SB Nation - Virginia Tech Hokies

2009 Peach Bowl: Good vs. Evil

furrer4heisman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 18:16:10 -0000

vs.

(The holidays mean it's time for two things in my house: Bowl games and Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas - the bootleg copy with Kermit's scenes included, you Disney fascists. Images are from here.)

As much as I think the bowl system is broken, it has given Hokie and Vol fans something to be excited about this month. It'll be great theater as the Hokietown Jubilee Jug Band goes head-to-head with the Riverbottom Nightmare Vols.

As a public service announcement, posting will be less regular the rest of the month, but you will see plenty of stuff on the Peach Bowl as we get closer to game time. I'll have a matchup to watch on both sides of the ball as well as the typical game preview stuff you're used to. Look for the game guide a few days before Christmas and then the rest after the holiday.

To be honest I'm kind of burned out and have a pretty big pile of stuff I need to get done at work and at home before Christmas rolls around. Don't worry, I'll still be around. I'll post stuff when news breaks and when I get inspired (read: drunk). I'm pumped for this bowl matchup but I need a week or so get things in order before I got full bore into hating on the Vols and looking at what the Hokies need to do to get that 10th win.

Poll

As a Hokie fan, how do you feel about the Tennessee Volunteers?

2009 ACC Football Blogger Awards

furrer4heisman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 06:00:15 -0000

More photos » by John Raoux - AP

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Last week the mainstream media had its fun handing out hardware for the 2009 ACC football season. I asked the best ACC bloggers around to submit their own ballots for postseason football awards. The results are after the jump. I'd like to give a big thanks to everyone who participated.

Blog	School
ACC/SEC Blog	ACC
On the B.Rink	ACC
Today's ACC Headlines	ACC
BC Interruption	Boston College
Block-C	Clemson
Shakin the Southland	Clemson
Blue Devil Nation	Duke
Scalp Em	Florida State
From the Rumble Seat	Georgia Tech
Testudo Times	Maryland
Turtle Waxing	Maryland
Anton Azucar	Miami
The Seventh Floor	Miami
Tar Heel Fan	North Carolina
Tar Heel Mania	North Carolina
Yet Another...	NC State
From Old Virginia	Virginia
Beer Control Offense	Virginia Tech
College Game Balls	Virginia Tech
Blogger So Dear	Wake Forest

Coach of the Year

Georgia Tech's Paul Johnson is the blogger's choice for 2009 ACC Coach of the Year. Johnson's Yellow Jackets quickly put the kibosh on the notion that the ACC would quickly catch up to his spread flexbone offense. Georgia Tech will participate in its first BCS game when it faces Iowa in the Orange Bowl.

Paul Johnson, GT - 11
Frank Spaziani, BC - 3
Dabo Swinney, CU - 3
Randy Shannon, MIA - 2
David Cutcliffe, DU - 1

Offensive Player of the Year

Clemson's C.J. Spiller was the overwhelming choice for the conference's offensive player of the year, according to the conference's bloggers. Spiller led the league in all-purpose yards with 2,512. He helped lead Clemson to its first appearance in the ACCCG.

C.J. Spiller, CU - 13
Ryan Williams, VT - 4
Josh Nesbitt, GT - 3

Defensive Player of the Year

In the closest vote, Georgia Tech's Derrick Morgan took home defensive player of the year honors. Morgan was a terror at defensive end for the Yellow Jackets, leading the league in sacks with 12.5.

Derrick Morgan, GT - 7
Luke Kuechly, BC - 4
Robert Quinn, UNC - 4
DeAndre McDaniel, CU - 3
Nate Collins, UVA - 1
Quan Sturdivant, UNC - 1

Rookie of the Year

Virginia Tech's Ryan Williams was the near-unanimous vote for rookie of the year. The only two bloggers to not vote for Williams gave him their vote for offensive player of the year. Williams led the ACC in rushing yards with 1,538 and scored 19 touchdowns, both ACC freshman records.

Ryan Williams, VT - 18
Luke Kuechly, BC - 2

Week Fourteen BlogPoll Ballot Draft

T Kyle King — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 03:52:12 -0000

The time has come to cast my final regular-season BlogPoll ballot---or, at least, I think it has; I’m assuming we’re not submitting new top 25s after next weekend’s Army-Navy game---and here is what I came up with after starting with a blank piece of paper:

Rank	Team	Delta

1	Alabama
2	Cincinnati	2
3	Texas
4	Boise State	1
5	TCU	1
6	Florida	4
7	Oregon
8	Ohio State
9	Georgia Tech	1
10	Iowa	1
11	West Virginia	9
12	LSU	1
13	Arizona
14	Oregon State	2
15	Southern Cal
16	Virginia Tech	5
17	Stanford
18	Miami (Florida)	4
19	Pittsburgh	7
20	California	1
21	Oklahoma State	2
22	Brigham Young	1
23	Nebraska	1
24	Penn State	7
25	Wisconsin	1
Last week's ballot

Dropped Out: Houston (#18), Central Michigan (#25).

The Alabama Crimson Tide (13-0) are No. 1. Duh! Of the dozen Division I-A opponents beaten by Nick Saban’s squad, nine finished with winning records, including the sixth-ranked Florida Gators, the twelfth-ranked LSU Tigers, and the 16th-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies. The Tide’s only close calls came in rivalry games against teams who will be playing on New Year’s Eve or later.

In spite of their close call against the Pittsburgh Panthers in a game played in the snow featuring two botched extra point attempts, the Cincinnati Bearcats (12-0) captured the No. 2 spot on my ballot by virtue of seven regular-season wins over teams that finished above .500, among them the 11th-ranked West Virginia Mountaineers, the 14th-ranked Oregon St. Beavers, and 19th-ranked Pitt. Also, Cincy gets credit for having a logo reminiscent of Chick-fil-A's.

