Cheers and Jeers: Virginia Tech vs. NC State

It was a perfect fall day with sunshine and highs in the low 70s where I was. I decided early on that I would just enjoy my Saturday despite the looming threat of a Hokie football game as a night cap. Even though I always say the only thing you can expect on Saturday's is the unexpected, I really didn't expect the Hokies to knock off NC State in Raleigh. A nice combination of Tech resilience and "just State stuff" ended with the Hokies on top 23-21. Now the stage is set for some real nonsense as the wide open ACC has a massive tie atop the standings...that somehow includes us!

As of this writing, my most recent contribution to the ever-lively SOS group text was on Friday night, "lol UVA sucks. Relax." I then went to bed and apparently missed a wild double-overtime upset there. I maintain my statement is true on principle, but I decided to sit the next few plays out of the conversation. That means I woke up to literally 1,000 messages on Sunday. That's a quality and no doubt completely sane effort by the crew. 

This team showed a tremendous amount of heart and fight. That was far from guaranteed after the tumultuous start to the season, particularly the whirlwind of the most recent weeks. I won't paint with too broad a brush here but clearly the guys on the field cared Saturday night. If there was any doubt how much it means to the players and coaches who are sticking it out, just check out the reaction by Christian Ellis and the team after his amazing play on fourth down to lock up the W. It was pure elation. My reaction was similar at home. As Tech fans we've become conditioned to expect a flag or some nonsense on a great play like that. On this night at least it was simply perfection, no laundry required.    

What a fun player Terion Stewart is. It's a shame he's missed so much time this year. He adds an extra dimension to the offense and is a real joy to watch. The Hokies can really run the ball with the combined powers of our new favorite bowling ball in Stewart and Marcellous Hawkins. Stewart is nearly impossible to tackle and surprisingly quick on his feet. He's an even more compact version of Bhayshul Tuten and Khalil Herbert which scientists didn't believe was possible. This could be the foundation of an incredibly potent ground game, but we'll see how things develop. The offensive line is a patch work group so things could shift in a hurry. These backs will surely make a lot more guys miss regardless of the blocking though.

The Hokies still missed some tackles and were caught out of position here and there. Still, the guys were flying around, blitzing from different spots, and sacking the quarterback. Five Hokies registered a sack and the team finished with eight tackles for loss. State was held to just 62 rushing yards and the much-hyped Hollywood Smothers was relegated to B-movie status with just 67 yards on 16 touches. CJ Bailey was efficient in the passing game but you don't win too often with fewer than 100 yards on the ground. 

We'll keep this short but man, that was one of the worst broadcasts I've ever seen. It had the vibe of being directed by a fan chosen at random after being over served in the parking lot. There were loads of random camera angles, badly timed cut aways, and Thom Brennaman has still never recovered from Nick Castellanos and his drive deep to left field. I also somehow could only get this game over the air, so I had to audible pregame and watch it in the garage on a TV with an antenna. Of course, once the game was going well I was locked in to that arrangement. Can't risk changing up the mojo. This now means I'm relegated to the garage for the rest of the season which honestly feels about right. 

Not to beat a dead treadmill horse, but I'm enjoying this game by itself. I won't fall into the trap of making any large predictions based off of this one glorious outing. I will say, Philip Montgomery has done more in his two games in charge than Brent Pry did in his entire time at the helm. Pry coached 40 games, posting a 16-24 record and the infamous 1-12 mark in one-score games. That lone win was a one-pointer against Liberty in 2022. Montgomery has after just two games beaten a P4 team for the first time in ages and won a one-score outing. 

I'm not sure if Tech will do the unthinkable and turn this season into one of those magical runs Frank Beamer used to have after tough starts. The thing is, the ACC appears to be pretty mediocre this season so damn near anything is possible. Me? I'm taking things as they come and enjoying this outrageous ride. I'll be in the garage if you need me.