Hokie ClubTech’s defense played an outstanding all-around game, forcing four Duke turnovers, and Sean Glennon came off the bench to play a steady game, as the Hokies moved into the driver’s seat for the ACC’s Coastal Division crown by downing Duke 14-3 in an ugly ACC game played on a bitter cold Saturday night at Lane Stadium.
Tech moved to 7-4 overall on the season, 4-3 in the ACC. The Hokies knocked off the Blue Devils for the fifth straight time since joining the ACC and for the eighth straight time in the series between the two clubs. Duke fell to 4-7, 1-6 in the league.
With the victory, the Hokies took control of the race for the Coastal Division crown. Tech only needs to win its regular-season finale against Virginia to clinch the division and assure itself a berth in the ACC championship game played in Tampa, Fla., on Dec. 6th.
“I am just glad the kids we have battle like heck,” Tech head coach Frank Beamer said. “We are not always pretty, but all I know is we are one win away from playing for the ACC championship. And that, to me, is pretty special.”
“Life is about chances,” Tech cornerback Macho Harris said. “Sometimes, you get a second chance. Sometimes, you get a third or a fourth. All you’ve got to do is continue to believe and work hard, and that’s what we did. I love this team. To be so young, and yet, to be so scrappy, I don’t think there’s another team that could play like this.”
On a night when temperatures hovered in the 20s, Harris, a senior from Highland Springs, Va., was the one who put this one on ice. Late in the fourth quarter, he read the eyes of Duke quarterback Zack Asack and plucked Asack’s pass out of the air. Then he sprinted down the sideline 23 yards into the end zone for a touchdown. Dustin Keys’ extra point gave the Hokies a 14-3 lead with 1:23 remaining.
“Once again, Coach [Bud Foster] put us in a position to make a play and that’s what I did,” Harris said. “We were in a zone and I read the quarterback. I thought he was going to throw it in the flat, but he tried to hit the curl behind me. I feel blessed to have been in a position to make a play.”
Harris and fellow cornerback Stephan Virgil, whose interception on Duke’s final drive sealed things, finished with two interceptions each and spearheaded a Tech defense that allowed fewer than 250 total yards for the fourth straight game. Duke finished with a paltry 136 yards on the evening, and the Blue Devils completed just two passes for 20 yards.
The pass completions and yards marked the fewest by a Tech opponent in the Frank Beamer era.
“People can talk all they want about this not being a normal year for a Bud Foster defense,” Glennon said, referring to Tech’s defensive coordinator. “I don’t know. They look pretty good to me. I haven’t seen any better.
“We’re blessed the defense played so well. Sometimes you have to grind out wins. Fortunately, the defense helped us grind it out.”
Tech’s offense never got anything consistently going in this game in large part to turnovers. The Hokies committed five turnovers on their first six possessions.
The turnover-fest on offense led Beamer and offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring to make a decision. They decided to pull Tyrod Taylor after the sophomore from Hampton, Va., committed four of those turnovers – two fumbles and two interceptions.
They inserted Glennon, and despite an interception on a batted ball Glennon got the Hokies on the board right before halftime. With just over three minutes to go in the first half, he led the Hokies on an 86-yard march. He finished the 11-play drive when he found Jarrett Boykin for a 19-yard touchdown pass – the first touchdown by a Tech receiver this season – with just 38 seconds remaining. Keys’ extra point gave the Hokies a 7-3 lead, and that’s how the two teams went into the locker room at halftime.
“We needed something going into halftime,” Glennon said. “It wouldn’t have been a satisfying feeling going into the locker room. It was important to get something on the board and a lot of people made plays on the drive, and we did.”
Glennon completed 12-of-20 for 132 yards, with a touchdown and interception. Darren Evans rushed for 111 yards, as the Hokies had a balanced overall attack with 147 yards passing and 187 yards rushing.
Taylor completed just 2-of-5 for 15 yards and the two picks. He did rush for 39 yards on nine carries. After the game, Beamer didn’t name a starting quarterback “Tyrod had a couple of rough things today, but it wasn’t all Tyrod,” Beamer said. “I’m not one to flip around very much. We’ll see where we go from here.”
Tech closes the regular season next Saturday at Lane Stadium with a game against in-state rival Virginia. The kickoff time should be announced by Sunday at noon. The Cavaliers come into the game needing a win to obtain bowl eligibility.