Virginia

WVSports – West Virginia answers the call in latest Brawl

Published

1 year ago

September 18, 2023

WVSports – West Virginia answers the call in latest Brawl

The importance of winning the Backyard Brawl wasn’t lost on West Virginia head coach Neal Brown.

That’s especially true after the way last season’s game unfolded with the Mountaineers holding a 31-24 lead late in the fourth quarter before giving up the game in heartbreaking fashion.

“It’s been something that’s stuck with us for 54-weeks. We had a chance; we had a lead in the fourth quarter 54-weeks ago and we did not finish,” Brown said. “I think the evolution of our program, a lot of it has to do with our off-season and the leadership we have.”

The Mountaineers left no doubt this time around as the Mountaineers were the more physical football team in a 17-6 win in front of 61,106 inside Milan Puskar Stadium.

The players echoed those thoughts of their head coach.

“We didn’t do it for ourselves, we did it for the state of West Virginia. We took it personal last year we didn’t come out on top and we had a bunch of West Virginia people there and this year we wanted to give them something to be proud about,” safety Aubrey Burks said.

As part of that growth from that unfolded last season, West Virginia made it a point to get better in four key areas. West Virginia had to be a disciplined football team, play with high effort, be tougher both mentally and physically and finally play smart. For the most part, the team checked all of those boxes.

Brown made it a point to have the most physical spring and fall camps of his five-year tenure because that’s what he felt his team had to do to be successful. The 106th edition of the Backyard Brawl isn’t going to win any beauty contests, but it did end with the desired result.

A West Virginia win. It was the first over the Panthers since Nov. 25, 2011, and one that Brown, and his football team knew was critical for so many involved.

“Our state needed this, our football program needed this, our university needed this so this is a huge win on a bunch of different levels and that’s not lost on us,” Brown said.

It wasn’t easy though. West Virginia had to overcome a slow start and the loss of their starting quarterback Garrett Greene facing a 3-0 hole and the team responded by outscoring the Panthers 17-3 while forcing three turnovers and holding the visitors to just 211 total yards.

“They call it the brawl for a reason and that wasn’t a thing of beauty. That wasn’t a classic, not going to talk about the beauty of that game for a long time but regardless what it was it was a win for West Virginia,” Brown said.

The crowd played a significant role in the game as despite those early pitfalls, the Mountaineers were able to rally around the energy inside Mountaineer Field and out toughed a team that prides itself in that category. West Virginia ran the football for 151 yards and held the Panthers to just 130.

Backup quarterback Nicco Marchiol saw only 25-percent of the reps leading up to the game, standard for players in his position, but was thrust into his first Brawl. The redshirt freshman responded after misfiring on his first three passes to complete his final six and operate within the offense with minimal mistakes.

The play sheet was essentially cut down to half a sheet of paper given what Marchiol was comfortable with, but he responded with a strong overall effort.

“Tonight, in a really tough spot. The biggest rivalry we have, national television and he gets thrust in there in the third series and a lot of times people don’t win football games. A lot of time people lose them. He didn’t lose the game,” Brown said.

So, the Mountaineers relied on their ground game and their defense in what was an ugly but satisfying win for the program on many different levels.

There was no update on the status of Greene moving forward following the Brawl, but Brown confirmed that he was in a walking boot and couldn’t have really performed the way he was expected. That is why the decision was made to go with Marchiol. And if he is given the opportunity to start next week that playbook will obviously expand with a full week of practice.

“The expectation is that he’ll be much improved, and I believe he will,” Brown said.

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Virginia

Big Tests On The Horizon For Virginia Tech Wrestling – FloWrestling

Published

58 mins ago

November 28, 2024

Press Room

Big Tests On The Horizon For Virginia Tech Wrestling – FloWrestling

At 3-0 with marquee victories over #6 Missouri (23-10) and #21 Rutgers (26-11), as well as a second-place finish in the Keystone Open with just a handful of starters competing, Virginia Tech has swept through a tough November and is prepared for a difficult December.

The Hokies, #12 in Flo’s team tournament ratings but top 10 in various dual-meet rankings, are next scheduled for an annual trip to Las Vegas for the Cliff Keen Invitational, featuring 27 teams, of which 14 are among Flo’s top 25. And then it’s another trip west to Stillwater on Dec. 19 to challenge #5 Oklahoma State in a rare Thursday match.

The early key thus far for the Hokies has been the ability to win the bouts they’re supposed to win and grabbing a fair share of so-called toss-up bouts.

To wit, Tech’s #18 Sam Latona downing Missouri’s #13 Josh Edmond (4-2) at 141, or #25 Rafael Hipolito majoring the Tigers’ #32 James Conway (11-3) at 157 and #15 Jimmy Mullen stopping #20 Seth Nitzel (4-2) at heavyweight.

That trend continued at Tech’s Moss Arts Center match against #21 Rutgers when Latona used a late takedown to defeat Joey Olivieri 7-5, #4 Lennox Wolak pinned veteran Jackson Turley at 174 and #9 Andy Smith slipped past #17 John Poznanski 4-3 at 197.

Hokies coach Tony Robie only took a few regulars to the Keystone Open in Philadelphia and, led by championship efforts by #1-ranked Caleb Henson at 149 and heavyweight Hunter Catka, Tech placed second behind Lock Haven. Latona placed third at 141 and Sam Fisher did the same at 184.

Robie opted to use the Hokies’ roster as freshmen Dillon Campbell (125), Matt Henrich (157), Luke Robie (157) and Jack Bastarrika (133) competed as did redshirt juniors Jackson Spires (165) and Ty Finn (174). Spires placed second.

Who’s Ready For Change?

