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Virginia Tech vs. Pittsburgh: Score and Twitter Reaction

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The No. 25-ranked Virginia Tech Hokies survived a tough road battle to beat the Pittsburgh Panthers 39-36 at Heinz Field on Thursday night.


The battle between two of the top teams in the ACC Coastal Division was as close as expected, but a plus-two turnover margin for the Hokies and six Joey Slye field goals made the difference.


James Conner was the star for the Panthers, rushing for 141 yards on 19 carries with three touchdowns in a losing effort. Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports provided his thoughts on the junior running back:



The rest of the team didn't provide enough help, though, especially on the defensive end, as Virginia Tech ended up with 556 yards from scrimmage.


Hokies quarterback Jerod Evans overcame an ankle injury in the third quarter to finish with 406 passing yards and two touchdowns. Three Virginia Tech receivers finished with 100-plus receiving yards, including Isaiah Ford, who recorded 10 catches for 143 yards and a score.


Ford's performance included a unique catch in the first half, via the ACC Digital Network:



His receiving touchdown was the 23rd of his career, which set a new school record, per Sports Illustrated.


Nathan Peterman helped the Panthers with 267 passing yards and 33 rushing yards, but a lack of consistency in big moments helped decide the game.







Justin Berl/Getty Images






The two teams were tied at 29-29 in the fourth quarter, but Virginia Tech pulled away with a field goal and then a Ford touchdown en route to a 10-point lead with seven minutes remaining.


Pittsburgh drove 90 yards to cut the lead to three with 2:31 remaining, but it couldn't get a stop on the next possession as the visitors closed out the victory.


Virginia Tech improved to 6-2 on the season and 4-1 in the ACC, while the Panthers are 2-2 in the conference and 5-3 overall.


The first quarter went almost as poorly as possible for Pittsburgh, as Andrea Adelson of ESPN described:



Virginia Tech easily moved downfield on its opening drive to take a 3-0 lead on Slye's first field goal. It got the ball back on a fumble recovery on the ensuing kickoff, and an interception on Pittsburgh's third offensive play of the game only made things tougher.


However, the Panthers found a way to keep the opposing offense out of the end zone, holding the score at 6-0.


David Teel of the Daily Press noted the one-sided play in the first period:



Another long drive ended with a field goal to give the Hokies a 9-0 advantage, although that didn't mean much once the scoring got going later in the second quarter.


Pittsburgh finally moved the ball on its fourth possession of the game, using an eight-play, 84-yard drive to get onto the scoreboard. Conner capped it off with a six-yard touchdown run to help his team cut the deficit to 9-7.


While Virginia Tech moved downfield in a hurry to score its first touchdown of the game with two minutes remaining in the half, the Panthers answered thanks in part to a 71-yard pass from Peterman to Scott Orndoff.


Once again, Conner carried it into the end zone.


Hank Kurz Jr. of the Associated Press summed up the feeling for the home team at halftime:



The Panthers took advantage of the momentum with a great start to the second half, needing just over three minutes to drive for another Conner touchdown, giving them their first lead of the game.


Things got worse for Virginia Tech on the next drive. The team failed to capitalize on another red-zone opportunity, but more important was the ankle injury Evans suffered, per Will Graves of the Associated Press:



Although it appeared to be a debilitating injury, the quarterback missed only one drive before returning to the field. Brenden Motley led the Hokies to a field goal, and Evans came back and led them to a touchdown, helping Virginia Tech take a 29-21 advantage into the fourth quarter.


Jon Solomon of CBS Sports summed up the performance:



Pittsburgh didn't go away easily. The squad marched downfield on the next drive and eventually scored on an offensive lineman end-around by Brian O'Neill, the tackle's second rushing touchdown of the season. Pittsburgh's ensuing two-point conversion tied the score at 29-29.


Still, the Hokies remained too strong offensively, with Slye converting a go-ahead field goal before Ford's touchdown reception helped Virginia Tech build a 39-29 lead.


Mandel described the game-changing play:



Pitt again came back hard with a quick scoring drive, which Peterman capped with a touchdown pass to Jester Weah to help bring the team back to within three. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late, as the home team never saw the ball again before Virginia Tech ran out the clock.


Pittsburgh remains in contention for the ACC Coastal Division title, but it will have to navigate a difficult schedule in the next few weeks. The squad will go on the road to play Miami and Clemson before finishing up with home games against Duke and Syracuse.


Virginia Tech has an easier path, beginning with a road game against Duke next Saturday. The Hokies will close the season with matchups against Georgia Tech, Notre Dame and in-state rival Virginia.


             


Postgame Reaction


Pittsburgh head coach Pat Narduzzi was vocal on the sideline in his displeasure with the officiating, and that didn't change after the game.


"They did a great job pushing off all night," he said of the Virginia Tech receivers, per Chris Peak of Rivals.com. "Give them credit for that."


On the other side, Ford might have summed up the difference in the game the best.


"We wanted to be the tougher team tonight because we knew the tougher team would win," the receiver said, per TheVTZone.com.


                        


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