While I understand and respect C&F’s argument, I awarded the No. 3 ranking to the Texas Longhorns (13-0) because Mack Brown’s outfit went undefeated against a slate that included no Division I-AA schedule fodder and only four teams that posted losing ledgers. Wins over the No. 21 Oklahoma St. Cowboys and the No. 23 Nebraska Cornhuskers provided heft to the Big 12 standard-bearer’s resume.

I ranked the Boise St. Broncos (13-0) ahead of the TCU Horned Frogs (12-0) for a variety of reasons. Both took advantage of a Division I-AA victim and each faced five Division I-A teams with winning records, but Boise State has an additional win and Texas Christian has two close shaves (at Air Force and at Clemson) as opposed to the Broncos’ one (at Tulsa). Boise State’s second- and third-best wins (over Nevada and Fresno State) are comparable to the Frogs’ (over Utah and Clemson), but the Broncos’ marquee victory over the seven-ranked Oregon Ducks far outshines TCU’s best pelt, that of the 22nd-ranked BYU Cougars.

The Sunshine State Saurians (12-1) slipped to sixth after their less than competitive neutral site outing against ‘Bama, as befits the nation’s lone once-beaten team, and Oregon (10-2) led the parade of two-loss teams because the Ducks fell to two quality teams on the road and made up for those setbacks with wins over three teams ranked in my top 20 (Arizona, Oregon State, and Cal).

The Ohio St. Buckeyes (10-2) earned a No. 8 ranking on the strength of wins over the tenth-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes, the 24th-ranked Penn St. Nittany Lions, and the 25th-ranked Wisconsin Badgers. The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (11-2) rode their ~~fourth-place finish in the SEC East~~ ACC championship to the No. 9 ranking, although the Ramblin’ Wreck’s loss to the Georgia Bulldogs at home serves as a drag on a resume that includes five close calls in the Golden Tornado’s ten Division I-A wins. Only two of the Engineers’ victims finished with fewer than five losses, but one of those triumphs came over No. 16 VPI.

Iowa (10-2) carded quality victories over a trio of top 25 teams (Arizona, Penn State, and Wisconsin, all by double-digit margins) to overcome respectable losses to Ohio State and Northwestern, both of whom will be playing on New Year’s Day. (For whatever it might be worth, I would point out that the five BCS bowls pit No. 9 v. No. 10, No. 7 v. No. 8, No. 4 v. No. 5, No. 2 v. No. 6, and No. 1 v. No. 3 on my ballot. This ought to be a pretty good bowl season.)

West Virginia narrowly edged out Louisiana State in my estimation. Both teams boasted similar resumes: both finished 9-3; both won three games by a touchdown or less; both lost one game by a touchdown or less. However, as ashamed as I am to admit it, the Mountain Men’s win over Pitt counts for more this season than the Bayou Bengals’ win over Georgia. I know, it hurts me to admit that, too; visions of Tony Dorsett and Dan Marino will haunt my dreams tonight.

A glut of 8-4 clubs out of the Pac-10 proved difficult to untangle, but I declared the Arizona Wildcats first among equals by awarding Mike Stoops’s troops the No. 13 ranking. Three of Arizona’s four losses came on the road, two of them were nailbiters, and only one of them was the handiwork of a team with fewer than eight wins. The Wildcats carded victories over No. 14 Oregon State, the 15th-ranked USC Trojans, and the 17th-ranked Stanford Cardinal, with Central Michigan thrown in for good measure.

The Beavers landed right behind Arizona, partly because of wins over Cal and Stanford but mostly because of a quartet of quality losses. Oregon State’s four setbacks all came against opponents sporting eight or more wins, and, of the four, only the one against the No. 2 team in the country wasn’t a close call.

I will grant that it appears somewhat strange that I placed Stanford at No. 17, two spots behind Southern California (a club the Cardinal beat handily in Los Angeles) and three spots ahead of the California Golden Bears (a squad that defeated Jim Harbaugh’s outfit at the Farm), but Stanford had no legitimate third-best victory after the Cardinal’s wins over Oregon and USC to overcome the trio of triumphs notched by the Men of Troy over Ohio State, Oregon State, and Cal. Likewise, the Bears of Berkeley had trouble overcoming the fact that all four of their losses came by margins of 17 points or more. Oddly enough, Southern California, Stanford, and California each lost to a 5-7 team on the road, but the Trojans’ loss to the Washington Huskies and the Cardinal’s loss to the Wake Forest Demon Deacons at least had the virtue of being close.

Sandwiched amid those West Coast outfits were No. 16 Virginia Tech (9-3), which beat top 25 teams Miami and Nebraska while sustaining three respectable defeats (including two to top ten squads); the 18th-ranked Miami Hurricanes (9-3), who are able to boast of a marquee win over Georgia Tech; and 19th-ranked Pittsburgh (9-3), which sneaked ahead of California by virtue of a more forgivable set of losses. The Panthers’ three setbacks all came by close margins, with two of those coming in down-to-the-wire clashes with top eleven opponents Cincinnati and West Virginia. Pitt’s loss to N.C. State was comparable to Cal’s loss to Washington---both came on the road against 5-7 squads---but the Wolfpack won by seven and the Huskies won by 32.

The inclusion of Oklahoma State (9-3) attested to the fact that next year’s BlogPoll should rank only 20 teams instead of 25---which the Associated Press poll did prior to 1989, by the way---but somebody had to be No. 21, so the Pokes were as qualified as anyone. Why was Les Miles’s old team ranked nine spots behind Les Miles’s current team when both have identical records and both count a win over the ‘Dawgs among their most impressive conquests? Simple: LSU lost to three teams with a combined 33-5 record by a combined 62-41 margin, while OSU lost to three teams with a combined 30-8 record by a combined 113-49 margin.

