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An Interview with Lester Karlin The Virginia Tech football program has been known for consistency whether it is winning in the Atlantic Coast Conference or a relatively low turnover among assistant coaches over the years. Clearly, though, the most steadfast member of the program is the equipment manager, who has been around since the days when Bill Dooley was coach. Lester Karlin has been the equipment manager at Virginia Tech since 1978. In that time, he has seen the school rise from a virtue unknown to a team that contends each year for the ACC championship and a BCS Bowl bid. Hokies Sweep Terps in Decisive Victory Although Virginia Tech won a definitive victory against Maryland on the road earlier this season, the Hokies knew that win would offer little advantage when the Terps came back to Cassell Coliseum looking for revenge. Unfazed, the Hokies held serve at home and notched an important late season victory 91-86. "Kansas came out last night thinking they were going to beat Kansas State because of the first game and coach kind of talked to us about that. We just couldn't let that first game get to our heads," Malcolm Delaney said after the game. Hokies Have A Chance To Lock Up Coastal Division In Chapel Hill The matchup between Virginia Tech (7-2, 5-0 ACC) and Georgia Tech (5-4, 3-3 ACC) on Thursday was a thriller. But thanks to a kickoff return touchdown by David Wilson and an interception by Rashad Carmichael with eight seconds left, the Hokies secured a 28-21 win and remain the only undefeated team in conference play. Ironically enough, this week the Hokies will be cheering for the Yellow Jackets. That's because with a Virginia Tech win at North Carolina (6-3, 3-2 ACC) and a Georgia Tech win over Miami, the Hokies can clinch the Coastal Division. Hokies Hyped for Thursday Night Showdown with Ga Tech The Virginia Tech Hokies (6-2, 4-0 ACC) are all set to face off against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets (5-3, 3-2 ACC) on Thursday. And once again, the matchup is a highly anticipated one. "Georgia Tech is a team that I was looking forward to playing going into the season," said quarterback Tyrod Taylor. "I feel like it's a rivalry between us and them. We always play like it and Thursday night is no better time to play them." Tech Offense Sprints Out To Big ACC Win Over Wake Needing to stay undefeated in the ACC, the Virginia Tech Hokies got off to a fast start and used all of its offensive weapons in a 52-21 drubbing of Wake Forest. "I think we took a big step today," said head coach Frank Beamer. Wake (2-5, 1-3) was led by Josh Harris, who broke the all-time rushing record against Virginia Tech with 241 yards on just 20 carries. The previous record was held by Paul Palmer of Temple, who rushed for 239 yards on 44 carries in 1986. Hokies Cannot Afford To Look Past Struggling Wake Forest The Hokies (4-2, 2-0) took care of business last weekend, defeating the Central Michigan Chippewas (2-4, 1-2) 45-21 at home. Despite allowing the Chippewas to get up 7-0 on the opening drive, Tech immediately answered back with a 72-yard touchdown run by quarterback Tyrod Taylor. The Hokies then scored 38 unanswered points and eventually substituted in a number of backups. Hokies Right the Ship Against the Pirates Virginia Tech quarterback Tyrod Taylor made his advice to the team very clear in the week preceding the Hokies' game against East Carolina University. "I was very vocal throughout this whole week, but the main thing I wanted to stress is, 'don't panic, stay out there, be relaxed, and play the game,'" Taylor said. However, much like the adjustments made to the defensive line to deal with ECU's dynamite offense, the advice took until about halftime to really sink in. Men's Soccer Ties Despite Double Overtime Despite entering double over time against Clemson University last night, the Virginia Tech men's soccer team was unable to break the 1-1 stalemate that gripped Thompson Field last night. A goal late in the first half from Clemson midfielder Riley Sumpter negated Clarke Bentley's 19th minute penalty kick that gave the Hokies a shaky early lead. While Virginia Tech played well both offensively and defensively, some major mistakes on defense exposed the obvious youth of the team. |
Spring Game Offers An Early Peek At The Hokies The Hokies kick off their 2011 Spring Game Saturday at 2 p.m. in Lane Stadium. The theme this year will be change. Gone are the likes of Tyrod Taylor, Ryan Williams and Darren Evans. Enter QB Logan Thomas and running back David Wilson. There are other changes. Coach Mike O’Cain will now call the plays, instead of offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring. Also former players Shane Beamer and Cornell Brown are now back as assistant coaches. The Hokie football team looks to show the rest of Hokie Nation what it can expect to see this fall. Hokies Handle Yellow Jackets in Thursday Night Thriller In front of a sold out crowd at Lane Stadium on Thursday night, Virginia Tech defeated Georgia Tech in a fourth quarter comeback, winning 28-21. "I'm really proud of our football team," said Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer. "We have some great kids that hang in there and battle. We control our own destiny here and I'm proud of them." Hokies Demolish Devils A sold out Lane Stadium saw the Hokies take on the Duke Blue Devils on Saturday afternoon for the 18th matchup between the teams, resulting in a 44-7 Hokie win. This is the 10th consecutive time that Virginia Tech has beaten Duke, with the last five games combined score of 216-50. Preview: Hokie Football Hosts Central Michigan Saturday The Hokies (3-2) scored a big win by defeating NC State (4-1) 41-30 in Raleigh this past Saturday. Things looked shaky for the Hokies after their slow start led to a 17-0 Wolfpack lead just 19 minutes into the game. However, Tech managed to rally back, outscoring NC State 34-13 in the second half to capture the win. "When things don't go well in a ballgame," said Coach Beamer, "and you've got good kids that care and want to be good, then you've got a chance of coming back. So I think that shows in itself the type of kids...the character...the leadership...that's in our program." Football Preview: Virginia Tech at N.C. State In their first ACC matchup of the year, the Hokies (2-2, 1-0) picked up a 19-0 win against Boston College (2-1, 0-1). Tech's defense, showing its determination to overcome its youth, pitched its first shutout since 2006. After holding BC quarterback Dave Shinskie on the one-yard line at the end of the first half, the defense felt a surge of momentum. That energy carried over into the second half, during which the Eagles offense did not cross midfield. Football Preview: Virginia Tech at Boston College The momentum gained from Saturday's win will certainly help the Hokies this weekend as they travel to Chesnut Hill, Mass. to kick off ACC play against Boston College. "When conference play gets started, you really have to turn it up a notch," said offensive guard Greg Nosal. "And to have this game under our belt is really a confidence booster." The Hokies will need more than confidence and momentum, however, to defeat the Eagles in Alumni Stadium, where they have not won since 2002. Preview: Virginia Tech vs. ECU The Virginia Tech Hokies should never again underestimate an opponent after the heartbreaking loss they suffered to James Madison University on Saturday. The Hokies entered Saturday's game unbeaten by James Madison in six games before falling to the FCS Dukes 21-16. This second consecutive defeat, possibly more painful than the one to the Boise State Broncos the previous week, precedes yet another important game for Virginia Tech, who welcomes the East Carolina University Pirates this coming Saturday. Hokies Rally But Fall in Final Minute to BSU The stage was set for a highly anticipated game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and Boise State Broncos on Monday night. With a sold-out crowd, the game certainly lived up to its hype. Although the Hokies were up 30-26 in the fourth quarter, Broncos quarterback Kellen Moore's 13-yard touchdown pass to Austin Pettis with 1:09 left in the game kept the Broncos BCS championship hopes alive as BSU escaped FedEx Field with the 33-30 win. "We got ourselves in a hole," said Tech's coach Frank Beamer. "Did some awful things to get ourselves in a hole but we didn't hang out heads, we came back and battled." |