The young Virginia Tech football team won one of the schools biggest games in many years, taking down No. 8 Ohio State Saturday night. The win moves the Hokies to 2-0 on the season, and most likely will shift the Hokies into the Top 25 polls (AP & Coaches) for the first time this season (they were not even close by the votes this past week).
The Hokies got off to a great start, with freshman tailback Shai McKenzie putting the Hokies up 7-0 on a 2-yard rush halfway through the 1st quarter. Following a touchdown from the Buckeyes that tied the game at seven a piece, after a backbreaking conversion on 3rd and long that sparked an Ohio State TD, freshman Marshawn Williams capped off a nine play drive with a 14 yard touchdown run, putting the Hokies up 14-7 at the end of the quarter. A 10 yard TD pass from Michael Brewer to Sam Roger would be the only scoring of the 2nd quarter, and the Hokies were up 21-7 at the half. The Hokies seemed to have most of the momentum throughout the first half, with the Hokies defense shutting down the Buckeye offense, and Tech's offense producing three drives ending in touchdowns.
The second half seemed to be a major momentum shift as the Buckeyes would tie the game up at 21 with 11:40 remaining in the 4th quarter. When all seemed to be falling apart, the Hokies offense went on a six play, 65 yard drive, ending with a 10 yard touchdown pass from Brewer to Bucky Hodges, answering in fashion that still leaves Hokie nation shocked, as the previous years' sputtering units could never be counted on to answer an opponent's best punch. Tech's defense continued to force the Buckeyes to punt with their relentless pass rush consistently forcing JT Barrett into hasty decisions; and in the last minute, Donavon Riley took back an interception for a touchdown to finish off the upset win. The interception was clearly the result of a miscommunication between the QB and WR, as Barrett expected the WR to break the route off. The final score finished at Virginia Tech 35, Ohio State 21.
The Hokie defense shined once again, holding the Buckeye offense to only 4 for 16 on 3rd down efficiency. Buckeye's quarterback J.T. Barrett finished 9 for 29 on the game with only one touchdown and three interceptions, as the Hokies were flooding the pocket consistently throughout the game. Michael Brewer was able to make many clutch 3rd down throws down the field, and his receivers did a tremendous job getting open for him throughout the game. Freshmen running backs McKenzie and Williams both scored touchdowns, and former QB-turned-TE Bucky Hodges scored his second touchdown this season.
Hokies Main Contributors on Offense
- Michael Brewer: 23-36 passing, 199 passing yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTS
- Marshawn Williams: 12 carries, 20 rushing yards, 1 TD
- Shai McKenzie: 7 carries, 7 rushing yards, 1 TD
- Ryan Malleck: 6 receptions, 64 yards receiving
- Bucky Hodges: 2 receptions, 21 receiving yards, 1 TD
- Sam Rogers: 5 receptions, 23 receiving yards, 1 TD
Hokies Main Contributors on Defense
- Kyshoen Jarrett: 2 interceptions
- Donavon Riley: 1 interception (returned 63 yards for touchdown)
- Chuck Clark: 11 total tackles
- Dadi Nicholas and Derek Di Nardo: 2 sacks each
The Hokies now look to add to the winning streak as they have three straight home games to finish out September. The 2-0 Hokies have 1-1 East Carolina coming to town next Saturday, with kickoff scheduled for noon ET.