BYU (10-2) had absolutely no business being ranked after getting positively smoked by TCU and the hapless Florida St. Seminoles, but Brigham Young beat the Oklahoma Sooners and the Utah Utes, which counts for something. Nebraska (9-4) did little to impress me in the win column---the ‘Huskers beat only two teams with winning records---but, since all of the Big Red Machine’s losses were to teams that finished .500 or better and three of those were by razor-thin margins, I gave Bo Pelini’s team the benefit of the doubt.

The fact that Penn State (10-2) and Wisconsin (9-3) made the grade proves that I was scraping the bottom of the barrel; both the Nittany Lions and the Badgers lost convincingly to the Big Ten’s two top ten teams and neither beat more than two Division I-A teams that finished above .500, but the dearth of quality squads at the bottom of my ballot allowed a PSU team whose best win was against Temple and a Wiscy unit whose best win was against Fresno State to sneak undeservedly into the top 25.

Consideration was also given to the Boston College Eagles and the Mississippi Rebels. I’d like to tell you that I took a look at the Central Michigan Chippewas, East Carolina Pirates, Houston Cougars, Missouri Tigers, Navy Midshipmen, North Carolina Tar Heels, Northwestern Wildcats, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, and Texas Tech Red Raiders, but, if I said so, I’d be lying.

I watched the Oregon-Oregon State game on Thursday, the Central Michigan-Ohio (Ohio) game on Friday, and a Saturday slate consisting primarily of the Cincinnati-Pittsburgh, Alabama-Florida, and Clemson-Georgia Tech games, with bits of the Nebraska-Texas and Hawaii-Wisconsin tilts sprinkled in for variety.

As always, I actively solicit your input with respect to what is, after all, a draft ballot. Feel free to register your disagreement or lobby for or against particular teams in the comments below.

Go ‘Dawgs!

RTT Podcast tonight at 9:00 EST with Virginia Tech blog Gobbler Country

Joel — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 23:00:18 -0000

After last week's hiatus, we'll be cranking up the RTT Podcast again tonight at 9:00 EST with our special, extraordinarily early discussion of Virginia Tech and the Chick-fil-a Bowl. Frankly, we're doing it already because Will can hardly contain himself. Okay, he can't contain himself and he's got the carpet cleaner to prove it.

Joining us tonight will be furrer4heisman from Gobbler Country, SB Nation's fine Virginia Tech blog. I want to ask him what his screen name means and whether he really thinks maroon and orange is an appropriate color combination.

If you have questions you want us to ask or topics you'd like us to discuss, leave them below.

Apparently, Talkshoe's having issues with their Flash widgets, so we've swapped it out for a linked picture. Click on that thing and follow your nose.

A Peach of a Peach Bowl Podcast with Rocky Talk Top

furrer4heisman — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 22:00:20 -0000

Note: Click Here if the Above Embedded Code Doesn't Work.

Post Show Update: I thought it went well. I wasn't able to prepare as much as I'd liked but it was a nice back-and-forth with the RTT guys. Every time I said "horrific" I meant "fucking shitty".

Joel and Will from SB Nation's Tennessee Blog, Rocky Top Talk, have asked me to join their podcast to preview the Peach Bowl at 9 EST tonight. Please listen in. To make it more interesting, please try to guess how many times I do the following and leave your guesses in the comments:

1. Accidentally say "Rocky Talk Top". Example - "I really enjoy reading Rocky Talk ... Talk ... Top ...*sigh* ... your blog.").
2. Stop short of saying a swear. It's strictly forbidden on this podcast. Example - "Our offensive line has been fff... er, horrible at pass blocking."
3. Reference Lil Wayne's Lane Kiffin rap.
4. Correct Will and Joel after one of them has called this bowl game by its slave name (Is that racist? Can I say that? Or is it only funny when Peter Griffin does it in Family Guy?) by calling it the Peach Bowl right afterward.
5. I don't hear Joel or Will's question because I'm paying too much attention to the third period of the Sabres game and just answer whatever question I wanted them to ask.

The Ten Best Syracuse Football Games Of The Aughts

Sean Keeley — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:55:03 -0000

via nbcsportsmedia1.msnbc.com

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This one was actually harder than trying to figure out the ten worst games. Not so much because I couldn't find enough good wins, which believe it or not, I did. It was trying to rank them that made it so difficult. So many wins meant different things. Some were just amazing games. Others changed the entire SU season. Others still effected college football as a whole. I'm gonna go ahead and say that even I'm not sure about the rankings as I write this so feel free to chime in with your own top list in the comments. Somewhere in the middle, we'll figure it out.

Honorable Mention

Syracuse 26, Kansas State 3 (2001)
Syracuse's last (and only) bowl victory of the 2000's was all about James Mungro. Mungro wrapped up his career with 112 yards and three touchdowns in the Insight.com Bowl, passing Larry Csonka for second place on Syracuse's career rushing list with 2,981 yards.

Syracuse 40, Wyoming 34 2OT (2006)
The Orange might not have expected to get a game out of the Cowboys but they got all they could handle in the Dome. The Cowboys tied the game up with fifteen seconds remaining and sent it into overtime. A back-and-forth contest all day that featured 17 penalties, the Syracuse defense got it together in the 2nd OT and Jameel McClain stopped RB Joseph Harris on a fourth-and-1 from the 5. That led to a 15-yard Delone Carter TD to give the Orange the victory.

Syracuse 31, Buffalo 0 (2005)
Hey, when you go 1-10, you better appreciate that 1.

Auburn 37, Syracuse 34 2OT (2002)
SU fell short in this one, but any time a Syracuse quarterback puts on a performance in a game that later becomes the basis for a Syracuse sports blog, that game must be documented and appreciated.

Syracuse 22, Virginia Tech 14 (2001)
Virginia Tech entered the game No. 5 in the nation. They would not leave as such. Jamel Riddle's 51- yard punt return for a touchdown on the fourth play of the game set the tone as the Orange jumped out to a 17-0 halftime lead. The Hokies rallied in the 2nd half, cutting the lead to 20-14. Thanks to an SU punt that set the Hokies insider their own ten, the defense forced a safety, killing VT's momentum and ending the comeback. It was SU's first win in Blackburg since 1987and their first road win over a ranked team since 1998.

