American college football season
The 2016 Virginia Tech Hokies football team represented Virginia Tech in the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season . The Hokies were led by first-year head coach, Justin Fuente and played their home games at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg, Virginia . Since 2004, Virginia Tech has played in the Atlantic Coast Conference and is currently in its Coastal Division .
The Hokies finished the 2016 season with a regular season record of 9–3, winning its sixth ACC Coastal Division title. The Hokies played Clemson in the ACC Championship Game ; Clemson won the game, 42–35.
Virginia Tech played Arkansas in the Belk Bowl on December 29, 2016. Arkansas took a 24–0 lead into halftime. However, in the second half, several Arkansas turnovers along with defensive adjustments, allowed Virginia Tech to score 35 unanswered points and win, 35–24. The comeback was the greatest in the team's 124-year history.
The Hokies finished the season with a record of 10–4, and ranked #16 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches Poll .
Schedule
Date Time Opponent Rank Site TV Result Attendance September 3 12:30 p.m. