Virginia
Virginia Tech Football: Three reasons Hokies can beat Minnesota
This is an extremely underrated aspect of bowl games, as home field advantage becomes much realer in teams’ final games of the season. As seen earlier in bowl season, like in the Birmingham Bowl featuring Georgia Tech and Vanderbilt, fans have a big effect on the game.
Bank of America Stadium is roughly a 3 hour drive from Blacksburg, with Apple Maps giving an estimate of 3 hours and 6 minutes for a drive from Lane Stadium to Bank of America Stadium. Huntington Bank Stadium, the home of the Gophers, is significantly farther from Bank of America Stadium than Lane. Apple Maps estimates the drive from Huntington Bank Stadium to Bank of America Stadium to be a 16 hour, 43 minute drive. Virginia Tech fans travel fairly well and Minnesota’s fans will likely have to catch flights if they want to see their team play in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl.
I would not be shocked to see a stadium heavily dominated by Hokies fans which could swing the momentum if the game is as close as ESPN’s FPI projects it to be. ESPN’s FPI system predicts the Duke’s Mayo Bowl as a true toss-up, with the Virginia Tech Hokies receiving a 51.3% chance to win and the Minnesota Golden Gophers earning a 48.7% chance to win.
This seems like a cop-out especially when you consider P.J. Fleck’s bowl record and the fact that Brent Pry has only coached in one bowl game, but Virginia Tech absolutely dominated a ranked Tulane in the Military Bowl last year.
Pry has shown up in big games as a head coach and almost picked up another signature win this year against No. 7 Miami, although that game just slipped out of the Hokies hands, Pry now has a chance to prove himself. He’s fired his defensive coordinator and now would be the perfect time to prove he belongs with a signature win against a strong Big 10 team as an underdog.
Pop Watson was the Hokies’ best kept secret, but it’s no secret now. He is absolutely one of the best young quarterbacks in the conference and I think he has the potential to light up the Hokies’ secondary in the Mayo Bowl. Watson might be the best quarterback that plays in this game and he has the skills to take down a extremely strong Minnesota secondary.
I would not be shocked if there are plenty of plays designed just to showcase Watson’s skills. He is a dynamic play maker who can take control of the ball game at any time. He has the arm to take the top off of the defense, and if any receiver can get open, he can definitely make the right read. Similar to Brent Pry, this is a big ‘prove it’ game for Pop Watson, and I think he definitely has what it takes.
Virginia Tech Transfer Portal Commitments (9)
Safety Sherrod Covil Jr (Previous School: Clemson)
RB Terion Stewart (Bowling Green)
RB Marcellous Hawkins (Central Missouri)
DL Jahzari Priester (Hampton)
DB Isaiah Brown-Murray (ECU)
DB Tyson Flowers (Rice)
DB Joseph Reddish (Wingate)
DB Isaiah Cash (Sam Houston State)
OL Tomas Rimac (West Virginia)
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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