No. 10 - Syracuse 49, North Carolina 47 3OT (2003)

Syracuse trailed the entire game until :27 left in the fourth when Collin Barbar's FG made it 34-34. Syracuse got the ball first in overtime and scored on Water Reyes' five-yard TD run. North Carolina tied it on Darian Durant's four-yard TD run. In the 2nd overtime, Syracuse had an easy chance to win. UNC had failed to score on their drive and Barber lined up for a 27-yard FG...missing wide left. In the 3rd OT, Walter Reyes took the first hand-off and scampered 25 yards for the TD. Since SU had to go for two, they did and they converted. North Carolina scored on the ensuing drive, setting up a game-tying conversion of their own. Dan Orner's conversion pass failed and the Orange escaped Chapel Hill with a thrilling season-opening victory. Reyes finished with 191 yards and 3 touchdowns on 28 carries.

No. 9 - Syracuse 38, Pitt 31 2OT (2004)

The Orange were trying to keep hopes alive for their first bowl game in three years, Pitt was trying to maintain their place among the Big East leaders. SU led 21-13 at the half but Pitt stormed back ahead for a 24-21 lead late. Collin Barber kicked a 27-yard field goal with 71 seconds left in regulation to send the game into OT. In the first overtime, Tyler Palko hit Joe DelSardo with a 9-yard scoring pass for Pitt, but Perry Patterson tied it for Syracuse on a 3-yard run. With starter Walter Reyes out, Damien Rhodes ran the ball six times in seven plays and set up the Orange TD. On Pitt's possession, linebacker Kellen Pruitt and safety Diamond Ferri stopped RB Raymond Kirkley for no gain on fourth down to preserve the win.

No. 8 - Syracuse 31, West Virginia 27 (2000)

I'll let a West Virginia fan who put this loss in his Top 10 WVU Football Games I Will Never Watch Again explain...

We had it in the bag. 27-24 lead AND the ball. Scott McBrien throws a costly interception with less than 3 minutes to go, Syracuse drives all the way down the field and scores the winning TD with 10 seconds left. I broke my stadium seat afterwards. To top the evening's festivities off perfectly, Coach Nehlen announces his retirement after the game. Not a good day in Touchdown City. 31-27 Syracuse

Anytime you can win the Schwartzwalder Trophy on a late score AND cause your rivals' longtime head coach to retire, that's a good win.

No. 7 - Syracuse 38, Notre Dame 12 (2003)

There was really nothing at stake for the 5-6 Orange when they took on the 5-6 Irish in the final game of 2003. Even though a sixth win would have made them bowl eligible, they were not expected to go to one. The Irish however would have most certainly gone to a bowl game with the victory. A win for the Irish also would have strengthened the S.O.S. for USC, who was locked in a three-team battle with LSU and Oklahoma for a top spot in the BCS. In front of a national audience, the Orange shut down RB Julius Jones and dominated the heavily-favored Irish from start to finish. The SU win guaranteed Notre Dame's third losing season in five years, might have very well saved Paul Pasqualoni's job and influenced the way the national title picture played out.

No. 6 - Syracuse 37, Northwestern 34 (2009)

The Doug Marrone Era was moving in the right direction two games into its inaugural season. Thanks to a close loss to Minnesota and a well-played game against a superior Penn State, it was evident that the Orange were improved. But they lacked that one thing that they could point to as tangible evidence of improvement...a win. That changed when the Northwestern Wildcats came to town. Having defeated the Orange a year earlier, there was little reason to think they couldn't do it again. But this wasn't the same SU team and they proved it right away, jumping out to a 17-0 first quarter lead. The Wildcats responded however and the Orange lead evaporated to 24-21 at the half. Back and forth the two teams went in the 2nd half, trading leads and scores. Finally, the Orange had the ball with seconds remaining and the score tied 34-34. Walk-on freshman Ryan Lichtenstein walked on to the field to attempt a 41-yard FG as time expired. He did not disappoint:

The Orange won the game and instilled within themselves and their fanbase proof that the Doug Marrone Era would be so much better than the one that preceded it.

No. 5 - Syracuse 24, Notre Dame 23 (2008)

Once again with nothing on the line, the 19.5-point underdog Orange stepped up to play a Notre Dame team desperately in need of a victory. And once again, Syracuse stepped up to the challenge. Perhaps in tribute to lame duck coach Greg Robinson, the Orange played their best game of the season. Led by Cam Dantley, son of Notre Dame great Adrian Dantley, the offense rallied from a 23-10 deficit in the 4th quarter. SU fans were officially introduced to RB Antwon Bailey who ripped off 126 yards and a TD while Arthur Jones anchored the defense with 15 tackles. Note Dame had a chance to win the game as time expired but Brandon Walker's 53-yard kick fell short and the Orange once again upset the Irish on national television.

No. 4 - Syracuse 31, Rutgers 13 (2009)

It wasn't that long ago that a 31-13 win over Rutgers would have been commonplace. In fact, that might have been considered a close game between the two before the mid-2000's, when Rutgers wrested control of the series and tri-state area recruiting from the Orange for the first time. So it was with particular delight that the Orange dominated the Scarlet Knights for the first time in a long time. The win didn't do much for the Orange in the short-term but the long-term effects could be enormous. Much in the same way Rutgers used wins over SU to catapult their position in the Northeastern recruiting war, this win could have a similar effect in reversing that trend. One also gets the distinct feeling that a strong rivalry between the two programs may have just begun.

No. 3 - Syracuse 43, Boston College 17 (2004)

It's odd to see a blowout win among the best wins of the decade when so many of them came in overtime on at the last-second. But it's hard to argue that Syracuse's depantsing of BC in 2004 was one of the most satisfying wins in SU history.

