BLACKSBURG – Despite another solid performance from quarterback Ryan Willis and a big game from receiver Damon Hazelton, Virginia Tech struggled to stop Notre Dame's offense in the second half, falling to the No. 6 Irish 45-23 in a non-conference game played Saturday night at Lane Stadium.
With the loss, Tech fell to 3-2 overall, while the Irish moved to 6-0.
The Hokies trailed by just a point at halftime, 17-16, after Willis connected with Hazelton for a 3-yard touchdown with 12 seconds left in the first half. But Notre Dame made several big plays in the second half to pull away.
The Irish scored touchdowns on four of their first five possessions of the second half, including on their first two possessions the third quarter (a 97-yard touchdown run by Dexter Williams and a 40-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Ian Book to Miles Boykin). The latter score gave the Irish a 31-16 lead with 4:59 left in the third quarter.
Notre Dame all but sealed the game early in the fourth quarter when an 11-play, 64-yard drive ended with a 5-yard touchdown pass from Book to Boykin that gave the Irish a 38-16 lead with 9:08 remaining.
Tech cut into that lead when Willis threw a 15-yard touchdown pass to Eric Kuman with 5:40 remaining, but Notre Dame answered with a 31-yard touchdown run by Williams to account for the final margin
Willis completed 31 of 52 for 309 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. Hazelton caught 12 passes for 131 yards and a score.
The Hokies finished with 441 yards of offense. Book completed 25 of 35 for 271 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception to pace an Irish offense that finished with 438 yards. Williams had 178 yards rushing.
GAME QUOTES (HEAD COACH JUSTIN FUENTE)
(On settling for field goals in the second half)
"We got behind the chains. We got things moving, and then we got behind the chains … We had a couple of procedure penalties that set up behind. You can't make those mistakes. We had a poor exchange on the goal line. Those are the things that bogged us down."
(On throwing the ball 50-plus times)
"That's certainly not the way we'd like for it to be designed. I don't know. We don't ever put a number on it. We probably knew we were going to throw the ball a little bit more this week, and then when you get behind, it distorts that number a little bit more, too. But we knew we had to be aggressive. We ran a two-minute situation, which drives up the numbers. Fifty times is a lot and indicative of the situations we found ourselves in, but going in, we knew we were probably going to have to throw it a little more."
(On Willis' performance)
The fumble [that was returned for a touchdown] was not good. I just thought he was doing too much. I tried to calm him down. I'm like, 'Ryan, you don't have to put a cape on your back and make six guys miss and throw the post all way across the field for us to have a chance to win this game. Calm down. If you get in trouble, throw the ball away and we'll play the next play.' I was proud of him how he responded on that next drive, kind of collecting himself and going out there and competing. He showed flashes. He's been what I've told you guys. He's shown flashes of playing really, really well and there are a few things that hurt us."
(10/6/2018) 2018 FOOTBALL vs. NOTRE DAME
GAME NOTES
• Hazelton recorded his third 100-yard receiving game of the season and now has caught at least one touchdown pass in all five of the Hokies' games this season, tying Isaiah Ford's program record.
• Hazelton's 12 receptions tied a career high. He caught 12 in a game while playing at Ball State before transferring to Tech.
• Willis became the first Tech quarterback since Logan Thomas in 2013 to throw for at least 300 yards in back-to-back games.
• Willis' 52 pass attempts were the most by a Tech quarterback since Michael Brewer threw the ball 56 times in a 28-21 loss to East Carolina in 2014.
• Reggie Floyd's second-quarter interception marked his second of the season and the fifth of his career.
TWEET OF THE GAME
WILLIS ➡️ HAZELTON 🙌
— IMG Audio (@IMGAudio) October 7, 2018
Ryan Willis hooks up with Damon Hazelton to being @VT_Football within☝️at the half‼️#Hokies 🦃https://t.co/ybAPgymbvq
UP NEXT
The Hokies hit the road for their next game, returning to conference action when they travel to Chapel Hill, North Carolina for a Saturday game against the Tar Heels. The game kicks off at 7 p.m.