Virginia
Five Takeaways From Virginia Football’s 37-17 Loss to Virginia Tech
Virginia had its 2024 football season come to an end with a 37-17 loss to Virginia Tech on Saturday night in Blacksburg. Here are our five key takeaways from UVA’s defeat in the Commonwealth Clash.
Let’s get the increasingly lopsided numbers of this “rivalry” updated and out of the way right off the bat. With Saturday night’s result, Virginia Tech has won the last four meetings with Virginia and 19 of the last 20 Commonwealth Clash games. The Hokies have won the last 12 games against UVA in Blacksburg and the Cavaliers haven’t won at Lane Stadium since 1998. Virginia Tech now leads the all-time series with Virginia 62-38-5.
All things considered, Virginia played a second half that could have been worthy of this being a more competitive game. The Hokies won the second half 17-14 and outgained the Cavaliers 202-190, but absent a few crucial plays (the turnover on downs on UVA’s first drive, Muskett’s second interception, Kam Robinson’s missed tackle on Bhayshul Tuten’s 58-yard touchdown run), it almost felt like Virginia was right there. Almost.
Unfortunately for the Cavaliers, they completely dropped the ball in the first half on both sides. Virginia Tech sustained two long scoring drives right away and UVA barely possessed the ball in the first quarter. When Virginia finally got on the board, the Hokies immediately fired back with a 66-yard touchdown pass to Jaylin Lane. The score was 20-3 at halftime and it felt like the game was over.
We’ve seen different variations of the same story every year in the Commonwealth Clash. This time, Virginia’s defense, which almost singlehandedly won games for UVA against Boston College and Pittsburgh and played admirably well in losses to Louisville and Notre Dame, looked out of sorts and outmatched trying to defend against a redshirt freshman making his first career start at quarterback. You wouldn’t have guessed that was the case by just watching Pop Watson play on Saturday night, as he threw for 254 yards and a touchdown and rushed for 48 yards and another score. UVA couldn’t pressure Watson, contain him to the pocket, or keep track of his receivers. And once again, Virginia Tech seemed to be at least a level or two above Virginia in terms of physicality… what else is new.
Tony Elliott said it would be all hands on deck vs. Virginia Tech and that ended up being the case. The Cavaliers went with Tony Muskett at quarterback over Anthony Colandrea and had Chris Tyree operating at running back for the first time with Kobe Pace and Xavier Brown both out with injuries. The results were….. mixed. UVA ultimately showed some nice signs in the second half, stringing together back-to-back touchdown drives in the third quarter. But the problem is that the season is now over, so those “signs” don’t matter much now. More importantly, those positive signs were bereft of meaning because of how horrific the first half was.
By the time Muskett, Des Kitchings, and the UVA offense “figured it out” enough to get the ball moving down the field, it was too late. Muskett ran the ball effectively and made some nice throws, particularly to Suderian Harrison, but none of it was consistent enough to amount to making this a ball game. The biggest indictment on the Virginia offense was the lack of production from Malachi Fields, who had just two receptions for 20 yards on five targets in what could be his last game as a Cavalier.
The more pessimistic (or maybe realistic) segment of the UVA fanbase was all over this from the beginning. They didn’t buy Virginia’s 4-1 start for a second and they were right, as the Hoos lost six of their last seven games to finish at 5-7 overall. Even with a big win at Pittsburgh in week 11, the Cavaliers still fell short of bowl eligibility for a third season in a row. The home loss to North Carolina in week 9 was more disappointing versus expectations, but Virginia will continue to struggle to win six games as long as the final game of the season is an automatic loss.
In a game between two mediocre to below-average teams who both needed to win to reach bowl eligibility, the Hokies wanted it more and showed it on the field.
Virginia Football Outmatched by Virginia Tech Again in 37-17 Loss
Virginia vs. Virginia Tech Live Updates | NCAA Football
Reports: Tony Muskett to Start at Quarterback for Virginia vs. Virginia Tech
CLARKSBURG, W.Va. (WBOY) — West Virginia has plenty of state symbols, be it the black bear as the state animal, the cardinal as the state bird or the rhododendron as the state flower, but did you know that the Mountain State also has its own official gun?
The Hall Flintlock Model 1819 was first manufactured in Harpers Ferry by John H. Hall in 1811 and was adopted by the United States Army in 1819, making it the first breech-loading rifle ever adopted by a country’s military.
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Model 1819 Hall Breechloading Rifle presented by Congress to Gustavous A. Bird for his participation in the Battle of Plattsburgh 9/11/1814 by John C. Bird via the Smithsonian Institution -
Model 1819 Hall Breechloading Rifle presented by Congress to Gustavous A. Bird for his participation in the Battle of Plattsburgh 9/11/1814 by John C. Bird via the Smithsonian Institution
All of this information is listed in Senate Concurrent Resolution 7, which was introduced and passed during the 2013 West Virginia Legislative session, and officially recognizes the Model 1819 as the official firearm of the State of West Virginia.
