Virginia Tech couldn’t keep pace in its 34-17 loss to No. 13 Miami on Saturday afternoon in Lane Stadium.
The Hokies (3-8, 2-5 ACC) struggled to slow down the high-powered Hurricanes (9-2, 5-2) offense, led by quarterback Carson Beck, who started the game a perfect 11-for-11 and finished 27-for-32 with 320 yards and four touchdowns.
Miami scored on all four of its first-half possessions, opening with a 20-yard strike from Beck to tight end Elija Lofton and following that up with a 3-yard pass in the flat to running back Mark Fletcher Jr. Kicker Carter Davis tacked on 46- and 40-yard field goals to make it 20-3 at halftime.
Meanwhile, Tech only mustered a 30-yard field goal from John Love on its first possession. It turned it over on downs at the Miami 23-yard line on its second drive and, after converting on fourth-and-1 on its own 44, it stalled and punted on its third.
The Hokies showed some life in the second half when, after a Hurricanes facemask call on fourth-and-1 granted them a first down, true freshman running back Jeffrey Overton Jr. burst up the middle and was untouched on his 38 yards to the end zone. It was the longest rush of the season allowed by Miami.
Overton, who tore his ACL before last December’s Duke’s Mayo Bowl, has 129 all-purpose yards on 15 touches in three games since returning from injury. The former four-star prospect from Hayfield High School finished Saturday’s contest with 69 rushing yards on seven totes.
Tech ran the ball better than anyone had all year against Miami, but it was too one-dimensional and couldn’t sustain drives.
The Hokies racked up 194 yards on 37 attempts, good for 5.2 yards per carry. Entering Saturday, the Canes boasted the nation’s third-best rushing defense at 81.8 yards per game and had only given up 100-plus yards on the ground three times, the most being 161 yards vs. Syracuse and a 3.8 average vs. Louisville, respectively.
Marcellous Hawkins, who had a 33-yard run on Tech’s first play from scrimmage — the Miami’s second-longest rush given up this season — posted 72 yards on eight carries (9.0 average). He left the game with a shoulder injury, however, and did not return.
Still, the Hokies couldn’t move it through the air until it was too late. Quarterback Kyron Drones finished 12-for-21 for 124 yards, which included a 39-yarder to Ayden Greene on a late scoring drive.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Pop Watson entered in relief for Drones on that possession and hit Greene for another 39-yard bomb on fourth-and-11 before powering into the end zone on a 3-yard rush.
Tech tight end Cole Reemsnyder recovered an onside kick on the next play, and Watson had a 38-yard completion to Isaiah Spencer, but the signal-caller fumbled two plays later to end the home team’s hopes.
On the other side, the Canes impressed. Beck slung the ball around the yard, favoring star freshman wideout Malachi Toney, who accounted for 146 yards on 12 receptions. He was a Swiss army knife, too, rushing three times for 16 yards and throwing one pass for 15.
It was the most receiving yards given up by Tech to an individual player in Lane Stadium since Wake Forest’s Kendall Hilton’s 162 in 2019. Moreover, he became the fourth Hokies opponent since 1985 to record a rushing attempt, a passing attempt and 100-plus receiving yards, joining Syracuse’s Ervin Phillips (2016), Cincinnati’s Shaq Washington (2014) and Louisville’s Eric Givens (1985).
Miami, on the outskirts of the College Football Playoff at-large discussion, rushed for just 83 yards. Yet, Beck spread the ball around to eight different receivers, and his 16-yard touchdown on a wheel route to running back Girard Pringle was crucial breathing room in the fourth quarter.
As one last statement for the CFP committee, Beck found Toney on a 20-yard touchdown with 23 seconds remaining in regulation. His 320 passing yards were the most by an opponent in Blacksburg since the Canes’ Tyler Van Dyke had 351 in 2022.
Miami only outgained Virginia Tech by 23 yards of total offense — 418-395.
It marked the fifth straight win in the series for Miami, which last lost to Tech in 2019 when Hendon Hooker was at the helm. On top of that, the Hokies’ last victory over the Hurricanes in Blacksburg on a Thursday night in 2016.
Tech has cemented its third losing ACC record in its 22 years in the league, joining the 2014 and 2022 seasons. It closes the season on Saturday in Charlottesville vs. No. 19 Virginia (9-2, 6-1). The kickoff time and television designation for that contest are to be determined.
Box Score: No. 13 Miami 34, Virginia Tech 17
