Who: No. 24 Virginia Tech Hokies (3-1, 2-0 ACC) vs. No. 6 Notre Dame Fighting Irish (5-0)
When: Saturday, October 6, 2018 at 8:00 PM EDT
Where: Blacksburg, Virginia | Lane Stadium (66,233)
Watch/Listen: ABC / Virginia Tech IMG
Spread: Notre Dame -6.5
Weather: 72°F, Mostly Cloudy and 20% chance of rain
Series: Virginia Tech's 34-31 victory in 2016 was the first all-time matchup.
Reppin' TKP: Henry Skutt is in the press box. Mark Umansky is photographing. Joe Lanza, Joey Coogan and Pierson Booher are all still at TOTS.
The Key Players Club: TKP's benefactors group is 658 strong, make a move and become No. 659.
Discuss today's game and festivities here. Avoid leaving play-by-play, we're all watching. Remember to follow the community guidelines.
Comments
LET'S GOOOOO
HOKIES!!!!
HOKIEEEEEEEEEEEES!
Drink... I'll stumble over to TOTS to find Joe, Joey and Pierson this morning
I really don't think work could have dragged by any slower yesterday.... I'm 99% sure I'm more hyped for tonight than I was for Clemson..... HOLY SHIT GUYS ITS GAME DAY IN BLACKSBURG!!!! TIME TO SEND THESE LEPRECHAUNS HOME WITHOUT THEIR DAMN GOLD!
There was a clip on college game days intro song "we're coming to your city" of Pat Narduzzi throwing his headset down lol. Fuck Pat Narduzzi.
Why they give that ass hat any attention is beyond me. I guess the media loves that crap.
And there were 2 or 3 shots from last year's visit to Blacksburg.
Spread is -6.5 for ND? Take the points.
Calling it now: the game starts on Saturday, but we get a rare Sunday win by the time it's over.
I've tried to temper my expectations all week, so I don't get my heart ripped out yet again. Then I cut on Enter Sandman otw to the game, now I can't stop thinking We Want 'Bama. Brian Kelly killed a kid, ND blew a 17 point lead in 2016, leprechauns are the stupidest mythical figure ever. I don't just want to beat them, I want to destroy their program. I want to make their message boards go full-post ODU.
More than the mythical UVA spring festival attendee?
We want the Patriots.
If we win I will join tkpc and hokie club. You can @ me
GAMEDAY FAM!!!
I'm ready. Bud's ready.
Oh shit here we go!
I feel (and have felt all week) irrationally good about this thing. I still have a little bit of 'oh fuck don't embarass us on national tv' anxiety. But my normal overwhelming pessimism isn't there.
Let's go smack these fools and keep the budfu hype train fully lit.
I'm with you. We're also playing with house money. All the pressure is squarely on ND, which historically is when we play our best games. I foresee ND playing tense and to not lose while I see us play pretty free and take some chances. I really do think we can and will win this thing, but as long as there's no injuries and we continue to develop by playing this kind of competition, this game (considering there's no conference implications) bodes well for us.
Well I was fucking wrong about that.
Somebody convince me that this is a rebuilding year, the u fucking sucks balls and all the real goals are still acheivable.
We're getting a lot of young lods experiene that will pay off, etc.
Fuck notre shame. brian kelly killeda guy.
Every year is a rebuilding year. It's like groundhog day up in this shit.
QUIN-CY PATTERSON
clap clap clapclapclapclap
(I'm kidding I think willis still looked good)
It's the Hank and Frank show on College Game Day!!
Lmao I died when Frank made that comment with the guy attempting to take a selfie with the camera backwards
Hahahaha, I loved that!
Is it too early to start jumping?
I think you know the answer to this question
Truthfully? Yes. It is pretty much impossible to drink while jumping continuously up and down.
Thanks for the reminder. My legs were getting tired!!
Loved this scene, I had to screencap it.
EDIT: I wish I could rewind back to them touching the stone together in the tunnel as well, but my PSVue only goes back like 10 mins.
EDIT2: Got it!
Man, I missed that segment. Does ESPN post those clips afterwards?
Not sure, but it would be nice
I'm pretty sure they throw it up on their site after Game Day is over.
They might show reruns on the watchespn app.
It's on the ESPN app now
http://www.espn.com/video/clip?id=24909553
THE FEELS...
Dont know how to properly embed the tweet but here you go
https://twitter.com/VT_Football/status/1048618897010700288
Gotchyu fam.
Thank you!
Who the hell is cutting onions in here??
Des Howard with some love for Travon McMillion.
He's been trashing Clemson all day
Anyone have a way to get a fellow Hokie into the German Club lot? My buddy that was supposed to have me on the list dropped the ball and I'm waiting in the penalty box for him to figure it out. Fun times!
Can you guys tell College Game Day really wanted to come to Blacksburg?
It seems kinda like it.
Can you guys tell College Game Day really wanted to come to Blacksburg?
Edit: whoops, sorry about the double post.
It seems kinda like...it....wait, have I seen this before?
It seems kinda like it.
So much so that I think we should ask again....
Don't have to tell me twice.
I'll be at ACL watching Metallica and going back and forth to tent nearby to see game !
Woah, I knew Metallica was in Austin tonight, but I didn't know they were doing ACL. I cannot wait to see that one!
Cashier at the ABC store just now: "Is Virginia Tech playing a game or something tonight? There have been a ton of people with Virginia Tech shirts on today!"
Gobble gobble!
The ABC store... Man, that's probably the thing I miss least about Virginia. I can buy bourbon in the grocery store like God intended.
Same. ABC stores have shitty hours too.
IT'S GAMEDAY!!!!
LET'S GO!!!!
HOKIES!
FAM, I just found a wheat penny. We're 100% guaranteed to win tonight. Chalk it up.
Does anyone have news on Deablo? I'm tailgating and have heard the rumor from a few people. I just need to know if my hope should be gone for tonight so I know how much to drink.
Just heard something similar (though to be fair for all I know you're the one I heard it from)
Haha I'm in lot 5 and haven't told anyone not at our tailgate. I'm really hoping he's playing. Based on ODU I think the only worse guys to be out are Willis, Walker, and maybe Floyd.
On another thread someone said that they heard from someone who claimed to be "in the know" that he is out. Hamstring issues.
Also Metallica is parachuting in while playing Enter Sandman in the air
#Shadysauces
Yeah I've seen on several sites that he's likely out for the game. Really frustrating. We all saw how our defense played without him against ODU. Without him my confidence in our secondary is significantly worse
I hope we keep Ladler at whip and just roll with Rodgers or Conner or whoever at FS. Switching Ladler's position to get Hunter on the field sounded like a good idea on paper but was an absolute nightmare for both players.
they might just be getting it from reddit CFB who said he was questionable at the beginning of the week. He's been in some of the instagram stories of practice this week.
Panic mode here in Jacksonville. Our game watch bar isn't going to have sound for the game and wants to charge us $10 a head because the fight is a "higher priority". We just found this out at 3pm. Anyone know what ND calls their alumni groups maybe we can join them. This was our second big event this year and wasn't supposed to start our membership drive.
found this for you: Notre Dame Club of Greater Jacksonville
it's got contact numbers for folks in the club...hope this helps!
Thanks. I'll start calling here in a few.
Move
Do the damn thing
I really need this win tonight. After today were projected for like 5 days straight of rain/snow here. Miserable.
We're forecasted for 95+ or above and a 70% chance of rain or higher every day for 2 weeks out.. Trade?
Gladly.
I'm looking across the field at the west stands and early indications are the stripe out may actually turn out well.
Yep I can concur - 60 mins til game time and the stripeout looks very promising. Minus the ugly spatters of green. But overall pretty damn good. Super pumped. Let's F'ing Go!!!
Game day clothes from last week on-check
Pizza on its way-check
Eagle Rare-check
Getting that feeling a ten year old gets the night before Disney World trip as a grown ass man-PRICELESS!!
Bitter just tweeted that Gaines is dressed out and looks ready to go.
#sauces there was never a chance that House wasn't going to play. He's got a great support system via the team, the homefront and Caleb Farley. This team has heart and via sauces it has been very evident through the past several weeks for House. House is a warrior and I expect a huge game out of him. God bless him and his family...and HokieNation!
