PITTiful APathy

 

          DID YOU WONDER WHERE THEY WENT???

The much talked about Hokie Defense could not stop a Governor or a Panther over the past two weeks.   The Austin Peay Governors had several sustained drives and clipped off many long runs in our 42-7 win in Blacksburg last week.  I was disappointed in the APathy the fans showed towards this game.  I know it was not Notre Dame but I remember when we were the Austin Peay of the Independents in College Football.  We would go anywhere to make a paycheck.  I do not know if it was the impending bad weather of the sloppy play of both our offense and defense that lulled the fans to sleep.  I was seating in the Outdoor Club Seating on the West Side and 30 seats around me were empty.  Just ask Richard, he came over after halftime with his family and had plenty of seats to pick from.

 

 

 

 

 

I had even better seats for the PITT game, smack in the middle of my Hokie Room.  No obnoxious Pennsylvanians hurling insults, calling us traitors or throwing objects at Hokies for leaving the Big East.  Now they will have a taste of their own medicine as they do their farewell tour. Our defense looked even worse at this game and had the stopping power of a wet paper bag!  They gave up 537 yards on the way to a 35-17 loss to our future Coastal Division foes.  We have not beat the Panthers in the last 10 years and next year it will count.

 

 

We had a great time grilling dogs and burgers and as usual Bob and Al cooked everything to perfection.  Could not find a Governor to do the Ol' Hokie Cheer with but hopefully we can find a Falcon to represent BGSU.  I have personally invited one I know to stop by if he is man enough ( you know who you are Ryan). 





 

 

 

 

 

 

The next game is against the Bowling Green State University Falcons at High Noon in Blacksburg.  ESPNU has picked up the game even though they had to suffer through last weeks game.  The Falcons are 1-2 with a hard fought loss to Florida in the opener and a loss last week to the Toledo Rockets.  Virginia Tech leads the series 2-0 and last played BGSU in 1993 in Blacksburg ( was Weaver AD then too?)  The Theme of the week is actually one I appreciate, Military Appreciation.  There will be a WWII B25 Flyover before the game and a P-51 Mustang Flyover at halftime.  The uniform of the week is white with camo numbers and camo helmets with a maroon VT on the side.

 



 Our servicemen and women across the globe are being appreciated by College Football this month and deservedly so.  The cadet we see in the stands today will be defending your freedom anywhere in the world tomorrow so take time to thank any active, reserve or retired service member when the chance presents itself.

The game is scheduled for noon kickoff which make it hard to do much tailgating but we will try our best.  We are going to be minus some regulars so be sure to invite all your friends to come and hang out.  I will probably be setting up around 8 am with the Ol' Hokie Cheer at 11 am.  Running out of entree ideas and it is not cold enough for chili yet so I believe we will go with bring whatever.  I am bringing some Subway sandwiches and chips.  Breakfast food, lunch food, whatever you think sounds good.  We will put it all on the table and graze until game time.  The weather is looking good with a high of 74 degrees and a 0% chance of rain.  Looking forward to seeing everyone and celebrating after the game in Lot 7. 

Several people have expressed an interest in catering the FSU game so we can enjoy the short tailgate.  I am going to work on this with Betty Hall and secure a menu over the next couple of weeks.  Please let me know if you are willing to chip in and we can figure out our budget and plan accordingly. 

Lost & Found

Found: I still have a pair of women's blue frame sunglasses from the Georgia Tech game

 

Lost: William lost his football last week.  If anyone picked it up please bring it with you to the game

 

Lost: one defense, an offense and a quarterback.



