Man, it’s been a long time since we’ve had that bowl-win feeling. It worked out that I only started watching the game when Virginia Tech got control, so I pretty much got unadulterated happiness. Don’t worry, we’re covering the whole thing today.

This game sure didn’t open with good vibes for the Hokies. In a way, though, the start was inauspicious for both squads:

This looks like a double screen, with the fast screen going to the right and the slow traditional screen going left. (The fast screen could be a decoy, but I don’t think that’s as likely.) The deep linebacker is the read key, and when he gets downhill, the ball should hit Gosnell on the fast screen. Gosnell doesn’t get his head around, though, and Drones checks back to the slow screen, which gives the mugged linebacker (arrowed) time to read the blocking and come through untouched. If there hadn’t been a miscue, the linebacker blitzes himself out of position, but with it, he makes a huge play. (Kaden Moore might look at fault here, but he’s probably told to block to his left no matter what the defense does.) It’s early in the game, but already it looks like the Hokies are intent on keying and manipulating Tulane’s linebackers.

Meanwhile, Tulane’s firing up the band, but there are echos of a similar start in the ‘23 AAC conference championship game, which they ultimately lost to SMU despite getting off to a hot start with an early sack/turnover-assisted TD. I’m betting a few Green Wave fans were wondering if history was about to repeat itself.

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