Hokies Own Commonwealth Cup

It may come as no surprise to most, but Virginia Tech once again defeated Virginia 37-7 Saturday in Blacksburg.

Rivalry games are a funny thing and past dominance is in no way an accurate predictor of future outcomes—just ask USC.

When it comes to UVA of course, they're still really, REALLY bad. In fact Saturday marked day 2,191 of Tech's continuous possession of the Commonwealth Cup. The gap, or shall I say chasm between the two programs grew wider by the minute under former head coach Al Groh and new head man Mike London has his work cut out for him in the coming years.

The biggest thing London has in his favor is that he isn't Groh. That by default leads me to believe the Wahoos will improve during his tenure and that bodes well for the rivalry. One-sided affairs aren't fun after several in a row—just ask Notre Dame.

Ultimately, the only poor decision made by Tech yesterday was the choice to drink from that dirty ol' cup. And don't worry, it's just Gatorade, see?

Virginia Tech vs. Virginia

Saturday at noon the Hokies host their upstate rivals from the University of Virginia in the 92nd gridiron meeting between the schools.

As a general service to the public, each year at this time I like to remind everyone why UVA sucks.

Whether it's the level of pretentiousness, or simply the student body's penchant for popped collars and fine cheeses there are plenty of reasons not to like Mr. Jefferson's university.

I won't wax poetic on the downsides of the "school up north" but below is my favorite UVA related video from recent years.

Virginia Tech-Virginia Week and Notre Dame-Stanford

It's a big week for both programs as the Hokies take on their arch-rivals and Charlie Weis hopes to cling to his job as the Fighting Irish travel to battle a very solid Stanford team.

Brian and I both picked Stanford in that one and it certainly looks like the smart pick right now. We'll have to see just how much fight is left for the Irish.



Saturday, Tech will bid farewell to longtime friend of the program Al Groh who will likely be coaching his final game for the Wahoos. The Hokies should roll in front of mostly their own fans in Charlottesville, but anything can happen in the battle for the Commonwealth Cup.

It's going to be a great, busy week. I'll have quick picks up tomorrow.

Mediocrity: It Groh's On You

So I had to post this after seeing it just now. This is a great UVA "highlight" video from their opening losses to TCU and William & Mary (Go Tribe!). As my good friend Eric pointed out, after four years at Virginia Tech and this being his first semester at William & Mary Law School, his school has still never lost to UVA in football.

Thanks so much Al Groh. You're the best.

Rivalry Week

As Virginia Tech prepares to play Virginia Saturday in the battle for the Commonwealth Cup, it's important to remind ourselves just what makes rivalries great, namely, the fact that your rival school sucks.

It's no different in the commonwealth of Virginia. The shirt and tie wearing, wine and cheese crowd of UVA descends on the fair hamlet of Blacksburg this weekend to tell us how much more their degrees are worth, and to shower us with insults regarding our blue-collar nature.

Thank goodness it's going to be too cold for sundresses.

Football is a dirty, tough and often ugly slugfest. It's about hard-hitting and snot bubbles. It's about getting your bell rung. It's about beating your rival and holding down the home turf...unlike some schools below.

There's no real point to this post. I'll have some actual football analysis tomorrow sometime. But just food for thought, sometimes I think Virginia Tech is the smarter school...

Al Groh Up Some Day

Oh Al Groh, that NFL savvy architect of the budding (any time now) football dynasty at the University of Virginia. While Al takes breaks from ironing his sweatshirt to continue to recruit and scheme for the 2010 national championship run that he's been building towards for nearly a decade, his team has become the worst in the ACC football conference. After losing to an up-and-coming Duke squad (that's the only non-sarcastic part of this post) this past Saturday, the 'Hoos look to rebound against a surprisingly game looking Maryland squad.

The website linked below was started by some Hokies. The aptly named, "Dontfirealgroh.com" pokes fun at one of the easiest targets in college football. Since his hiring as UVa's head football coach in 2001, Groh has helped to insure that Virginia Tech has a lockdown on recruiting in the Commonwealth of Virginia and on good football. His help will not soon be forgotten.

The website is now set up like Facebook, the comments Al's "friends" leave him are great. For example after being fired by the Oakland Raiders today, the fake Lane Kiffin had this...

Lane Kiffin Wrote: Hey, quick question...may seem out of the blue. Just out of curiosity, would you mind emailing me the dimensions of your office? Thx.


Don't Fire Al Groh

Oh Tina Fey

I hate to give compliments to a graduate of The University of Virginia, only because they're so reluctant to throw them back a Hokie's way, but Tina Fey is legitimately awesome. Her triumphant return to Saturday Night Live recently led to this very funny show opener. Alongside the hilarious Amy Poehler who plays Hillary Clinton, Fey does a spot on impression of Alaska governor and danger to society Sarah Palin. Enjoy.