Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, December 2, 1994 TAG: 9412020052
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B6 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Long
Nearly two weeks removed from their X-rated performance in a 42-23 home loss to Virginia, the Hokies view their matchup with Tennessee in the Dec.30 Outback Steakhouse Gator Bowl as a chance to hit the ``erase'' button.
``The bowl game gives us a second chance, and that's big,'' Tech senior receiver Antonio Freeman said Thursday.
``We didn't finish out well, so this gives us an opportunity to leave a better impression with ourselves and our fans. Nobody wants to go out like we did against Virginia.''
It wasn't fun. The 17th-ranked Hokies (8-3) literally self-destructed against UVa, committing eight turnovers in the untidiest of efforts.
Freeman, named second-team All-Big East on Wednesday, said the Thanksgiving break helped him and his teammates deal with the crushing loss.
``It wasn't easy, but I think the fact we got a Thanksgiving break helped a lot,'' he said. ``It gave us a chance to just get away and get our minds set right. Besides, a little bit of Mama's cooking will cure anything.
``To walk back in on Monday to school and realize that we're going to the Gator Bowl was quite a thrill.''
Tennessee is no bargain, however. After losing three of their first four games and dropping out of the Top 25 rankings, the Volunteers (7-4) closed in a hurry, winning their final four games, finishing with 52-0 and 65-0 blowouts of Kentucky and Vanderbilt.
Freeman said the Hokies can't be satisfied with simply going to a bowl for a school-record second straight year. Tech whipped Indiana 45-20 in the Independence Bowl last year.
``I think it's extremely important that we win the football game,'' Freeman said. ``This is a chance for our team to earn the respect because as a team we always talk about not getting respect around the country and we're overlooked.
``But when you think about it, it's right here in front of us right now. The opportunity to earn the respect of everyone is right there. If you beat Tennessee, you just don't beat an ordinary team, you beat an exceptional team.''
BROWN BACK: Senior inside linebacker Ken Brown, freshly selected first-team All-Big East, confirmed he will be ready for the Vols. Brown missed the UVa game due to a strained hamstring.
``I'm jogging right now and when we come back from two weeks off I'll be ready to practice full-tilt,'' Brown said.
Brown confessed it was tough to watch the UVa debacle from the sideline.
``I think I could have made a difference, but then again - eight turnovers - there's not much you can do with that. I know [the Cavaliers] wouldn't have been running all those sweeps if I had been there.
``It's so frustrating to be right there and ... you can't do anything about [helping the team]. I can't even put into words what it was like being on that sideline looking at that.''
The UVa game was the first Brown has missed since the second game of his freshman season.
``The bowl game is everything to me. I missed my last home game, so this is it. If I didn't have this game, I don't know where I'd be right now.''
Brown said he received and accepted on Tuesday an offer to play in the Hula Bowl all-star game.
FORGET THE ORANGE: The Hokies wore their all-orange uniforms against UVa, but you can wager the ranch those duds won't be flying south.
``On the players' request, we wore all orange for the UVa game,'' Tech coach Frank Beamer said. ``From the result of the [fan] letters, and I don't know if they're associating all orange with how we played against Virginia or what, but I don't know if you're going to see a lot of orange from how I stand.''
FUNNY DEAL: The Tech players found it ironic, not to mention a tad soothing, that UVa ended up in the much less lucrative Dec.28 Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La.
``It's funny,'' Freeman said, ``but we beat them last year and we go to the Independence Bowl. Now they beat us and they're going there. That says there's a penalty for winning the Tech-UVa game.''
WORKOUT SCHEDULE: Beamer said the team will practice for 90 minutes on Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.
After a break for exams, the team will practice from Dec.16-21 before breaking for Christmas. The players will return Christmas night and leave for Jacksonville, Fla., on Dec.26.
Once in Jacksonville, the Hokies will practice at Bowles School at 7400 San Jose Blvd. The first 30 minutes of each on-sight practice session will be open to the media and fans.
Due to ongoing construction at the Gator Bowl, the game will be played at the University of Florida's 83,000-seat Ben Hill Griffin Stadium, located 63 miles southwest in Gainesville.
TECH TIDBITS: The Hokies had accepted more than 5,000 ticket requests for the bowl game as of Thursday morning. ... Beamer said the only player in question physically for the game is freshman running back Marcus Parker of Salem. Parker injured his knee against Rutgers on Nov.12 and will undergo arthroscopic surgery on Monday, Beamer said. ... Tech and Tennessee have played six times before, once in Roanoke. The Vols won 18-0 in Tech's 1897 regular-season finale at the Splinter Bowl at Maher Field.
by CNB