2006 Virginia Tech Football Schedule Announced

Virginia Tech’s 2006 football schedule was released on Wednesday afternoon.
It includes eight home games, four of which come in the month of September, two
Thursday night games, and four road contests against ACC opponents. The Hokies
will play 12 regular season games between September 2 and November 25. They will
have just one bye week, which will fall on October 7.

Here is a look at how the schedule shakes out.

As you can see, the recent rumor that the Hokies would be kicking off the 2006
campaign against Northeastern is true. Northeastern is a Division 1-AA team from
the Atlantic-10 that went 2-9 last year. Tech follows up the Northeastern game
by making their first road trip of the season to Chapel Hill to take on UNC.

Four of Virginia Tech’s five September games are in Blacksburg. The fifth,
at UNC, will actually be closer to some Hokie fans than a home game would be.
With the way the early season schedule sets up, Virginia Tech should be no worse
than 3-1 heading into the Georgia Tech game on September 30th.

October will be an interesting month. Tech does not play in the first week,
but must travel to Boston College for a Thursday night game on October 12. Nine
days later they will return home to face Southern Miss., the most high-profile
out-of-conference team on the schedule this season. After the game with the
Eagles, Virginia Tech will return to action just five days later when they host
the Clemson Tigers for a Thursday night game.

The Hokies will begin their November slate with their annual clash with the
Miami Hurricanes. They will then host Kent State in a rare November
out-of-conference matchup. Tech will then take a road trip to Wake Forest, which
has the potential to be a very tough game, before ending the season by defending
the Commonwealth Cup against Virginia in Blacksburg.

Virginia Tech and Florida State are the only teams in the ACC that will have eight home games
this season. The majority of the teams in the ACC are playing seven home games
and five road games. Two teams, Virginia and Wake Forest, are playing six home
games and six road games.

The 2006 schedule will be posted soon on the TSL home page and will be linked
into the Football menu bar.

Well-known color commentator and college basketball analyst Dick Vitale will
be making his first-ever trip to Blacksburg on Thursday night for the Virginia
Tech-Duke game. The game will be televised by ESPN at 7pm.

Vitale’s trip to Blacksburg is a result of the Hokies’ surprising fourth
place finish in the ACC last season, as well as their last two games against the
Blue Devils, both of which have been decided in the final seconds.

Vitale loves college basketball and big time atmospheres, and if he is
impressed with the Tech crowd, his endorsement could do Virginia Tech a lot of
good. So come to the game and make some noise. As much as Vitale is seen on
ESPN, it could help the Hokies in a big way.