Late TD Pushes Tech Past Miami 17-10
by Neal Turnage
November 6 , 2006

The Virginia Tech Hokies topped the University of Miami Hurricanes 17-10 in a matchup that prior to the season many predicted would determine the ACC Coastal Division champion.  The chances of the winner earning that title are now fairly slim, but the game on Saturday lived up to its pre-season billing.

Neither offense could get much going against the other team’s defense.  A 20 mph wind stifled the passing game for both sides and with the exception of a few big plays; the rushing yards were hard to come by.

Tech’s sophomore RB Branden Ore, fresh off the best two-game rushing performance in school history (410 yards), struggled to find the holes in Miami’s fourth-ranked rush defense.  He finished with 79 yards on 29 carries, an average of 2.7 yards per carry.

“You have to give credit to those guys,” said Ore.  “They were really flying to the ball and filling those gaps. There was really nowhere for me to go. But when I saw a hole I hit it and I’m just glad we could come out of here with a win.”

Ore did manage to find the endzone twice on the night and his 79 yards rushing boosted him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season, just the 12th back in Tech history to reach that milestone.

Miami pressured Sean Glennon throughout the game, sacking the quarterback five times and intercepting him once. Long passes to Josh Morgan and Jesse Allen set up two of Tech’s scoring opportunities.  Overall, Glennon wound up completing five of 19 passes for 86 yards.

Defensively for the Hokies, the story of the night was redshirt sophomore Brandon Flowers. The Delray Beach, Fla. native made UM pay for not recruiting him by intercepting two passes; one would lead to a score while the other sealed the victory.

“I couldn’t even dream of this,” he said.  “This is special for me; playing in front of my friends and family, getting two picks against Miami, a great team, great quarterback, great offense high firepower.  It’s a special day for me.”

LB Xavier Adibi led the Hokie defense with seven solo tackles, two assists, a forced fumble, a sack and an interception.  Miami’s Calais Campbell led his squad with five tackles, two assists and three sacks on the night.

Tech scored the first points of the game on a Brandon Pace field goal.  The 32-yarder marked the 16th consecutive successful attempt by the senior, tying him with Marylands’ Dale Castro (1979) for second-most in ACC history behind N.C. State’s Marc Primanti who hit 27 straight over the 1995-1996 seasons.

Tech’s relentless pressure on QB Kyle Wright, combined with the winds, led to Flowers picking off a pass to the sidelines that hung in the air just a bit too long. Three plays later Tech would capitalize on the ‘Canes mistake by scoring the first touchdown of the night.

After being held scoreless in the first half for the first time since Sept. 10, 2004, Miami made some adjustments and managed to tie the game up.  Their first score came on a 55-yard field goal by senior Jon Peattie, the second longest in school history.  Peattie’s next attempt, a 52-yarder on the next UM possession, was blocked by Tech’s Duane Brown.

The tying score came on a 50-yard run by Tyrone Moss where he ran up the middle into a wall of players from both teams, then spun off the pile and raced through a hole on his way to the endzone. He ended with 103 yards on 13 carries.

“There were a couple of funky plays where I don’t know what happened,” said Tech coach Frank Beamer after the game.  “That touchdown run of (Moss’), we had him and they were about to blow the whistle.  Then all of a sudden he gets out.  Then a guy gets a great field goal.  That was a long one.  They played hard and we’re just excited to come out of here with a win.”

An interception in the fourth quarter by Adibi put Tech in position for the go-ahead score.  Already in field goal range, Ore took a third and ten handoff that was meant to line up the kick and powered his way forward for 16 yards and a first down inside the Miami ten.  Two plays later his line opened up a huge lane and he walked into the endzone for the game’s final touchdown.

Miami would throw an interception on the first play of the ensuing drive, but there was too much time left for the Hokies to run out the clock.  The ‘Canes came back out to see what they thought would be their final shot at the endzone intercepted at the two by Macho Harris.  The play was called back due to an offsides penalty on Tech.  With an un-timed free play, Miami completed a mid-range pass over the middle but could not keep the play alive and the game ended with Wright falling on a botched lateral attempt.

Up next, Miami (5-4, 2-3 ACC Coastat) travels to Maryland on Nov. 11 to take on the Terrapins, while Virginia Tech (7-2, 4-2 ACC Coastal) hosts Kent State in Lane Stadium.  Game time for the Hokies is set for 3:30 p.m.

Quick Notes

• Senior rover Cary Wade and senior guard Brandon Gore made their second career starts for Virginia Tech in this game.
• Miami holding Virginia Tech to 53 yards rushing marks the ninth consecutive game this season in which the Hurricanes have held an opponent under 100 yards on the ground, a school record.
• This marks the second straight game in the Orange Bowl between Tech and Miami that resulted in a scoreless first quarter. The last time was in 2004 when Tech went on to win that game 16 to 14 to clinch the ACC title.
• The visiting team has now won four of the last six meetings in this series.

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