Hokies Flounder in South Florida, Fall to Miami 30-20

Brenden Motley started at quarterback and Michael Brewer came on in relief, but ultimately neither Hokies' signal-caller could overcome four turnovers that led to a 30-20 loss to Coastal division rival Miami.

"We can sit here and say 'Michael Brewer this, Motley this,'" said offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler. "The fact of the matter is we lost the football game because we turned the football over. Plain and simple."

Much was made of the burgeoning quarterback controversy in Blacksburg with Michael Brewer remaining sidelined despite being available, and Motley's three turnover performance did little to quell that discussion. But Loeffler remained adamant that if he had to make the decision over again, he wouldn't change a thing.

"You can sit here all day long, alright. You've got a guy that just broke his collarbone that could be broke like that," said Loeffler. "So now you've got a guy who's played for three weeks and a guy that can go in the football game (and) we don't know what's gonna happen. The fact of the matter is we made the right decision with that. I will stand by that."

But after two head-scratching interceptions and a lost fumble for Motley, it seems that Brewer may return to his starting role when Duke comes to town next Saturday. Head coach Frank Beamer wasn't quite ready to appoint Brewer the starter, but he certainly seemed to be leaning in that direction.

"Well we'll go back and look at it," said Beamer. "I think Brewer's, probably where he is right now, he's earned that right (to be the starter)."

Redshirt freshman running back Travon McMillian turned in his second stellar performance in as many weeks, further cementing himself as the Hokies' number one tailback.

"The game slows down a lot," said McMillian of seeing increased carries. "...When I'm running the ball, I can just see the defenders and their body language and just do what I do."

Miami quarterback Brad Kaaya picked apart the Hokies' secondary to the tune of 296 yards and two touchdowns, and his clutch 3rd down conversion to David Njoku late in the fourth quarter seemed to be the nail in the Hokies' coffin.

"In the end, they made a play that last drive," said defensive coordinator Bud Foster. "We got to 23-20, I was proud of our kids. We had a big goal line stand down there. But then they came back and Kaaya made a big-time play on 3rd down right there at the end that kind of created that last score for them."

Beamer made a few questionable tactical decisions, none more devastating than opting to stop the clock with timeouts late in the first half instead of allowing Miami to run out the clock. After rushes on first and second down, Luther Maddy jumped offsides on 3rd down which gave Kaaya a free play, and Kaaya took advantage by completing a 45 yard bomb to Herb Waters. The Canes went on to score on the drive and inexplicably went into the half up 20-13.

Postgame, Beamer correctly pointed out that there are valid arguments for both sides of the decision, and he seemed unsure if he would change his decision in hindsight while he essentially thought out loud.

"If I had a do-over, I'd play before half different," said Beamer. "But at the time, I was wanting to make him punt and try to get something off of him, maybe a possible blocked kick. They've had trouble a little bit this year...They're a team that throw(s) the ball. If they just throw the ball one down, then it could have worked out if it was incomplete. You second guess that, but I'd do it again. You wanna attack. They got the whole field to go. Generally we don't think about giving up whatever it was...The other side, I'm thinking back and forth. We got some young guys back there in the secondary. You're putting pressure on those guys, too."

Disaster struck early in the first quarter for the Hokies when the football slipped out of Motley's hand before he could deliver the ball to a wide open Travon McMillian.

"Really misfortunate first turnover," lamented Loeffler. "Second play of the game ball was on the left hash coming out. Call a rail route to him (McMillian). They bust the coverage. He's scot-free, number one read. The ball just falls out of Motley's hand and we're down seven."

As Loeffler alluded to, the Canes cashed in on the very next play with a 3-yard touchdown run from Joe Yearby that gave them a 7-0 lead before many fans even reached their seats.

The Hokies answered on the next drive with two chunk plays from Travon McMillian and Bucky Hodges, but the offense stalled out in the red zone and settled for a 30-yard field goal from Joey Slye.

The Miami offense cruised through the Hokies' back end on the subsequent drive and Kaaya nearly threw his ninth touchdown pass of the season, but an offensive pass interference negated the score. Foster's unit stood tall following the penalty and forced a 24-yard field goal from Michael Badgley that put Miami up 10-3.

