Hokies put a halt to losing streak
Williams rushes for 179 yards as Va. Tech tops East Carolina, 16-3
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GREENVILLE, N.C. -- This rowdy college town is a 300-mile drive from Blacksburg, Va., past Virginia Tech's conference rivals in Durham and Chapel Hill, past a "Pirate Country" billboard on U.S. Route 264, past students tailgating along the sidewalks here.
But following back-to-back losses, the 22nd-ranked Hokies made the trip to East Carolina with the hope of putting together the pieces of their broken season.
While Virginia Tech righted itself with a 16-3 win over the Pirates, it looking unimpressive in doing so. Its bend-don't-break defense struggled, and its offense routinely failed to reach the end zone before 43,569 buzzing fans at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
"Sloppy or not sloppy, I think a win was good for this team," said quarterback Tyrod Taylor, who scored the game's only touchdown in the second quarter. "If it was 3-2 or 2-0, we would have taken this win."
Running back Ryan Williams ran for a career-high 179 yards on 26 carries. He has rushed for 1,109 yards this season, becoming just the second freshman rusher in school history to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark. Darren Evans ran for 1,265 yards last year.
But in a game that was tough to stomach, perhaps the stars for Virginia Tech were on special teams. Kicker Matt Waldron made field goals of 41, 31 and 22 yards. Punter Brent Bowden averaged 44.9 on seven punts to keep East Carolina pinned in its own territory.
If nothing else, the Hokies can take satisfaction in exacting some revenge on the Pirates. In last year's season opener, East Carolina upset the Hokies, 27-22, by blocking a punt and returning it 27-yards for a touchdown with 1 minute 52 seconds remaining.
That early loss deflated Virginia Tech before it even reached September. On Thursday, Virginia Tech arrived in Greenville already stung by defeats, and in need of balm.
The Hokies lost to Georgia Tech on Oct. 17 and to North Carolina last Thursday, leaving their once-promising outlook suddenly looking bleak. National title talk? Gone. Another Atlantic Coast Conference title? Unlikely.
But with the win, Virginia Tech became bowl eligible for a 17th consecutive season. Still, the Hokies (6-3, 3-2 ACC) lacked verve all night.
For its part, East Carolina (5-4, 4-1 Conference USA) killed scoring opportunities with mental mistakes. The Pirates turned the ball over three times and had eight penalties for 79 yards.
After a nine-play drive in the second quarter, Dominique Lindsay ran 20 yards into the end zone before guard Terence Campbell was whistled for holding. On the next play, Virginia Tech linebacker Cody Grimm stripped tight end Rob Kass and recovered on the fumble.
