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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) -- Virginia Tech took Central Florida's verbal
jabs personally.
|  | | Virginia Tech quarterback Dave Meyer took over for injured Michael Vick but was only 2-for-7 passing for 55 yards. |
Coach Frank Beamer was irked by pregame comments that he felt
questioned whether his players had the heart to rebound from their
only defeat, and the eighth-ranked Hokies went out and pummeled UCF 44-21 Saturday night.
"Their coach kept saying: 'How are they going to get back
up?"' Beamer said. "I don't think he knows our kids. ... You're
almost challenging someone's character when you say they can't take
a disappointment and come back and play. ... I didn't think we had
a hangover at all."
With quarterback Michael Vick taking the night off with a
sprained right ankle, Lee Suggs rushed for 143 yards and five
touchdowns to take the pressure off Vick's replacement, Dave Meyer.
Suggs scored on three 1-yard runs in the first half and bursts
of 13 and 4 yards in the third quarter.
"They didn't show us any respect this whole week. That was our
whole thing, about gaining respect from them and just going out
there and showing them that we could play and we could bounce
back," Suggs said.
"You'd think they're the team that went to seven straight
bowls," Meyer added. "It really became a respect issue."
The victory, a week after the Hokies' hopes of returning to the
national championship game were crushed by a 20-point loss to
Miami, kept Virginia Tech (9-1) in the running for an at-large
berth in the Bowl Championship Series.
Suggs went for more than 1,000 yards rushing for the season on a 10-yard
carry early in the third quarter, and his 13-yard touchdown run on the
same drive put him past 100 for the night. The 6-foot, 207-pound tailback also set Big East single-season records for touchdowns
(24) and points (144) as the Hokies finished with 313 yards on the
ground.
Ryan Schneider completed 25 of 41 passes for 346 yards and three
touchdowns for UCF (7-4). But the freshman took a pounding from the
Virginia Tech defense, was intercepted four times and lost a fumble
that Nathaniel Adibi returned 36 yards for a touchdown.
"When it's all said and done, I want to be a football team that
can run it," Beamer said. "I think if you've got to line up and
throw it every time, you run into problems before the day's over."
Vick sprained his ankle two weeks ago and was ineffective in
relief of Meyer against Miami. Vick is expected to return to his starting role for the Hokies' next game Nov. 25 against Virginia game, a Virginia Tech spokesman said.
Meyer only attempted seven passes, completing two for 55 yards. He suffered separated ribs in the game but should be available for the Virginia game as well, the spokesman said.
Suggs remained in the game until the final three minutes, finishing
with 30 carries and 1,091 yards for the season -- an average of 109
for the season.
"Obviously they're a lot better than we are," UCF coach Mike
Kruczek said. "But I don't think the score is an indication of the
level of ability. I think we gave them some incredible
opportunities turning the ball over."
Suggs' first touchdown gave him at least one rushing score in
all 10 of Virginia Tech's games and set a Big East record for
rushing touchdowns in a season. His second, snapping a 7-7 tie, marked the eighth time he has gotten into the end zone at least twice this year.
Ronyell Whitaker's interception and Meyer's 55-yard completion
to Emmett Johnson led to Suggs' third touchdown, which broke Big East
records for points and total touchdowns in a season. Boston
College's Darnell Campbell scored 21 touchdowns and 126 points in
1993.
UCF (7-4) had won four in a row, including upsets of Alabama and Louisiana Tech on the road the previous two weeks, and was hoping to improve its chances of receiving consideration for its first bowl bid.
Schneider threw touchdown passes of 7 and 24 yards to Tyson Hinshaw and 10 yards to Kenny Clark before being shaken up and leaving the game early in the fourth quarter. He was intercepted
three times in the first half and once in the third quarter.
"They bring a lot of people. That's football, though. You just
have to take it and handle it and try to move on," Schneider said
of the Hokies' pass rush. "We played our best. ... Everyone left
their hearts out there. It's just Virginia Tech beat us."
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ALSO SEE
College Football Scoreboard
Virginia Tech Clubhouse
Central Florida Clubhouse
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