At some point while I was on vacation (an actual vacation, not the figurative blog vacation I've been on since the Sugar Bowl) this blog turned four years old.

There's something fitting about that. In college sports you get four years to leave your mark and then you move on and let the next group make their mark during their time. The same goes for me and this blog.

Continue reading this post »

• Freshman 3B Kelsey Mericka (Fuck yeah!) is hitting .231.
• Oh, the rest of the team? But none of them give me a reason to embed a Team America song with lots of swearing. Fine. They're 6-0 for the first time since 2006 when they started 10-0.
• They travel to Auburn, Ala., this weekend and will face three Top 15 teams that advanced to last year's Women's College World Series (Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and Alabama).
• That means we'll figure out how good this team really is. Of their first five opponents (they played UNC Greensboro twice) only one (Jacksonville) made last year's NCAA Tournament.
• Courtney Liddle and Dani Anderson are once again Tech's top two hitters, the top returning pitcher Jasmin Harrell's K/BB ratio has improved though it's early in the season and Liddle's sister Bailey looks like she's going to be the Hokies' second option in the circle.
• You should be following head coach Scot Thomas on The Twitter.

Virginia Tech's Jarrett Boykin, Danny Coale, Jayron Hosley and David Wilson have received invitations to the 2012 NFL Combine, according to the combine's website. They are among 44 players from the ACC invited to the combine. The combine, set to be televised on NFL Network, runs Feb. 24-28 in Indianapolis. The schedule: kickers Feb. 24, offensive linemen and tight ends Feb. 25, wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks Feb. 26, defensive linemen and linebackers Feb. 27 and defensive backs Feb. 28.

After the jump, the full list of invitees, broken down by conference.

Continue reading this post »

Above is the preview from HD Net.

VTPhreak has uploaded the full feature (Part 1, Part 2). Outstanding stuff. Hopefully we'll see Daniel Rodriguez in orange and maroon soon.

If you're just learning about Rodriguez, he's an Army veteran who was injured in Afghanistan and is now trying to fulfill his dream of playing college football. A life-long Virginia Tech fan, he's hoping Frank Beamer will give him his shot.

If you want to read more on Rodriguez, check out T. Sean Herbert's story on The Post Game at Yahoo! Sports. It's an incredibly inspiring story.

"One of my fears is that ten years down the road," Rodriguez says, "I'm gonna look back in my life and say I didn't set out and try to achieve everything I wanted to. I see so many of my friends settle for the nine-to-five and talk about what they wanted to do. And I refuse."

In recent years Virginia Tech has flown under the radar on national signing day by locking down its recruits and signing its usual class of solid but not headline-grabbing players. Not so in 2012. From a trio of early morning announcements to a decommitment that played out publicly and offered us a rare glimpse into the recruiting process, the Hokies made news on this signing day.

They also signed a pretty good class, too.

Continue reading this post »

Virginia Tech fans can expect to pay more than they're used to for this year's game against Cincinnati, but not any more than most college games played at the Redskins' home stadium.

The Hokies will play their third neutral site game at FedEx Field in suburban Washington, DC, on Sept. 29 in what is technically a home game for the Bearcats. Cincy sold its home game and moved it to FedEx.

This will be the fifth FBS game played at FedEx Field in three seasons, the others being Army-Navy and Maryland-Notre Dame in 2011 and Penn State-Indiana and Virginia Tech-Boise State in 2010. The ticket prices for these games are after the jump.

Continue reading this post »

From the one and only David Teel of the Newport News Daily Press:

First, a glance forward to next week's ACC winter meetings in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

In between poolside margaritas - on the rocks, with salt, barkeep! - league and school officials could well finalize football divisions for the 14-team alignment created by the addition of Syracuse and Pittsburgh.

As Teel states, and has been said all long by ACC big wigs, Cuse and Pitt are just going to be plugged into the current six-team divisions. Teel does a good job of going over the pros and cons of having either in the Coastal and while he said Pitt, which is closer in proximity to Virginia Tech and UVa, should be the preferred Coastal team, I'd rather see Cuse.

Yes, Syracuse is a longer road trip than Pitt, but it's one we were used to making for over a decade as a member of the Big East. Plus, it would likely mean the Hokies' new permanent Atlantic game would be switched from Boston College to Pitt.

Currently, the Hokies are the only team in the ACC that has to play at Boston College and at Miami (the league's North and South Pole) in the same season consistently, which they do every even-numbered year. The difference between Syracuse and Boston is about 140 miles one way.

What's your preference for which team gets placed in the Coastal?

Shortly after Alabama wrapped up its decimation of LSU in the BCS National Championship Game, preseason polls for 2012 started popping up around the Internet. If preseason polls in August are worthless, the ones that come out in January are even more so.

