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Hokies Get Another Shot at a Top 10 Team
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com

One of the bugaboos facing the Virginia Tech football team is Frank Beamer's 2-20 record against Top 10 teams at Virginia Tech. Since 1987, the Hokies have gone up against Top 10 foes 22 times, and only twice has VT been victorious: a 12-10 win over #9 WVU in October of 1989, and a 28-10 victory over #9 Texas in the 1995 Sugar Bowl.

What's even tougher to swallow is that as VT got better, their record against Top 10 teams didn't. From 1987-1992, the Hokies were 1-12 against the Top 10, and since then, during the Beamer Bowl era, the Hokies are only 1-8. As the Hokies have taken up residence in the Top 25, their ability to knock off teams ranked in the Top 10 hasn't improved.

Next week, VT takes on the Miami Hurricanes, who are idle this weekend. The Canes will be ranked #2 (their current ranking) or #1 (if Oklahoma loses to Colorado this weekend), giving the Hokies only their tenth shot at a Top 10 team in the last 11 seasons.

The Hokies beat Miami five straight times from 1995-1999, but never while Miami was in the Top 10. The Canes were ranked 17th in 1995, 18th in 1996, and 19th in 1999, and in 1997 and 1998, they were unranked.

As a matter of fact, of the 22 games played against Top 10 teams in Frank Beamer's tenure, seven of them have come against the Canes. Here's the breakdown.

The Hokies have rarely even challenged a Top 10 Miami team, though the 1987 game was tied 13-13 going into the fourth quarter, and VT almost knocked off the #1 Canes in 2001.

But for the most part, it has been blowout city, with all but one loss coming by ten points or more, and the average margin of victory being 15 points.

(continued below)

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Since 1993, among the Hokies nine games against Top 10 teams, five have come against Miami. VT's only chances to play Top 10 teams out of conference have come in bowl games, where they are 1-3. They beat #9 Texas in the Sugar (28-10), lost to #6 Nebraska in the 1996 Orange (42-21), lost to #7 UNC in the 1997 Gator (42-3), and lost to FSU in the 1999 Sugar (46-29).

Certainly, there's a mountain that Virginia Tech needs to climb when it comes to matching up with Top 10 teams. To change perceptions, the Hokies need to knock off not only a highly-ranked Miami team, but a highly-ranked out of conference team (or two), as well.

Jessica Wins! -- FINALLY

We would be remiss if we didn't follow up the last two TSLmails by telling you that VT's Jessica Clem won her round of the Athlon Spirit Contest. It was a dogfight between her and a Nebraska cheerleader, but Jessica won the never-ending contest by a margin that grew over the final day or two. The total was 30,211 to 28,509.

Though she won her round, it's not clear if Jessica will move on to the finals. The rules on the site say "the top six vote-getters" move on, not the winners of each round. We'll keep you up to date.

Click here to view the results and see Round 3

This Week in Recruiting
by Chris Horne

Here are updates in recruiting from the last week. To access these links, and for updates and information on all these players and more, subscribe to TechSideline Pass. Information on how to subscribe follows.

Virginia Tech Lands Big-Time RB
The big news of the week centers around one of the top running backs in the country. Jack Britt’s (Fayetteville, NC) George Bell committed to Virginia Tech over NC State and UNC on Wednesday night. Bell, a 5-11, 225 pound back who runs a 4.45 in the 40 yard dash, is rated a four-star prospect by Insiders.com and Rivals.com.

Deptford's Green Has Favorite
Deptford (NJ) FB/LB Mike Green lists the Hokies as his favorite school. Minnesota, Indiana, Miami (FL), Virginia, and Maryland are also under consideration. Green has yet to set up any visits and will do so after his senior season. He has offers from all favorites except for Miami and Virginia.

Howard Drawing Major Attention
Big DT Carl Howard of Matawan (NJ) indicated that Virginia Tech, Miami (FL), Rutgers, Michigan State, and NC State are the five schools he is thinking about visiting. Virginia Tech is one school he definitely will visit. All have officially offered except for Miami.

Hicks Discusses First Visit
Culpeper (VA) safety Kent Hicks enjoyed his official visit to Virginia last weekend. He may take an official visit to Virginia Tech next weekend for the Miami game. Hicks noted that playing time may be the final factor that helps him decide between UVA, VT, MD, BC, and TN.

Tech Targeting Lake Taylor Star
Purnell Sturdivant, a 5-11, 215 pound RB/LB from Lake Taylor HS in Norfolk, VA, still has Virginia Tech as his clear leader. According to Sturdivant, the Hokies are showing the most interest over NC State, UNC, Maryland, and Syracuse. He has received scholarship offers from all of those schools.

Highland Springs Building Great Program
A feature on one of Central Virginia’s top high school football teams. Scott Burton is developing an excellent program, both on and off the field, in just five years as head coach. Virginia Tech and UVA have offered junior tailback/cornerback Victor "Macho" Harris.

Two Schools Stand Out to D'Imperio
Washington Township (NJ) linebacker Hugh D’Imperio likes Virginia Tech and Michigan State as his top two. He will take an official to MSU on December 12^th. He has one scheduled for VT on December 5^th, however that may be pushed back if his team makes the state championship.

Trautwein Talks Recruiting
Mammoth 6-7, 300 pound OL prospect Phil Trautwein of Eastern Regional High School (Voorhees, NJ), says Michigan State is his favorite over Boston College, Iowa, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Tennessee, Rutgers, and Maryland. He has taken an official visit to Michigan State and has set up trips to BC (Nov 7^th) and Iowa (Dec 12^th). He’s hoping to take an unofficial to Virginia Tech for the Miami game next weekend.

