The team was 0-3. The head coach had “interim” in front of his title, as the previous one had just been dismissed. A dozen players were not participating because of either injury or an intent to go into the transfer portal.
Plus the game was a noon start under hot, humid conditions.
Not exactly a recipe for high expectations.
I’m not going to lie and tell you Saturday’s 38-6 win over Wofford righted the ship, and now it’s onward and upward for the rest of the season. There are still a lot of problems in Blacksburg.
But like a golfer struggling all day, the win was like a birdie putt on No. 18. It made you smile, made you realize you still love the game, and it gave you enough of a good feeling to say “I’ll be back next week.”
The star of the show was the fanbase. They had every reason after the past week of turmoil to just stay home. But like forgiving grandparents, they made their displeasure known all week, then got in the car, thought “don’t make me regret this,” then showed up to support the family.
It was a slow arriving crowd, but by the midway point of the first period, the stands were full of white-clad Hokies (the game was a white-out) who wanted to make sure any potential new coach understood the Hokie fanbase was part of the deal.
If we can come out in these numbers when the team is 0-3 and playing a lesser name school like Wofford, they seemed to be saying, imagine what we’ll do if you come here and get us winning again.
The team responded to not only the warm atmosphere but whatever was going on during the week with interim head coach Philip Montgomery trying to hold the group together. In the last two weeks I’ve wanted to scream at the television “you guys have to be somewhere else?” as they played with a certain sense of disinterest.
That wasn’t the case Saturday. Even though some of the players are undoubtedly going to be taking advantage of a 30-day transfer portal open to everybody because of the replacement of a head coach, the team seemed to play with discipline and energy. If someone was just coasting, I didn’t notice it.
Due to this unique situation, everybody who wanted to seemed to get a chance to play. Those that did looked like they wanted to be in Blacksburg. Quarterback Kyron Drones looked comfortable for a change, scoring 4 touchdowns and throwing for over 300 yards. Marcellous Hawkins had a nice game on the ground, running for 82 yards, and P.J. Prioleau caught 7 passes out of the backfield for 65 yards, prompting many a Hokie fan to think “where has this guy been and why haven’t we used him more?”
But in going down the stat sheet, there was a single line that made my heart feel good.
It was on the defensive stat sheet showing Gabe Williams with one solo tackle.
Gabe, if you don’t remember, was one of Virginia Tech’s more vocal recruits, encouraging area players to come give the Hokies a look the last time the program was in transition. He’s a very likeable young man, and an easy fan-favorite.
But last year his world came crashing down. In a November game against Clemson he suffered a season-ending injury so severe an ambulance had to come on the field to take Gabe to a local hospital. Seeing all this from the stands, his father suffered a stroke and brain aneurysm, and passed away after the game.
His first time back on the field since all of that tragedy was that solo tackle.
There are probably a dozen reasons you can give for why the win was relatively meaningless, given the caliber of the competition. And because of the last three weeks if you’re a fan, the win doesn’t really affect your remaining expectations for the entire season. It’s already gone. They’ve dug a hole way too deep to have any hopes of a successful year.
But as a fan, you can look forward to a few bright moments here and there.
By that measure, Saturday was one of those bright – and needed – moments.
I did not know this about Gabe. That made me happy!