Virginia Tech 49, East Carolina 27: What They're Saying

What beat writers and bloggers from around the web are saying after the Hokies finally found the win column.

Face the Nation

ACC Blogger Power Poll: Week 3 (ACC Blogger)
"(No. 11 Virginia Tech) Couldn’t help but have that "here we go again" feeling in the first half with the Hokies down 24-21, but different teams came out of the tunnel in the 2nd. After an ECU FG to go up by 6, Virginia Tech reeled off 4 unanswered TDs with the rushing game kicking it off and a INT return for TD/big pass play finishing the Pirates off to a 49-27 win. What does this mean for the BC game Saturday? Who knows."

ACC Football Power Rankings, Sept. 20 (ACC Sports Journal)
"(No. 8 Virginia Tech) Hokies have won the third game on the schedule for 17 straight years now."

ACC Power Rankings: Week 4 (Annette)
"(No. 7 Virginia Tech) The Hokies showed some heart, climbing out of a 10-0 deficit and beating ECU at home, despite losing running back Ryan Williams to a hamstring injury in the second quarter. The Hokies trailed 27-21 in the third quarter and are banged-up, but that’s the kind of gutsy win that could be a turning point in the season."

Virginia Tech Bloggers

Let's Celebrate! (The Key Play)
"We're 1-2, but I'll be damned if I don't feel better than Don Draper after winning a Clio. Winning football and bourbon will do that to a guy. How about them Hokies? I'm just ecstatic I don't have to write another post about losing. Here are some bourbon powered notes."

Virginia Tech 49, East Carolina 27: What We Learned (VT Campus Blog)
"There might be more talent position-for-position than any Hokie team in recent memory, but there’s only one way the Hokies can control football games, and that’s to run, run, run the football. Despite losing Ryan Williams midway through the second quarter, the two-pronged attack of Evans and Wilson beat the Pirates’ defense to a pulp. There is no answer for fresh legs in the backfield in the second half, and that’s exactly what the Hokies should have every week."

Tech Uses Big Second Half to Whip ECU (Tech Sideline)
"The Hokies outgained the Pirates 448 to 361 and dominated in the trenches during the second half. Tech ran the ball at will on ECU over the final 30 minutes, and the Tech defense was able to put a lot of pressure on Pirate quarterback Dominique Davis thanks to inventive schemes by defensive coordinator Bud Foster."

It’s a start. VT 49, ECU 27 (The Football Girl)
"So it was a win, but a lot of big questions remain. The Hokies remain an offense that seems to lack a clear identity. They run a lot of different formations, none of them terribly well. In business, it is often said, "Do what you can and do it better than anybody else". It makes little sense to try to be too many things."

Virginia Tech Beat Writers

Virginia Tech's defense finally arrives (Aaron McFarling)
"After committing many of the familiar mistakes in the first half -- sloppy tackling, missed assignments, general confusion -- Tech's defense morphed in the third quarter. The Pirates gained only 83 of their 361 yards after halftime. They scored just three points after the break. Carmichael outpointed them alone with his pick-six; he added another interception later to set up the final touchdown."

Tech proves it can survive without Williams...at least against ECU (Norm Wood)
"Yes, there was a defensive surge in the second half (Tech held East Carolina to 1 of 7 on third-down conversions in the half). Yes, Tech proved its nickel defensive look can be effective (after some serious hiccups in the first half). Perhaps most importantly, Tech's coaching staff proved one of the smartest decisions it has made in the early season was to play running back David Wilson instead of redshirting him."

Hokies’ running attack, offensive line improve (Darryl Slater)
"The line should certainly be credited with aiding Tech’s second-half rushing performance. On their third drive, the Hokies ran all over the Pirates. Evans gained 18 on the drive’s second play. Next play: Evans for 16. Next play: Wilson for 18. The Hokies finished the drive with Wilson’s 3-yard touchdown, which gave them a 28-27 lead. They never trailed again."

Season on the brink, VT turns it around (Kyle Tucker)
"But somewhere, somehow, in the midst of all that miserable failure and a palpable sense of impending doom in the every-quieter Lane Stadium crowd ... something clicked for Virginia Tech on Saturday afternoon. All the sudden, instead of an 0-3 start, the Hokies had a 49-27 victory."

Wilson shines in Hokies win over Bucs (Nathan Warters)
"Perhaps David Wilson spoke too soon. The Virginia Tech sophomore tailback expressed regret earlier this week over not redshirting this season. At the time, he felt he wasn’t being utilized enough. He was singing a different tune after the Hokies’ 49-27 win over East Carolina on Saturday at Lane Stadium."