09/21/97 - 0:06AM ET - Click reload often for latest version
NCAAF FINAL 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH TOTAL --- --- --- --- ----- VIRGINIA TECH (14) 7 3 10 3 23 TEMPLE 3 7 3 0 13 FINAL
SCORING SUMMARY
1ST QTR: VTCH - TD, KEN OXENDINE 1 YD RUN (SHAYNE GRAHAM KICK), 5:43 TEMP - FG, DAVE NICHOLL 34 YD, 10:31 2ND QTR: TEMP - TD, ELMARKO JACKSON 55 YD RUN (DAVE NICHOLL KICK), 6:24 VTCH - FG, SHAYNE GRAHAM 35 YD, 14:55 3RD QTR: VTCH - TD, KEN OXENDINE 30 YD RUN (SHAYNE GRAHAM KICK), 0:24 TEMP - FG, DAVE NICHOLL 26 YD, 8:00 VTCH - FG, SHAYNE GRAHAM 44 YD, 12:06 4TH QTR: VTCH - FG, SHAYNE GRAHAM 18 YD, 14:12
NCAAF 1 2 3 4 F - - - - -- Virginia Tech (14) 7 3 10 3 23 Temple 3 7 3 0 13 FINAL
Virginia Tech-Oxendine 1 run (Graham kick) Temple-FG Nicholl 34 Temple-Jackson 55 run (Nicholl kick) Virginia Tech-FG Graham 35 Virginia Tech-Oxendine 30 run (Graham kick) Temple-FG Nicholl 26 Virginia Tech-FG Graham 44 Virginia Tech-FG Graham 18
Virginia Tech Temple First downs 19 16 Rushed-yards 47-214 43-184 Passing yards 100 119 Sacked-yards lost 2-11 3-24 Return yards 16 0 Passes 8-16-0 9-15-0 Punts 2-42.0 1-54.0 Fumbles-lost 1-0 2-2 Penalties-yards 6-49 4-30 Time of possession 30:57 29:03
Individual Statistics RUSHING: Virginia Tech-Oxendine 28-160, Ellison 2-19, Clark 8-15, Pegues 6-13, C Hawkins 3-7. Temple-Mack 15-77, Jackson 6-74, B Johnstone 4-33, Harvey 17-10, Boles 1-minus 10.
PASSING: Virginia Tech-Clark 8-16-0-100. Temple-Harvey 9-15-0-119.
RECEIVING: Virginia Tech-Scales 4-50, Harrison 2-21, Stuewe 1-28, C Hawkins 1-1. Temple-Jackson 4-19, Kersey 3-41, Walker 1-44, Carter 1-15.
Att: 12,056
GAME RECAPKen Oxendine ran for ran for 160 yards and two touchdowns as 14th-ranked Virginia Tech watched Temple self-destruct down the stretch in a hard-fought 23-13 win that determined the Big East leader.
Virginia Tech (3-0, 3-0 Big East) has sole possession of first place in the Big East Conference, ahead of 1-0 Pittsburgh. The other six teams already have at least one conference defeat. The Hokies are 3-0 in the Big East for the first time since the league was formed.
"Three-and-0 in the conference; we got a couple of non-conference games now to hopefully get a little better," said Virginia Tech coach Frank Beamer. "Some people might have said we were as good as we needed to be last week. Well, I think we showed tonight we're not nearly as good as we need to be."
Temple (1-3, 1-1) was trying to win consecutive Big East games for the first time ever and was looking for its first back-to-back wins of any kind since running off three straight victories to end the 1990 season.
"It's a tough, tough loss," said Temple coach Ron Dickerson. "Our kids played better than they have the entire five years that I have been here. But we still came up on the short end of the stick. I have been saying all along that this is a different football team, that it's a much better football team, a much improved football team. They believe it. That's the key: that they believe in themselves, that they can play with anybody. They showed that out there."
The Owls fell to 2-9 all-time against Virginia Tech, including losses in all six conference matchups.
"The mood is a little down right now," Dickerson said. "They gave everything that they could give, their whole heart and soul. I think we've crossed that threshold where now our kids believe that they can compete with nearly anybody. It's a good feeling. We felt we could have won but that's the great thing about college footbal -- there's always a next one."
In the fourth quarter with the Hokies holding a 20-13 lead, Temple drove to the Virginia Tech 25-yard line. Kevin Harvey threw a seven-yard pass to Elmarko Jackson, who fumbled it away to Keion Carpenter with 12:39 left.
The Hokies went three-and-out on that possession and the Owls got the ball back at the Virginia Tech 44, driving to the 6 before Stacey Mack, who had run three times for 24 yards on the march, lost a fumble with 8:02 remaining.
Oxendine made Temple pay, carrying seven times for 44 yards to key a 14-play, 94-yard drive that culminated in an 18-yard field goal by Shayne Graham that made it 23-13.
"He was running and trying to pick up some extra yardage, and you could tell we were relying on him," Beamer said. "When it gets down tight, you'd better go with your horse and he's our horse."
On the drive, Virginia Tech had a 3rd-and-8 from the Temple 33 and Al Clark threw a 28-yard pass to Michael Stuewe, keeping the drive going. Clark was 8-of-16 for 100 yards and was limited to 15 yards on eight carries.
"I don't think we played great, but I felt like in the fourth quarter we found a way to win," said Beamer. "Our defense got a couple of turnovers, the offense took the ball back down the field and got that field goal, and to me at that point, a field goal was as good as a touchdown."
Mack finished with 77 yards on 15 carries.
Temple went into halftime ties at 10 but allowed Shawn Scales to return the second-half kickoff 65 yards to the Owls 30. Oxendine ran it in on the next play to make it 17-10 just 24 seconds in.
Temple responded with a 14-play, 77-yard drive that was capped by a 26-yard field goal by Dave Nicholl with seven minutes left that made it 17-13. Harvey threw a 44-yard pass to Kevin Walker, who made the catch off a deflection, on a 2nd-and-22 to bring the ball to the Hokies 21.
The Owls could not stop Virginia Tech on the next possession, allowing a 10-play, 56-yard drive, with Oxendine running three times for 33 yards, over the next four minutes. Graham capped it with a 44-yard field goal with 2:54 left in the third.
Graham kicked a 35-yarder with five seconds left in the first half. Jackson scored on a 55-yard run with 8:36 left in the second quarter as Temple assumed a 10-7 lead.
"Those backs are big-time backs," Beamer said of Mack and Jackson, who combined for 151 yards on the ground. "Those guys could flat run -- they got a good burst to them."
Oxendine scored on a one-yard run 5:43 into the game and Nicholl got Temple on the board just under five minutes later with a 34-yard field goal. Oxendine's first touchdown was set up when Temple punter Josh Boles was tackled at his own 18.
Harvey was 9-of-15 for 119 yards and was not intercepted.