FOR HOKIE NATION, AND FOR TARDRA HILLIARD!!!
Getting hype
FWIW Bitter just said that he sees Deablo dressed and doing warmup drills.
Yea, I asked about it after the Gaines news
Is he Out or only available if necessary?
Anybody at the stadium, hows the energy pregame/how does the striping look??
We look good! Ryan Willis feeling the beats from DJ Hokiebird and the striping looks legit.
Can't wait! Hoping it'll look great on the broadcast
Wish there was a way to get a live stream from inside the stadium. ABC is showing ET.
LETS GO!!
HOKIES!
Live look in Elkton
Ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!
I'm ready. So ready. Let's do this.
The wa-ai-ting is the hardest part
Is the stadium fully striped?
Fully striped and fully dipped
Its going to be electric!!! Wish I was there. The Hokies are going to pucnch them in the mouth, mand take this W!
Hey, it looks pretty good!
Way to execute, Hokies!
They're going to show the entrance??
Hokie Effect looks great! Can't believe we pulled it off. LET'S GO!!!
Bitter said Tyree Rodgers was out there at FS instead of Divine Deablo, who is still on the field and dressed. Something to keep an eye on.
If Deablo can't go, it looks like Rodgers will get the nod. Allowing Ladler to stay at Whip.
Bring. The. Noise!
So do we know yet what Chris Fowler was teasing on twitter? I just turned this on
Nothing official. Just lots of commercials.
Not yet. They are stalling with commercial time until it starts
I T I S T I M E T O S T A R T J U M P I N G !
LET'S GO HOKIES!
Yeah! Let's go Hokies!
Turn the generic music off abc
Let's go...!
HOKIES!
ALL. MAROON. EVERYTHING.
Man, I wish I was there!
I'M SO ERECT
ABC's feed is breaking up like crazy! This is frustrating to start before the game even begins.
You'd think streaming would work better
It's been pausing all day long. On DirectTV it's been bad today
While I appreciate Metallica giving us a special message, I felt that really messed up with the flow of built up and pent up energy from LETS GO HOKIES to Enter Sandman
Epic.
Enter Sandman!
That was unreal.
This is the first time I can recall the fans singing along and keeping it going after the song faded.
vs NC State in 2015 when they played Enter Sandman during halftime. It didn't go on as long as it did today though.
They played the song for a lot longer, which I've always wanted them to do
Exit light. Enter night.
Let's go Hokies!
My daughter and I jumped all the way through.
LET'S GO!
Watts looks so small....
Who was that walking through the tunnel yelling "NO MORE OF THAT TWITTER SH*T!"? Need an ID, stat!
So no Diablo?
uhhhhh inexperience showing up again
Hewitt showing out early. Dont let the facemask affect your effort
Face mask? Damn
It's pretty typical that we give up a first drive and then adjust
what is wrong with espn, I can only get the command center broadcast and it has a camera pointed nowhere, this sucks.
Like my Grandpa used to say, "This stream is weak!"
First impressions: ND's just a more talented team.
welp. Early days but I have a feeling Willis is going to have to step up today if we want a chance of winning.
Yeah, we are going to need a sharp offensive performance tonight. I believe we will most likely be giving up 30+ points. A whole team effort and we can make this a competitive game.
No competition, give us 5 star players and we'll schedule a rematch
"I love watching Ian Book. Just a gym rat approach, studies film..." ~ Kirk Herbstreit
Maybe someday we'll win a big game at Lane Stadium
Way to early for that talk.
It's a little early for towel throwing.
When was the last big win? Like win against a top 20 team.
Really?
No big screw ups. Keep playing disciplined and adjust.
First impression, they got a favorable spot on third down
Hewitt fucked that series up for them. Otherwise I believe we would've forced a 3 & out, at the least a FG. Defense has to do better.
Calm down everybody. If Hewitt doesn't grab the facemask that drive stalls. We made a mistake and paid for it.
Gotta stay aggressive and keep the pressure dialed up.
Also we knew we were going to have to out up points to win, so let's see what CornFu does with the playcalling on the opening drive and how Willis settles in before we jump to conclusions about losing another big game
This streaming quality make me long for cable.
Yall.... they're a good offense. They're going to score a few points. None of us expected to completely shut them down...It's one drive. We have to figure out their plan, and then we'll adjust. Let's fucking go!
In a game like this, the window of time is almost microscopically limited.
...and Willis doesn't set his feet before he throws.
Come on Willis take the easy stuff
there was a whole right in front of you savoy why do a shimmy????
Who else saw a 3-and-out coming?
[raises hand]
And here comes the 3 and outs that makes the game fun to watch
Peoples has to run to the sideline there. Why turn to the inside after catching the ball on that route
Gonna need more from the offense to give our D a chance
Woof
Can't give up any plays. Got to keep moving the ball downfield. Incremental is better than throwing the ball away on first down.
If no ND 3 and out this time then could be a long night.
3 and out... what a sad start, as usual
How do we manage to start with a 3 and out after just giving up that long TD drive. Our defense is gonna be gassed already if this is another long drive
blown assignment
Swiss cheese secondary.
embarrassing national performance, so far
This is not looking good...
this has 42-14 written all over it.
Looking like soft shit in rain!! Not ideal!! Too many eyes on this game to look like we don't belong.
If they score over 20 pts & we only have a FG, midway through the 2nd qtr, I'll be pretty much ready throw in the towel.
Irish making it look easy.
Why are the DBs slipping all over the field? What's wrong with their cleats??
This is supposed to be HOME field advantage!
This team just isn't good enough. I figured they were a year or two away, and they're showing it tonight.
After the long pass, only giving up 3 is a win.
Come on offense.
Seriously, at least take the yards they give you!
Somebody is going to have to make a play, or this will be a disaster on national TV
Guys. I'm not having fun right now. Please don't do this to us again
Bent and Broke
3 and out
Bent and Didn't Break
TD now?
Good holding them to just the FG, but I can't help but feel that was more on ND not executing than on the defense.
Yep, a miscommunication and a bad pass. WR was open on 3rd down.
When does the alarm clock go off?
This offensive drive is pivotal. We crumble to a 3 and out again and things will be looking extremely bleak. We cannot rely on our defense to win us this game.
Alright Hazelton.
Letting Willis air it out
Higher percentage throws. Keep that up.
Nice move from Hazelton.
ughhhhhhhh
crap!!!
LOVE to see the boys execute. Screw that call even though it is probably the right call.
Fuck
Was that a bs foul or what?
That's a BS Call. No effect on the play
Doesn't matter. INCREDIBLY stupid
It was stupid. But they dont call that 99% of the time in college football
That's a killer
Just another dumbfuck shit for brains play.
yeaah we're not winning this with this inexperience.
The ref are just looking for a call to stop Tech
I hate the whole basis for that rule. Oh well.
The short pass game is there and Willis has the confidence. Keep it up.
All the illegal men downfield in college football the past few years and they call the penalty on a lineman that literally had no influence or impact on a play.
Hopefully we still get 7 points and the defense ends up more rested and ready to attack.
Exactly what I was thinking... As if they are intentionally looking the other way on the RPO because it adds another wrinkle and a bit of excitement to the game
Willis leading by example.
Is Willis showing some of Brewer's heart?
Good gawd.
Geez!
This kind of incompetence will not achieve victory.
Lane's atmosphere intimidated our own players by the looks of it
OL is making too many mental mistakes. They were supposed to be the strength of the O
IS OUR OL TRYING TO FUCK US OVER?!
Veteran's screwing up is worse than inexperience
Does anyone know the names of the crew reffing this game?
Every penalty on VT so far has been earned
I get it. But hasn't ND done anything questionable?
This team is done. Moment seems too big for them when a 6th year senior is getting false starts like that at home
Always does
Was nobody open?
I already like Willis more than JJ. JJ would've taken a sack there.
True.
well, hopefully defense can get a stop now
First things first, we need to get points.NmIneligible downfield is the stupidest penalty
Definitely frustrating when it has no impact on anything. Yet holding is missed every play.
A turnover could change everything right now.