What these polls and the ones that will come out again following spring practice do give us is a glimpse at how Virginia Tech is being perceived nation-wide, as well as a check on how closely they're paying attention to who we're actually losing and retaining.

After the jump, a look at five way too early preseason polls that pretty much have the Hokies pegged the same.

Continue reading this post »

I've experienced a lot of post-loss emotions during my evolution as a Virginia Tech fan.

In my formative years, losses depressed me. Later in college, they enraged me. Hell, I nearly smashed a friend's TV with a baseball bat after we allowed a punter to run for a first down in the Hurricane Game against A&M and we were WINNING. Alcohol does that.

More recently, Tech's losses have been frustrating because as you collect memories and birthdays you become better at recognizing trends and less naive about your team's chances when they're in a defined underdog role. But I experienced something entirely different the other night after I sat in the end zone of the Superdome and watched two field goal attempts fly into the net directly in front of me, one wide and the other true. I was numb.

Continue reading this post »

Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2, 7-2) vs. Michigan Wolverines (10-2, 6-2)
2012 Sugar Bowl

Time: 8:30 p.m. EST
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 3
Place: New Orleans, La.
Stadium: Superdome
(Cap: 76,468, Open: 1975, Field: UBU Sports Synthetic Turf)
TV: ESPN and ESPN3.com
Radio: ESPN Radio, VT IMG, SXM 84
Spread: Virginia Tech + 2.5
Tickets: $120-180 (Face value)
Opposing Blogs: Maize N Brew, MGoBlog, SBN Updates

I'm in New Orleans and probably not sober. Follow me on The Twitter if you want to see my ramblings. Use the comments section of this post for all of your pre-, in- and post-game discussion and try to behave yourselves.

Go Hokies!

Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2, 7-2) vs. Michigan Wolverines (10-2, 6-2)
2012 Sugar Bowl

Time: 8:30 p.m. EST
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 3
Place: New Orleans, La.
Stadium: Superdome
(Cap: 76,468, Open: 1975, Field: UBU Sports Synthetic Turf)
TV: ESPN and ESPN3.com
Radio: ESPN Radio, VT IMG, SXM 84
Spread: Virginia Tech + 2.5
Tickets: $120-180 (Face value)
Opposing Blogs: Maize N Brew, MGoBlog, SBN Updates

Michigan: Here's a more in-depth look at the Wolverines. Michigan used a vastly improved defense and the most dynamic quarterback in the nation to record its first 10-win season since 2006, when the Wolverines started the season 11-0. Michigan's two losses coincided with by far its two worst offensive performances of the season, a 28-14 loss at Michigan State and a 24-16 loss at Iowa. Against MSU, the Wolverines were an abysmal 3-for-15 on third down. The Iowa game was the only game all year they didn't force a turnover and they finished -2 in turnover margin, their worst of the season.

Trends:The Hokies won their final seven games of the regular season before falling to Clemson in the ACCCG while Michigan has won three consecutive games. Michigan is 1-5 in its last six bowl games and 1-3 all-time in BCS games. Virginia Tech is 3-4 in bowl games since joining the ACC and 1-4 all-time in BCS games.

Continue reading this post »

Game week starts Tuesday! See you then.

A very ugly incident Wednesday night in Blacksburg has resulted in the suspension of Virginia Tech kicker Cody Journell. Journell is suspended indefinitely and while he has not officially been ruled out for the Sugar Bowl, it's hard to fathom a situation where he will be on the field in New Orleans.

If the Hokies are without Journell when they take on Michigan in the Sugar Bowl Jan. 3, my guess is they'll take the same approach they did when he missed the game against Duke on Oct. 29 due to an injury to his right quad. For that game, it was decided Murray State transfer Tyler Weiss would handle short field goal attempts and kickoff specialist Justin Myer would handle long attempts.

Continue reading this post »

Virginia Tech kicker Cody Journell has been suspended indefinitely after his alleged involvement in a breaking and entering incident last night in Blacksburg. Journell is accused of entering the residence of, among others, Virginia Tech basketball player Dorenzo Hudson.

The Roanoke Times has the details:

According to court testimony from Assistant Commonwealth's Attorney Mary Pettit, the three showed up at Hudson and Allen's residence last night because they said Allen stole marijuana from Dunton.

Dunton knocked on the door holding a pizza box while Journell and Brady hid in the bushes, Pettit said. When Hudson answered, Dunton drew a gun while the other two rushed inside the house, she said.

After not finding Allen, they ran outside and left in a car driven by an unnamed person, who was not charged, she said.

Prosecution and defense acknowledged that Hudson and Allen later went looking for the three and a physical altercation took place, but no charges are filed in that incident.

That's a lot to digest. The Times' story has plenty of other details, including quotes from today's court proceedings. The gun involved was an Airsoft handgun, so not a deadly weapon, but Journell and the other two men were denied bond and are currently in the Montgomery County Jail.

