no. 19 virginia tech uses big second half to down middle tennessee 35-14

Carter Hill

Staff Writer

September 11, 2021

BLACKSBURG — When the clock hit triple zeros at the end of the first half of Saturday’s contest between Middle Tennessee and No. 19 Virginia Tech, the Hokie faithful may have been thinking, “here we go again”.

Recent losses to Old Dominion and Liberty have left a sour taste in Tech’s mouth to the point where it can never again overlook a Group of Five opponent.

Were the Blue Raiders next?

It seemed like a possibility at halftime.

As the Hokies started off sluggish on their way to a 14-7 halftime advantage, it looked like they could be doing what was feared most after last week’s 17-10 victory over then-No. 10 North Carolina.

That fear? Overlooking Middle Tennessee and turning Saturday’s matchup at Lane Stadium into a trap game ahead to next week’s battle for the Black Diamond Trophy with West Virginia.

Fortunately for sixth-year head coach Justin Fuente and company, the fear and doubt that blanked Worsham Field changed quickly in the second half, as the Hokies (2-0, 1-0 ACC) cruised to a 35-14 victory over the Blue Raiders (1-1).

“I didn’t feel like we were shocked that it was close,” Fuente said. “I don’t know that we’re the team that can just blow the doors off of people...I didn’t sense any panic or shock. That’s what happens to teams that are overconfident or arrogant.”

Middle Tennessee last knocked off a Power Five opponent in 2017 with a win in the Carrier Dome over Syracuse, who knocked off No. 2 Clemson five weeks later.

“We knew what we were getting into, there was no shock,” Fuente added.

“We just knew we had to pick it up,” Clemson transfer Jordan Williams said. The Virginia Beach native racked up three total tackles — two of them being solo — and was credited with half a sack on Middle Tennessee quarterback Bailey Hockman.

“We needed more juice, we had to keep going, and we had to bring the energy,” he continued. “Defensively, you want to set the tone coming out of the half.”

The first half came with a major concern too.

Starting quarterback Braxton Burmeister took a vicious hit from Blue Raider safety Gregory Gate, and left the game for 7 plays before returning to immediately hit Tayvion Robinson in the end zone for the Hokies first touchdown of the day with less than a minute in the first quarter.

Redshirt freshman Knox Kadum relieved the Oregon transfer as the Tech signal caller before Burmeister was cleared to return to action. But the story offensively was in the form of another backup quarterback.

Texas A&M transfer Connor Blumrick took three straight snaps for Virginia Tech in the second quarter, and eventually convoyed his way into the endzone from two yards out to put the Hokies up 14-0.

The packages that Blumrick displayed eerily resembled those that Tech used with former quarterback Quincy Patterson during the 2018 season, giving the former running back a bigger role in the Hokies’ offense.

“It’s something we’ve worked on for a long time,” Fuente said. “I just think he brings us an element of size, speed, and courage in there. He can run the ball effectively...we’re confident in putting him in there.”

After a lackadaisical final eight minutes of the first half from the Hokies, Hockman took advantage by driving down the field in 11 plays, going 75 yards in three-and-a-half minutes to reduce the gap to seven at the end of the first half.

But that’s when Virginia Tech let all those doubts slip away.

The Hokies went 93 yards in just six plays on their first possession of the second half, which included a Tré Turner 47-yard reception, and was finished off by a Jalen Holston breakaway 29-yard touchdown, putting Tech up 21-7.

From there on, it was all downhill for the Blue Raiders from there as running back Raheem Blackshear added the final two touchdowns. And had it not been for a garbage time endzone find by backup quarterback Chase Cunningham, Middle Tennessee would have been shutout in the second half.

Blackshear, who was the Hokies’ leading rusher, added 53 yards on the ground. But those two house calls, and the fact that Tech ran for 224 yards showed how much offensive coordinator Brad Cornelsen is able to mix formations and how deep the running game is in the backfield.

Blumrick rushed for 38 of those yards. And the one snap he took that didn’t take place with goal-to-go resulted in a 33-yard scamper, which set the Hokies up from the one-yard line. More importantly, it reassured Fuente that Virginia Tech has options should Braxton Burmeister suffer a serious injury.

Defensively, Jusin Hamilton’s bunch sacked the NC State transfer three times. And, the defense forced a costly interception in Blue Raider territory as star cornerback Jermaine Waller read Hoffman’s eyes like a book, returning the ball 31 yards to set up Virginia Tech to strike again and put the game away in the middle of the third quarter.

Defensive back Nasir Peoples led the way in tackles for the Hokies with eight solo tackles, and 11 total. Linebacker Alan Tisdale also put up respectable numbers with four solo, and eight total tackles of his own.

Star tight end James Mitchell left the game in the second quarter without returning to action. But all seems to be okay with the potential future first round NFL Draft pick.

“James Mitchell is fine,” Fuente addressed.

There’s still some room to grow for Tech. But after a sleepy first half for the Hokies on a day where the stands were painted white for the white out game at Lane, Tech reassured its fans that today wasn’t going to be the day for another bigtime non-conference upset.

The Hokies were victorious. And they’ll ride a 2-0 record into Morgantown next week with the Black Diamond Trophy on the line.

“We’re happy to be 2-0 heading into next week,” Fuente said.