This comment is halfway to aging well.
Back within a score. Showed the ability to move the ball against them. We stopped ourselves. Everyone needs to keep their head up. We extended their TD drive with a mistake and gave them a FG on blown coverage. Then stopped ourselves with false starts. They are not outlasting us with talent.
Need a stop here from the D or hold them to another field goal.
Defense please force a turnover here
Just stop them and force a punt!
Well at least we know we can move the ball....
Stadium looks good
Glass half full...
I don't think that plays into the rankings.
Rodgers getting beat again....Deablo injury is killing us
Basically, this. Secondary is thin enough as it is with Deablo.
Is anybody guarding #10???
how is 10 that wide open twice!!!! We're in for a long night......
Rodgers (in for Deablo) blown coverage twice
So they call a lineman downfield when he was literally half a yard past the 5 yard line but miss the blatant holding on Ricky Walker.
It wasnt right in front of them or anything....
BullshitSorry. Yes. The /s would've helped (as in this frame of mind, I'm less likely to pick up on it).
I left off the /s... that was kind of my point- it was bullshit
This really looks like the personnel nadir of the last several years. They're going to be much better next year, I think.
Thank you for overthrowing that. It's obvious our secondary will have an issue covering tonight.
Notre Dame could score a touchdown every time they throw the ball
So apparently holding that actually affects the play is ok?
If you are playing against VT
Secondary is abysmal! No real pressure on Book. Not to mention shooting ourselves in the foot. I may not have enough alcohol.
...And Farley's out. Prepare for a 2003-type performance
NOOOOOOOOO!
FARLEY HURT.......WE ARE FUCKED NOW
Fuck. Farley's out. Whelp
look at the size difference between our secondary and their receivers. This could get ugly.
Oh no if Farley is injured...
That's as good as a BLOCK!
That punter freaked out. Still could have kicked it.
DOES THAT COUNT AS BEAMERBALL?
LETS GO!!!
Beamerball intimidation factor +1
Count it.
Fuente was fucking livid
... Why the down vote I wonder
Anybody who bitches about downvotes gets a downvote every single time from me, not afraid to say it
"not afraid to say it"
I would hope not. It's the internet.
Wow, CJF is PISSED at Willis
There is a lot on the line, and CJF is demanding thoughtful play.
Finally, they have to punt. Good job this round D. Great job ST. Offense needs to unfuck their heads.
LOVE THAT EMOTION FROM FUENTE. YOU HAPPY NOW DCWILSON40?
That was not open, Willis had no business throwing that
Hazelton is the man
How many more times is he gonna fucking do that? We don't have time for that fucking shit in this kind of game!!!
Moving the WRONG way, Hoyt, now a sack... ugh
Another OL mistake kills this drive. Fuck me
Gotta get rid of that, Willis
These mental mistakes are costing us huge.
Definitely, made it 2 and 26, which was not very attainable. At least we get 3.
The 5-10 yard pass is where it is tonight.
Still gotta chuck it deep occasionally to keep their defense honest
Very true.
I know these penalties aren't helping but I'm shocked on how few called runs we've called.
Stupid call on 3rd
WTF was that play? just playing for the field goal?
that was an absolutely horrible play call. What the hell was that.
Conservative play calling AGAIN. You can't play conservative against a Top 10 team!
I like the playcall, actually. Hoyt missed a block completely
I'm glad I'm not the only one who saw that.
A safe call on 3rd and 15 in field goal range.
Breathe.
We've had success all night with the short passes for 8-10 yards. Might as well air it, worst case incomplete, best case 1st down.
I'm with you Stronk. Need MORE agressive calls.
If the right guard made a block and actually contacted his man, Peoples would have a lot of room to run. The play call was not so bad, just no blocking.
Kicker is clutch at least
Hoyt is not playing well
OL is mindfucking themselves.
With as bad as we are playing, only down by 4, not too bad.
Why are we slipping all over the field. Why dont we have cleats for our own field?
Notre Dame is having no issues cutting.
Two more field goals for the lead....
Thanks, as frustrated as hell at our mental errors but that made me chuckle.
Hoyt is fucking killing us tonight. 2 false starts and he never fucking blocks anyone. If he cut off his guy on that draw play it could've gone for a good amount.
At least we have a good kicker I guess
There's either something wrong with the cleats or something wrong with the fucking damn field. It CAN'T be both.
Keep it up
French is gonna go nuts on Hoyt on that one...just stood there instead of trying to run through the backer.
2 penalties on Hoyt and a terrible attempt to block on that 3rd down play. He needs to stop being Sloppy Jesus and go back to mega Jesus
That school up 81 had to settle for 4 consecutive field goals this afternoon due to penalties erasing/preventing touchdowns. They were 15ers rather than 5s but...backwards is backwards.
"Virginia Tech....self-destructive". That's the entire story of Tech football.
All too often.
Book and his receivers are just solid.
Some say #78 has never let go of Ricky Walker's Jersey...
He's got a fistful of AME to this day...
Yeah, he has been Holding all night long.
Maybe our OL should take note...they seem afraid to even make contact.
You say this as if you expect the refs to call it.
Ugh.... that Aflac Trivia question.
We did/continue to do it to ourselves. Change the story, then you can change the narrative.
This defense is just not as good as usual. Too young. Keep telling myself to be patient.
So just tuned in. On Defense, 3rd and 5, play 10 yards off. Convert 1st down throwing to the guy we gave a huge cushion to. Does this actually happen as frequently as I seem to think it does?
It's almost the best option. D has been blowing coverages deep left and right.
Been happening all night. We're lucky it's this close. But we also had a bullshit penalty take a TD away from us
They also have beat us twice over the top..once for 40 yds and one that should have been an easy TD if not overthrown. So pick your poison, I guess.
Not having Deablo back there really hurts.
Need to keep getting pressure back there it's our only hope on the defensive side of the ball
Man all these 3rd down conversions are deflating. Book is good y'all.
I'm telling ya, it feels like he's going Tom Brady on our asses.
Pulling hard for you guys! In my neck of the woods we have to deal with a large contingent of insufferable Irish fans. Damn near as bad as UM fans.
To have a CHANCE we have to play error-free, and we are doing the opposite. Worse, our two biggest problems so far (bonehead O-line and slipping everywhere) are what the visiting team should be experiencing. The terror dome is only terrorizing us.
God our secondary is so bad at tackling
I found this stat in an r/cfb comment: VT are 0-9 vs top 25 at home last 9 years. That's depressing.
Good tackle by Watts there
Don't understand why ND even tries running the ball or lateral passes. Going downfield is gonna score at will against us tonight.
Book doesn't have a deep ball.
Not an consistantly accurate one, anyway.
EVERY FUCKING GAME. A DROPPED PUNT.
Those punts, they'll get after ya.
Should we stop trying to receive punts?
we have to lead the nation in muffs at this point
Why do we have Carroll fielding punts. He's muffed atleast 3-4 this year
You sure? I think Hazelton had the majority, which is why Carroll is back there now.
Somehow this is still a one score game. COME ON OFFENSE
If Book can layoff the over throws he could do some damage to us.
If Carroll is actually our best option returning punts we might as well have nobody back there. Jesus Christ
Will be happy with another long drive ending in points.
Methodical drive for a TD to take a 3 pt lead to the half is what I like.
Either conservative play call 3 and out or a huge Turnover is what I expect.........
Idk how, but this is a very winnable game right now... if we can get 7 here it is massive for our morale
But we can't.
Good block!
Not executing, guys. Step it up.
Willis has some bad misses tonight
Guys, we are still 100% in this game
Yup
I hit "send" on this just before seeing the pick haha
FLOYD!!!
DBU IRISH FUCKERS!!!
Reggie Floyd is a man!!! Only of he kept his feet, pick 6 baby!!!
Huge interception. But again with the fucking slipping.....
Run the Ball....please??? At Least try???
What a grab by Floyd. Now grab that momentum and take it into half time.
Learn how to stand up Reggie!!!
GREAT PICK. Floyd had a pick 6 had he kept his footing
We are holding up pretty well on the line, if we can get in their QB's head, we have a real shot.
I love the effort by our RB's this year.
