THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, November 20, 1994 TAG: 9411200194
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE CARLSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Frank Beamer said it was one of those quirks anyone who has ever played sports can relate to: You think you're ready to perform at the highest level, but instead you get leveled.
``If you're a golfer, you're hitting 'em in the woods, and we hit a bunch in the woods today,'' Beamer said.
The Hokies could have used a few mulligans Saturday. They put almost three sleeves of balls into the timber and didn't have the luxury of marking an ``X'' on their scorecard.
No. 14 Virginia Tech's 42-23 loss to No. 16 Virginia at Lane Stadium can be summed up with two key stats.
The Hokies turned the ball over eight times, and Virginia scored 29 of its points off Tech turnovers. The last time Tech had more was when it turned it over nine times against Virginia in 1957.
``I think the Cowboys would lose to Temple if they turned it over eight times,'' Virginia Tech offensive guard Chris Malone said. ``They've got a good defense, but I think we made them look better than they are.''
Quite often Saturday, Tech resembled Temple more than it did a bowl team. But at 8-3, the Hokies are definitely going to a bowl, even though it may not be as good a one as they had hoped.
``I'd say we'll probably be in (the Carquest),'' Hokies athletic director Dave Braine said. Tech would meet a fifth team from the Southeastern Conference, likely to be 6-5 South Carolina, in the Jan. 2 game at Joe Robbie Stadium.
But the Big East bowl picture was severely muddied Saturday by Boston College's loss to West Virginia, dropping the Eagles to 6-3-1. Braine said that if Boston College loses its finale Saturday at Miami and Syracuse (7-3) falters at West Virginia on Thanksgiving Day, ``then we're going to end up No. 2.'' That would mean Tech could go to the Gator or Sun, the second-tier coalition bowls.
But that didn't allay the Hokies' somber mood.
``It's no consolation at all,'' tight end Kevin Martin said. ``You have to be prepared to play a top 20 team, and we had too many critical errors.''
The bulk of the errors were by Tech quarterback Maurice DeShazo, who threw five interceptions, was credited for a fumble on a bad pitch and threw another interception on a two-point conversion try, although that doesn't count in the statistics.
``I feel real bad for him,'' Martin said. ``I love Maurice to death. I didn't want to end our last game at Lane Stadium like that.''
For DeShazo, it was a bitter ending to a disappointing year. He finished his senior season with 13 touchdown passes and 13 interceptions. In his last two games against Virginia at Lane Stadium, he's been intercepted nine times.
``It was very disappointing because it was my last game here,'' DeShazo said. ``I wanted to go out in style.''
Virginia earned style points on a couple of pickoffs. Joe Crocker made one while flat on his back; Percy Ellsworth made one while on his knees. Both passes went through Tech receiver Antonio Freeman's hands.
``They were really my fault,'' Freeman said.
Beamer said the coaches talked about pulling DeShazo at one point, but decided against it.
``You write this one down,'' Beamer told reporters, ``Maurice DeShazo has done a heck of a lot for this football team. He started the day, I was going to finish with him. I wasn't about to desert him at that point.''
Besides, there was plenty of blame to go around.
Tommy Edwards botched a couple of kickoff returns when the Cavaliers kicked the ball high and short. He fumbled one, and let another one bounce in front of him that Virginia recovered. After that play, an animated Martin screamed at Edwards for almost a full minute, which Edwards passed off as frustration.
``It was a compilation of the whole game,'' Edwards said. ``I was frustrated myself.''
In the game's first 12 minutes, the Hokies touched the ball just four times and fumbled it away twice.
``I saw us do things today we haven't even done in practice,'' Beamer said. ``Some days, it's just not your day.''
It wasn't Tech's day in just about every statistical category. The Hokies finished with 33 yards rushing on an all-time-low 17 attempts. And the Hokies' nationally ranked defense withered after being on the field all day (39:59 time of possession for Virginia to 20:01 for the Hokies). Virginia rolled up 395 yards of total offense, including 249 rushing yards.
``We got our asses kicked,'' Tech defensive coordinator Phil Elmassian said. ``They've got a better football team.'' ILLUSTRATION: Photo
CHRISTOPHER REDDICK/Staff
Virginia's Joe Crocker, right, was flat on his back when this ball,
off the hands of Tech's Antonio Freeman, fell to him for an
interception.
by CNB