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 Hokies
Have a Good History on GameDay
by Chris Coleman, TechSideline.com TSLMail #397, September 4, 2009 ESPN's College GameDay will broadcast live from Centennial Olympic Park Saturday for the Virginia Tech-Alabama game. It will mark the eighth time Chris Fowler, Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit have covered a Virginia Tech game live. Each one of the previous games brings up memories for Tech fans. Some are bad, and some are good.
Syracuse, 1999 The 1999 Syracuse game was Virginia Tech's national coming out party. GameDay was in Blacksburg for the very first time, and a GameDay-record number of Tech fans sat in the West Stands to be on hand for the show. The GameDay hosts were obviously impressed. Even more impressive than the Tech crowd was the 62-0 beatdown Tech laid on Syracuse that evening. At the time, it was the biggest margin of victory in a game between two ranked teams. Miami, 1999 GameDay came back later that season for the Miami game, and Tech fans again responded by breaking the attendance record. The two trips to Tech in 1999 helped to transform GameDay into a major fan experience. The actual game was pretty good as well. Miami jumped out to a 10-0 lead, but the Hokies never panicked. They came back and hammered the Hurricanes 43-10 en route to an undefeated season. Georgia Tech, 2000 GameDay was back in Blacksburg for a special Sunday night season opener against Georgia Tech in 2000. The teams were on the field and about to kick off when a freak thunderstorm forced the teams to the dressing rooms, the fans under the stands, and took out Lee Corso's rental car. You know the rest of the story. Corso had picked Georgia Tech that night, and then lightning struck his car. He picked the Hokies to play for the National Championship in 2001, saying "I don't know what a Hokie is, but God is one of them." Pitt, 2003 After hammering #2 Miami 31-7, Tech had a great shot to win the Big East despite their loss to West Virginia. All that stood in their way was Rod Rutherford, Larry Fitzgerald and the Pittsburgh Panthers. This game went back and forth, with Marcus Vick getting the majority of reps at quarterback for the Hokies. Tech trailed 24-14, but rallied to take a 28-24 lead. However, Pitt marched down the field to score the winning touchdown with just seconds remaining, and Tech went on to collapse at the end of the season. Georgia Tech, 2005 After starting the 2005 season 3-0, the Hokies rose to the rank of #4 in the country. Georgia Tech came into town 3-0 as well and ranked #15. It was expected to be a good game, but the Hokies put a 51-7 beating on the Yellow Jackets. Tech took it easy in the fourth quarter as well, putting their backups in and only scoring three points. The Hokies were playing as well as they had ever played, at that point in the season. Tech had just one turnover through the first four games, and Marcus Vick looked like a dominant player. That all came crashing down in GameDay's next visit to Blacksburg ...
The Hokies were #3 in the country and undefeated. Miami was 6-1 and ranked #6. In GameDay's previous three trips to Lane Stadium, the Hokies had outscored their opponents by an average of just over 46 points per game. Everyone assumed Tech would wash the 'Canes back out to sea. However, Miami dominated the line of scrimmage and confused quarterback Marcus Vick. Vick had six total turnovers in the game, two interceptions and four fumbles. Tech's dreams of a National Championship in 2005 were over. East Carolina, 2007 After the shootings of April, 2007, ESPN decided to send the College GameDay crew to Blacksburg for the opening week of the 2007 season. It was an emotional scene in Blacksburg, and the game was of secondary importance. However, there was still a game. Tech struggled to defeat the pesky East Carolina Pirates. ECU was tough at the line of scrimmage, but the Hokies came away with a 17-7 victory. The ECU game marks
the last time College GameDay has covered a Virginia Tech game.
