College football

'Canes stick it to Vick

NO. 5 MIAMI 27, NO. 3 VIRGINIA TECH 7: Miami wrecks the Hokies' unbeaten season by harassing their QB into one of his worst performances.

By BOB HARIG
Published November 6, 2005

	[AP photo]
	Marcus Vick's pass flies past Virginia Tech split end Justin Harper as Miami's Kenny Phillips takes him down in the first half. The Hurricanes were called for a penalty on the play.

BLACKSBURG, Va. - Back in the day, when the Miami Hurricanes were the bad boys of college football, they relished this type of atmosphere, reveling in the venom spewed by fire-breathing fanatics fortified for the occasion.

They used the bitterness to bolster them. They fed off the home crowd's intensity. And they turned the cheers to jeers, leaving somberness in their wake.

That was the case again Saturday night.

In what was billed as the biggest game in Lane Stadium history, UM spoiled the party, knocking Virginia Tech from the ranks of the unbeaten with a 27-7 victory that renewed national title hopes in Coral Gables.

Before more then 65,115 fans, the No. 5 Hurricanes improved to 7-1 overall and 4-1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference, where they control their destiny in the Coastal Division and can earn a rematch with Florida State in the ACC title game on Dec. 3. It was a far different feeling than last year, when the Hurricanes were defeated 16-10 by the Hokies at the Orange Bowl, blowing a shot at the ACC title. And it was considerably different than two years ago, when the Hurricanes left here 31-7 losers.

"Any time you're counted out, it doesn't matter what you do, it's going to get you going," said UM quarterback Kyle Wright, who completed 13 of 22 passes for 146 yards and a touchdown. "We played with a chip on our shoulders. I felt if we played like we should, that we'd beat them. We came out and played awesome."

The Hurricanes had heard all week how the third-ranked Hokies (8-1, 5-1) "owned" them, how they had won seven of the past 10, four of the past five at Lane Stadium.

They heard the talk that the Hokies could be denied a national championship shot if they remained undefeated and No. 1 USC and No. 2 Texas won out. They thought, what about us?

And they heard all about Marcus Vick, the Tech quarterback who was following in older brother Michael's footsteps, expected to stomp all over them on his way to the NFL.

But Vick had a horrific night, throwing two interceptions and fumbling four times, one that was recovered by UM tackle Kareem Brown in the end zone for a stunning 27-0 lead in the third quarter. Vick got the Hokies on the scoreboard with a 2-yard run with 8:06 left, when it was way too late. He completed 8 of 22 for 90 yards.

"I think we did have a little edge," UM coach Larry Coker said. "People didn't give us much of a chance to win here. They were at home and we were the underdog. But we didn't feel like the underdog."

Both teams entered with top-notch defenses, but the Hurricanes were able to exploit Tech with two time-consuming drives that seemed to take the starch out of the crowd and the Hokies.

And they did it without starting tailback Tyrone Moss, who left in the second quarter with a knee sprain; kick returner and cornerback Devin Hester, who left with a hamstring injury; and, for a time, Wright, who got knocked out for several series during the second quarter after a blow to the head.

No matter.

Tailback Charlie Jones rushed for 97 yards on 24 carries (the Hokies had allowed only three rushers to get 60 yards all season) and a touchdown. Wright returned to manage the offense, throwing a 9-yard touchdown to Darnell Jenkins. And the defense hardly missed Hester, limiting the Hokies to 167 yards.

"It was a tremendous effort by our defense," Coker said. "They were very aggressive."

The Hokies could never get going. Vick completed 1 of 10 passes for 6 yards in the first half, and his fumble set up a 27-yard Jon Peattie field goal in the first quarter.

Tech had the No. 1 scoring defense in the country, allowing an average of 9.1 points. But it let the Hurricanes put together a 17-play, 82-yard, drive in 8:18 for a touchdown despite Moss and Wright being knocked out during the series. Jones scored on fourth and 1, giving UM a 10-0 lead that it took to halftime.

And when the Hurricanes opened the third quarter with a 12-play, 73-yard drive that ended in Peattie's 24-yard field goal, they had a 13-0 lead and control. "No one thinks we're going to win," UM assistant Art Kehoe said before the game. "We're a team that's won 63 out of their last 71, yet no one in America picks us to win. Do you find that kind of unimaginable?"

Late Saturday night, a bunch of Hokies were just as incredulous.

[Last modified November 6, 2005, 02:02:18]