Still a lot of details that need to be brought to light, such as why Journell looks untouched but the other two look beat to hell, but this is already an ugly story for both the football and men's basketball teams.

Tuesday I talked about Virginia Tech's motivation and sometimes lack-there-of in bowl games, citing last year's performance on and off the field at the Orange Bowl as an example of the latter. Apparently last year's experience, which saw two players suspended for a quarter and another six sent home, has inspired Frank Beamer to run a tighter ship when the Hokies get to New Orleans for this year's Sugar Bowl.

From the team's Twitter feed:

Looks like Coach Beamer is cracking down on curfew in New Orleans: 12/28 (1am), 12/29-30 (midnight), 12/31 (12:30am), 1/1-2 (11pm).

Continue reading this post »

It's been almost seven years since I've been to New Orleans. My last trip to the city was also the same time the Hokies were there in January 2005 when they faced Auburn in the Sugar Bowl. Leading up to that trip, I'd been to New Orleans every year since Tech's appearance in the national championship game be it for football, baseball, basketball or just to bask in its glory.

Since my last visit, the city was of course ravaged by Hurricane Katrina. I'm interested to see what's change since then, I'm interested to see what hasn't and most of all I'm ready to take in (read: imbibe) everything the city has to offer.

I'm not from Louisiana and obviously it's been a long time since my last visit. If you're looking for information on stuff off the beaten path, by all means ask a local. But if you want a list of places I've been and loved, you've come to the right place.

Continue reading this post »

The NCAA has released its attendance reports for the 2011 season and the Hokies have the distinction of being one of 21 FBS teams who were at 100 percent capacity or higher for their home games. The only other ACC team to do so was Wake Forest.

In terms of average attendance, Tech of course averaged 66,233 (Lane Stadium's listed capacity), third among ACC schools behind Clemson and Florida State. It was good enough for 23rd in the country.

The ACC as a whole, did not fare too well. It was fifth among all conferences in terms of average attendance at 51,158. It was ahead of only the Big East among BCS AQ conferences.

You can find the team-by-team breakdowns at the link above. The teams that have above 100 percent capacity likely have standing room only seats, like on a hill or something, that they can sell that isn't a part of the official capacity. After the jump I've got the conference breakdown.

Continue reading this post »

We knew coming in that Virginia Tech's ticket sales for the 2012 Sugar Bowl would be under scrutiny due to the circumstances under which it was selected for the game. So how are the Hokies doing?

BLACKSBURG - The Virginia Tech Athletics Department announced today that it has sold 9,337 of its 17,500 tickets to the 2012 Allstate Sugar Bowl. Over the years, Virginia Tech has earned the reputation of being a football program that enjoys a strong following to bowl games. In order to maintain that recognition, the Athletics Department is asking Hokie fans that cannot make this year's Allstate Sugar Bowl to consider purchasing proxy tickets. Tech Director of Athletics Jim Weaver, head football coach Frank Beamer, and the entire football coaching staff, will each be purchasing a pair of proxy tickets in order to support this initiative.

Not good.

Continue reading this post »

It's the season of giving, both for most Judeo-Christian households and for college football bowl committees. Sports Business Journal has compiled its annual list of bowl gifts and the gift suite is still en vogue, including at the Sugar Bowl.

Gifts are given out annually by the bowl to participating teams and are not allowed to exceed $550. Virginia Tech and Michigan players will have their pick of items from a gift suite in addition to a Reactor watch, New Era hat and Majestic fleece pullover.

Here are more details on the gift suite courtesy of SBJ:

Gift suites are rooms hosted by the bowl committee, operated by Carrollton, Texas-based Performance Award Center, and set up at the team hotel or a school campus. Players, coaches and VIPs are given checklists to choose their game memorabilia from a variety of items, including Sony electronics, Trek mountain bikes, Lane recliners, Ogio backpacks and Apple iPods.

The Sugar Bowl is one of at least 14 bowls utilizing the gift suite this year. In the past, the gift suites have been brought to campus, allowing players to not only pick their own gifts, but not worry about having to wait to receive it.

The bowl gifts are certainly one of the more interesting facets of the bowl system and one of the reasons it has such a firm foothold in college football. I don't know if the majority of players are in favor of a playoff or not, but you better believe they're in favor of getting their bowl gift.

Here is a printable bowl schedule in Excel and PDF format. Enjoy.

Excel Spreadsheet

PDF Document

Continue reading this post »

Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2) vs. Michigan Wolverines (10-2)
2012 Sugar Bowl

The Hokies are heading back to New Orleans for their fourth Sugar Bowl appearance since 1995. Virginia Tech was chosen for this game thanks in large part to the history of its fan base showing up in droves to the Big Easy. As I've written before, that's why it's important the Hokies sell their allotment of about 17,500 Sugar Bowl tickets.