The Tech-Alabama game is the biggest game of the weekend, and it should
bring good exposure to the program. A win on national television would
make it even better. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
VT
Pullover Jacket by Adidas Adidas water-resistant, self-packing rain jacket. |
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| TechSideline.com Updates From the Past Week | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Leal Ready for Tough Opener September 4, 2009  Quarterback
Mark Leal's future team, Virginia Tech, kicks off its regular
season tomorrow night against a tough opponent. Leal's current team,
Atlantic High School (Delray Beach, FL), will do the same tonight.more |
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| Ryan
Williams to Start at Tailback; Kenny Jefferson Suspended September 3, 2009  Per
hokiesports.com, Virginia Tech announced Thursday afternoon that
redshirt freshman Ryan Williams will start at tailback for the
Hokies in Saturday night's Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game against Alabama
in Atlanta. Tech also announced that fullback Kenny Jefferson is
suspended for the game for violating team rules.more |
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| Keys
to the Game and Matchups to Watch: Alabama September 3, 2009  In
the most anticipated opening game in Virginia Tech football history,
the seventh-ranked Hokies travel to Atlanta to face the fifth-ranked
Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday night. Tech will be on the main
stage in college football's opening weekend with high expectations
throughout the Hokie Nation. Can Tyrod Taylor lead VT to a big win
against one of college football's most storied programs? Can Bud
Foster's defense contain dynamic playmaker Julio Jones? These
questions and more will soon be answered in Atlanta.more |
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| Dinwiddie
DL Scores First Official Offer September 3, 2009  Dinwiddie
(VA) defensive lineman Corey Marshall received verbal offers
from the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech in June...on the
same day, actually. Yesterday, he received an official offer from
Tech, and he expects Virginia to come through shortly. The 6-1,
255-pound prospect plans to dive right into the recruiting process
this fall.more |
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| Standout
Junior Center Making ACC Visits September 2, 2009  Chantilly
(VA) center John Manning is in the midst of a flurry of
visits, taking in three ACC schools beginning with today's
experience at the University of Virginia. The 6-11 junior, whose
parents both attended UVa, has been to Charlottesville before. He
has not, however, visited since Tony Bennett took over the program.more |
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| Top
Junior CB Awaits Two Official Offers September 2, 2009  It's
a big week for junior Demetrious Nicholson, who is currently
basking in Bayside's (Virginia Beach, VA) 21-17 opening game win
over Green Run. Nicholson, like juniors all across the country, is
checking his mailbox this week for official offer letters from FBS
programs. The 5-11, 165-pound prospect expects at least two offers
in the very near future.more |
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| Football
Game Preview: #7 Virginia Tech vs. #5 Alabama September 2, 2009  Presented
by Kent Square Condominiums:Since this game was announced on December 19, 2008, it's been the biggest thing on the minds of Virginia Tech fans. The Orange Bowl against Cincinnati was just a minor distraction. This is the game Tech fans have been waiting for. It's a chance for the Hokies to prove themselves on national television against a major opponent. It would help the perception of the program nationally, and it would help the Hokies take that ever-elusive "next step." more |
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| Martin
Plans to Visit Finalists Once More September 1, 2009  Roanoke
Rapids (N.C.) defensive end Kareem Martin couldn't settle on
one school prior to the start of his senior season, so he has
decided to visit each of his five finalists at least one more time.
Roanoke Rapids head coach Russell Weinstein revealed Martin's
initial plans and discussed the 6-6, 240-pound prospect's
performance so far this season.more |
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| Tech
Talk Live Notes for 8/31/09 September 1, 2009  Presented
by Bull & Bones Brewhaus & Grill: Monday night's show
featured defensive coordinator Bud Foster, athletic director Jim
Weaver, former Hokie QB Al Clark, current players Tyrod Taylor and
Stephan Virgil, and head football coach Frank Beamer.more |
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| PreSeason
Report: Midlothian's Matt Arkema August 31, 2009  Midlothian
(VA) opens up its 2009 regular season next Friday, meaning less than
two weeks remain before Matt Arkema takes the field for the
first game of his senior season. The 6-3 1/2, 290-pound rising
senior has come a long way since his first varsity football game,
which was two years ago as a sophomore. A key ingredient to Arkema's
success - he has accepted a scholarship offer to play at Virginia
Tech - is the effort he puts out on and off the field.more |
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| Monday
Thoughts: The Reasons This Game is Important August 31, 2009 more |
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| Around
the ACC: August 31, 2009 August 31, 2009  The
summer is over, and college football is here. The season kicks off
in prime time on Thursday night with a big ACC-SEC battle, and
continues on Saturday with an even bigger battle between the two
leagues. ACC teams will also be facing foes from the Pac-10 and Big
12 during the opening week of the season.more |
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