The Eagles were about to leave the Big East, but not before winning the out-right conference crown. All that stood between them and the BCS bid was a 5-6 Syracuse squad. Damien Rhodes scampered for a 69-yard TD but the hero of the day was Diamond Ferri. Due to injuries, Ferri played not only his usual safety spot but also returned kicked and rushed on offense. The result? He rushed 28 times for 141 yards and two touchdowns. He also returned an interception for a score in the fourth quarter to seal the 43-17 victory. With the win, SU ruined Boston College's chances of a BCS bid or outright Big East title all while gaining a share of the conference crown and becoming bowl eligible themselves.

No. 2 - Syracuse 37, Louisville 34 (2007)

36.5 points. That's how much Louisville was favored by when the lowly Orange came to Papa Johns Stadium that day. So you can imagine it was a bit of a shock when SU QB Andrew Robinson hit Taj Smith for a 79-yard touchdown on the first play of the game. It set the tone for one of the most shocking first half performances in SU history. The Orange led throughout behind Robinson, who threw for a career-high 423 yards and tied a school record with four touchdowns. Louisville began to chip back into the lead in the second half, thanks to two SU turnovers. The comeback fell short and the Orange made national headlines with the upset. For a brief moment, the Big East bottom-dweller was a real football program again.

No. 1 - Syracuse 50, Virginia Tech 42 3OT (2002)

Coming off their upset of the highly-ranked Hokies the year prior, it was too much to ask of the Orange to do it again. But in a game that featured 1,163 yards of total offense, including 907 yards passing, Syracuse did it anyway.

VT jumped out to an early 14-3 lead but the Orange chipped away and kept the rest of the game close. The fourth quarter featured 27 points, a lead change and two ties With the score tied 35-35, Virginia Tech missed a game-winning FG late and the Orange took a knee into overtime.

In the first OT period, neither team was able to score. VT missed another FG and Troy Nunes was intercepted in the endzone. In the second OT, VT got on the board first but Nunes recovered to throw a TD pass, sending the game into a third OT. In it, Damien Rhodes scored the go-ahead TD and mandatory 2-point conversion. Syracuse safety Maurice McClain intercepted a Bryan Randall pass in the endzone, clinching the win for the Orange in front of the home crowd, which stormed the field afterward.

Get to Know Your Soon to be Vanquished Foe: Tennessee

furrer4heisman — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 19:30:13 -0000

Regular Season: Tennessee went 7-5 and 4-4 in the SEC this year. However, the Vols are one of the hotter teams in college football right now having won four of their last five regular season games. Tennessee didn't have much success away from Neyland Stadium in 2009. The Vols played well in road losses to Florida and Alabama, but were crushed in Oxford by a mediocre Ole Miss team, 42-17. The Vols got their lone road win in their last game, a 30-24 overtime win over Kentucky. Tennessee was a very inconsistent team this year, but Lane Kiffin appears to have it ahead of schedule on its way back to competing for the SEC title.

Head Coach: Kiffin has been a polarizing figure in his first 12 months on the job at Tennessee. The youngest head coach in FBS did two things when he arrived in Knoxville, both aimed at winning the recruiting war. He assembled a top-notch staff around him and starting poking the bear. Kiffin's verbal jabs at nearly everyone in the SEC may be seen as petulance from the junior member of the SEC coaching fraternity. But to me, Kiffin is just hustling. He knows winning in college football has a little to do with how well he coaches and a lot to do with getting the best football players in the country to come to Knoxville. Hockey has a term for guys like Kiffin. He's a shit disturber. Of the highest order. Talking shit to the coaching royalty of the SEC gets him and his team noticed. I have no problem with that. After all, if Kiffin's good enough for my boy Weezy, he's good enough for me.

Player to Watch on Offense: This has to be Jonathan Crompton. Look, Montario Hardesty's a great player. But that's the reason he's not the player to watch on offense for the Vols. He's going to get his yards and he's going to get into the end zone. But Crompton is the guy who's going to determine if the Vols win this game. If the Crompton we saw against Georgia shows up to the Peach Bowl, we're screwed. But if the catfish with a helmet shows up, we should win this game. Maybe even win it easily.

Player to Watch on Defense: It couldn't be anyone other than Eric Berry. The kid is a game-changer on defense and special teams and he's going to be making a lot of money next year. He needs 15 interception return yards to break the NCAA record and I'm sure he'll be doing everything he can to get it. Berry is a force to be reckoned with, but isn't putting up the same numbers he did when he first arrived in Knoxville. The reason is the same reason Kam Chancellor has struggled his last two years in Blacksburg. Chancellor was moved from rover (which for Tennessee fans reading this site is our strong safety, a hybrid DB/LB) to free safety where he has been forced to drop back more into pass coverage. When Chancellor played rover, his job was to cause havoc and destroy everything in his path, which he was pretty good at. Berry as been moved from free to strong safety, which has him more in a havoc-causing role (which he's still pretty damn good at) instead of roaming around the defensive backfield making interceptions. While Berry may or may not get his interception record against Tech, he will be a key factor in trying to stop Ryan Williams.

Tennessee in the Blogosphere: Considering SB Nation's Tennessee blog is run by one of my bosses at the mother ship, please visit Rocky Top Talk now. And then visit there again every day between now and the bowl game. It's far and away the best destination for Vol news and opinion. However, if you're feeling so inclined you can also check out these fine blogs: Gate 21, 3rd Saturday in Blogtober, Losers with Socks, Fulmer's Belly.

Hokies Finally Get a Shot at Volunteers

furrer4heisman — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 17:06:09 -0000

More photos » by Dave Martin - AP

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Truett Cathy has succeeded where Bruton Smith failed.

Years after Smith, the CEO of Bristol Motor Speedway, tried unsuccessfully to get the two schools to play a football game at a Nascar track, Virginia Tech and Tennessee will meet in the Peach Bowl (which is currently named after Cathy's chain of fast food restaurants that sells delicious sandwiches and waffle fries). And college football is better because of it.