Tickets are available to the public through the Virginia Tech ticket office. They have tickets available on the Plaza Level (100s sections) for $140 and Terrace Level (600s sections) for $120.

The seating chart for the Sugar Bowl is available here (PDF). The Hokies will be on the home side of the stadium.

If you are looking for tickets on the secondary market, SB Nation partner site TiqIQ is a good place to start. Like Kayak, it pulls ticket prices from several different sites so you can compare them. As of Dec. 11, almost 4,000 tickets are available for an average of $244. Ticket prices on TiqIQ range from $71 to over $1,000.

The cheapest tickets on TiqIQ are obviously in the 600 level of the Superdome and are under face value. Tickets in the lower bowl are all currently above face value. If you want to seat close, you're much better off buying from the Virginia Tech ticket office.

UPDATE: The Hokies have struggled (though not nearly as much a other teams) to sell their allotment of bowl tickets, thanks in large part to prices on the secondary market. As of Dec. 23, Sugar Bowl tickets can be found on TiqIQ for as low as $25 in the upper bowl, $46 in the lower bowl and $72 in the club level.

Face Value for 2012 Sugar Bowl Tickets

100 Level (Plaza): $140
200 Sideline (Club): $180
200 End Zone (Mezzanine): $170
300 Sideline (Club): $180
300 End Zone (Mezzanine): $170
500 Level (Terrace): $150
600 Level (Terrace): $120

Virginia Tech Hokies (11-2) vs. Michigan Wolverines (10-2)
2012 Sugar Bowl

Time: 8:30 p.m. EST
Date: Tuesday, Jan. 3
Place: New Orleans, La.
Stadium: Superdome
(Cap: 76,468, Open: 1975, Field: UBU Sports Synthetic Turf)
TV: ESPN and ESPN3.com
Radio: ESPN Radio, VT IMG, SXM 84

The 2012 Sugar Bowl between Virginia Tech and Michigan will be available on television on ESPN, on radio on ESPN Radio and online at ESPN3.com. Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge and Holly Rowe will call the game on ESPN while Sean McDonough, Matt Millen and Heather Cox will call the game on ESPN Radio.

This is the second year ESPN has televised BCS games. Previously, the games were seen on FOX from 2007-2010 and ABC from 1999-2006. The Rose Bowl had a separate contract with ABC through 2010. The Hokies appeared on ESPN in last year's Orange Bowl loss to Stanford.

This will be the fourth time this season Virginia Tech has appeared on a nation-wide ESPN broadcast. Since joining the ACC in 2004, the Hokies are 22-13 on ESPN national broadcasts and 2-1 this year.

BCS History and TV Ratings

Virginia Tech Hokies

2000 Sugar Bowl: L vs. Florida State - 17.5 on ABC
2005 Sugar Bowl: L vs. Auburn - 9.5 on ABC
2008 Orange Bowl: L vs. Kansas - 7.4 on FOX
2009 Orange Bowl: W. vs. Cincinnati - 5.4 on FOX
2011 Orange Bowl: L vs. Stanford - 6.8 on ESPN

Michigan Wolverines

2000 Orange Bowl: W vs. Alabama, 11.4 on ABC
2004 Rose Bowl: L vs. USC, 14.3 on ABC
2005 Rose Bowl: L vs. Texas, 12.4 on ABC
2007 Rose Bowl: L vs. USC, 11.4 on ABC

The Virginia Tech Hokies are a 2.5-point underdog to the Michigan Wolverines in the 2012 Sugar Bowl as of Dec. 11, according to SB Nation partner site OddsShark. If the line holds, it will be the first time the Hokies have been an underdog this year.

The line opened with the Hokies +1, but it has since moved farther toward Michigan.

The Hokies will enter the game 4-9 against the spread, while Michigan is 8-4. The Wolverines have been favored nine times this year and are 6-3 in those games. They are 3-3 against the spread in their last six games after beginning the season 5-1. meanwhile, the Hokies are 3-4 against the spread in their last seven games after starting the season 1-5.

UPDATE: As of Dec. 23 the Hokies are still 2.5-point underdogs.

Here are the current lines in other ACC bowl games, as of Dec. 23:

Independence Bowl: North Carolina +5.5 vs. Missouri
Queen City Bowl: NC State -1.5 vs. Louisville
Tangerine Bowl: Florida State -3 vs. Notre Dame
Music City Bowl: Wake Forest +7 vs. Mississippi State
Sun Bowl: Georgia Tech -3.5 vs. Utah
Peach Bowl: Virginia +2.5 vs. Auburn
Orange Bowl: Clemson -3.5 vs. West Virginia