By james art 
Just when you think the Virginia Tech football team is headed in the right direction, a game like Saturday happens. With Syracuse in control, 21-3, midway through the third quarter, the Hokies suffered a stunning collapse. They allowed 28 points in the final quarter and a half to force overtime tied at 31. The Orange scored on their only possession of the extra session and forced the Hokies to pull away with a 38-31 overtime victory to become bowl eligible.
The loss drops Virginia Tech to 5-4, and being hit finding win No. 6 to become bowl eligible may have to go to Thanksgiving weekend at home against Virginia. This is not out of the question. With that said, here are five critical takeaways from the loss in New York.
It was loss No. 4 for the Hokies, and it was another game in which they let a late lead slip away without getting another shutout. That happened in Week 1 at Vanderbilt and then on Sept. 27 at Miami. It was never meant to be a repeat of the South Florida Hail Mary.
Yes, some of that is defensively, but it’s also offensively. They had a chance to go up two with just over five minutes remaining in Syracuse, but instead had to settle for a field goal. Things are different – they find the end zone on their penultimate drive in regulation.
Clock management is big in football, and once again, it wasn’t the best performance for the Hokies’ coaching staff on Saturday. From the final drive of the first half to the final drive of the game in overtime, it was not a masterclass in clock management. Little things like these continue to haunt Virginia Tech.
Virginia Tech, for the most part, took care of the ball, but a Jeremiah Coney fumble in the third quarter after Syracuse’s second touchdown put the Orange in plus territory to take its first lead. The difference in the game was that Syracuse capitalized on their turnover chances and the Hokies did not.
The Hokies defense was terrific in the first half. Mansur Delain picked off Kyle McCord in the end zone and they held the Ohio State transfer 90 yards through the air. They forced multiple threes and outs while the offense put together several big hits.
Syracuse, which entered the game leading the NCAA in time of possession at 34:56 per game, started the second half the same way they did the first half, but a failed attempt and a 55-yard catch and run by Justus Ross-Simmons changed the momentum and Virginia Tech’s defense struggled to get stops for the rest of the game. Giving up 28 points in a quarter in a half is hard to do at any level, but the Hokies did it.
There are three games left in the season and one win is needed to qualify for the cup, but where will it come from? Clemson comes to Blacksburg next week and then after a bye week, a trip to Duke is the final road game and homecoming for Aeneas Peebles. This won’t be an easy game, especially if the Hokies are still beat.
There is a very realistic chance that the Nov. 30 game at Lane Stadium against Virginia will be their best chance to win. If that’s the case, what a disappointment that would be. A team with high expectations to beat Virginia in the Commonwealth Clash wasn’t something many, if any, people had on their bingo card when the season began Aug. 31 at Vanderbilt.
It’s hard to believe the Hokies are in the position they are, but here we are. At 5-4 through nine games, it’s disappointing, and the same mistakes that happened in Week 1 at Vanderbilt are happening in Week 10 at Syracuse. Disappointing, to say the least.