Georgia Tech (15)........ 0 0 7 0 - 7
Virginia Tech (4)........ 14 10 24 3 - 51
Scoring Summary:
1st Quarter
08:58 VT - Jeff King 13 yd pass from Marcus Vick (Pace kick)
03:50 VT - D.J. Parker 78 yd blocked FG return (Pace kick)
2nd Quarter
09:55 VT - Brandon Pace 40 yd FG
02:40 VT - Mike Imoh 7 yd run (Pace kick)
3rd Quarter
11:52 VT - Cedric Humes 4 yd run (Pace kick)
05:38 GT - Calvin Johnson 11 yd pass from Reggie Ball (Bell kick)
02:13 VT - Pace 29 yd FG
01:55 VT - Xavier Adibi 25 yd interception return (Pace kick)
01:29 VT - Chris Ellis 29 yd interception return (Pace kick)
4th Quarter
10:18 VT - Pace 25 yd FG
Blacksburg, VA–#4 Virginia Tech scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams as the Hokies Beamerballed #15 Georgia Tech en route to a 51-7 blowout victory in Blacksburg. VT is now 4-0 overall and 3-0 in ACC play. Georgia Tech drops to 3-1 overall and 1-1 in the ACC.
Marcus Vick picked apart the Yellow Jacket secondary, hitting 13 of 18 passes for 223 yards and one touchdown. Vick did not have a turnover in the game. For the season, Vick has completed 63.5% of his passes for 703 yards, seven touchdowns and just one interception. Through four games the Hokies have only one turnover.
As he has done throughout the season, Vick spread the ball among a lot of targets, completing passes to six different receivers during the game. David Clowney had three catches for 47 yards, while Jeff King caught three passes for 46 yards and a touchdown.
The Hokies didn’t put up big numbers in the running game, but Mike Imoh and Cedric Humes were efficient. Imoh had 11 carries for 55 yards and a touchdown, while Humes had 37 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown.
The Virginia Tech defense was outstanding once again, allowing just 217 yards of total offense. 123 of those yards came from All-American wide receiver Calvin Johnson, who hauled in five receptions and a touchdown. The Hokie defense allowed only six first downs, sacked Reggie Ball twice, and returned two interceptions for touchdowns on back-to-back possessions.
The Hokies were able to take control of the game in the first half because they won the field position battle. Georgia Tech’s first half drives began from their own 20, 20, 20, 32, 1, 10, 20. 20 and 38. Meanwhile, the Hokies were able to start in Georgia Tech territory twice and at the 50 once. Virginia Tech kickers Jared Develli and Jud Dunlevy accounted for five touchbacks, and Nic Schmitt averaged 49.2 yards per punt, with one downed at the one yard line.
Recap
Virginia Tech got the scoring going on their second drive of the game. Georgia Tech punter Ben Arndt hooked a 30 yard punt that went out of bounds at the 50 yard line, and the Hokies would take advantage of the short field. Vick hit David Clowney on a 31 yard corner route that took the Hokies to the Georgia Tech 15 yard line. After a two yard run by Mike Imoh, Vick found tight end Jeff King for a 13 yard touchdown pass to make the score 7-0 Hokies. It was Jeff King’s ninth touchdown reception of his career, the most ever by a Virginia Tech tight end.
Georgia Tech moved the ball well on their next possession, with tailback P.J. Daniels breaking a 29 yard run up the middle. Calvin Johnson had two receptions for 33 yards on the drive. After the drive stall at the Virginia Tech 18 yard line, the Yellow Jackets lined up for a field goal attempt that would have made the score 7-3. However Jeff King blocked the kick and the ball bounced toward the sideline, where D.J. Parker picked it up and returned it 78 yards for a touchdown. It was a ten point turnaround that made the score 14-0 Hokies with 3:50 remaining in the first quarter.
The Hokies began their first possession of the second quarter on the Georgia Tech 31 yard line following a personal foul penalty on the Yellow Jackets. However, the drive stalled when Vick was sacked on the 23 yard line. Virginia Tech would settle for a 40 yard field goal from Brandon Pace, making the score 17-0 Hokies with 9:55 left in the second quarter.
