On Oct 21, 1892 W.E. Anderson, despite playing right tackle, scored the first touchdown for Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College ever. Coached by Professor Ellison A. Smyth, the VAMC football players beat the St. Albans football team 14-10. These forefathers of Hokie football purchased their own equipment and had a hard time finding enough people to man a team to play on a wheat field carved out by plow. As hard as it was to get started, this was the beginning of something that 120 years later we sit here anticipating the tidbits of news from the first day of spring practice.
Last year, like many of you, I read a great deal of articles telling us that VT didn’t deserve to be awarded a BCS bowl bid. I heard a few times that we had no tradition of football, and that compared to teams like Michigan and Notre Dame, we were new to the party. I reflected on our history and wondered if not long ago were we just a Boise State ourselves. I reflected for almost 5 minutes and then I threw my bullshit flag. We didn’t start playing football when we joined the ACC. Nor did we start when Michael Vick dazzled West Virginia or when Druckenmiller lead a fourth quarter comeback. Virginia Tech football did not start with Frank Beamer nor will it end with him.
So as our 120th team takes the field for the first time today let us remember the greats like Bruce Smith, Roscoe Coles, Jimmy Richards, Carroll Dale, Ashley Lee, Don Strock, Cyrus Lawrence, Bryan Randall, Eddie Royal, Xavier Adibi, Boykin, Coale, and so many more. Our football is rich in heritage and I am proud to be a Hokie. So let the bloggers and journalists think that we don’t deserve to have a BCS bowl bid. They can hate with the people who thought we would never succeed in the ACC. Let them seethe with the Mountaineers who hate that the Black Diamond trophy still rests in Blacksburg and the Hoo’s who aren’t old enough to remember the last time Virginia was relevant. As I sit here in my maroon and orange I know that despite the swagger and everyone’s belief that FSU is back, I will be visiting Charlotte again this December ready to cheer on the Fighting Gobblers to another ACC title.
Comments
Well done
Let's Go! HOKIES!
Great column
Only reference missing was that of Buzz Nutter, arguably the greatest name Virginia Tech football has ever known.
We have a great tradition just not a particularly "historic" one
Historically speaking, we are new to the party; and yes, we were a Boise back in the early to mid 90s. Beamer's consistency has made us a power. We've acomplished everything as a team except win that MNC and thats where the disrespect from the national media and haters in general comes from. Its all about the crystal ball.
We didnt break into the national consciousness really until the 99 Sugar Bowl run. Everybody wearing the O&M and those who actually know college football can say Strock, Loria, Smith, 95 Sugar Bowl, etc etc, but casual fans (and many in the media) only know Vick, MNC game vs FSU, 4/16, they cant win the big game.
We'll never get over the hump as far as recognition goes until we fill that empty trophy case in the Merriman Center.
I think it depends on who you compare our tradition to. College football is all about traditions. We don't have Touchdown Jesus, Paternoville, 3-4 day tailgates like in Baton Rouge, Bear Bryant, a worldclass marching band (sorry band people), a fight song that anybody knows the words to (though i've always kind of considered it a tradition that nobody knows the words), or a relevant rival.
We do, though have (off the top of my head):
Frank Beamer
The Hokie Pokie
a damn good defense, more often than not
the most beautiful school colors in the nation
BOURBON
a ton of players in the NFL, including 2 #1 overall picks
a beautiful campus in a small moutain town that tripples in size on saturdays in the fall
domination of the ACC
Michael Vick, Shayne Grahm, Ryan Williams, Eddie Royal, etc. etc.
ownership of the Black Diamond trophy, and posession of the Commowealth Cup for like 4583927 straight years
a small-ish stadium that can be one of the loudest in the country
the list can go on and on. Our traditions may be different than more traditional powers, but they are OUR traditions, and i'm damn proud of them.
So much to say
To the sorry asses that try to justify their definition of greatness as history from thirty years or more ago. We have plenty of history. Though it is mainly in the past 20 years, we also have greatness. We also have traditions.
Winning is one. Winning 10 or more games a season is another. Going to a bowl every year is another.
When somone brings this up just break out your keys and start shaking them. Answer every call of "Let's go!" with a loud and proud "Hokies!". That is tradition. The boom of Skipper is tradition. I think our greatest tradition is continuing to exceed the naysayer's expectations. H-O-K-I-E-S, Hokies!
Don't forget...
Bourbon, Smoked turkey legs, and Thursday nights! Plus we don't need 3-4 days of tailgating to get it right because we get it right the first time on game day!
Appreciate the mention
of my hometown Hokie great, Carroll Dale! He was one reason why so many people in Wise were Packers fans.
Also, let's not forget the sound of the gobbler echoing through Lane. Bill Dooley hated it, and stopped it for a while. Glad that CFB brought it back.
When I was in school, one thing we missed (I think it was) my senior year, was the thunder of Skipper. The previous spring, it seems one of the keydets had packed the cannon incorrectly during the spring ball, and it misfired, sending a safety plug from (roughly) the chappel all the way through a window in Slusher. We heard the explosion in Vawter, and knew something had gone wrong, because it sounded much different than the previous shots. It took a while to rebuild the cannon. Just an interesting (hopefully) aside.