virginia tech slugs its way to 21-10 victory over richmond

Carter Hill

Staff Writer

September 25, 2021

BLACKSBURG — Boom. A quick strike. It couldn’t have been a better start for the Virginia Tech Hokies (3-1, 1-0 ACC).

Quarterback Braxton Burmeister found receiver Tré Turner wide open towards the middle of the field for 27 yard completion. Then, Tayvion Robinson got involved, a 12 yard reception by the Virginia Beach native got the Hokies inside the opposing 30-yard-line.

Running back Jalen Holston then wanted to get the ground game going. Sixteen yards through a hole to the right side to bring up first-and-goal for Tech. A wide open miss to Turner didn’t seem to phase the quarterback-receiver duo, as Burmeister went back to it. This time, Turner secured the ball in the back side of the end zone, tightroping his way in bounds to make a circus-like haul in.

It seemed as if Virginia Tech was going to run away with it. But the Richmond Spiders (2-2, 0-1 CAA) had other plans, and forced a sluggish-type effort from the Hokies all afternoon long that resulted in a 21-10 victory.

Not the most satisfying of wins.

“We’re going to have to do a lot of work,” said head coach Justin Fuente on the team’s overall performance. “Defense was good, offense struggled; pretty inconsistent to say the least.”

No matter how you look at it, it’s a fair assessment of the Hokies.

Following that opening drive touchdown that took place just 1:45 into the game, it was a period of sloppiness for Fuente’s team.

Burmeister missed a wide open Drake Deluliis, who was just waiting to stride towards the goal line on the ensuing drive. And after going with a fake punt early in the second quarter, punter Peter Moore couldn’t get the ball to a wide open Dorian Strong to turn it over on downs for the fourth time in just two games for the Hokies.

The game started unfolding itself like a botched attempt at origami. Fuente and offensive coordinator Brad Cornelsen had a premeditated plan of getting backup quarterback Knox Kadum some reps throughout the afternoon. So they picked their moment. Which was when Tech had its backs to its own end zone at its own six yard line.

The result? A brutally thrown interception, in which Spiders’ cornerback Aaron Banks jumped the route and set Richmond up in the red zone.

“I met with Braxton and Knox on Sunday of last week and told them at some point Knox was going to play in the first half,” the sixth-year head coach explained. “How much or how little, I didn’t know. The facts were Knox was going to play and at some point Braxton was also going to go back in...I didn’t know when.”

The Spiders immediately capitalized. Savon Smith sprinted right through the teeth of the VT defensive front, and eventually found himself untouched into the end zone to even up the score at seven.

The sparse crowd at Lane Stadium was in a sense of shock. Or were they? The Hokies certainly have a recent history of playing down to FCS foes.

That’s when Virginia Tech finally ignited a spark. But it didn’t come from the offense.

On a Richmond punt, Robinson waited back near his own 40-yard line, tracked the ball like a center fielder, fielded it, and off he went.

A 60-yard punt return for a touchdown marked the program’s first since Greg Stroman did so back in 2017, and it gave the Hokies a slim 14-7 lead into the locker room.

“It was great across the board,” Robinson said with a wide-open grin. “Those guys (the special teams unit) blocked their tails off.”

“Just getting that return kind of let everybody know that I’m not the same person I was last year. That I’m a lot better. My preparation really shows that and I was just excited to get in.”

An opening drive field goal in the second half by the Spiders was all the Richmond offense had left. Though it put up a solid effort against an above-average Tech defense, especially without starting quarterback Joe Mancuso for the vast majority of the contest.

After being set up by another whale of a catch by Tech’s Tre Turner that was good for 42 yards. Texas A&M transfer Connor Blumrick punched it in from a yard out that ended up being the knockout punch for the Hokies.

Turner hauled in six catches for 102 yards and a touchdown. Good for a team best.

Although the Greensboro, N.C. native has had a quiet season to date, there’s never any hesitation to getting the fourth-year junior the ball.

“I love getting Tre the ball,” Burmeister, who finished the afternoon going 17-for-27 with 212 yards and a touchdown, said. “I love Tre and he made a lot of big plays today. “The (catch) over the head (third quarter reception), I was like dang that’s a good catch. But the other one to get his foot down was really impressive as well.”

“It’s the reason he’s called ‘Big Play Tré,’” Robinson touched on. “When he makes plays like that it opens up things (for other guys). Tre making those plays isn’t new.”

So with Turner showing out for the first time all season this afternoon, and that being a critical concern, what really is holding this Virginia Tech offense back?

“It’s just like little things, just beating ourselves,” added Turner. “I know one drive, I had a false start, it’s just little things where if we mess up the play we mess up our whole offense...as long as we execute, we should be able to put points up on the board.”

Robinson agreed.

“We need to execute better, we need to practice harder, and it starts in practice getting those reps...no game is perfect.”

Virginia Tech never was seriously threatened in this one. But the lackluster performance is certainly something to sweat about.

The Hokies took down the Spiders for the first time since their last meeting in 1986, and avoided the upset at the expense of their fellow commonwealth foe.

The upcoming off-week couldn’t be coming at a better time for Fuente and company, and the next two weeks will be crucial as to how well Virginia Tech performs the remainder of the season.

“We have a big opponent coming in a week after the bye week,” Robinson said. “We’re not going to take that for granted. We have to get some rest and get ready for Notre Dame.”