Where Does Miami Rank on Virginia Tech's List of Rivals?

2nd.

 1. UVA
 2. The U
 3. WVU

I would say that Estonian has the top three rankings right, except that Georgia Tech is probably on major rivalry alert based on the last couple of meetings – We’ve had the war of words between Beamer and Johnson, Choppergate, and in 2008 we had Jerseygate, where S. Glennon had to wear an old GT jersey to play. GT has probably pushed WVU out of the 3 spot for now, just because they haven’t played the Hokies in awhile.

By the way, I was at the 2005 Miami game also. Sitting in traffic on the way out, I caught Beamer’s post game press conference, and to this day, that was the most disappointed that I have ever heard him. I think the fact that the crowd cheered and screamed even after the outcome was pretty much decided, really affected him. During the press conference he spent emotional several moments apologizing to the fans.

For me it’s again more of a hate factor, UVA isn’t even in my top 4 hated teams

1.WVU (for the horrible way we were treated in Morganhole at the last VT-WVU game i will always hate this team and thier fans the most)

2.Georgia Tech (have become more relavant to beat for Coastal Title in recent years than Miami, plus the triple option is so stupid and annoying)

3. Boston College (i’ll never get over that Matty Ice game in Bburg)

4.Miami

5. UVA ( when we aren’t playing them, i’d rather see a team from my state beat some one outta state than vice versa, so they aren’t totally hated in my book, but i still laugh when they lose bad games and thier fans are really annoying because they hate our success)

I relish watching UVA lose every single game because I hate them so much. However, I like Miami to beat every team they play until we meet them. I guess I consider UVA our top rival insofar as beating them means more than just dominating the ACC and being the best and toughest football team – it puts our pretentious tie-wearing friends to the northeast in their place. Beating Miami is very important and highly anticipated but the hatred between Miami and VT fans does not burn as bright on a personal level as with VT-UVA fans.

UVA has been and always will be the biggest rivalry to me. Miami a close second. I wish we still played WVU it was an awesome rivalry probably better than the UVA clashes. I think the Georgia Tech game is beginning to become a small rivalry as well. On a more personal not I live in EXTREME southwest va, so around here we see a lot of Volunteer Orange. After all it’s closer to Neyland Stadium than it is to Lane Stadium. I’m a Hokie through and through and I wish we would put the Vols on our schedule permanently, nothing made me a happier Hokie than beating the Vols last year.

I became a student at VT in 1993, their 2nd year in the Big East.

At the time we were coming off of a 2-8-1 campaign during which Maurice DeShazo had his tires slashed after the season-ending UVA loss.

As a freshman in an all male dorm, I had subscribed to Playboy during the summer when I got my address, and in September 1993’s issue, it had us 94th of 112 D1 schools.

In 1993, we beat UVA in Charlottesville, and we beat them 3 of the 4 years I was there, losing at home in 1994 on 5 Deshazo INTs. UVA used to be a formidable opponent, and they’ve still had a few top 5 NFL draft picks in recent years.

In 1993, we had no chance of beating Miami. Nor did we in 1994. Which meant, that we weren’t too optimistic going into the game in 1995, particularly after a pair of underwhelming losses to BC and CIncinnati behind Jim Druckenmiller.

That was the most important game during the bowl run. Sink to 0-3, don’t go that first Bowl Alliance game, who knows. As it stood, we shut Miami down (admittedly not their best roster), and won the game 13-7. Atle Larsen missed 3 FGs, and Jermaine Holmes dropped 2 sure TD bombs. We could have won at least 30-7. Jim Druckenmiller would only lose 2 more at VT.

We won the next 4 v Miami, until Butch assembled one of the best rosters ever. They would have beat us in 2000 even if Mike Vick and Andre Davis had been healthy, but they were one Wilford 2 pt conversion drop from an upset at Lane in 2001.

Certainly, the UVA game in 1995 was special for a number of reasons, and the placement of the game at the end of the schedule has often meant some things hinged on it for VT.

But the vaulting into the national conciousness was done on the strength of our Miami dominance, not UVA’s. Continually beating UVA has served to bolster our recruiting efforts and standing in VA and even up into suburban MD.

It’s difficult to hate someone you can’t take seriously. And for the better part of my association with the Hokies, Miami, WVA, and Syracuse have always been my more serious foils. On the rare occasions UVA has beaten us, it has been an annoyance, and until 2004, it wouldn’t have cost us in the league (hence, not costing us our chance at a conf title, and BCS game).

Finally, I don’t think any opponent engenders more actual hate than dormant foe WVU. So my list:

1) Miami
2 tie) WVU/UVA.

Note: While the division title is at stake today, more important to me is the fact that the first undefeated expanded ACC record is still out there. It would be nice to piss on all the detractors who didn’t want us in the league by owning that distinction.

Enjoy the game.