The Mountaineers Hold off No. 15 Virginia Tech to Reclaim the Black Diamond Trophy
In what used to be an annual affair between two bitter rivals, the West Virginia Mountaineers hosted the No. 15 Virginia Tech Hokies for the first time since 2005 and was the last meeting between the two programs before a neutral site matchup in Landover, MD in 2017.
The Hokies had taken the last three games between the two and held the coveted Black Diamond Trophy since 2004. West Virginia head coach Neal Brown continued counting the days the Hokies had the trophy all week, according to running back Leddie Brown, and on Saturday, the count was at 6,195 days.
On Saturday, the Hokies were just three yards away from holding onto the Black Diamond Trophy, but the Mountaineer defense held off a stubborn Virginia Tech team 27-21.
Photo by Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports/Graphic: Jonathan Stanley
“Great win,” said Brown. I’m really happy for our team and our fans… This was going to be a grind-out game from the start. I thought it was very evenly matched. They’re (Virginia Tech) a very well-coached team – credit to them. They continued to fight.”
On the game's opening drive, Virginia Tech quarterback Braxton Burmeister hit running back Raheem Blackshear with a quick hitter to the left side for 20 yards. Blackshear grabbed five yards up the middle two plays later, but the drive stalled after Burmeister scrambled up the middle for no gain and was forced to punt.
West Virginia took over at their own 25-yard line for their first offensive series following the touchback. The Mountaineers were looking to strike early on a deep ball that was just floated past the outreached hands of Sam James. However, Leddie Brown took the handoff on the next play and busted up the middle 80 yards for the touchdown.
West Virginia Mountaineers running back Leddie Brown (4) runs for a touchdown during the first quarter against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
"Our scout team was giving us looks all week. We’ve been running that play all week against that look, so I knew exactly what to do once I got the ball,” said Leddie Brown.
The Mountaineer defense held the Hokie offense to a three and out, and the offense had good field position after an eight-yard return from Isaiah Esdale to the WVU 45-yard line. West Virginia picked up a first down on the second play of the drive and got an extra 15 yards tacked on at the end of the play, placing the offense deep in Hokie territory. Then, Jarrett Doege tossed a high floater to the end zone, Bryce Ford-Wheaton created some space and hauled in the 29-yard touchdown pass.
Virginia Tech answered on the following possession, constructing a six-minute, 11 play 75-yard drive to get back within a score, 14-7.
Midway through the second quarter, Neal Brown rolled out backup quarterback Garrett Greene for his first action of the day. On the first snap, he ran a quarterback draw up the middle for 12 yards, and a fumbled snap had the redshirt freshman facing a 3rd and 10 before Doege ran back out onto the field and came up big, finding Sam James over the middle for 30 yards and the first down. Two plays later Doege found James again on a quick slant, slipped out of a would-be tackle, and got upfield for the 16-yard touchdown, putting the Mountaineers up 21-7.
West Virginia Mountaineers wide receiver Sam James (13) catches a pass and runs for a touchdown during the second quarter against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium.
Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports
West Virginia was able to add a field goal as time was winding down in the second half, but it appeared the Hokies were going to score on the kickoff after Raheem Blackshear returned the kickoff 78 yards. However, the defense held the Hokies out of the end zone and off the board, following John Parker Romo missing a 24-yard field goal as the Mountaineers took a 24-7 lead into the break.
“Coming out, obviously get off to a fast start on both side, and offense, we really had some momentum – doing some really good things, able to throw it and run it,” said Brown.
On the opening drive of the second half, West Virginia was moving the ball down the field and picked up a fourth and two on a pass to tight end Mike O’Laughlin, who missed the first two games due to an injury he suffered in early fall camp. However, a bad snap on the next play slowed the drive and settled for a 44-yard field goal from Casey Legg.
The defense remained stout, holding Tech to another three and out, but the offense became self-inflicted. A holding penalty stalled the next drive, and the Hokies' offense was beginning to find some holes in the defense, overcoming a third and 24 after Burmeister scrambled to the right for a 25-yard run, and two plays later, Blackshear busted a 20-yard around the right side, and Virginia Tech was back within 13, 27-14.
The Virginia Tech defense started ramping up the pressure, and on a third and four at midfield, Doege was caught from behind, was sacked, and fumbled as the Hokies recovered the ball.
The Hokies again drove the ball down the field, but on fourth and six, Jarrett Bartlett came off the edge, got to Burmeister for the strip sack for his third sack of the day.
“I was just trusting my coaches. Coach Lesley always tells me that speed is my advantage. So, I was just rushing with speed off the edge,” said Bartlett.
West Virginia would take over at the nine, but the Hokie defense held the Mountaineers to a three and out. They finished with just 32 yards of total offense in the fourth quarter.
A 28-yard punt and a five-yard return set the Virginia Tech offense just inside West Virginia Territory. Six plays later, Burmeister delivered a 29-yard touchdown strike to Caleb Smith, and the Hokies were within six with 3:10 to play.
The Mountaineers were looking to run the clock, brought in Garrett Greene to run option read, and had a third and five before a false start pushed the offense back five yards, and Doege came back onto the field. They went with what was successful, a tunnel screen, but with pressure in Doege’s face, the ball went high and was intercepted and returned to the West Virginia 17-yard line.
“You practice those situations, and I’m not going to sit here and say we handled it well because we didn’t,” said Brown. Later adding, “There are some things that we struggled with that they took advantage of right there at the end. We tried a bunch of different things, but we just struggled to grind it out."
Virginia Tech was poised to punch the ball into the end zone and rip the hearts out of Mountaineer fans everywhere. It appeared inevitable after Blackshear and Jalen Holston combined for 14 yards, setting up first and goal from the three-yard line. However, back-to-back runs went nowhere. Next, Burmeister rolled left but couldn’t find an open receiver. Then, he rolled right, the receivers were blanketed, had nowhere to go, forced one into the middle, and Jackie Matthews knocked it away as the Mountaineers held on 27-21 for the win and regained control of the Black Diamond Trophy.
Taijh Alson(12), Dante Stills (55), Kaden Prather celebrate with the Black Diamond Trophy at midfield after knocking off No. 15 Virginia Tech.
Christopher Hall - Sports Illustrated: Mountaineer Maven
“It’s kind of a two-point play mentality when you’re calling the game,” Brown commented on the final play of the game. “In spring ball and fall camp, we work two-point plays over and over and over again. Well, the play they ran is like one of our favorite two-point plays that we run…Our defense, they covered that play, and everything goes full circle, and so proud of them.”
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