With legislation on the NCAA’s table affecting scholarship and roster limits — unlimited scholarships and a roster cap — as well as revenue sharing, some college wrestling programs likely have a serious dose of trepidation while others are confident they can deal with whatever happens.

Virginia Tech sits in the latter category.

“I have no concerns whatsoever about that,” Robie said earlier this month. “I think a lot of it probably will happen. It’s hard to say whether it’s good or bad for the sport; that’s not really for me to say. What I will say is you have to adjust with what the rules are and what the landscape of college athletics looks like, and that’s what we intend on doing.

“Is it good for the overall health of the sport of wrestling? The kid that’s the 35th kid on your roster? Probably not. But I think definitely there were probably some things that needed to change; the pendulum was starting to swing significantly the other way. At some point, it’ll probably start to go back to the middle.”

Robie said all anyone can do is wait for the final decisions.

“We have some contingency plans based on what we think is going to happen and we’ll move forward with our plan and try to execute it,” he said.

A Pretty Good Gig

Robie, in his eighth year as head coach, has been at Tech since 2006 and as each season passes, the commitment and enthusiasm remain the same.

“Well, you get to do what you like to do. And it’s a pretty cool thing to be able to coach wrestling for a living and be a part of a pretty good program, and work with some great people and try to affect the lives of the kids in your program,” he said.

“I think anybody would want to do that. For me, I’m not young anymore. I turned 50 … who knows how long I’m going to do it, but I’m going to give it the best I can while I’m doing it and hopefully continue to improve as a program and try to try to help these guys as much as possible. But it’s good, Virginia Tech’s a great place to work, it’s a great place to live. I’ve got a great staff and it makes my life pretty easy.”

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Virginia

VIDEO: UVA Football Players Preview the Virginia Tech Game

Published

9 hours ago

November 27, 2024

Press Room

VIDEO: UVA Football Players Preview the Virginia Tech Game

With the game of year looming this weekend, members of the Virginia football team were made available to to the media after practice on Tuesday morning to talk about the regular season finale against Virginia Tech in the Commonwealth Clash on Saturday night in Blacksburg. Watch the video below to hear what UVA senior safety Jonas Sanker, graduate tight ends Tyler Neville and Sackett Wood Jr., and graduate defensive tackle Jahmeer Carter had to say ahead of the Virginia Tech game:

Sanker is the team’s leader in tackles with 89 total tackles and also leads the ACC in solo stops with 60 unassisted tackles. He has racked up 8.5 tackles for loss, two sacks, four pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, and an interception as part of a strong senior campaign that should earn Sanker some serious consideration for a First-Team All-ACC selection.

A transfer from Harvard, Tyler Neville is Virginia’s second-leading receiver with 35 catches for 387 yards and two touchdowns. Sackett Wood Jr., meanwhile, has recorded three receptions for 18 yards and a touchdown this season. Between the two of them, Neville and Wood have combined to appear in 83 college football games and make 48 starts.

Saturday will be the 55th game in the five-year career of Jahmeer Carter, who has started nearly every game for the last four seasons at Virginia. This season, Carter has 30 total tackles, including nine solo stops, two tackles for loss, one sack, and a pass defender. For his career, Carter is up to 131 total tackles, 2.5 sacks, and 7.5 tackles for loss.

Saturday night will be the first time Virginia plays at Lane Stadium in front of fans since the 2018 season, as the 2020 edition of the Commonwealth Clash was played in front of only 250 fans due to COVID-19 restrictions and then the 2022 Virginia vs. Virginia Tech game was canceled due to the shooting tragedy at UVA.

Virginia is seeking its first road victory at Virginia Tech since 1998, as the Hokies have won the last 11 Commonwealth Clash games played at Lane Stadium. Virginia Tech has won 17 of the last 18 overall games against Virginia and leads UVA 61-38-5 in the all-time series that dates back to 1895.

Both Virginia and Virginia Tech bring a 5-6 overall record into the regular season finale and both need to win the game in order to reach the six-win threshold required for bowl eligibility. There is only one other game this weekend between FBS teams who are battling for bowl eligibility (Eastern Michigan vs. Western Michigan). Virginia and Virginia Tech played each other for bowl eligibility at the end of the 2014 season.

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Virginia

Virginia Lottery Mega Millions, Pick 3 Night results for Nov. 26, 2024

Published

16 hours ago

November 27, 2024

Press Room

The Virginia Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big. Here’s a look at Nov. 26, 2024, results for each game:

Mega Millions

Mega Millions drawings take place every week on Tuesday and Friday at 11 p.m.

05-22-24-39-42, Mega Ball: 03, Megaplier: 3

Check Mega Millions payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 3

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 7-3-0, FB: 2

Day: 7-2-1, FB: 5

Check Pick 3 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 4

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 1-6-6-8, FB: 5

Day: 7-4-5-8, FB: 4

Check Pick 4 payouts and previous drawings here.

Pick 5

DAY drawing at 1:59 p.m. NIGHT drawing at 11 p.m. each day.

Night: 0-5-4-9-9, FB: 2

Day: 6-9-5-3-2, FB: 0

Check Pick 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash4Life

Drawing everyday at 9 p.m.

04-11-13-30-39, Cash Ball: 02

Check Cash4Life payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash Pop

Drawing times: Coffee Break 9 a.m.; Lunch Break 12 p.m.; Rush Hour 5 p.m.; Prime Time 9 p.m.; After Hours 11:59 p.m.

Coffee Break: 04

After Hours: 05

Prime Time: 06

Rush Hour: 09

Lunch Break: 12

Check Cash Pop payouts and previous drawings here.

Cash 5

Drawing every day at 11 p.m.

12-22-31-38-44

Check Cash 5 payouts and previous drawings here.

Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results

This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Center for Community Journalism (CCJ) editor. You can send feedback using this form.

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