ANNAPOLIS, Md. — In a game that featured eight fumbles, Virginia Tech held on to the ball long enough in its 41-20 win over No. 23 Tulane in the 2023 Military Bowl in a steady downpour at Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium.
In head coach Brent Pry's second year, the Hokies (7-6, 5-3 ACC) won their first bowl game since 2016. It’s the first time since 2015, the final season under hall-of-fame head coach Frank Beamer, that Tech won its final two games.
In wet conditions, the Hokies controlled the clock against the Green Wave (11-3) by moving the ball on the ground. They amassed a season-high 362 rushing yards, the majority of which came from quarterback and game MVP Kyron Drones (176) and running back Bhayshul Tuten (136). They’re the first Tech duo to rush for 100 yards since Braxton Burmeister and Raheem Blackshear did so at Virginia in 2021.
The first score came from Tulane, though, when Drones fumbled on third-and-10 on Tech’s first drive of the game. Linebacker Tyler Grubbs scooped it up at the Hokies 21 and returned it to the house, giving the Green Wave an early lead.
The Hokies responded, however. John Love converted a 35-yard field goal on the next possession, one of his two on the day (he ended the season with 15 straight makes), and Drones had an 11-yard rushing touchdown as the first quarter winded down to give Tech the lead. The play was reviewed because the ball came out as he crossed the plane, but the officials stood by their original call of a Drones touchdown.
After Valentino Ambrosio converted a 49-yard field goal with 4:10 remaining in the second quarter, tying the game at 10, the Hokies ripped off an 11-play drive in four-and-a-half minutes, capped off by a one-yard pass from Drones to tight end Harrison Saint Germain — his first career touchdown — with eight seconds left in the half.
Virginia Tech wide receiver Jaylin Lane fumbled on the second play of the second half, which the Green Wave recovered. Kai Horton, who saw the majority of snaps at quarterback for Tulane after Justin Ibieta left the game with an injury, leveled things with a six-yard scamper to make it 17-all.
The tide soon turned for good in the Hokies’ direction, though. They outscored Tulane 24-3 after that.
Tuten had a 9-yard rushing touchdown before Love knocked through his second field goal of the day.
Drones hit Benji Gosnell for a 10-yard strike with 12:38 remaining, the second tight end to score for Tech, and Tuten capped it off with another touchdown, this time from 12 yards out.
Squeezed in between all of that was a 20-yard field goal from Tulane’s Ambrosio, the team’s lone response.
Virginia Tech posted 453 yards of total offense, averaged 6.4 yards per play, 7.2 yards per carry and scored in all seven red-zone trips. In addition, it held the ball for 33:09. It was also the fourth straight game the Hokies held an opponent below 200 rushing yards. Tulane picked up 133 yards on 33 attempts (4.0).
Box Score: Virginia Tech 41, No. 23 Tulane 20
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V--l8N58idY&ab_channel=TechSideline