These two teams should be rivals. The impression Hokie fans have of Tennessee is it's afraid to play us. The impression Vol fans probably have of Virginia Tech is it's a team that isn't on its level. But both are from BCS conferences and are separated by a mere 240 miles.

Since 1968, the Vols have played Memphis, which is about as far away from being on Tennessee's level as a football team can get, 21 times including 10 times in Memphis. The argument can be made that UT is trying to get in on Memphis' fertile recruiting fields, but it's still nearly 400 miles from Knoxville.

And you sure don't see Alabama playing the Tigers every other year, do you?

But at least these two teams will finally play again thanks to the Peach Bowl. It'll be the first meeting between the Hokies and Vols since 1994 when they met in the Swamp in Gainesville in the Gator Bowl (Jacksonville's Municipal Stadium was being renovated for the Jaguars at the time). It wasn't pretty for Tech, who watched Peyton Manning obliterate it to the tune of 45-23. That help further the notion Vol fans had that the Hokies weren't ready for prime time.

And that's one of the many, many reasons I want Tech to win this game. Because if we go out there and beat the Vols, maybe we can get these teams to meet in the regular season. I've said it before but now that the matchup is set I'll say it again. Let's lock Mike Hamilton and Jim Weaver in a room in Atlanta and not let them out until the Hokies and Vols schedule a home and home. Then we can thank Cathy and not have to see Smith pop up on ESPN every other year with delusions of grandeur about the teams playing in Bristol.

Headlines: Eagles to the Emerald Bowl and the 2009 ACC Lineup

Brian @ BCI — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 16:35:12 -0000

Brian: The complete bowl lineup for 2009-2010 was announced yesterday, with the Eagles selected to play Southern California (8-4) in the Emerald Bowl. The game will be played on December 26 at 8:00pm EST and shown on ESPN.

Here is the complete rundown of ACC bowls (all times Eastern).

Bowl	ACC	Opponent	Location	Date/Time	Network
Meineke Car Care	North Carolina (8-4)	Pittsburgh (9-3)	Charlotte, NC	Dec. 26 4:30pm	ESPN
Emerald	Boston College (8-4)	Southern Cal (8-4)	San Francisco, CA	Dec. 26 8:00pm	ESPN
Music City	Clemson (8-5)	Kentucky (7-5)	Nashville, TN	Dec. 27 8:30pm	ESPN
Champs Sports	Miami Fla. (9-3)	Wisconsin (8-4)	Orlando, FL	Dec. 29 8:00pm	ESPN
Peach	Virginia Tech (9-3)	Tennessee (7-5)	Atlanta, GA	Dec. 31 7:30pm	ESPN
Gator	Florida State (6-6)	West Virginia (9-3)	Jacksonville, FL	Jan. 1 1:00pm	CBS
Orange	Georgia Tech (11-2)	Iowa (10-2)	Miami, FL	Jan. 5 8:00pm	FOX

Do you like the Eagles draw relative to the other ACC bowl destinations? Would you have rather faced Stanford?

Jeff: I'm very happy with the matchup the Eagles have this season. Playing USC - who might be the highest profile team not in a BCS bowl - is great for BC because the game will get plenty of attention and will get more attention than if the Eagles had played Stanford in the same game. Hopefully the matchup will also encourage more fans and alumni who live on the West coast to get to the game. Relative to other bowl destinations, I think the Meineke Car Care Bowl in Charlotte got a great matchup once again and I would've liked to be headed to Charlotte for our bowl to play Pittsburgh. Pitt is the third highest ranked team any ACC team is playing in a bowl game behind Iowa and West Virginia. The Eagles didn't deserve to fall to the last bowl in ACC selection but once again they did. But given the bowl they are in, playing USC is absolutely the best possible scenario.

Brian: Pittsburgh - just like USC - didn't necessarily finish off the season strong. Pittsburgh lost its last two games and blew a 21 point lead against Cincinnati with a BCS bowl berth on the line. Similarly, USC lost three of its last five games and dropped out of the Top 25 for the first time in eight years after their 21-17 loss to Arizona. In terms of a having a motivated, quality opponent, I like the USC draw much better than Pittsburgh. Besides, the ACC will have plenty of shots at the Big East over the next four years up and down the bowl lineup. With the ACC breaking ties with the Emerald Bowl after this season, it's not very often you get a shot at a solid Pac-10 opponent.

Second question. Did the bowls get it right this year?

Jeff: No. There is no way you can say the bowls got it right when 6-6 Florida State is headed to the Gator Bowl. Even though there were special circumstances surrounding Bobby Bowden in this game, I wouldn't be surprised if the ACC adopts another rule regarding bowl selection and 6-6 teams in order to avoid this in the future.

Brian: The Florida State to the Gator Bowl situation was ridiculous. As this year is the last year that the Gator Bowl is affiliated with the ACC, the Gator Bowl Association had nothing to lose in selecting FSU and screwing over Miami, Clemson, and BC. Obviously, the Block-C guys are none-too-pleased with Clemson falling to the Music City Bowl as the ACC runner-up (just like BC did a season ago).

In the end, Rick Catlett and the Gator Bowl Association got what they wanted, but how is this a proper sendoff for the Seminoles? FSU will likely get crushed by West Virginia and everyone will tune out by halftime. Plus the Gator Bowl on CBS will have to compete with the Capital One Bowl between Penn State and LSU, which is on at the same time on ESPN. I'm pretty disappointed in the Gator Bowl's decision and for the ACC for not sticking up for their more deserving programs. I'm more than happy to see the Gator Bowl fall out of the ACC bowl rotation next year.

Let's look at the rest of these matchups. First reactions as to how the ACC will fare this year? How many games you have the ACC winning? And will the Gator Bowl’s decision to select a 6-6 Florida State team end up helping or hurting the ACC’s bowl record this year?

