By Jimmy Robertson
BLACKSBURG – After arriving home last Saturday following Virginia Tech's 38-35 heartbreaking loss to Liberty, Tech football coach Justin Fuente needed a distraction and took the best of therapeutic measures by spending the remaining few minutes of daylight playing with his three daughters.
The time provided some perspective on the truly important things in life, but nothing could shake the immediate disappointment.
Alex Barbir's 51-yard field goal with 1 second remaining capped a wild, bizarre ending to the game and lifted nationally ranked Liberty to one of its biggest wins in school history. In contrast, the loss left the Hokies at 4-3 on the season and with a difficult upcoming schedule, starting with Saturday's home game against No. 9 Miami.
Most Tech fans focused on the ending of the game – more about that here – but perhaps more troubling was the performance that led to the ending. Liberty rushed for 249 yards, outgained Tech for the game, and executed at a high level, controlling the action throughout.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Lane Stadium; Blacksburg, Va.
vs. No. 9 Miami (6-1, 5-1)
Head coach: Manny Diaz (second season)
Record at school: 12-8; Career: 12-9 (second season)
Series: Tech trails 15-22 Last: Oct. 5, 2019 (W, 42-35)
Live stats: CLICK HERE
Broadcast: ESPN2
Play-by-Play: Roy Philpott
Analyst: Kelly Stouffer
Sideline: Eric Wood
Radio: Virginia Tech Sports Properties
Play-by-Play: Jon Laaser
Analyst: Mike Burnop
Sideline: Wes McElroy
Virginia Tech game notes: CLICK HERE
"I'd say the term concerned is a pretty large and general thing," Fuente said during Monday's video teleconference with media members when asked if he was concerned about the perception of the program after the loss. "Yeah, I'm concerned about a lot of things. I don't like the fact that the game fell the way it did, and it's disappointing to fans and players and coaches alike. It's up to us to continue to strive for improvement, and that's exactly what we're doing. I don't like it, nor does anybody. It's up to us to bounce back."
According to Fuente, the Hokies spent no time feeling sorry for themselves. They went back to work Sunday, watching film and practicing in an effort to improve upon the many mistakes they made against Liberty.
They would have done that anyway, regardless of the game's outcome. But with the Hokies losing two of their past three games, they find that every detail, every mistake, gets magnified.
"We haven't played a lot different in the last three weeks, in my opinion. We've been uneven," Fuente said. "The result shouldn't change the teaching. If we block the field goal and run it back for a touchdown and win the game, sure, people feel better, but there is still an incredible amount of teaching and correction that must go on. That [the game-winning blocked field goal for a touchdown] didn't happen.
"We still have to praise what's good and try to correct what needs to be improved and try to articulate that to the players. If they don't understand the way we're teaching it or what we're teaching, then it's up to us to find a different way to teach it, or ask them to do something else. The focus is on our improvement. I think we should always celebrate the good things that happen and also work diligently to correct the mistakes."
Tech hopes to get those corrected by Saturday. It would like nothing better than to register a second consecutive win over the 'Canes.
With that, here are a few more takeaways from the news conference:
• Not surprisingly, Fuente received a question about his handling of the end of the Liberty game. Tech blocked a 59-yard field-goal attempt with 8 seconds remaining and returned it for a touchdown, but Fuente had called a timeout before the snap, thus nullifying the play. Liberty's offense returned to the field, gained eight yards on a pass play, and then Barbir hit the game-winning 51-yard field goal.
Fuente took the blame for what happened, saying that he should have called the timeout sooner.
"I don't regret taking a timeout there," he said. "I think the biggest thing that chaps my hide is that we've talked about it ad nauseum as a staff, that I believe in taking a timeout there to make sure everything is set, and I believe wholeheartedly in taking it before they snap the ball. The whole take it right as they snap – I'm out on all that, and that's what happened. That's what bothers me the most.
"Taking the timeout and making sure everyone is set and geared up for the rush, and we get a chance to talk about things – there's nothing wrong with that in that situation at all. It's just what I go into every game saying is that I'm not the guy that takes the timeout as they're snapping the ball, and that's what happened. And then, to compound it, we blocked it and ran it back for a touchdown and then had to go play defense and all the things that happened after that.
"It doesn't get easier, but you have to turn the page. The thing about this business is if you sit around and pat yourself on the back after a big win too long, you're going to get paid back really quickly, and if you sit around and mope about it, then you're not going to be able to put your best effort forward."
• The staff was more upset about what transpired over the course of the game than what happened at the end. Liberty dominated the time of possession, holding the ball for more than 37 minutes in part because of its rushing attack. The Flames, who averaged 5.0 yards per carry, became the fourth opponent in the past five games to rush for more than 198 yards against the Hokies, and Fuente cited gap fits and tackling as the main culprits.
"We didn't fit the run very well," he said. "It basically came down to it. We tried to make some adjustments. They had two weeks [to prepare], so we knew there would be new things, and we would have to adjust. I felt like when we did fit it, there were a couple of times where we couldn't get the ball on the ground. We did not tackle well at a couple of positions when we did fit up the run and feed the ball to the unblocked hat, we didn't get it down, and then there were some other times when we didn't fit it up very well."
• The Hokies received another strong performance from defensive end Amaré Barno this past Saturday, as he continues his upward trajectory as a player. The linebacker-turned-defensive end registered a career-best eight tackles, including seven solo stops and 2.5 tackles for a loss. He also had a sack, bringing his season total to 4.5, and he forced a fumble and tipped two passes.
"Amaré Barno played really well," Fuente said. "I probably should have led off talking about Amaré. Amaré just continues to get better. Made several big plays."
• Fuente admitted that he wants to get more people contributing on offense after a game in which quarterback Hendon Hooker threw the ball 27 times and ran it a career-high 20 (for 156 yards). Tech played nearly all of the game without tailback Khalil Herbert, who came out with a hamstring injury right after the opening kickoff, and the Hokies relied more on Hooker in the running game than usual. Tech's tailbacks combined for just 10 of the Hokies' 31 carries in the game.
"We do need to continue to bring along those other guys," Fuente said. "Jalen [Holston] needs to play a role for us. Raheem [Blackshear] needs to continue to improve. It's kind of a weird situation leading into the week where it wasn't that we didn't know we wouldn't have Khalil. It was that we weren't sure. So you've got Raheem working at both slot and running back, but when you lose Khalil on the first play of the game, he's got to play just running back. So yeah, there's a lot of shuffling and discussion that has to happen when you lose somebody like that."
• Fuente offered no specific updates on Herbert, tight end James Mitchell or linebacker Rayshard Ashby, all of whom missed either all or parts of the Liberty game. Unfortunately, those injuries came right at the time when the Hokies saw Jermaine Waller return to the field for the first time since the North Carolina game. Waller, the team's best cover cornerback, dealt with an injury all summer, and then he suffered a setback in the North Carolina game. Fuente hopes Waller has turned a corner because he brings talent and experience to Tech's defense, and he allows the staff to be a little more diverse with its game plans because of his one-on-one coverage ability.
"He's incredibly sharp," Fuente said of Waller. "He understands the scheme, and he's technically sound. On top of that, he's obviously a talented player. We have sorely missed him, and I hope that we can keep him going throughout the season. He desperately wants to play and help this football team, and we're better when he's out there."