Miami football reaches bowl eligibility with win over Virginia Tech

Miami football went on the road on Saturday and secured a sixth win in 2018. As a result, Virginia Tech will likely miss a bowl game for the first time in 25 years.

Miami pulled away in the second half of their road trip to Blacksburg on Saturday afternoon, emerging with a 38-14 victory over Virginia Tech that pushed the Hurricanes to bowl eligibility. They managed to generate plenty of points despite the contest playing out largely as a defensive struggle, as they were able to carve out several long drives and benefitted from big plays on special teams and defense.

Shaquille Quarterman returned a Ryan Willis interception inside the Virginia Tech 5, allowing the offense to score easily on the next play. The Hurricanes also got a 51-yard punt return touchdown from Jeff Thomas in the second half that added another seven points to the scoreboard as Miami really started to pull away from the Hokies.

N’Kosi Perry was decent enough against Virginia Tech’s defense. The young quarterback threw for 171 yards and two touchdowns through the air, and he added 16 yards and a rushing score as well. Mark Richt’s charges finished with near-perfect balance, as the running game produced 168 yards and two ground scores against the Hokies.

When they had the ball, Virginia Tech struggled to do much with the opportunities. In addition to three turnovers, the Hokies also dealt with an inability to move the chains. While they finished with five more first downs than the Hurricanes, Virginia Tech ended the day converting on just two out of a dozen third-down attempts.

Miami is now set up to go bowling this season, after they finally ended a four-game losing streak that put their postseason eligibility in jeopardy. The Hurricanes close out the campaign with a home date against Pittsburgh next weekend, as they hope to get revenge for last year’s loss to the Panthers.

Meanwhile, if they are going to reach bowl eligibility in 2018, Virginia Tech will need to scramble and find another team to play on the first weekend of December. That game would serve as a make-up game for the East Carolina contest that was cancelled due to Hurricane Florence. The Pirates, though, are out of the equation after accepting an offer from NC State to play on that date.

Even if they manage to take down rival Virginia on Thanksgiving weekend, the Hokies will miss a bowl game for the first time since 1992 if they fail to find an opponent for the first weekend of December.