Hokies Lose Lewis, But Win the Game

Injury Ends Running Back's Season: Virginia Tech 27, Western Kentucky 13

BLACKSBURG, Va., Oct. 4 -- Purnell Sturdivant had hoped to be on the bench by halftime. With No. 20 Virginia Tech returning to the top 25 this week and Western Kentucky transitioning into division I-A, the Hokies linebacker felt confident the starters could enjoy the second half from the Lane Stadium sideline Saturday.

Yet Sturdivant remained on the field late in the game and top running back Darren Evans still was carrying the ball on the final drive of the Hokies' 27-13 win over Western Kentucky. Although the victory was never in doubt, Virginia Tech left the field relieved to enter a bye week with a five-game winning streak.

"I think a couple of the guys probably overlooked Western Kentucky," Sturdivant said. "Some of the guys probably came down to their level of play."

Following victories over Georgia Tech, North Carolina and Nebraska, the Hokies (5-1, 2-0 ACC) became complacent with a little-known opponent as their only obstacle before an idle week, Sturdivant acknowledged. But the way Virginia Tech escaped will eventually become a footnote on the final schedule.

The lasting memory of Saturday's win likely will be a loss on the personnel front. On the first drive of the second half, starting running back Kenny Lewis took a handoff and collapsed to the ground. The result was a ruptured left Achilles' tendon that will end Lewis's season. The loss of Lewis will be felt less in terms of production -- Evans scored two touchdowns Saturday -- than in terms of intangibles. Running backs coach Billy Hite described Lewis, a vocal and spiritual leader for the Hokies, as a "father figure" for the team's younger running backs.

"Kenny Lewis leads basically everything, to be honest with you," tight end Greg Boone said. "He's probably the overall team captain."

The injury came on what was shaping up to be a productive day for Lewis. He had rushed seven times for 38 yards. But even with his effectiveness, Evans continued to emerge as Virginia Tech's top running back.

Evans rushed for 79 yards and continued his streak of scoring in every game this season. The performance came against three of Evans's former teammates and his former coach from Warren Central High in Indianapolis, all now part of the Western Kentucky program.

With arms bloodied and bruised, Evans embraced his old friends after the game. The two touchdowns afforded him bragging rights even though the player Evans supplanted in high school, Western Kentucky running back Dexter Taylor, rushed for 96 yards. But Taylor never found the end zone.

"The coaches kind of realized I do a good job down there in that red zone," Evans said. "Everybody wants to score a touchdown, but when it's me against the other guy, I know I'm going to get in regardless. I think the coaches kind of picked up on that."

Virginia Tech's other touchdown came on a 27-yard first-quarter catch by Boone, after which quarterback Tyrod Taylor sprinted toward the end zone to celebrate his first touchdown pass of the season. Taylor rejoiced with the ecstatic gait of a 19-year-old who has waited a month for his arm to complement his feet.

"Of course I've been looking for it," Taylor said. "To finally get a touchdown pass, I owe Greg Boone for that."

Virginia Tech settled for that seven-point lead until just 25 seconds remained in the second quarter, when Evans jumped over the goal line on fourth down for a touchdown. Two plays into Western Kentucky's subsequent drive, cornerback Victor Harris secured his third interception in three games and returned it to the Hilltoppers 5-yard line to set up a field goal.

In the span of 25 seconds, Virginia Tech extended the lead from 10-3 to 20-3, putting the game out of reach. A second-half surge by the Hilltoppers (2-4) that included four sacks on backup Sean Glennon kept just about every other Hokies starter on the field, but its effect on the score was merely cosmetic.

However ugly, Coach Frank Beamer's team ensured that it will go into the bye week -- and the season's second half -- on a roll.

"If you give me the choice of being 5-1 after our first [six] games, I would have taken that in a heartbeat with how young we were," Beamer said. "It's a hard schedule, and now we go to Miami, and we go to Florida State and we go to Boston College. Five-and-one sounds pretty good, but we've still got our work cut out for us."