Third Quarter Pushes VT Past Herd 41-14
By Grant TraylorHuntington News Network Sportswriter
Blacksburg, VA (HNN) —Virginia Tech scored 17 points during a three-minute span of the second half to seize momentum and defeat Marshall 41-14 at Lane Stadium Saturday, Oct. 8, 2005.
The third quarter has been a thorn in Marshall’s side for much of the season and Saturday proved to be no different as the Hokies took full advantage of Marshall miscues in building an insurmountable lead.
After leading 14-7 at the half, the Hokies received the second half kickoff and took it right at Marshall, ripping off huge chunks of yardage on the ground.
“That was a very pivotal series for us,” Snyder said. “We took the wind (at halftime) and we needed a defensive stop, but we couldn’t stop the rush when we needed to.”
It appeared that the Hokies were going to waltz in for an easy score, but the defense tightened, aided by Chris Royal’s pass breakup in the end zone on a third down pass from the Marshall 2-yard line. The Hokies settled for a field goal and it seemed that Marshall had gotten some momentum.
That momentum shifted to the Hokies for good just 40 seconds later with quarterback Bernie Morris getting stripped. The football floated into the air and found the waiting arms of Vince Hall, who caught it in stride and raced into the end zone to give Virginia Tech a 24-7 lead with four minutes gone in the second half.
“We wanted to see if we could play field position with them,” Snyder said. “They ran down our throat, we come back and turn the ball over and that changed the momentum in the game.”
After Marshall was forced to punt, Virginia Tech quarterback Marcus Vick used his quick strike ability to light the scoreboard again.
Vick gave a beautiful pump fake that froze Willie Smith, allowing David Clowney to get in behind the defense and catch a 48-yard touchdown pass. Clowney’s catch capped a 78-yard drive that only took three plays.
The Hokies gained 200 yards in the third quarter while Marshall’s offense got a dismal two yards. It was a contrast to a first half that saw Marshall and Virginia Tech virtually even with the teams being separated by only six yards (155-149).
Marshall had an impressive first half, leading the statistical column for much of the opening half.
Virginia Tech took the lead with 5:09 left in the half when Brandon Ore took a handoff over the right edge for a 13-yard score. Ore had lots of success on the day, finishing with 146 yards on 19 carries. Ore also did not have a run for a loss in those 19 carries.
Snyder said there was little preparation for Ore, who is the third-string running back on the Hokie depth chart. However, he was forced into action when second-string tailback Cedric Humes went down with a broken arm early in the second quarter.
Humes was in for starter Mike Imoh, who took the week off to rest a sprained ankle. The stable of running backs behind him racked up 233 yards on 42 carries.
“I don’t care if you are playing USC, that is too much,” Snyder said. “It was a combination of things: tackling, gap responsibilities, everything.”
In contrast to the previous two weeks, Marshall also had a successful day running the football. The offensive line pushed around Virginia Tech defenders to gain 164 yards on 44 carries.
“They did great up front,” Bradshaw said. “I can’t say anything more about them. All of them kept fighting.”
“Instead of running sideways, we were running downhill,” Snyder said. “It is hard to create movement when you are running sideways. We got that done today and we need to build on that.”
Ahmad Bradshaw led the Marshall charge with 99 yards on 22 carries, including a 13-yard touchdown run that tied the game at 7 early in the second quarter.
Saturday also proved to be the emergence of Chubb Small. Small ripped off huge runs in the second half, gaining 57 yards on 14 carries. Small also caught an 18-yard touchdown from Morris for Marshall’s second touchdown on the day.
“We found ourselves another running back in Chubb Small,” Snyder said. “That was a good defense that he was rushing against and he looked like a big-time back. The thing that impressed me the most is that he was getting yards after contact. That is very exciting.”
While the running game flourished, Morris struggled on the afternoon, finishing 14-of-28 for just 117 yards with many of those coming late.
Snyder wanted to run the ball at Virginia Tech to control the clock and found success early on. However, once the Thundering Herd had to go to the air, Morris and receivers had a difficult time hooking up as the Hokies pressure, along with a loud atmosphere, made for tough communication.
“Our game plan was their game plan,” Snyder said. “Once you get behind, you have to start opening it up and doing some things you don’t want to do against a pretty good defense.”
NOTES: Royal picked off a pass from Vick off a deflection in the first half, with many Virginia Tech fans cheering him on. Marshall’s Chris Royal is the brother of Eddie Royal, a Virginia Tech receiver.
The two brothers met up in a shoving match in the second half that resulted in Chris getting a personal foul penalty. However, after the game it was ‘Congratulations’ and smiles from the duo in a midfield embrace.