseright. The ball sailed into the Tech secondary, where Eric Green plucked it out of the air and returned it 41 yards to the Temple 38 yard line. It was just the latest big play in a storybook season for the true freshman.

The Hokie offense quickly slammed the door, going 8 plays in 38 yards, including 7 running plays. The drive ended with Michael Vick doing a reprise of "The Flip," leaping into the end zone over two Temple defenders on a five-yard rushing TD that made it 28-13, Tech. There was 7:25 left to go in the third quarter.

From there, the Tech defense kept Temple on the mat. Temple's next five possessions were 3, 5, 3, 4, and 4 plays. For their part, the Hokies tacked on a 14-play, 79-yard drive that ended in a 14-yard TD run by Andre Kendrick that made the final margin 35-13.

Green's second interception came with 9:53 to go in the game and killed one of Temple's best chances to score. After Temple took over on the Tech 32 (following a 22-yard punt by Peaslee), the Owls completed a 24-yard crossing pattern to the Tech 8. Two plays later, the Hokies pressured Frost, and he threw a horrible pass into the end zone, where Green was waiting on it. The freshman picked the ball out of the air and fell to the ground for a touchback.

Spreading the Work: the Hokies got an incredibly balanced defensive effort, with four players logging 5 tackles, four players with 4 tackles, and five players with 3 tackles. The players with 5 tackles were Jim Davis, Ben Taylor, David Pugh, and Ronyell Whitaker.

D-Line Sacks: the Hokies had 6 sacks, and for Tech, the good news is that 5 of them came from the defensive line. Davis had 2.5, Pugh had 2, and Dan Wilkinson had half a sack.

Picks are Up: the Hokies have 12 interceptions this year (led by Green with 3), which already exceeds last year's total of 10. In 1998, Tech had 23 interceptions, and the Hokies are on a pace to beat that mark this year. The all-time record for team interceptions in a season is 27, in 1967.

Peaslee's Punting Woes: Tech punter Robert Peaslee continues to struggle. In this game, Peaslee punted 4 times for a 26.3-yard average, which included a 44-yarder. Peaslee's punts were 44, 28, 11, and 22 yards. Peaslee was struggling so badly that the Hokies brought on linebacker Ben Taylor to kick the Hokies' last punt. Taylor, who punted in high school, boomed a 42-yarder.

Temple Run Defense: Tech had 214 yards on 56 carries (3.82 yards per carry), by far their lowest yards-per-carry average of the season. Tech's lowest rushing total of the year is 205 yards, against ECU, but that came on just 36 carries (5.69 yards per carry).

Eers Up Next: Tech will have a short week and will get back to work quickly. The Hokies face WVU in Blacksburg this coming Thursday on ESPN at 8:00. The Mountaineers are 4-1, with their only loss an embarrassing 47-10 shellacking by Miami on September 23^rd.

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