Sintim Discusses Five Favorites
Sintim names UVA, Virginia Tech, and Maryland as his top three but says he will visit Tennessee and Ohio State as well. He’ll take all five visits before making a decision. Sintim is a 6-3, 247 pound DE prospect from Gar-Field HS in Woodbridge, VA.

Hermitage Linebacker Likes Three
Hard-hitting linebacker Andrew Bowman likes Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Tennessee right now over Purdue and North Carolina. He wants to make all five official visits. He has scheduled officials to UVA on November 29^th and Virginia Tech on December 12^th.

Bradshaw Keeping Options Open
Talented Graham (Bluefield, VA) running back/defensive back Ahmad Bradshaw enjoyed his unofficial visit to UVA for the FSU game. He has scholarship offers from Virginia, West Virginia, and Maryland, and is considering Virginia Tech and Tennessee as well.

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-- Will Stewart

2003 West Virginia Game Analysis
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com, 10/23/03, 11:55 pm
I'm not going to grab a shovel and start throwing dirt on this season just yet, but this game reactivated the fears and failures of recent seasons and even activated a few new worries. It wasn't so much that the Hokies lost; it was the way they came completely and totally unglued in the face of adversity, from the coaching staff all the way down through the entire roster of players.
in TSL Pass

Great Expectations
by Jim Alderson, 10/23/03, 2:55 pm
The problem with great expectations is that they tend to produce great expectations. Once again, the expectations surrounding the Virginia Tech football program have proven to be false expectations, as once again, a Tech team accompanied by enormous media hype crashed and burned in what has become a hallmark of the Tech program, a loss to an unranked double-digit underdog. This one seems to hurt worse than the others.
in TSL Pass

Wide Right: Move the Practice
by Jeff Cockey, 10/23/03, 9:35 am
It’s 11:41 Wednesday night, and if this makes any sense, I am just too emotionally exhausted to sleep. I have no idea what I’m going to write. This one is completely off the cuff. Frankly I don’t know if I’m even going to send it in but I feel compelled to commiserate. I don’t have a humorous bone in my body right now. There was absolutely nothing funny about our performance tonight. We were out-played, out-hustled, out-coached, and out-classed, by West Virginia. And now we are out of the Sugar.
in Voice of the Fan

Hokies Unravel in Mo-Town, 28-7
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com, 10/23/03, 12:50 am
Morgantown, WV - Virginia Tech went to Mountaineer Field and came completely unglued, falling 28-7 to West Virginia in a game -- as the old saying goes -- that wasn't even that close. In the process, the Hokies turned the ball over four times, committed 13 penalties for 116 yards, and generally lost their composure.
in Football

Beerman's Picks
by Ben Shapiro, 10/22/03, 1:25 am
This Week: Wednesday night games.  Just one more reason to be glad that we are rid of the Big East.
in Voice of the Fan

Hokies Look to Develop Depth
by Tom Stecher, 10/22/03, 9:40 am
With the recent squeezing of the Syracuse Orangemen, Virginia Tech has now opened up five consecutive seasons by going 6-0. 1999 and 2000 were seasons that all Hokies will never forget: runner-up national champions, Gator Bowl champions, and final rankings in the top 6. However the last two years, Tech faltered down the stretch. Will this year’s edition head for the promised land of another New Year’s Day bowl game, or will another meltdown occur, dooming Tech to holiday destinations of lower tier bowls in Phoenix, Charlotte, or San Francisco?
in Voice of the Fan

Hokie Hotline Notes for October 20, 2003
by Wayne Clevenger, 10/21/03, 10:40 pm
Bill Roth kicked off the broadcast with the following announcements: The University of Miami has filed law suits against Big East members Pitt, Rutgers, WVU and UCONN (not SU or VT). Details of these law suits will be discussed later in Jim Weaver’s segment of the show. The first BCS rankings have VT at #3. WVU officials have announced that those attending the game Wednesday night cannot park around the stadium until after 5 pm.
in Hokie Hotline Notes

Game Preview: #3 Virginia Tech at West Virginia
by Jeff Ouellet, 10/21/03, 1:15 am
Over Columbus Day weekend I was attending a wedding in Tucson with 40 or so Hokies in attendance. After the ceremony one of the attendees, a longtime friend of the groom, encouraged him to bust a move on the dance floor by uttering what became the weekend mantra for all of us: "Show ‘em what I know."
in Football

Otis and the Moon Rakers
by Rick Casey, 10/20/03, 10:55 pm
I guess in the back of my mind I knew that West Virginia running back Quincy Wilson was the son of former Louisville and Chicago Bears linebacker Otis Wilson. Not until the camera panned the stands during the West Virginia versus Miami game a couple of weeks ago to show the senior Wilson, did the memories come back.
in Voice of the Fan

Wide Right: Going Postal
by Jeff Cockey, 10/20/03, 3:30 pm
Over the months, Wide Right has drummed up a lot of reader response - on the message boards as well as off. When I first started this column I made some extremely off-base predictions (Lee Suggs would be picked higher than Willis MaGahee in the draft) and may have gone a little overboard comparing Wake Forest to Temple, but if I hadn’t written such asinine things, I wouldn’t have received such colorful responses.
in TSL Pass

BCS Standings Due Out Today; Hokies Projected #3
by Will Stewart, TechSideline.com, 10/20/03, 12:45 am
It's hard to believe, but it's already that time: the initial 2003-04 BCS Rankings are due out today, and ESPN.com's Brad Edwards said late Sunday night that the Hokies are projected to be #3 in the standings.
in News and Notes