UH PASS INTERFERENCE?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Holy hell McClease!
Use some time.
another field goal???
Yep.
ok Willis is a G. Trying to get in on that scrum. Love him already.
A pick and then a long run by Peoples.
A FG would be a failure here, honestly.
Failure confirmed
Cute shit didn't work.Sorry, wrong location.It's a failure.
Edit: I'm dumb.
Gotta have this!!!
Just get under center and get it in. Don't do any of that shotgun shit
Didn't work. Sometimes the cute shit is necessary.
Cute shit didn't work.
Your comment aged well.
Pathetic
ABSOLUTE FUCK UP!!!
Pathetic.
Unreal. What a terrible series there.
That's a loss. Chance to take the lead from the 1 and shot their pants
Embarrassing... plain and simple.
UNBELIEVABLE
Can we please get out of our own way?
Seriously...qb sneak.
Everybody stay calm!!!!!
You know you're bad when you cant score on the 1 yard line
I know the players screwed up, however, didn't like the calls either.
Willis has been shaky with the handoffs in the last two games. That is why the coach should give his back-ups more refs. The most important thing is that he held onto the ball.
I'm pretty sure that one was on Willis
DON'T. LINE. UP. IN. SHOTGUN. FROM. THE. ONE.
Bud foster can do no wrong but this offense is killing me
DONT RUN FROM SHOTGUN ON THE MOTHERFUCKING 1 YARDLINE
Never understood that call. Only Cam Newton has the strength to justify that call.
Not liking Willis' attitude. Can't blowup on your own teammates in the midst of it.
I don't mind it. At least he's showing passion.
I swear, how long will it take to ERADICATE shit for brains errors? How fucking long?
I absolutely love Fuente, but he gets brainworms when it comes to short yardage in key games. With 6'5 Willis stretching over the line and two backs pushing behind him there is no way physically he doesn't get in the endzone. For someone supposedly obsessed with data and probabilities where tf does a call like this come from
It's nice to see the offense is honoring Beamer's statue by absolutely shitting the bed while the defense carries the team.
GREAT HIT on the Book!
Holy Ashby.
Once again relying on the Defense and Special Teams to win us the game.
As is tradition
GREAT HIT!!!
CJ, much better.
If we can stop fucking ourselves, we will win game
Hoping we don't go away from what has worked so far tonight.
We NEED points before the half. Imperative.
why aren't we running the ball....?
Guys... This is the #6 team in the nation. We are a seriously young team, further thinned by injuries, and we are going to make mistakes.
Fact is, we are trailing the #6 team in the nation by 6 points approaching halftime. Bud Foster has shown am ability to adjust so far this game, and after an early TD drive we've been able to stop just about everything they've thrown at us, despite Farley getting hurt.
We can still win this.
I'm not worried about the defense. The offense, which is more experienced, is shitting the bed.
Don't know why I thought I could handle the level of vitriol of this game thread (I generally don't participate). We are playing very good defense against a very good team, and some offensive adjustments could easily turn the tide in the game, and yet many of y'all are acting like they're no better than ODU.
I'll catch y'all tomorrow.
OH MY GOD
That's the game
Offense is killing us
WTF Willis
Sometimes, discretion is the better part of valor. Shoulda gotten rid of that one.
I don't get it. How unlucky can we be.
Do you REALLY have to ask?? Just look at our ENTIRE history.
Willis too aggressive there. That is what we'll get with Willis, versus JJ; however, hopefully he learns from it and goes back out there and kicks butt.
Jesus fucking christ
MOTHERFUCKER
Willis: "A deceptive athlete...he CAN beat you with his feet" ~ Chris Fowler
Pathetic
GIT RID OF THE GODDAMN BALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Great, Now I get to hear 2 more fucking hours of Herbsteit-On-Notre Dame Fellatio.
Peoples is out of it!
True freshman from Notre Dame knocking the ball away, Willis trying to be a hero out there and holding it too long bit him in the butt, who would have guessed it?
That's kinda how I saw that play too. Down and out guy jumps up and slaps the ball from behind. 9/10 that play probably just ends with Willis being tackled by the guy that scooped up the fumble. Obviously, too many of these broken plays just increases the probability that this happens, so gotta be just gotta be better with the ball.
Ryan Willis is out here trying to play hero ball. There's no reason to try to single handledly win this game like that. Unreal....
QB trying to do too much and the OL not doing enough.
That play was a clusterfuck. Willis needs to learn to toss it away
I hate that for a lot of reasons. I hate it most for our D after a dominant quarter.
Willis is killing us tonight..... lack of accuracy, doing too much..... it's not over yet but we need to make a play early in the 3rd....
However, based on our experience, JJ would have taken a ton of sacks tonight so far. This is what we'll get with a more aggressive QB.
All the crap Jackson did wrong he knew when to just get rid of it this offense is the bane of our exhistence
That's an abject disaster there by Willis. There is literally nothing he could have done worse in that situation
I expect aggressive playcalling, execution & FUCKING PTS FROM THE OFFENSE ON THIS POSSESSION
Expect a punt instead
Only virginia tech can fuck up so many great opportunities against a top 10 team and screw themselves out of getting a win. Game could be tied right now but so many dumb mistakes.
Willis goofed there, but he's got heart.
Norte Dame is a good team.
This game has been less of ND being good and more of us being bad.
Agree but respect to their D, I think they've hit hard and been quick to the ball.
Tired of hearing how this is a young team. You get a scholarship to play in the ACC, can't have these mistakes
OMG...run the ball on 1st down and not let the DL Line pin their ears back on every single play. What a Concept.
The receivers are very inconsistent this evening.
Willis trying to be a hero... STOP!
No stupid mistakes. We need points here.
Where has this urgency been all night? I've never understood why Fuente ran so up tempo at Memphis but really hasn't done that here. We seem to have success when we do
WTF taht replay just confirmed our lineman wasn't even down field. He was at the 4 yard line
On no, 1st and goal /s
Dude, 42 is out.
Done here Kansas bouy fuch up
Pardon me I was drunk!
That was targeting
It was a bullshit maneuver. Deserved to be ejected
42 should be out. Not 91
I don't care what the book says, go for 2. Just b/c . . .
#HazeltonForPrez
Just keep doing all of that the rest of the game. But with some runs mixed in.
We sure have had a lot of "what ifs" in the first half.
Notre Dame has not impressed, but Book's inability to hit a pass past 20 yards is going to bite somebody. We gotta get a center-fielder back there.
We get the ball to start the 2nd half.....we have all the momentum....we have really good dominated the game in every aspect but the scoreboard....
pros: We're losing this game more than ND are winning this.
cons: We keep on shooting ourselves in the foot on offense. The inexperience on defense makes it hard for us to rely on them. Good drive at the end, we have to keep this up, but there is hope.
Now we need to see strong adjustments for the 2nd half.
Not that you would possibly know from listening to Kirk Herbstreit, but we are right in this one.
If not for absolutely shooting ourselves in the feet relentlessly, we would have a nice lead.
So I say FUCK KIRK HERBSTREIT and NOTRE DAME and lets play mistake-free football and lets send these jackasses back to Indiana with an L.
If we clean it up, we will be in good shape
ABC's feed is killing me. Froze up and missed that TD.
And this is on DirectTV, not streaming
If you have ESPN app, should be able to find it there too.
Good luck, and do yourself a favor and put it on mute. Herbstreit is beyond Insufferable tonight.
I'm hoping we can come out and run the ball more in the 2nd half. Maybe tire their de's since one of them is out of the game now.
Willis is a baller.
Exactly. He does need to calm down and trust the system, but he is there to win.
All I can say is that they're still hanging in there.
Why so many calls for the run? We are only stalling bc of penalties.
Willis needs to continue to hit the short to intermediate routes and receivers need to stop dropping the ball and the OL needs to stop getting stupid penalties.
Hope we can continue to shut their O down, but have to expect some type of adjustments on their side to get us off balance to start the half. Hopefully Bud can continue to adjust and own Kelly
I think Book is a little shook now also. That was a big hit by Ashby and a sore chest is not easy to deal with....
