2008 ORANGE BOWL GUIDE - HokieSports

2008 ORANGE BOWL GUIDE
2007 REVIEW
Quarterback Sean Glennon
probably summed it up best in
the week leading up to the ACC
Championship game.
“What’s done is done,” the
redshirt-junior signal caller said.
“Right now, our ideal situation is
to win the [ACC] championship
and go to the Orange Bowl. I’ll
take that any day. Obviously a
national title would be nice, but if
you had told us before the season
started that we could go to the
Orange Bowl, I would definitely
not have complained.”
While it’s tempting to think
about what might have been had
Boston College’s Matt Ryan not
shattered the Hokies’ hopes back
on Oct. 25 – you do the math …
Tech finished third in the BCS
standings even with that gutwrenching
loss on its résumé – it
can’t be overstated how much
of a success a season filled with
adversity turned out to be.
From the pressures of
bringing a community back
together following the tragedy of
April 16, to key injuries of starters
Ed Wang, Ryan Shuman, Vince Hall
and Sam Wheeler, to the earlyseason
woes of the offense that
saw it ranked in the triple digits
of several statistical categories,
the Hokies had plenty to
overcome. But when all was said
and done, Tech had put together
its fourth-straight 10-win season
Hokies Have Chance To Set
School Record for Wins in Miami
with an 11-2 record, captured its
second ACC championship in four
years, and earned its first BCS
bowl invitation since the 2004
season.
Not only that, but the onceanemic
offense enters the bowl
Victor “Macho” Harris successfully dove into the end zone following a 17-yard
interception return against ECU, the first of eight non-offensive touchdowns
scored by the Hokies this season – with five coming off of interceptions.
6 VIRGINIA TECH FOOTBALL 2007
All-Americans Xavier Adibi (11) and Brandon Flowers (18) swallowed up opposing offenses all season long, combining for
187 tackles and helping the Tech defense rank No. 2 in the nation with 15.5 points allowed per game.
game averaging 34.8 points and
392.8 yards of offense per game
over the last five contests, thanks
largely in part to the two-headed
quarterback system implemented
between Glennon and freshman
Tyrod Taylor. The defense was up
to its old tricks as well, ranking
second in the nation in scoring
defense (15.5 points per game)
and fifth in both total defense
(293.31 yards per game) and
rushing defense (86 yards per
game).
It all began with one of the
most significant events in Hokie
history – the season opener in
Lane Stadium on Sept. 1. The
matchup with East Carolina was
much more than a football game
– it served as arguably the biggest
step in a return to normalcy for
the Virginia Tech community
following the events of April 16,
allowing Hokies from all over the
chance to come to Blacksburg
not only to watch football, but
to be with each other and be
Hokies again. Head coach Frank
Beamer and his crew gave the
Tech faithful plenty to cheer
about, knocking off the pesky
Pirates by a score of 17-7 after a
17-yard interception return for a
touchdown by cornerback Victor
Harris and a 21-yard scoring catch
by Wheeler.
The Hokies’ high spirits were
quickly brought back down to
earth the next week in Baton
Rouge, as Tech got throttled
48-7 by the No. 2 LSU Tigers,
who racked up an astonishing
598 yards of offense against
the Hokies’ vaunted defense.
The Hokies managed just 149
yards, and after falling behind
24-0 midway through the second
quarter, Glennon was benched in
favor of the mobile Taylor, who
made his collegiate debut just
before halftime. He would score
Tech’s lone touchdown on a 1-yard
run in the third quarter.
Glennon essentially lost his
job after giving way to Taylor, and
the talented freshman went on to
lead the Hokies to four straight
victories, beginning with a 28-7
beating of Ohio at Lane Stadium