THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, September 25, 1995 TAG: 9509250214
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: Bob Molinaro
LENGTH: Medium: 67 lines
The advantage of living in a state with an unremarkable college football history is that you needn't look long or hard for singular achievement.
When both Virginia Tech and Virginia pick the same afternoon to snap long losing streaks against traditionally superior opponents, you can be fairly certain that the commonwealth has never enjoyed a more special football moment.
Imagine the problems that fans from other parts of America experience in pinpointing their state's biggest, most surprising football Saturday.
An Alabama native would need several weeks and a record book the size of the Manhattan phone directory to narrow the list to a dozen games of note. The Bear Bryant years alone would take days to analyze and digest.
Virginians, native or adopted, face no such dilemmas.
Beating Miami may or may not be Virginia Tech's greatest victory. Virginia's triumph at Clemson, a place where the Cavaliers had never won, might not go down as the school's sweetest football memory, after all.
Still, as a single entry in the state's football ledger, this daily double cannot be matched for excitement or drama.
The most amazing element of the story is the timing, both schools breaking through on the same day. For, in truth, neither victory was as big an upset as some would have you believe.
This Miami team was vulnerable against a defense as hard and reliable as Tech's. And Clemson's home-field hex over U.Va. in recent years has had more to do with psychology and breaks than superior talent.
You hope that fans of both Tech and U.Va. can revel in this daily double. Interschool animosities being what they are, that may be too much to ask.
I wonder, for instance, if Tech boosters aren't just a little miffed by the timing. Here their team breaks out of the pack to knock off the infamous 'Canes, and the Hokies still must share the headlines with their state rival.
All this talk about Tech moving to another level is, for the time being, supported by the victory over Miami. But even a moment this big is not enough to guarantee the Hokies credibility. Not as long as school officials insist on putting together an embarrassing schedule.
Consider this an exercise in kicking the Hokies while they are up. It is one thing when Tech moves on to a game against Pittsburgh, losers Saturday to Ohio State, 54-14. The Panthers, at least, are a Big East opponent.
But when Tech follows up that game with back-to-back nonconference dates with Navy and Akron, the Hokies open themselves up to charges of being rank underachievers.
Boston College, another Big East school, aimed high and lost to Ohio State and Michigan this season. In a few weeks, B.C. plays Notre Dame. You've got to like a program that understands the importance of taking risks.
In contrast, Tech's only respectable nonconference game is against U.Va., and the Hokies really don't have much of a choice about playing the Cavaliers, do they?
Tech cannot be blamed for the relative weakness of the Big East this season. The Hokies can't do anything about that. What they can do is upgrade their out-of-conference schedule, as U.Va. has done with games at Michigan and Texas.
Taking the low road can lead to victories and even the occasional bowl, but long term, it does not enhance a football program's visibility.
Tech contributed to the commonwealth's uncommonly great football weekend by beating a marquee name.
You can't beat 'em if you don't play 'em. by CNB