With 4:29 remaining in the first half, the Hokies took over on their own 34 yard line. Vick was very sharp during the drive, first connecting with Josh Hyman for a 17 yard gain to Georgia Tech 49. He then hit Jeff King for a 13 yard gain, and followed that up with a 20 yard strike to Justin Harper. Mike Imoh would cover the rest of the distance to the goal line, carrying the ball twice for 16 yards and capping the drive with a seven yard touchdown run. With the score 24-0 Hokies heading into halftime, the rout was on.
Virginia Tech got the ball first to start the second half, and responded with a 75 yard touchdown drive that took just 3:08 off the game clock. The key play on the drive came on a 42 yard pass to sophomore receiver Eddie Royal, who made a Georgia Tech defender miss on an electrifying spin move. Cedric Humes finished the drive with a four yard touchdown run that made the score 31-0 Virginia Tech.
The Yellow Jackets would finally get on the scoreboard later in the quarter. Facing third and 14 from their own 30 yard line, Reggie Ball threw up a deep pass to Calvin Johnson, who made a leaping catch over Virginia Tech free safety Justin Hamilton for a 59 yard gain. Ball later connected with Johnson on a fade route for an 11 yard touchdown with 5:38 remaining in the third quarter, making the score 31-7 Hokies.
That would be the only offense that Georgia Tech could muster during the game. The Hokies took over on the Georgia Tech 42 on the next possession following a 15 yard face mask penalty on the Yellow Jackets. Virginia Tech couldn’t punch the ball into the end zone, but did get a 29 yard field goal from Brandon Pace to make the score 34-7.
After the kickoff, Georgia Tech took over on their own 16 yard line. Reggie Ball attempted to get the ball to Calvin Johnson on a slant pattern, but Hokie linebacker Xavier Adibi stepped in front of Johnson and picked off the pass, which he returned 25 yards for a touchdown. After the Pace extra point, the Hokies led 41-7.
Things did get any better for Ball on the next Georgia Tech possession. On the second play of the drive, Virginia Tech defensive end Chris Ellis dropped back into coverage and intercepted Ball’s pass, returning it 29 yards for a touchdown. The Tech defense had scored two touchdowns in a span of three offensive plays and just 26 seconds. It was now 48-7 Tech with 1:29 remaining in the third quarter.
Virginia Tech played their backups for the majority of the fourth quarter and managed only a field goal with 10:18 remaining in the game to end the scoring.
After a successful two game stretch at home, the Hokies will travel to Morgantown, WV next Saturday to take on the undefeated West Virginia Mountaineers. Kickoff is scheduled for noon and the game will be televised by ESPN.
STATISTICS
VT GT
---- ----
First downs 15 6
Rushed-yards 44-97 25-74
Passing yards 223 143
Sacked-yards lost 3-17 2-11
Return yards 85 113
Passes 13-22-0 13-32-2
Punts 6-49.2 11-42.2
Fumbles-lost 2-0 1-1
Penalties-yards 5-35 9-75
Time of possession 30:55 29:05
Att: 65,115
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
RUSHING-Virginia Tech, Imoh 11-55, Humes 12-37, Bell 4-15,
Ore 6-11, Vick 7-0, Holt 1-(-4), Schmitt 1-(-13), Team 2-(-4).
Georgia Tech, Daniels 10-48, Choice 9-29, Grant 3-8, Ball 3-(-11).
PASSING-Virginia Tech, Vick 13-18-223-0, Holt 0-4-0-0.
Georgia Tech,Ball 11-27-143-2, Bennett 2-5-6-0.
RECEIVING-Virginia Tech, Clowney 3-47, King 3-46, Hyman 2-52,
Royal 2-44, Morgan 2-14, Harper 1-20. Georgia Tech, Johnson 5-123,
Cox 3-6, Clark 3-4, Choice 1-6, Matthews 1-4.
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