Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: SUNDAY, October 22, 1995 TAG: 9510230055
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: JACK BOGACZYK
DATELINE: PISCATAWAY, N.J. LENGTH: Medium
Maybe that's why Virginia Tech has been successful when others in the same standing have done anything but prosper.
``It seems like about every week we play in the rain,'' said Tech defensive tackle J.C. Price on another soggy Saturday. ``This time was about as bad as it's been. It was a swamp out there.''
It also was as good as any visit to Rutgers has been for the Hokies. Tech slogged to a 45-17 victory, and with a 5-2 record all but assured itself of a bowl bid for an unprecedented third straight season.
It isn't just because the Hokies have a five-game winning streak, a high in coach Frank Beamer's nine seasons on the sidelines at his alma mater, and the longest string of success on the field for Tech since the 1967 club started 7-0.
It also doesn't have much to do with whom the Hokies still must play. Although Tech has tough assignments left with West Virginia, Syracuse and Virginia, a bowl-qualifying sixth win over awful Temple at RFK Stadium next month will be enough to spend the holidays bowling.
The Big East has four bowl bids and filling them all will be a stretch. In the eight-team league, Temple and Pitt are already eliminated from bowl contention. Rutgers and Boston College must win the rest of their games. WVU and Miami can afford no more than one more loss each, and the once-potent Hurricanes only squeezed past Pitt on Saturday.
Seton Hall and Providence have as good a chance at Big East bowl spots as some of the aforementioned teams. And those two don't play football.
Tech and league-leading Syracuse (6-1), which rests Saturday before visiting Lane Stadium on Nov.4, are the only Big East teams with overall winning records. The league is a miserable 9-19 in non-conference play.
The Hokies dominated Rutgers, where coach Doug Graber's days are down to about five weeks. Considering the weather conditions and the first-half absence of hospitalized offensive coordinator Rickey Bustle, Tech showed it perhaps has found the steady play that has been elusive this season.
The Hokies drowned what had been a very good Rutgers running game and scored two defensive touchdowns. However, with the wind howling and rain pouring enough to create 22,019 no-shows on homecoming, another fact was the difference in this game.
In building a 31-10 lead through three quarters, Tech didn't commit a turnover, nor have a penalty. Then, the Hokies weren't satisfied just to hold off a team that has rallied Tech into defeat or worry the previous three years.
``I don't think we've really been that consistent, until the last two weeks,'' said Price, the senior lineman who arguably has been Tech's best player this season. ``Until the last two games, we hadn't really put together what we want to do on two sides of the ball.
``We still have to win six games [to reach a bowl]. We've got five. We have to be consistent for more than two weeks. I still think we have a lot of work to do.
``I haven't really kept up much with the rest of the league, because we've spent a lot of time trying to put it together.''
The Hokies' defense continues to play as well as a unit with 10 returning starters was expected to perform. The offense has improved as first-year starting quarterback Jim Druckenmiller has matured into his role.
So, it's come down to this for the Hokies. They can go to the Orange or Sugar, or Gator, Carquest or Liberty bowls. However, they must do what Beamer said his team did Saturday in what previously had been a frustrating final quarter against the Scarlet Knights.
``We just have to keep playing,'' he said.
by CNB