With the Hokies trailing 10-3 on the road, Motley manufactured a desperately needed 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive capped off by a speed option to Travon McMillian that actually went down as a 9-yard touchdown catch due to the pitch technically being a forward pass.

Miami methodically moved down the field on their next drive, but Florida natives Dadi Nicolas and Luther Maddy corralled Miami running back Mark Walton on a 3rd and 8 rush to force a long field goal attempt. A 49-yard kick was apparently well within range for Miami kicker Michael Badgley as he converted and put the Canes up 13-10.

Following a Virginia Tech punt and a failed fourth down attempt by Miami, the Hokies evened the game up at 13 with a 38-yard field goal from Joey Slye with just 58 seconds left in the half.

Those 58 seconds couldn't have gone worse for the Hokies as Miami stole seven points to take a 20-13 halftime lead.

McMillian kicked off the second half with a trio of first downs, but an ill-advised interception from Brenden Motley gave the ball right back to Miami. Kaaya found a wide open Joe Yearby for a 23-yard gain on the very next play, but Foster's unit ceded nothing further and forced a Miami punt.

The Hokies' ensuing drive saw a second peculiar decision from Beamer, one that didn't turn out any better for Tech. On 4th and 9 from the 31 yard line, Joey Slye was on for a 51-yard field goal attempt. Before the ball could be snapped, the Canes committed an illegal substitution penalty that gave the Hokies five free yards. Rather than keep Slye on the field, Beamer sent his offense back on the field for a fourth down attempt. His gamble failed to pay off as Motley's fourth down pass attempt to Sam Rogers fell incomplete.

The Hokies defense answered by forcing another quick punt as Luther Maddy recorded his first sack of the day, but Brenden Motley tossed his second interception to give the ball right back to Miami.

The Canes took their great field position and pushed the ball all the way to the one yard line, but the Hokies' defense came through with an important goal line stand, albeit aided by a fumbled snap on 3rd down. Forced to settle for three, Michael Badgley sent his third field goal of the day sailing through the uprights to give the Canes a 23-13 lead.

Brewer replaced the struggling Motley on the next drive, but the offense was forced to punt once again after failing to convert a 3rd and 1 from their own 42.

Foster's unit proceeded to force a three and out, and Brewer remained in the game for a second drive. Brewer immediately connected with Ryan Malleck for a 22-yard gain that put the ball on the Miami 31. After Motley lost two yards on a quarterback keeper, Michael Brewer found Isaiah Ford in one-on-one coverage on the Hokies' sideline and heaved up a deep ball as he was flattened by a Hurricane defender. Miraculously, Ford came down with the ball and managed to sneak a toe in the corner of the end zone to cut the Miami lead to three.

Fans were likely worried about the health of Brewer after taking such a brutal hit, but the tough senior quarterback says his collarbone made it through the game just fine.

"Took a couple (big hits) out there, but still standing here, so I guess we're good on that front," said Brewer.

Down just three thanks to the heroics of Brewer and Ford, the Hokies were one stop away from having a chance at a game-winning drive.

But that one stop proved unattainable.

It looked as if the Hokies would force a field goal, but a scrambling Brad Kaaya amazingly found David Njoku for a 22-yard 3rd down conversion that led to a game-sealing touchdown for the Canes.

Facing nearly insurmountable odds, Brewer was picked off by Artie Burns on the first play of the ensuing drive to end any hope of a Hokie comeback.

In an intriguing Coastal Division without a clear dominant team, the Hokies' hopes of competing for a title haven't evaporated completely. But if things don't turn around, simply reaching a bowl might become the program's disappointingly low ceiling once again.

"It's frustrating," said a disappointed Brewer. "We feel like we're a heck of a lot better team than what we've been playing like. It's just a play here or there. You hear our coaches talk about it all the time. A play here or there that would change the whole outcome of the game. We spotted a team 14 points on the road and then turned the ball over. It's hard to win or come back from things like that."