We need to continue to get pressure otherwise he will shred us again
CJF sound like the guy beside you at the bar to anyone else? "Just needs to relaaaxx" the
Finish yo post, B'Burg. I was nodding along and
Fat fingers and alcohol. They'll get after you
I think the offense will keep producing. Just need the defense to play like the 2nd quarter and not the 1st
Was one of the more clear cut targeting calls on ND #42.
Willis has been trying too much at times but you need someone like that if you want to upset a Top 10 team. A conservative QB like JJ will get us close but not over the line. Willis will make mistakes but give us the best chance of winning as well.
I like his aggressiveness, he just needs the game experience to know when to rein it in and live to see the next play.
I missed this. Is deablo not playing then?
Nope
Haven't seen him. You'd think he spent the 1st qtr oiling our cleats the way our guys were slipping around out there.
Peoples needs more touches.
Yeah but which people?
Ones with matte helmets
Yall..... We can fuckin win this football game. We can break the shitty big game streak. We can put the Irish in their place.... Holy shit we can do this
We are not out of this game. If the defense can play like the second quarter and the offense play like the last drive, (big ifs, perhaps) we can run the Irish team out of town. Let's go HOKIES!
Post game remark: My maroon and orange colored glasses saw the possibilities, but ND just out played us, made more effective adjustments, and got some lucky bounces, like the Willis fumble bouncing into the ND players hands.
The only stat that really matters is the score at the end of the game. BUT (perhaps still through those school colored glasses), there is hope. For years folks have complained about the lack of offense and / or offensive imagination. Yet, for as lopsided as the score was, our total yards for the game was actually slightly better and we had more first downs (25 to their 19). And then there is the all important time of possession (32:42 to 27:18). /s As to imagination, the trick play for a touchdown was inspired even though it was called back. The special teams play was good (still no returns on kickoffs). The defense will get better; the offense will continue to improve; and the team goal of the winning the Coastal is still intact.
Let's Go HOKIES!
THAT did not work.
3 and out.
Chance to take the lead, missed.
Edit: Forgot the Haze catch for a 1st down.
There was a 1st down completion to Hazelton
People's run also
And the Peoples run for a 1st down on the next play.....
People's also rushed for a 1st. It was a good drive and pinned them back. Hopefully D balls.
75 is looking clueless again
OL not doing Willis any favors tonight in Pass Pro
The obligatory Notre Dame praise.
Hazleton gives me Isaiah Ford vibes
Unfortunately it looks like he's Willis's only target
He needs to expand on that.
"A group that has not allowed a single punt return yard all year." ~ Chris Fowler
This guy gets Beamerball
pathetic
LOL
C'mon man
Omg
Losers ALWAYS find/create ways to lose.
Hokies just toying with us.
FUCKFUCKFUCKFUCKFKC
That was the opposite of what is good
Fuck Notre Dame
This is why we can't have nice things
we really hate the 1 yard line don't we?
So does this fulfill our quota of big plays? Can we get back to regular defense now?
Farley
Overran it like fsu. He'll learn
We're 5 games in, he should've learned BY NIW
WTF?
terrible start to the second half
Oh look...another big play given up by Farley. I get the guy is inexperienced but Jesus Christ he's a walking liability on Defense right now
I mean he's only giving up like 2 or 3 a game. But he had 2 INTs that first game so everything is good, right?
Chalk that up to another one by Farley on the TD catch. You can't make this shit up
Well. FUCK.
Keep pushing. Still in this.
Wheatley is not that fast, I don't feel like he should be returning kicks.
Ladler gets an A+ for effort on that one.
They called out Farley but the LB lost leverage. He has to force that play to Farley and he let them cut back.
God dammit this team has the ability to win this game and keeps blowing it
VT football in a nutshell
Gotta keep our heads up. No more mistakes.
Turner got popped & Grimsley limping. Not good.
Yep, hopefully they'll both be okay. Grimsley looked like an ankle.
Thought it looked more like he landed awkwardly on his hip. Ankle would not be good.
Hope Grimsley and Turner are ok
Turner faking an injury to slow down our offense
/s
Grimsley hopefully just a singer. Turner does not look good.
How the hell is that not another targeting..??
Just got sandwiched awkwardly. Didn't look like either ND defender launched.
They're breaking all our toys
We should destroy their Book
well they're probably gonna score again
Those wanting us to run the ball more, that is why we haven't. They are stout on the DL.
Nice kick. Great offensive series/s
I knew we were screwed when the announcers said he hadn't missed yet this year.
Broadcaster jinx.
I'd like to agree, but it's sloppy play.
So why is Notre able to run 98 yards in one play but we can't? Why is it that we have to work hard for our meal but they just get it on a silver platter?
they're th #6 team in the nation and we are not
I've felt like that for a while, we never seem to have guys wide slam open.
Because this is a "rebuilding/reloading" year. But don't worry..."next year we'll have more experience & either Willis, Hooker, etc, blah blah blah 2023"
Genuine question: where's the rb screen game to slow down the pass rush?
Willis seems to have enough time to throw. Though I'd like to see us pop one to catch them off guard.
Don't like the regression so far in the second half. We need a solid defensive series now and the offense to come back out hot.
We need to stop forcing the run. The pass game is there. Got way behind the sticks running unsuccessfully twice.
Honestly, this is exactly what I expected from Virginia Tech. Not even from this team in particular, just Virginia Tech Football.
This team just can't get out of its own way.
Tons of talent, gonna get better as this year and the next couple go on, but you have to play sharper than this to win big matchups.
Time for this to turn into the 38-16 drubbing we all expected
And here we go folks. Probably gonna start to slowly unravel in another big game. I would love for once to be proven wrong but god damnit we do this every fucking time
Every time. It wouldn't be Virginia Tech football otherwise.
Every. Fucking. Time.
Welp. Same old story shows true again. History repeats itself and we look like fucking losers on national TV yet again. God why do I always get my hopes up
Not gonna lie, that ND assistant behind Kelly is hella cute.
I saw her first
This game is not over folks.
OK,
maybe it is now.
Farley again........FUCK
Crapping the bed on prime time tv and making Herbstreit happy in the process.
Browning the trousers on tv is a Virginia Tech tradition.
Ballgame
And that's the the ball game. I'm out, if the team doesn't care then neither will I.
We're losers who are playing like losers
Bout to get ugly
That decision to move Farley to DB is looking really smart /s
Dude, just log off and go do whatever else you do and stop trolling your own team. Being critical and being an ass are quite different.
I think the most disgusting thing about this game is the fact that I've consistently heard Irish fans much more than I've heard VT fans.
I swear, one week, the refs will call a hold against the other team
I don't believe you.
That's a good one.
This is Ohio State 2015 all over again.
VT football is not good enough to hang with Top 10 teams. Painful pill to swallow but it is what it is.
OSU 2015 our starting QB went down, otherwise I think we win that game.
I disagree, don't think we would've won but it might have been closer.
I agree it was a bad example though. Clemson 2016 and 2017 might be better examples.
Is this a culture thing? We've been the not ready for prime time players for years.
No dude we're just a year or two away!!!!!
WTF kind of defense is that?
LOL, where's all of the "this team is young" apologists? You know who you are, you have excuses every fall....and, actually, every spring when our recruiting is oh-so-close to great but predictably "meh-to-okay".
I'm not sure you actually realized either what you are saying or what you are watching. ND is loaded with talent... And experience. This is a legitimate playoff contender. We are not.
Really? I honestly think notre dame looks pretty bad. If we weren't so undisciplined we would be winning. I think they would get absolutely waxed by a legit playoff team
I know exactly what I'm saying. Notre Dame is a good team and we are kind of shit.
Was that your excuse last year? What will your excuse be next year?
This. Not sure why everyone is so critical on tonight's performance. ND has better athletes, is deeper, has beaten two top 10 teams already, and didn't lose to ODU. It wasn't like we were the favorites here. We have made the predictable young team mistakes, and they have taken advantage of our major weakness, the secondary. Even with that, we enter the fourth quarter with the ball and the potential to cut this to one score. Either way though, not sure this is the game to be over critical of this team.
:-)
Here is a fun fact... FAU beat ODU today dropping them to 1-5.
that wasn't fun
ugh...this secondary
Man the first half gave us enough hope to make this that much more discouraging.
