Virginia Tech football: No. 2 Clemson defeats the Hokies 31-17

The No. 2 Clemson Tigers took down the No. 12 Virginia Tech Hokies 31-17 on Saturday night in Blacksburg. The Tigers improve to 5-0 on the season and 3-0 in ACC play. The Hokies dropped their first game of the season and fall to 4-1 and 0-1 in conference play.

Virginia Tech received the ball first and promptly went three-and-out. Clemson took its first possession down the field for a score and never looked back. Quarterback Kelly Bryant broke numerous tackles all night and rushed for 94 yards on 19 attempts.

Surprisingly, the Hokies weren’t too creative offensively in the first half. Most of us expected head coach Justin Fuente to throw everything at Clemson and he didn’t until later in the game when it was a three-score contest.

Tech’s offensive line was manhandled throughout the night and despite that, freshman quarterback Josh Jackson wasn’t bad. His first interception was a Henri Murphy drop that fell right into the waiting hands of Clemson linebacker Dorian O’Daniel for the pick-six. His second pick, however, was a poor decision that Clemson defensive end Austin Bryant made a great play on. Overall, Jackson made several good throws despite heavy pressure all night.

The home crowd at Lane Stadium deserves a shout out. They were into the game all night, regardless of the score and really brought it. Regardless of the outcome on the field, Blacksburg put on a show this weekend and recruits notice that.

The Hokies go back on the road to Boston College next week in a game they can ill-afford to lose.