BLACKSBURG -- The Virginia football team, which seemed to be flying high after an improbable streak of wins over highly-ranked opponents, was brought back to earth with a bang this weekend.
The weekend began poorly for the Cavaliers (8-5) with the announcement that NC State had accepted a bid to the Gator Bowl. Then came Maryland's victory over Wake Forest, which led to the Terrapins accepting a bid to the Peach Bowl. But the most painful setback came on Saturday afternoon with the Cavaliers' fourth consecutive loss to archrival Virginia Tech (9-3).
Playing in gusty winds that sent snow swirling throughout Lane Stadium, the high-powered Virginia passing game was all but shut down.
"The other team played well enough to win, whether this game was played in Blacksburg or Bermuda," Virginia Coach Al Groh said.
The game came down to a battle of running backs, and while Virginia freshman Wali Lundy put forth a game effort with 127 yards, the Hokies' two-headed monster of Lee Suggs (108 yards and two scores) and Kevin Jones (91 yards) was too much for the Cavaliers to handle as they fell, 21-9.
"Those are two great backs," Groh said of Suggs and Jones. "When you watch them on television, they're fun to watch, but if you have to watch them from the other sideline, they're pretty hard to deal with."
After a turnover-free performance last weekend against Maryland, the Cavaliers had several costly miscues on Saturday. The first mistake came early in the second quarter with the Cavaliers leading 3-0, when Virginia Tech freshman Justin Hamilton came through the Virginia line untouched to block a Tom Hagan punt.
Virginia Tech's Darryl Tapp recovered the ball and dove into the end zone for his first career touchdown. Suggs would add a touchdown later in the quarter to give the Hokies a 14-3 halftime lead.
After a controversial decision by Groh gave the Hokies the ball to start both halves, Virginia would rally in the third quarter on a 15-yard pass from junior quarterback Matt Schaub to freshman tight end Heath Miller. The score would be just about the only highlight for ACC player of the year Schaub, who struggled with the strong wind and threw for only 43 yards on the day.
Nonetheless, the Cavaliers had their chance to take the lead late in the third quarter before another costly mistake. With the Cavaliers' time with the wind at their backs winding down, Schaub threw deep to senior wide receiver Billy McMullen, but Virginia Tech cornerback Garnell Wilds made a leaping interception to kill the drive.
The Hokies kept the ball on the ground for most of the final quarter and iced the game with a 6-yard Suggs touchdown run. With the wind in their faces, the Cavaliers were unable to throw the ball and mount a comeback, and the Hokies were able to run out the clock.
"It's like that for both teams," Schaub said of the weather conditions. "We had to deal with it, and they made more plays than us."
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