Jeff: The lines are not out yet but 4 ACC teams should be favored to win their games this season and 3 will be underdogs. Miami has the easiest game as Wisconsin heads to Orlando to get destroyed by another ACC team this season just as Florida State put it on them last season. Florida State will be the biggest underdog of the ACC teams this season going against West Virginia. It's not impossible for the 'Noles to pull off the upset, but I would be surprised if they win. If Clemson or Miami had gotten the Gator Bowl invitation as they should have and Florida State fell to the Music City Bowl or a better matchup for them, the ACC would be looking at a better chance for a higher win total in the bowls this season.

Brian: I agree with you. BC stands to be heavy underdog against USC in California but I wouldn't be surprised if the Eagles can pull off the upset. Having watched USC the past few weeks, they are not nearly as dominant as they have been the past few years and I think the Eagles defense matches up well with their offense.

Gut reactions: Virginia Tech, Clemson, Miami, and Georgia Tech all win while UNC, BC and Florida State lose. If Florida State had been placed in the bowl game they deserved, I think the conference nets another win (Clemson over West Virginia in the Gator Bowl), sends Bowden out a winner (Florida State over Kentucky) and pushes their record to 5-2. As it stands now, looks like another ho-hum 4-3 performance from the ACC this bowl season.

Tennessee vs. Virginia Tech: Chick-Fil-A Bowl Opening Thoughts

Will — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 12:30:12 -0000

More photos » by Don Petersen - AP

Dear Hokies: if you promise not to wear these, or those ridiculous all-white Nike uniforms, we promise not to wear black.

Browse more photos »

Note: We'll have furrer4heisman from Gobbler Country on our podcast tonight, 9:00 PM EST

I moved from East Tennessee to Southwest Virginia in June 2006, 75 miles west of Lane Stadium in Blacksburg. Virginia Tech is to this area what Tennessee is back home: with no professional teams around and no other local collegiate competition, the Hokies dominate the landscape and the conversation every day. Maroon is the color of choice even an hour away, and I've come to appreciate and respect their passion, because it's very familiar.

As such, my excitement for this matchup is off the charts. This is a huge opportunity for Tennessee to end the season on its highest note, and for Lane Kiffin to get the biggest win of his young career. This is a very big football game, and based on the flow of this season, Vol fans should be more excited about this bowl game than, really, any other since the National Championship. We've played in more prestigious bowls than the Chick-Fil-A in the last eleven years, but end of season losses have tended to put a damper on those environments. But now, with the reset button having already been pressed on our expectations in Kiffin's first year, the 7-5 Vols are exactly where they should be, in a season we can feel good about, against a Top 15 opponent. This is one to be very excited about.

And know this: Tennessee fans may not care about Virginia Tech. But the majority of Hokie Nation does not like Tennessee. This is a big deal to the Hokies. It needs to be a big deal to the Vols.

I'm not an expert on Virginia Tech - just someone who's been paying more attention to them than the average Tennessee fan for the last four years. I usually make it out to VT's Thursday night home games, and went to the VT-Miami game in September this year. So as we officially begin the countdown to New Year's Eve, here are a few (okay, several) thoughts on the Vols-Hokies matchup...

People who are overly worried about Tyrod Taylor probably haven't seen Virginia Tech play

Tyrod is one of those guys with name recognition value among most college football fans. But through three seasons, his street cred is better than the actual on-field result. Virginia Tech, true to form, isn't looking to pass first - Taylor averages only 175 yards passing per contest. Take a look at Taylor's passing numbers against bowl teams this season:

Alabama: 9 of 20, 91 yards
Nebraska: 12 of 27, 192 yards, 1 TD
Miami: 4 of 9, 98 yards, 1 TD
Boston College: 7 of 10, 126 yards, 2 TDs
Georgia Tech: 10 of 14, 159 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs
North Carolina: 11 of 23, 161 yards
East Carolina: 17 of 30, 137 yards

For the season, Taylor completes only 55% of his passes. It's an offense that's designed to minimize risk - Taylor has thrown only four picks this season - but also designed to take advantages of defenses that load up to stop the run at key times.

And in stopping the run, again, it's not Taylor that causes problems there necessarily - Tyrod runs for only 28.6 yards per game. And while Taylor's decision making has improved greatly from last season in terms of interceptions, he still made plenty of questionable decisions in terms of run/pass situations: the Hokies allowed 30 sacks this season, 90th in the nation.

All of us who saw what Dexter McCluster and/or Auburn did to Monte Kiffin's defense are automatically on guard anytime we play a team that runs some gimmicky stuff. And yeah, Virginia Tech is going to run out of some pistol and shotgun sets, as well as maybe a few Wild Turkey looks. VT's rushing attack is 16th nationally at over 200 yards per game. And the Hokies have tight ends and wide receivers that know how to block. But the reason for the offense's success isn't about Tyrod Taylor.

People who aren't overly worried about Ryan Williams definitely haven't seen Virginia Tech play

It's not gimmicky, it's not trickeration, and it hasn't happened because teams were too worried about stopping Tyrod Taylor: Ryan Williams might be the best running back Tennessee has faced all season.

I know about Mark Ingram, and I remember what McCluster did to us (which isn't to suggest that Williams is going to run for 250 yards against us...I hope). But Ryan Williams has better numbers than both of them.

The redshirt freshman (that's right) ran for 1,538 yards and 19 touchdowns this season - his 128 yards per game make him fifth in the nation in rushing. And he's first in the nation in highlight reel runs. Don't believe me? Here's a fantastic look at every big play he's made this season from hokiehivpi:

I challenge you to find ten minutes worth of material from any other running back in the nation with a better wow factor.

You know who Ryan Williams reminds me of? Montario Hardesty. They're both explosive, hard runners with a knack for when to make the right move, both have incredible balance...Hardesty hasn't fumbled all year, and Williams has only one - a costly one against UNC - that I can remember.