It's not looking good but we need to avoid an emotional/personal foul meltdown
So many mistakes by the dbs tonight just to make it worse that was awful play again
Hopefully these young players are learning a lot and are able to turn it into something great over the next couple of years. At least we're still undefeated in the ACC?
Play calling has been atrocious this second half.
What doesn't kill you makes you stronger...
Or more numb & apathetic.
Why so much running in 2nd half......it is not working other than when we are using as a change of pace.......WTF
Offense is playing atrocious and scared
We are now most likely 0-10 at home against Top 25 teams the past decade.
That is embarrassing. So much for the 'terrordome'.
Our hopes for next year are on QP and this D maturing..... Willis is not accurate enough to take us to the next level...
Willis has been as accurate or more accurate than Book.....
ND is likely heading to the playoffs
I know it's not our primary issue; however, what the heck is up with the conservative play calling now? The only chance to win is to be aggressive and catch a break or two.
Now watch them convert on 3rd down.N/m (for once)Not a fan of the decision to punt given the last ten minutes of game play, but we got the defensive series we needed.
Hey everyone pull your heads out of your asses it's still the third quarter.
Tell that to the team that's losing the game. [also, I didn't downvote you]
No worries if you did. I just don't like hearing doom and gloom with a quarter left. Legged you.
Finally, someone who can actually run
Need a Hokie-type miracle now.
We need MULTIPLE miracles. MULTIPLE.
We have the ball in their territory, down just two scores, and an entire quarter to go!. Who's with meeeeeeeee..........
Not VT's offense apparently.
Need a td here. 4 down territory all quarter
ND has 94 rushing yards including a 98 yard TD run. #UncommonStatlines
Almost as good as Akers' line after the FSU game.
As bad as the defense has been, the offense needed to get more than 16 points so far
Hope If we can't pull out a miracle ND goes undefeated and gets train wrecked by Alabama.
So ND can't beat a ranked team on the road and we can't beat a ranked team at home. Guess which embarrassing streak is gonna come out on bottom???
Yeah, but last year Fuente needed his guys. This year his guys are young. Seriously, next year is when we start to turn that 10-year streak around. /s
Next year is when QP is young and needs to work out his kinks, then the next year is when we lose a bunch of seniors and the team is young and inexperienced again!!!
Has Coach Fu given up?
What's sad about this is that it's not like ND have been great. They look like a #16 ranked team, not #6, we've just been bad.
Just bad play calling going on right now
'Offensive' play calling.
What good does a field goal do?
Fuck that
Why ar we still trying to run the ball?
Hey Corny, your offensive play calling ain't worth a chocolate covered fuck.
Love, the south endzone
Why are we going for a 52yd fg down 15? These 3pts do nothing and if we miss the D will be in a bad position....
Why the fuck do we always go conservative play calling in big moments. 2nd & 10 and we run up the middle & then throw a fade? That's the best we have? Seriously?
I'll be honest Fuente has not been the 'offensive savior' that we expected when we hired him. Other than flashes of 2016 with Jerod we've had more of the same since Beamer's years.
They've had lots of yards this game, but not a lot of points.
Fu hasn't had the QB for his system... I'll save judgement until after QP.....
Great kick /s
Hate that call 100%
ND gave Coach Fu a whole free timeout to wake up. And he still sticks with the FG attempt?
Fuente has quit on this game. That FG was to make it look not as bad
Seriously frustrating decision by Fuente. Did he even consider what happens if the FG is missed? It significantly increased the chance of us not having a chance to come back (Captain Obvious).
Punt or go for it....
Im so sick and tired of losing The big game
he went from -4 yards to +4
Well we just flat out quit. 13 minutes left in the game down 15 and we go for a fucking 52 yard field goal. What kind of message are you trying to send Fuente you dumbass
Lane Stadium at night is absolutely nothing to be feared anymore. This program is a cupcake for any real contender to get by. A national embarrassment every year when the stage is at its biggest.
And no, getting a couple schmucks on the internet to give $20 to the Hokie Club ain't gonna fix it.
Sucks how familiar this feeling is becoming. Just once I'd like to feel what it felt like to beat OSU...
Another ass kicking in the spotlight. Oh well
That FG attempt was a waive of the white flag. The team looks done.
Goodnight
>sigh< Same ok same ol
This quarter is exactly why VT football will never get past being an ACC contender. Zero killer instinct and zero motivation to create a miracle. Fuente should be ashamed of himself.
what the hell is the conservative play calling? Calling a game like it is tied up or up 7 or 14....relying on the defense like they have been stonewalling all night.
OK, that'll do it for me. Y'all have a good night.
Fuente doesn't like the risky-business, yet he needs to realize that it is the only realistic chance you have of winning the game. If he wants to give up, then put the back-ups in the game and make it official. Geez . . .
Definitely frustrated with his lack of faith in his players this year.
He pulled the same shit against Clemson last year. I love Fuente every year until our biggest game rolls around and then I feel like he dude completely folds the second something doesn't go his way.
Well. We just flat out fucking suck ass. We absolutely give up in any sign of adversity. What a fucking joke
Agree. That's what is most disappointing. We're weak. No fire. No aggression. A little tough sledding and we just give up.
Losing sucks
The thing that bothers me, is that the rest of the nation & creation can point back to the 2016 win as a complete fluke & point to this one as the real deal & relevant one.
I am so disappointed. This team was not better than ours. I thought if we could get out of our own way we'd pull it out.
Fuente, I still hold out hope that you're "the" guy. But you're testing my faith.
Offense has no end product it's moved the ball but can't finish a drive off at all which has cost us big this team is far too young this was disappointing
So that whole deal about Bud Foster not needing to carry the load anymore still remains untrue. I wonder when there will be an offense in Blacksburg.
When we stop losing stud recruits to Ped state, FSU, Clemson, etc. etc.
Not an excuse. Memphis was putting up damn near 40-50 PPG with much less talent than we've ever had. The defenses they played weren't much worse than what we face in the ACC tbh.
How much less talent tho, really? Jerod was a Fuente Memphis recruit and he practically carried us to the ACCCG.
Not happy at all with offensive playcalling in 2nd half and the field goal was totally pointless even if we made it.
Not sure what the analytics sheet says, but if it said to take the FG it is wrong. Sometimes you have to make a decision based on the feel of the game and no way a FG was right.
Without Ashby and Floyd our D would be much more porous than it is. And I'm seeing a lot of guys whose numbers I don't recognize. We are so thin on D. But yet it's our O that is mystifying.
This secondary is shockingly bad. Hard to believe the drop off from all the departures would be this much.
If you want to watch a classic fucking choke job by a sorry ass VT team just put this piss-poor excuse of a game on repeat. Same fucking thing every time. Not sure why we try to convince ourselves otherwise
Hope springs eternal
We had our chances....the goal line blunder, the trick play, Willis missing countless passes that should have been TDs..... the problem is I don't see enough on the DL to get excited about next year..... maybe someone steps up but our LBs are secondary will need to be next level....
My dudes
Im hammered.
That 97 yard TD run was the backbreaker. We had a lot of opportunities in this game that we couldn't quite take advantage of. Notre Dame, while getting outplayed for long stretches, made the plays that turned the momentum. They are simply a better and more experienced team. Full stop.
And there's the knock out blow...
So, about all those big time recruits showing up tonight. Really glad we got to show them were a "program on the rise" like we claim to be. This is so fucking frustrating
We'll be in everyone's top 5. It'll probably come down to us and someone else for a bunch of them before they pick the other team. You know, basically how it is every year.
Our team is really good, the recruits are going to start hoping on board now knowing how well we played tonight!
I know!!
Giving you a leg. I get your frustration, maybe not the best way to communicate it but you are spot on. This program is just stuck these days
Lol that edit just makes you more of a dick.
hahaha i was hoping someone would notice! Go Hokies!
Boys, I have bad news......
I'm out of beer. And bourbon....
I know the answer to everything. More and I mean much more east-west offense. Maybe if we could reach 75 screens a game we may score points then.
The sky is not falling. We cannot give up because we got beat by the #6 team in the country.
