hokies regain commonwealth cup with huge second quarter

Jackson Didlake

December 14, 2020

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Virginia Tech owned a six-point lead before getting the ball back with 4:26 remaining in the first half. On the first play of the drive, Khalil Herbert broke away for a 76-yard score.

Fighting to regain the Commonwealth Cup against rival Virginia, Justin Fuente looked content going into the half with a two-possession lead, but Tayvion Robinson had other ideas. Braxton Burmeister found Robinson, who went 60 yards with 31 seconds in the half to give the Hokies a 27-7 commanding lead.

“The big plays were nice to have back; it seems like it's been a little while,” Fuente said. “We’ve had to grind some things out.”

The big second quarter helped the Hokies (5-6, 5-5 ACC) come out victorious 33-15, avenging their loss to the Cavaliers (5-5, 4-5) last season. The Virginia victory in 2019 was its first over Virginia Tech since 2003, breaking a 15-game losing streak against the Hokies.

Fuente made the surprising move to start Burmeister over Hendon Hooker. Both Burmeister and Hooker left the Hokies’ loss to No. 3 Clemson last week with apparent injuries.

“I thought he gave us the best chance to win,” Fuente said. “He went out there and played his tail off.”

Burmeister had an impressive day through the air, passing for 212 yards and score.

“It was huge. It was awesome,” Burmeister said. “I have been waiting for this opportunity.”

His clear favorite target on the day was Robinson, who finished the contest with 98 yards and a touchdown. James Mitchell also found success receiving, adding 67 yards.

Herbert did what he has done best this year: dominate on the ground for the Hokies. He finished the game with 162 yards and a touchdown. Jalen Holston also saw plenty of work on the ground, adding 58 yards.

Another big part of Virginia Tech’s success on offense was Brian Johnson, who was money from field goal range on Saturday. He nailed field goals of 46, 47, 47 and 30 yards in the victory.

The Hokies had a great day on the defensive side of the ball too, finishing with six tackles for loss, including four sacks. The Cavaliers finished the day with only 55 yards on the ground.

Brennan Armstrong passed for 259 yards and two touchdowns, but the Hokies were able to pick him off twice. Lavel Davis Sr. (75 yards) and Billy Kemp IV (73 yards) led the way through the air for Virginia. Tony Poljan added 66 yards and a score.

Both teams racked up over 200 yards passing on the day, but the discrepancy in the run game is what helped the Hokies to a victory, as Tech outgained Virginia 252-55. Additionally, the Cavaliers struggled on third down, converting six of 14 attempts, while the Hokies converted nine of 14.

After Johnson started the scoring with a field goal to put the Hokies ahead, the Cavaliers responded late in the first quarter with a Keytaon Thompson touchdown to take a 7-3 lead. Virginia took the lead into the second quarter, but after a Tre Turner six-yard touchdown on a jet sweep, Virginia Tech retook the lead and never relinquished it.

After the Hokies swung the momentum, Tech shut out Virginia in the second quarter. After being stopped on third down, the Cavaliers were forced to punt. Mitchell couldn’t field the punt cleanly and fumbled, giving Virginia great field position. The Hokies held UVa to a 39-yard field goal, which Brian Delaney missed wide left.

Johnson drilled another field goal to put the Hokies up 13-7 before Herbert and Robinson scored to close out the first half. The second half was more of a defensive battle, with Johnson knocking in two field goals for Virginia Tech and Virginia only finding the end zone once on a 23-yard Poljan touchdown catch.

The Cavaliers appeared to be threatening late in the third quarter down two possessions, but Dorian Strong picked off Armstrong and his nice return helped Johnson extend the lead. In his final regular season game, Divine Deablo added an interception, picking off Armstrong with 3:30 left in the contest to further help seal the deal.

“We had a rough couple of weeks so being able to finish out with a big dub on our rival is definitely a really great feeling,” Herbert said. “The cup's back home. That’s one thing we really wanted to do this year was get it back.”

The victory pushed Virginia Tech to 59-38-5 all time against Virginia, 16-1 since the Hokies joined the ACC in 2004. On Sunday, the Cavaliers announced that they would decline a bowl-bid, but the Hokies, who sit with a country-best 27 consecutive bowl games, have not made an announcement on their bowl decision.

All five Hokies that talked to the media postgame made it clear they would want to jump at the opportunity to play in a bowl game, including Deablo who said, “I want one more opportunity to play with my brothers.”

There is a lot of uncertainty on the bowl streak and Fuente’s future with the program after the victory, but there is one thing that is certain after a crazy COVID-19 season: regaining the Commonwealth Cup and giving Fuente a water bath was well deserved after a dominant victory over Virginia.