National Mainstream Media and Bloggers
Hokies get just enough against Huskers (Annette)
"This team is reminiscent of last year’s scrappy ACC championship team in that it appears to be doing just enough to win and improving every week. After racking up 444 yards on the ground last week against Marshall, the Hokies got away from their strength in the running game against Nebraska and seem to have limited Taylor’s called run plays this season for fear of getting him hurt. His feet, though, can still win them games by keeping plays alive. The difference on Saturday, though, was that Taylor won that game with both his feet and his arm. Taylor finished with 192 yards and one touchdown on 12 of 27 pass completions."
Anguished defeat of the day: Never let Hokies get behind you, Huskers (Dr. Saturday)
"Consider that the Hokies' longest pass of the game prior to that play covered all of 21 yards, and their only touchdown drive started at the Nebraska 24 after a big return on the opening kickoff; Tech's previous six drives in the second half had totaled 53 yards, ending in five punts and a turnover on downs, respectively. So to lose your first road win over a ranked team in more than a decade on an 81-yard ad lib is cruelly ironic enough."
VT Mainstream Media
No. 5 provides fans great theatre (Aaron McFarling)
"One improbable drive had erased three hours of heartburn. Soon, the Hokies will look at the film and pop the antacid, trying to figure out to fix all that's wrong with this offense before playing Miami next week. When your two most important offensive plays come on the "scramble drill," something's not right. But for the Hokies, Saturday was no time for that. Roberts let out a primal scream of joy inside a mass of Tech fans. Taylor sprinted to midfield to celebrate with teammates. "I tried to do an interview," Taylor said with a smile. "But the fans didn't allow it." And they shouldn't have. This was their moment. They'd put up with a lot before the 12 seconds of bliss."
Who knows what’s happening anymore? (Randy King)
"Talk about bringing a team back from the dead. Just when it appeared the Hokies were being fitted for toe tags, Taylor conducted some kind of serious revival. After spending most of the afternoon like he was throwing the football from an underground bunker, Taylor emerged from his foxhole just in the nick of time and pitched his statement."
Virginia Tech 16, Nebraska 15 (Darryl Slater)
"A handful of people had left Lane Stadium before Tech began that final drive with 1:44 left—including my better, though perhaps not wiser, half. Some of us scribes almost missed the crucial 81-yard pass to Danny Coale, too. We descended from the press box and arrived on the sideline for what we figured would be a couple routine minutes at the end of another uninspiring showing by Tech’s offense. Instead, we stepped foot on Lane’s grass just in time to see Coale running by—only a few feet away—and hear the crowd roar load enough to make Lane sound like a bee hive."
You LEFT the Stadium?!?! (Kyle Tucker)
"It was ... electric. The play, the atmosphere. I’ve never experienced anything like it. The general consensus all around me was: Did that REALLY just happen? That was Cheryl Beamer’s reaction. She was standing a few feet away from me. She was squeezing her hands in prayer before that long pass. She said she was planning an "I’m so sorry" speech for husband Frank. "And then," she said, "the greatest finish I think I’ve ever seen in my life.""
Hokies Win a Wild One (Mark Viera)
"When it was over, some Virginia Tech fans laid on the grass and soaked it in. Others patted Hokies players on the shoulder pads. A large throng gathered to jump up and down in front of television cameras. After a finish that will live as one of the indelible moments in Virginia Tech lore, there was euphoria in this college town."
Late-game heroics stun Big Red (HokieSports)
""This is one of those games that could turn things around if you build on it and learn from it," Beamer concluded. "We need to learn from it – not only the great plays at the end, but all those things in between that we need to get better at. When you can win one like that and improve from it, that’s important to your season.""
ACC and VT Bloggers
OTB’s ACC Power Poll: Week 3 (On The B.Rink)
Typical. Hokies. Football. Or something like that. This is me on OTB Live at 6:46 EST: "Watch the Hokies suck all game and come up with big play FTW." Posted that literally 5 seconds before the colossal connection between Taylor and Coale. Straight up, Miami really looks like a tough hill to climb(who woulda thunk we would say that in week 4????)—even in Lane Stadium. Will have to do some more research and coin flipping before I throw out a pick in what will be a great game between the #1 and #2 in the poll.
Immediate reactions to the Nebraska game (The North End Zone)
"That was a terrible game. Sloppy. Frustrating. Just bad. Our defense and special teams were the only bright spots in that game and even they weren't that great. Granted our defense held them to five field goals and no touchdowns, but still, Helu Jr. made us his bitch. He was ripping off big runs left and right. Luckily we had Ryan Williams make Nebraska his bitch, otherwise this game might have been different."
Nebraska Bloggers
Heart-Breaking Overreaction (Corn Nation)
"In the end we lost because we didn't play well, made critical mistakes on both sides of the ball and got out-coached. The streak of not having beaten a Top 25 on the road since 1997 still stands. We'll have to hear about it in a couple weeks when the Huskers head to Columbia, Missouri to take on the Tigers. The Huskers have a lot of work to do until then."
We Are Who We Thought We Were (Big Red Network)
"All things and people are imperfect. They have flaws. The only way to see what those flaws are is to put them on the testing grounds, and see what shakes loose. For Nebraska on Saturday, the testing grounds were going between the lines with a very talented Hokie football team. And what shook loose were the parts we thought might be a bit unsteady."
Let the Knawing Begin (Husker Mike)
"If you are looking for a moral victory or perhaps something just to ease the pain of today's Husker loss to Virginia Tech, perhaps the place to look is that this wasn't a game that Nebraska "could've" won, like Texas Tech last season. This wasn't a game that Nebraska "would've" won, perhaps like Texas Tech in 2005 or Texas in 2006. This really was a game Nebraska "should've" won against a higher ranked team on the road."
Not So Instant Analysis (AJ the Husker Hater)
"All year long, we’ve heard about how great Virginia Tech was…what a great measuring stick it would be. ESPN’s infatuation with Tyrod Taylor caused many of you to fall into the trap of thinking these were the Michael Vick days of old. Uhhh…no. The Hokies might be the worst offensive football team I’ve ever seen in my life. Without Darren Evans, that team is not one-dimensional, they’re none definitional. Taylor’s passing skill rival those of a powder puff league, and the play calling ability of Frank Beamer’s staff rivals that of the French Army National Guard on Maneuvers."