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Hokie Wins in the OB Have Been Classic Battles
by Chris Coleman, TechSideline.com

Virginia Tech has played some classic games with Miami in the Orange Bowl. The Hokies have won three times in Coral Gables, beginning in 1996, and all three have been nail biters that went down to the wire. As a fan, it’s impossible to decide which of those games was the most exciting. If you don’t remember the games, or if you just want to bring back some old memories, we’ll recap the games for you in this week’s TSLMail.

In 1996, the game had Big East championship implications. Virginia Tech entered the game ranked #21 in the nation at 7-1 overall and 4-1 in the Big East. Miami was 6-2, with a perfect 4-0 record in Big East play. The Hurricanes were ranked #18 in the country at the time.

Miami had lost their previous two games in the Orange Bowl, but both were out of conference games to Florida State and East Carolina. They were still very much in the picture for an Alliance Bowl. So were the Hokies, whose only Big East loss had come to Syracuse in late September.

The teams combined for a lot of yards, but not a lot of points. Jim Druckenmiller threw for 202 yards during the game, while Miami quarterbacks Scott Covington and Ryan Clement combined for 340 yards. The Hokies struck first on a one yard Ken Oxendine touchdown run in the first quarter. Oxendine ran for 89 yards on 19 carries during the game.

Miami answered later in the first quarter when Clement found Chris Jones in the end zone for a two yard touchdown pass to tie the game at seven. Things got off to a fast start, but neither team scored again until Druckenmiller hit Michael Stuewe with a 13 yard touchdown pass in the third quarter to make it 14-7, Hokies.

As Miami drove to tie the game in the fourth quarter, Keion Carpenter stepped in front of Covington’s 4th and 4 pass on the goal line and returned it 100 yards for the game clinching touchdown with 1:54 remaining. Victors by the score of 21-7, the Hokies won the remainder of their games and went on to play Nebraska in the Orange Bowl.

In 1998, Virginia Tech traveled to the Orange Bowl in September. Both teams were 2-0 heading into the game, and the Hokies were ranked #21 in the nation. Most people thought the game would be close, and as it turned out, it was the first overtime game in Virginia Tech history.

The Hokies were going against a future NFL All-Pro team at the Miami skill positions: WR Reggie Wayne, WR Santana Moss and RB Edgerrin James. All of those players had big games, but the Hokies managed to win nonetheless.

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Things didn’t look good in the second quarter, when Scott Covington touchdown passes to Wayne and Moss put Miami up 13-3 (one extra point attempt was no good). But the Hokies rallied. Late in the second quarter, Al Clark found fullback Cullen Hawkins for a 14 yard touchdown to make the score 13-10 at halftime.

In the third quarter, Clark led the team back down the field and scrambled in from 13 yards out, giving the Hokies a 17-13 lead. But Miami wasn’t done. Covington hit Reggie Wayne on an 84 yard touchdown to put the ‘Canes back up 20-17. Shayne Graham later hit a 19 yard field goal to tie the game at 20, but Graham missed a 35 yarder that would have ended the game late in regulation.

In overtime, Al Clark threw a 24 yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Ricky Hall to take a 27-20 lead. Tech’s defense shut the door on Miami’s possession, recording back to back sacks and then deflecting the ‘Canes' last heave to the end zone. The Hokies went on to go 9-3 with a 38-7 Music City Bowl victory over Alabama.

Perhaps Tech’s most memorable trip to the Orange Bowl was the 2004 game. The Hurricanes and Hokies were playing for the ACC Championship in their first year in the expanded conference. Miami was favored in the game, but Virginia Tech fans felt very good about their chances.

The Hokies took an early lead in the second quarter behind Bryan Randall’s three yard touchdown pass to tight end Jeff King to cap a 10 play, 80 yard drive. Miami’s only touchdown came in the second quarter after they blocked a Virginia Tech punt. The Hurricanes had to drive just 15 yards for the touchdown to tie the game at seven.

Brandon Pace drilled a 45 yard field goal with four seconds left in the first half to give the Hokies a 10-7 lead going into halftime. Miami answered in the third quarter with a field goal of their own to tie the game at 10.

The game, and the ACC Championship, was decided in the fourth quarter. True freshman Eddie Royal came up with two big plays in the fourth quarter to beat Miami. First, he returned a punt from the Tech 42 yard line to the Miami 39. And on the very next play, he beat Miami All-American cornerback and future NFL first round draft pick Antrel Rolle on a crossing pattern. Randall hit him perfectly, and Royal took it in from 39 yards out.

Miami blocked the extra point, so the Hokies were clinging to a 16-10 lead with 11:29 remaining. But the Tech defense shut down the Miami offense all day long. The Hurricanes never made it past their own 32 yard line the rest of the game, and the Hokies batted down three passes in a row at the line of scrimmage on Miami's last possession to seal the victory.

How will the 2006 game compare to those classics of the past? We’ll find out on Saturday night. Join us at Champs Sportsbar in Blacksburg to watch the game!

TSL Completes Free Content Week

All week long, all the content on TechSideline.com has been free, to give non-subscribers a taste of the great subscription content on TSL. The following articles, which are usually pay content, were free this week:

That's a ton of great content, and that's just one week's worth. We hope that this free look at our content has convinced you that a subscription to TechSideline.com's TSL Pass content is well worth it. TSL Pass is only $4.99 per month, or $49.99 per year (two months free), and only $24.99 per year for Virginia Tech students. Click here to subscribe.

Message from TechSideline.com's Will Stewart: I'm participating in a Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA) Lock-up event on Tuesday, November 14th. I'll be thrown into a maximum security jail (cleverly disguised as a Comfort Inn), and the only way I can get out is to raise $5,000 "bail" for MDA. I'm counting on you, TSL's readers and subscribers, to donate enough money to get me out.

This is a fundraiser, of course, and it's unlike anything TSL has ever done before. TSL has gotten so huge over the years, that with the number of people we reach, raising money for charitable causes should be easy. We really think that TSL's vast, generous readership can make a lot of difference in the community, and this is your chance to prove us right. If this is successful, and we think it will be, we may participate in other fundraisers in the future.

It's very simple: just click on the link below to make a donation and help me get out of jail that day. Every dollar donated by TSL's readership through the link below will be collected together and credited to my "bail" (TechSideline.com's donation to the MDA) and will be used to help LOCAL MDA families. This particular lockup event is to benefit the Radford/Dublin/Pulaski area.

Here are some other notes and details:

• The link below enables you to donate via credit card only (VISA, MC, AMEX, and Discover). Please see instructions below to donate by check.
• All donations are tax deductible (by you, not me or TechSideline.com) as a charitable contribution.
• My bail goal of $5,000 is very modest, and the TSL faithful should be able to donate much, much more than that. If every TSL reader donates just $10 ... holy smokes, that would be a lot of money.
• For details on what your donation will be used for, see the "What Your Money Will Buy" button located at the link below. There are also links for "MDA Local Services" and the "MDA Website".

To donate by check: Make checks payable to "MDA" and mail to:

MDA Lockup
c/o TechSideline.com
P.O. Box 3472
Radford, VA 24143-3472

Checks must arrive by November 13th in order for me to have them in my possession when I go to the Comfort Inn -- er, jail -- the next day.

To donate by credit card: Click below.

Please contribute, even if it's a small amount – individuals, consider donating $25 or more, and businesses, please consider donating $100 or more.

When I walk into jail on November 14th, I want it to be as the top donor in this lockup event, and the money won't be donated in my name; it will be donated in the name of the TechSideline.com community.

Contribute Here to Will's Bail

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