On top of being created in West Virginia, the resolution also points out that the rifle saw use during the Civil War, an event that directly led to West Virginia’s statehood.
While having an officially recognized state firearm may seem far-fetched, West Virginia is not the only state that has one. As a matter of fact, a fifth of the states in the country have officially designated a state firearm, including West Virginia’s neighbors in Kentucky and Pennsylvania.
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — In this world of college football, with the transfer portal and recruiting battles, bad blood is present more than ever before between head coaches.
That’s not the case between the Virginia Tech head coach and Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney, however. In fact, Franklin revealed at ACC Kickoff on Thursday that the two are actually close friends, dating back to their time at the Nike trip that various coaches take over the summer.
“Dabo’s my guy,” Franklin said on Thursday. “We go way back. We’ve been on the Nike trip for a long time. His wife and my wife are friends.”
The long-time Penn State head coach is making the move to the ACC after being fired from the Nittany Lions in October. 12 seasons of being with the program had Franklin hold a 44-21 record against top 10 opponents, an impressive record for a new conference foe of Swinney’s.
But when that trip comes around, there’s a camaraderie between Swinney and Franklin and both of their wives. In fact, the two hang out with each other instead of the other coaches at times. It simply comes to an “edgy” time in college athletics that raises tempers.
“I’m going to be honest, I wouldn’t say we’re necessarily like the type of people that love a lot of other coaches and a lot of other programs,” Franklin said. “It’s hard when you just compete year-round.”
On Swinney’s end, there are a few who could immediately come to mind among Clemson fans. Perhaps the most recent would be Ole Miss coach Pete Golding, who played the most significant role in the tampering of former linebacker Luke Ferrelli.
It’s a select list of coaches who make the good side of the Tigers’ head coach, and Franklin is certainly on that list. On the other hand, Hokies’ head coach has Swinney on his own shortlist.
“Obviously, tremendous respect for what he has built at Clemson and what he’s done at Clemson, and what he’s done for the ACC,” he said.
The two will see that close relationship face off at Memorial Stadium this upcoming season. Clemson will host the Hokies on Oct. 24 in what could be a potential title-eliminator for the ACC Championship.
Of course, the last game that we’ve seen the Tigers play in was against Franklin’s former team in Penn State at the Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl. That game ended in a 22-10 contest that saw a foundation of Franklin players end Clemson’s season in disappointment.
Swinney will see many of those players once again in October, including starting quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer, in that contest. The anticipated Hokie starter recorded 260 yards and two passing touchdowns on the Tigers in the Bronx that day.
Although friends become foes, another ACC coach has given Swinney his flowers for what he’s been able to do for the conference. In the upcoming moments, Franklin will look to prepare his team to prove itself on one of the biggest stages in the ACC, while Swinney looks to put his team back at the top of a conference he’s dominated for over 15 years.
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MARTINSVILLE, Va. (WSET) — Extreme drought conditions in parts of Virginia have prompted an emergency drought warning for a wide swath of the region, including Bedford, Campbell, Charlotte, Franklin, Halifax, Henry, Mecklenburg, Patrick, Pittsylvania and Roanoke counties, along with the cities of Danville, Roanoke, Salem and Martinsville.
The governor has warned that if conditions worsen, she will activate mandatory nonessential water-use restrictions.
In Martinsville, city leaders have issued a voluntary water conservation notice and are urging residents and businesses to cut back where they can. The request comes as local businesses that rely heavily on water say the drought is already affecting day-to-day operations.
SEE ALSO: Botetourt County residents adjust daily routines as voluntary water restriction continues
John Hughes, owner of John’s Car Wash, said the dry conditions have hit his business hard in recent weeks. “For the last 3 weeks, it’s been hitting pretty hard. We done three yesterday and haven’t done anything today with the drought and hot weather. Yeah, I’m really concerned about it,” Hughes said.
Restaurants are also feeling the strain. David Kitzmiller, an owner of Be Wiched, said water is essential for routine tasks such as washing dishes and preparing some menu items.
“We use a lot of water for washing dishes and some of our recipes if they limit us in anyway defiently can’t produce and its a scary aspect,” Kitzmiller said.
Kitzmiller added that cutting back is not always realistic for businesses that must meet sanitation needs. “Not really feasible for a business that depends solely relies on water to wash their dishes, so that can’t definitely be an impact there,” he said.
City leaders emphasized that the conservation request is voluntary for now, but they are encouraging everyone to do their part by taking shorter showers, turning off the faucet when it is not in use, washing only full loads of laundry, and limiting outdoor watering whenever possible.
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