ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, September 15, 1996 TAG: 9609170031
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C-1 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHESTNUT HILL, MASS.
SOURCE: RANDY KING STAFF WRITER
After suffering a near flat tire last week in the Rubber Bowl, Virginia Tech's football team admitted to having some patchwork to do.
In front of 34,500 witnesses and a national television audience Saturday afternoon, the Hokies promptly took care of their repairs, then dropped the jack on Boston College.
Looking as good as they did bad last Saturday at Akron, the 19th-ranked Hokies left tread marks all over beleaguered BC, routing the Eagles 45-7 in a Big East Conference opener.
So a Tech club that barely survived at lowly Akron, winning 21-18, goes on the road as a two-point favorite and wins by 38 over a team it lost to at home last year. Go figure.
"After last week, you're darn right we had something to prove,'' said Jim Druckenmiller, Tech's quarterback.
"Last week was a rough week and we came out with our guns loaded.''
And the Hokies shot all kinds of holes in a BC defense that's coached by former Tech defensive coordinator Phil Elmassian.
"Yeah, it feels good to beat him,'' said Hokies senior center Billy Conaty. "When he was here, he never talked to the offensive players I don't know if he didn't respect us or what.
"I know how mad he gets after a loss. What's he doing right now? He's probably throwing something.''
Boston College (1-1) and "Elmo'' had little to throw at Tech. The Hokies (2-0) scored on their first three possessions, bursting to a 21-7 first-quarter lead.
Basically, Tech did anything it wanted offensively. Druckenmiller threw for 214 yards and two touchdowns - both to tight end Bryan Jennings. Overland, the Hokies rumbled for 208 yards, getting 80 yards and two touchdowns out of surprising freshman Shyrone Stith, plus 45 yards and two more scores from fullback Brian Edmonds.
"Everything was clicking today,'' said Conaty, who along with Tech's other 300-pound hunks up front repeatedly carved huge holes in the Eagles' defense.
"Druck was throwing it and that kid [Stith] is unbelievable. I guess he's got confidence. I didn't even know who he was a week ago.''
On the other side of the ball, Tech's defense went about business as usual. The Hokies came up with the stopper every time they needed one.
None was more significant than with 5:50 left in the first half. The Eagles, down 21-7, had the ball first-and-goal at the Tech 8 after Shalom Tolefree blocked a John Thomas punt.
After Omari Walker ran for 6 yards on first down, BC quarterback Matt Hasselbeck threw an incompletion and Walker was stopped by Tech's John Engelberger at the 1 on third down. On fourth down, Hasselbeck hit Frank Chamberlin with a swing pass in the right flat, where the BC tight end was decked for a 1-yard loss by Hokies free safety Torrian Gray.
"That was the turning point of the game,'' said Tech coach Frank Beamer. "They had the ball at the 2 and they throw a pass, so that shows they respect our defense. It's a different ball game if they score there.''
Hasselbeck, who completed 25 of 42 passes for 221 yards, said his club's failure to convert before the half was huge.
"We're right back in it with a score there,'' he said. "Once we got down there we just couldn't capitalize. We couldn't capitalize in the red zone.''
Tech put the hammer down in the second half, going up 28-7 with 8:44 left in the third quarter when Edmonds broke through a huge hole on the left side and rambled 19 yards for a touchdown.
After a BC punt, Tech stretched the lead to 28 points when Stith capped a four-play, 43-yard drive with a 10-yard touchdown run.
Tech tacked on two fourth-quarter scores - a 15-yard TD pass from Druckenmiller to Jennings and freshman Shayne Graham's first college field goal from 26 yards - to ensure BC of its worst Big East loss ever.
Eagles coach Dan Henning confessed his club just didn't have the horses to run with Tech.
"All I can say,'' said Henning, "is that I can't imagine how bad it would have been if we hadn't been working at it.
"Obviously, they're a better football team than we are.''
Beamer said he never figured on the trip north being so easy.
"I just wanted to come in here and get a win in any fashion or form,'' Beamer said. "We did a lot of things well. I think this football team knew it had to be a lot better this week to beat this team.''
Druckenmiller said he never doubted Tech would win. But by 38?
"We did we did,'' said a beaming Druckenmiller. "I promise you, I really wanted to beat BC. We owed 'em one from last year.''
Cornelius White, who matched a career high with five receptions for 98 yards, said people shouldn't sell Tech short this season.
"After last week, I was embarrassed, at least personally,'' White said. "We played bad. We felt like people were starting to think, `Yeah, they had a couple good years and now they're going downhill.'
"Well, I'm telling you. We're rolling. Again.''
LENGTH: Long : 101 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: GENE DALTON/Staff. 1. Boston College defenders Georgeby CNBWhite (left) and Tim Davis (27) both have a hand in breaking up a
pass intended for Tech receiver Cornelius White. 2. Shyrone Stith
(foreground) is congratulated by Tech teammates (l-r) Todd
Washington, Bryan Jennings and Brian Edmonds after scoring a
touchdown in the first quarter. color. 3. Virginia Tech defenders
Loren Johnson (12), Antonio Banks and Torrian Gray (right) converge
to break up a pass meant for Kenyatta Watson (4) of Boston College.
4. AP. Freshman tailback Shyrone Stith leaps over the goal line for
a Virginia Tech touchdown in the first quarter Saturday.