Before the season started we were wondering if we could keep the bowl streak alive. Keep things in perspective and understand that we are the youngest on D we have ever been. The High's and lows are to be expected.
Win or Lose Let's Go !!
:-)
But it really wasn't the D that lost us this game tonight..... the QB play has got to be better....or we will continue to lose these games....
Eh, the biggest difference in this game was the defense busting assignments consistenly. But yes the offense squandered a lot of opportunities. Frustrating all around.
Not sure about putting this on Willis. The playcalling in 2nd half put him in tough situations on 3rd down against a great DL.
Not too many QBs are going to convert consistently on 3rd and long after two plays for nothing on this Defense.
Fight till the end.
TD whoop dee fucking doo Basil.
If Willis throws one more jump ball to Savoy im going to throw my tv out the window....
Boy, I guess I missed the part where we're a team that lost to ODU, had our best DE dismissed, lost a bunch of young players in the secondary because two left the school, another tore his ACL first day of practice, and oh by the way we're playing our backup QB against the number 6 team in the country. The world isn't ending folks.
The 6th rank team with 1-5* and 47-4* recruits the last 4 years.
well, at least our players haven't given up even if the coaching staff have.
Can someone start the vent thread already, please? I'm too lazy, apathetic & don't feel like it....
Willis makes some bad decisions, but I like his attitude. Tonight he's struck me as a more natural leader than JJ.
The thing with the offense is when we get the right play call, someone isn't executing (QB, WR, OL, RB). Its a whole combination of the offense simply not being very good in spots. And without a big play, we aren't able to sustain drives.
No game-breaking talent. ND turned the game around in a single play. Who do we have that can do that?
Caleb Farley? Oh you meant for our team.
I thought willis overall put together a good game so far. We had some rookie mistakes all around that fucked us here and a few big blown coverages on defense.
The fumble was pretty much unforgivable but yeah... I'm not putting it squarely on his shoulders like I'm seeing in this thread
Totally forgivable if he learns from it and doesn't try to do too much going forward.
He had an OK game, but being "OK" wasn't all on him. The OL did him no favors tonight. But man did he miss some wide open guys a few times.
Still can't believe we actually attempted a 52yard FG down 15 with 13 minutes left. Might be the worst call by Fuente at VT so far
Take your pick. He's had a # of them
Get points when you need points
I'm sure this applies to most of us but I can't let myself get this into VT football anymore. Expectations get too high then we do things like squander 4 points by running from shotgun on the 1, letting Notre Dame break off a 90 yard Td run, and fumble away a Td early in the second half. I love Fuente and this team but it's hard not to get so damn mad
I mean this with no disrespect. If it's emotionally troublesome for you, there's no shame in stepping away for a while. I did it for a couple of seasons.
Or just realize number 6 is supposed to beat number 24? Just enjoy the game.
Wow kinda disappointed in the commentary here... we had plenty of chances to stay with these guys and it required an almost flawless games... but mistakes were made. Listening to the "Two-Deep" Podcast those guys pointed out a lot of match ups I thought we had significant disadvantages on. Anyways, this was a loss to a Top 10 team. To the recruits, I think they could see plenty of areas they can make a difference in this program. We have the tools to win we need the players to complete the package! Right now we are young... **sips bourbon**
Damn if that wasnt Farley again......
The worst part is we had them on the ropes and had them looking a bit shaken until the huge run. We balled for 3o some minutes.. and then the coaches seem to have said fuck it.
Farley with a night to forget. Three bad plays lead to three touchdowns.
I hope Foster reams Farley a new one....that was Primetime level of "I don't want to tackle"....
At this point I am looking at who is still playing with heart and who has just quit. Unfortunately Farley is one of the few that just given up.
Same exact thing as the ODU game. As soon as we think we can't win we just mail it in & stop trying. This is completely on Fuente, this team has absolutely no mental toughness
Fuente is not going to elevate this program to the next level. Seen enough of him in the big games and in the 'overlooked' games which we lose to say that. It often feels like a direct extension of late-year Beamer teams.
Time to switch over to the UFC fights, same old story again
I see a team that can mature and learn from this game and come out swinging next week. Let's go 1-0 next week in ACC play. Go Hokies!
The ACC (and especially the Coastal) sucks, so yeah, we gonna be OK.
When LAHokie said we needed to compete in front of all the recruits, I wonder if this is what he meant.
We gave the recruits a great atmosphere, and tons of chances for them to think, "Hey, I could maybe make a difference in this program." I don't think losing to a team of ND's caliber is going to hurt us with the recruits on campus.
We have been saying this for years
And outside of Beamer's last few years, our recruiting never really declined. With the energy Fuente has brought back into recruiting, hopefully we start closing on some of the blue chips soon.
"Hopefully"
Yep. This.
This thread has become toxic
Eh, seems pretty well balanced to me. You've got the typical sky is falling stuff, but there's a lot of constructive comments and rational analysis.
It seems heavily sky is falling.
**Heavy Breathing** "Balance you say" -Thanos
Our defense is trash, especially without Diablo.
Does anyone think Fuente over-coached Willis at halftime? He was much more tentative in the 3rd Q but let it loose again after we had nothing to lose.
And don't get me started on the attempting a 52-yd FG when you still have to score 2 TDs even if you make it. Or the 1yd line play calls.
What I don't get is before the season folks were worried this was a 6 win team. A lot of folks on here were predicting this being a tough year, and rightfully so. Now we hold tough for 30 minutes against the number 6 team in the country before they pull away and it's a huge upset?
Some people have breakdowns after every loss. It's part of a passionate fanbase. But I'm actually pleasantly surprised that those posts are counterbalanced by this kind of perspective.
This. I'm disappointed about the bone headed plays and missed opportunities, but this game doesn't really change the way I feel about this season or this program either way.
Not everyone is excited to accept complete mediocrity in year 3.
So... don't?
This is the first season where Fuentes young guys can be seen taking the field. Good times are coming young Padawan.
Kicking 52 yard fgs down 15 late in the game aren't something you blame on 'getting his guys'
He's an analytics guy. Fuente will always play the percentages. It'll make for some iffy looking calls in those situations, but I'm okay letting data drive our decision making.
What's our percentage of making 52 yard field goals vs converting for the first down by just going for it?
On 4th and long? You go for the option that's more likely to result in points.
Both of you seem to be ignoring the main issue. A make there cuts the lead from 15 to 12. Still need 2 TDs. I personally see no logical argument for kicking the FG. Punting makes far more sense. I was so disappointed in Fuente there.
Down 15, you need 2 TDs and a 2pt conversion to tie. Down 12, two TDs puts you ahead. That's a difference.
So you still need 2 TDs either way. Sorry I just can't understand that argument in that situation in the game.
No if you're down 15 you need 3 scores to win. If you're down 12 you only need 2.
Huh?
Tying and winning are not the same. Tying means you have to score again.
Would you rather be in a position where two TDs wins, or just ties? That's the difference we're talking about.
We couldn't punch it in when we had 1st and goal on the 1 yard line. You still like that percentage?
All we would have had to do is run a screen and we would have got the first. /s
But only I'm being sarcastic. We probably would have run a screen.
I know people are upset about this call because we were only down "two scores" but say we did make two TDs with a 2-point conversion. We're just tied. We're going to need another score anyway to win. So while we were technically down two scores, scoring twice wasn't going to be good enough. I have no problem with going for the FG there.
You're emotional. We lost, it's understandable. We'll be fine though, friend.
Hokie fans down legging positivity after losing to a clearly better team after already losing to ODU in a season where we started out over ranked for TV notoriety in our opener.
Classic us.
Before the season it seemed like everyone was expecting it. That's my point.
I love the hokies. We are what we are, but I still bleed orange and maroon. Maybe someday we will get a big top 10 win, but I just feel cursed. Not saying we are, but it sure feels like it
JV staff performing like one, and it starts at the top. Playcalling has sucked, in-game adjustments have sucked, the young guys (especially those CBs playing completely out of positions because recruiting has sucked so badly) have sucked...