Workin' Overtime

I went from deflated to elated in the Hokies first ever overtime football game in Lane Stadium.  The 2012 version of Virginia Tech Football is much like the teams of the past.  We do not seem to get serious until time is running short or we are Vegas underdogs.  We can't stand being the favorite so we let the other team hang around while we try every play that hasn't worked before but hope will work this time.  The defense lived up to its name and held the triple option Yellowjackets to 192 yards rushing and as expected less than 100 yards passing.  Washington saved the best pass for last to position the Hokies for the winning 18 yard field goal from our community service kicker.  With this game out of the way early every newpaper and online rag has declared us the Coastal Division champion.  Not so fast, Carolina, Duke, Miami, and yes Virginia still have something to say about that.  One game at a time and Every Game Matters!





The tailgate was a great time as always.  We came prepared to battle the elements with rain suits and pop up tents but thankfully every storm cell that popped up on the radar just missed us.  Not a drop of rain noted even as I left Blacksburg on Tuesday morning.  The crowd gathered around 4pm and kept at it until the Ol' Hokie Cheer at 7pm.  I want to thank everyone for breaking down the tailgate so quickly and efficiently.  No one let Robbie touch the TV and now it will be available again this week!  The gang worked like a fine tuned pit crew and the HokieMobile was packed up by 7:15 and everyone headed to their new seats.  Bob cooked a great pork butt and of course there was food galore to compliment the entree.  Biff tried to send the crowd into a diabetic coma with jello shooters.  The pregame toast was SoCo and lime but some of our younger crowd requested Rock & Rye for their delicate palate(Tara!).  We did have one Yellowjacket participate and he did a fine job representing the University.

I was looking forward to seeing everyone again and I was not disappointed.  We reconnected with some old Lot 8 friends up from Florida, Gator and Lisa, made new friends in Greg and the Woods family.  The regular crowd was there as well enjoying a day off work and catching up. It was Orange Effect and the fans responded.  Even Fred got it right and wore his new orange VT shirt for good luck, unfortunately he spilled salad dressing all over it and had to wear his lucky new maroon shirt.  On my way out of Lane after the game I came across Ryan and his family who are GT fans.  Ryan played for GT back in the 90's.  I provided directions to the public parking lot but apparently they made a wrong turn because I caught up with them and their wrinkled up paper map of campus headed toward the greenhouses.  I guided them back to Lot 7 where Chris and Bonnie were nice enough to give all five of them a ride to their car up on Prices Fork.  I hope to see many of you again this week and continue the winning streak.

The game this week is against the powerhouse of the Ohio Valley Conference, the Austin Peay Governors.  IF YOU NEED TICKETS, BOB HALL HAS 4 AVAILABLE  (804) 387-1878. This will be the first(hopefully the last) time we meet the Governors on the football field.  I know you thought we had played them back in 1896, but that was St. Albans College on the old Gibboney field which is now the drill field.  The kickoff is 1:34pm and can be seen on ESPN3.  Bring your books for Herma's Readers and wear white to intimidate the Governors as they exit the locker room.  There is a 50% chance of rain at game time with 90% humidity so I recommend the ladies wear appropriate undergarments for the possibility of a soaker. Bring your personal rain gear and anyone who has a pop up tent please throw it in the car just in case.  Also I can't wait but it is the debut of the "Turkey Foot" helmet.  We have gone old school, now we are just going uncool.  I hope it is safe to wear turkey feet this time of year with all the hunters in the immediate vicinity.

The menu is an easy one this weekend.  Hamburgers and Hot dogs are on tap with the game being an early one.  Al might even treat us to his goose dogs.  Feel free to bring whatever you think would go well with the menu and we look to serve it up around 11:30am and the toast around 12:30.  We are talking about the possibility of catering the FSU game to minimize setup and clean up.  If you are coming to the FSU game talk to me and let me know if you are interested.  With enough people we can keep the cost to a minimum and enjoy the tailgate even more.  Working on the Bowling Green game on Sept. 22.

LOST & FOUND

One pair of ladies dark blue rimmed sunglasses
One clear plastic cup from Sharkeys ( I think it is Bob's Vodka Tonic cup)

                                     GO HOKIES !!!!!  BEAT THE GOVERNORS!!!!