Virginia Tech grows these guys on trees: Williams follows in the footsteps of Lee Suggs, Kevin Jones, Branden Ore and Darren Evans, and like Evans before him, wasn't supposed to be the feature back this season. But when Evans tore an ACL in preseason, Williams immediately stepped in and became a huge difference maker, and ultimately was named the ACC Freshman of the Year. Sidenote: both of these guys in the backfield together next year? Look out.

Stopping Ryan Williams straight up is enough of a challenge. It's in reintroducing the stuff that changes up a defense that it becomes even more complicated. Make no mistake: containing Williams is the first and most important key to victory.

The tight end has disappeared from Virginia Tech's passing game

Last year, Greg Boone caught 22 passes and was thought to be an emerging threat in VT's limited passing game. But this year, Boone has only 7 receptions, as Tyrod Taylor has almost exclusively gotten the ball to his three leading receivers (Jarrett Boykin, Danny Coale, Dyrell Roberts) and Ryan Williams. Boone and the other tight ends have combined for only 12 catches on the season.

Given Tech's offense, it's going to be highly improbable that Eric Berry gets the interception he needs to break the record, unfortunately. But it's going to be highly probable that Berry is up at the line of scrimmage, one last time, helping slow down Tech's run game. Getting lined up right and knowing assignments, as always, will be critical. But it won't be the pass or the other skill players that beat Tennessee - again, it starts and ends with Williams.

Virginia Tech's defense does what it does

For a primer, check out the progression of VT's defense from Chris Brown at Smart Football, written during the offseason. Bud Foster's name will once again get thrown around with various openings around the country...but Foster loves Blacksburg, there's a restaurant that bears his name in town, and I'm not sure he's going anywhere. Tech's numbers again this year are very good: 11th nationally in scoring defense (15.8 ppg allowed), 14th in total defense (300.1 ypg allowed). In their four game win streak to close the season, the Hokies gave up 3, 9, 10, and 13 points. The opposition may not have been the greatest (ECU, Maryland, NC State, Virginia), but that's still impressive, and none of those teams got 300 yards of total offense.

There has been separation in Tech's ability to stop the run (52nd nationally, 138 ypg allowed) and the pass (5th nationally, 161 ypg allowed). Tech's secondary has more interceptions (10) than touchdown passes allowed (8) this season - you'll want to watch out for Rashad Carmichael back there, and Jason Worilds up front in the pass rush. But the teams that beat VT got it done on the ground: 268 rushing yards for Alabama, 309 from Georgia Tech, 181 from North Carolina.

The other common thread in VT losses: containing Williams. Alabama and UNC held him under 100 yards, and even though Georgia Tech didn't come close - 100 yards on only 14 carries - it's the second part of that equation that made the difference: GT built a lead that made Tech go away from its game plan somewhat in the fourth quarter, in part because they ate time of possession alive in that game at +17 minutes. If the Vols can't stop him, our offense needs to grind it out with our own talented tailback. Throwing excessively against VT this year has been more risk than reward.

The over/under on blocked kicks in this game is 1.5

Or at least it should be.

There's no bigger nightmare scenario than Tennessee's special teams, minus the recently departed Eddie Gran, against BeamerBall. The Vols have allowed two kickoffs to be returned for touchdowns, missed an extra point, and had four field goals and a punt blocked this season. Perhaps Daniel Lincoln - who missed two crucial kicks in the Georgia Dome, the horrors of which we'll discuss more fully some other day, in the 2007 SEC Championship Game - will be healthy enough to retake the job from late season walk on Devin Mathis. Lincoln has made big kicks before, but his altitude on the ball is begging for the Hokies to feast on him.

Tech's blocked kicks are always game changers, and Tennessee can't afford to give VT any help or short fields in this matchup. Everyone will look at this aspect and point to it as a key - and everyone will be right.

Don't put too much emphasis on the Virginia Tech-Alabama game

Simply because that was 14 weeks ago. Despite the fact that Alabama put a balanced 498 yards on the vaunted lunchpail defense, and VT picked up only 155 yards of offense (this, by the way, was a Virginia Tech offensive performance to a T: look horrific statistically, and still have a chance to win against a great team in the fourth quarter), Virginia Tech is a different - and better - football team now than they were then. We can both bask in the faded glow of almost beating the eventual National Champions and trade war stories...but I wouldn't look at that game and pull any real expectations from it.

That said...

Virginia Tech has not played well recently against the SEC

Last four meetings:

2004 Auburn: 16-13 L, Sugar Bowl
2006 Georgia: 31-24 L, Chick-Fil-A Bowl
2007 LSU: 48-7 L, Baton Rouge
2009 Alabama: 34-24 L, Atlanta

Granted, three of those four teams either had undefeated seasons or won the National Championship. But it's also worth nothing that the last time Tennessee and Virginia Tech met, the Vols blasted the Hokies 45-23 in the 1994 Gator Bowl.

The SEC is the best conference in college football, everybody knows it, and nobody knows it more than we do. Georgia and South Carolina - two teams the Vols beat by three possessions - just got done taking care of the ACC's two best teams. This is a statement game for not only Tennessee and Virginia Tech, but the ACC.

This game should be a good one.

The Montario Hardesty vs. Ryan Williams matchup alone is worth the price of admission. Bud Foster and Monte Kiffin are two of the very best at what they do. Will Jonathan Crompton or Tyrod Taylor make a decision that costs their team the victory, or make a play that wins it? Will Eric Berry have a shot at the record one more time?

Two teams, 220 miles apart, and what feels like a rivalry just waiting to happen. Whether it's another 15 years before we meet again or not, this game is huge for both teams. For Virginia Tech, it's ACC validation, 10 wins and a statement victory. For Tennessee, it's the biggest win of Kiffin's first year. The final game of 2009 could turn out to be one of its best.