Just a very mediocre product on the field right now, and accountability should start at the top
Sir you are mistaken on many accounts. I appreciate the frustration. It hurts to lose. But consider two plays of the game. 1). Darrisaw downfield penalty on the trick play first half. 2) Willis overthrow on wide open receiver down the middle (first half. You know the one). Those were absolutely brilliant calls. Putting players in the perfect position for success. We couldn't execute. I didn't think we looked flat. We played hard. They were better. We had a few matchup advantages - they had many. Our back end was/is young. We have no game breaker on the field - period. Every win will be a dogfight. I love the team - go Hokies.
The first half, yes, the play calls were good. Why go away from what works in the 2nd half and fall completely flat when you have ALL the momentum?
What did the staff "go away from"?
The 5-10 yard passes on first and 2nd down. The slants, crosses, outs, and hitches were giving VT chunk yardage. 3rd quarter starts, the play calling shifts to a cute off tackle, screen or sweep setting up for a 3rd and long pass and the offense goes 3 and out 3 times. Looked like ND was playing off man and zone and was keeping everything in front while blitzing the edge. The run play calls frustratingly was running right at the teeth of the defense. Made me wonder if Corny is picking plays based off minimal turnover percentages from an analytical program while the game is in progress because he surely is not picking plays that were working.
We had more yards in the second half than the first.
I would understand your comment if VT had like 150+ yard difference between halfs but we are talking around < 40 yards... I feel the offense was more efficient in the first half and minus a few mental errors this would have been a different ball game, do you agree?
I don't think we were less efficient. We mixed in the run a little more in the second half than the first, but I don't really disagree with the philosophy there. Our backs were fresh, and People's busted a 19 yard run on his first touch of the half. ND just stuffed the run after that carry.
I really think its difficult to call plays when you aren't sure who will or will not execute in any given scenario. Half of the battle in play calling is understanding the limitations of your unit - its got to be tough with this one.
This sucks but still unbeaten in acc play now it's time to get pissed and destroy fedora and uncheat and move on from this
WE WANT UNC!!!
(BAMA,we're coming for you next year)
The telling thing to me is that I am already over this game.
Not that I want to be upset for days, but it also means I don't ask myself "What can I do to help this program?" either.
We have to do better. We will do better.
Here's the loss of the game in one simple synopsis of 4 plays that were very preventable:
1. Facemask beginning of game
2. Inelegible receiver from freshman lineman
3. Busted play with peoples at goal line
4. Willis heroics fumble
We don't let most of those happen and we win this game in my opinion. This was all in the first half. We play up and have a hard fought second half and make it through with momentum on our side.
Yes we left some plays on the table, yes our defense got mauled showing it's youth (3 remaining starting players from last year?).
All of that seems pretty damned learnable and preventable in the future. 1-0 next week.
You left off the drive-killing, idiotic numerous false starts by the home team o-line. The visitors had, maybe...one?
I totally agree with the five points above (4 listed plus the 2 consecutive off-sides) changing the direction of this game. But I am still worried about how vulnerable to big plays our defense looked in the second half. ND missed like 3 ridiculously open receivers in the second half. I wonder if our defense's vulnerability was caused by momentum swings due to the issues listed above or Diablo being out and/or a difference in talent and experience.
Our young team looked capable of beating the #6 team in the country last night. Beating UNC this week is crucial. I'm excited about the rest of the year.
While watching in person, I git a true sense of DD's impact, as the QB if the D. There were a number if plays, where players didn't seem to know where they were supposed to be, pre-snap. I don't recall seeing that vs Duke or FSU.
I would have to go back and watch, and your probably right, but wasnt that the same drive as the trick play? I don't recall.
I can't disagree with you though. It definitely was a drive killer.
Look. I understand you guys are pissed & are DVing the hell out of anyone with a negative opinion right now, but even the most rational fan has to admit something needs to change. For as much as Fuente was heralded as an "offensive guru/quarterback whisperer", we've averaged < 20 PPG!!!! in our last 9 games against P5 opponents. Let me repeat that. We're averaging less than 3 TD's per game in our last 9 against P5 opponents. You can blame it on injuries or turnover or whatever you want, but this is year 3 and that's absolutely pathetic. Idk what has to be fixed, but clearly something is not working
1. We need a real set of running backs. We dont have premier backs. I don't think we have this answered.
2. We need stability at quarterback, haven't had those in the time you mentioned. I think we are headed in that direction. Christ a second string guy steps in and puts together an acc win then a good overall performance against a top 6?
3. We needed to develop our o line which I think we are well down the road on
Going to take this point by point....
1- totally agree.
2- we need to find a QB that works with our system, and then get that stability. It's coming. I really want to see what (the) Hooker can do and where QP stands coming out of spring next year before I start yelling about QBs. JJ has his merits, Willis has his, I dont think either one is the best for thissystem, just the best/most ready that we have right now.
3- Mistakes mistakes mistakes. And mostly stupid, mental easy stuff to fix.
Someone will disagree and voice their opinion about this, but the defense is so damn young. You cannot expect to stonewall a top 10 team that doesnt start anyone younger than a true junior with a group that returns 3 starters and less than 5 older than a Junior.. Sorry, you just fuckin cannot. Not even Foster.
Go ahead and tell me that Alabama does this shit every year. We're not fuckin Alabama. We aren't backing up 5 star players with more 5 star players. Who then have a 3rd string 4 star if not another 5 star behind them.
Now, we absolutely had them shaken. We had them in a really bad spot for them. And then they broke off the longest play we've ever given up. And we deflated. Idk if it was coaches more than players or vice versa, but that absolutely broke our MO for good. And that cannot happen to a team as young as we are..
The Coastal is still in reach, and Miami looks so beatable we may just pull that off. Thank God it's a home game.
Go Hokies.
I totally agree. I didn't even list our youth or defensive youth as an issue because you can't solve that instantly and quite frankly it may be an asset in the next 2 years.
Yep. I've said it a few times in multiple different threads- 2020 is our year. I absolutely expect a playoff appearance that year.
I'm not going as far as calling it but I'd say I feel pretty good about having solid shot at going to acccg for the next few years and maybe a 50% aggregate chance of winning it over the next 6.
I agree, offensive improvement has been slower than anticipated. But the thing that gives me pause is exactly what you said: Fuente is known as a great developer of QBs. He's on his third starter in as many years. We had instance success with Jerrod Evans, then for God knows why he declared after one year. So the program is handed over to JJ, a remnant of the old regime. Now we're on to a former walk on transfer who earned a scholarship. Maybe I'm being too patient, but I want to see Fuente get his guy in there before I panic about the offense.
Take a deep breath everybody. Our boys played with a lot of heart, and I dont feel that our coaches "gave up." The deeper, more seasoned, more athletic team won tonight. They made plays down the stretch, we didn't. It stinks. I've been talking smack for a week to all my Irish family, and boy am I eating crow now. It stinks. But I don't believe for a second that we quit, nor do I believe any recruit will leave feeling that either. I watched from start to finish. Yes, tackling was poor in spots, our guys need to take notes from Ashby on how to wrap up. Yes, Willis missed some throws. But I'm proud of these guys, and you should be too. That Notre Dame team is huge, and we punched them in the mouth for big chunks of the game. Don't hang your heads Hokies, we still have a lot of games to win!
I know it sucks we lost.
Lane Stadium looked beautiful tonight though.
Hokie Nation is the best.
Why are y'all downvoting this?
TL;DR if we can't stomp Alabama then our team is shit. Fuente doesn't know how to coach or recruit and Bud is past his prime. I don't care how young the defense is. Get it together and beat elite teams!!!
Wtf if going on here. I didn't think we'd win to begin with. Then we were close and had a few mistakes that really cost us the game. Everyone thinks the sky is falling now. At least it wasn't to Pitt or something. ACC is still wide open. Calm down folks. Put the gun down.
I think Willis is better than JJ in all honesty. He has way better pocket presence and doesn't slam the ball into receivers 8 yds away.
I'm not pissed at this loss it is what it is. Please name me another coach you would rather have than Fuente right now. Rome wasn't built in a day and it's gonna take more than a couple years to start being dominant. Dabo didn't do it on three years either. Relax people.
FIRE BUD FOSTER
Just going to assume you left off the /s there.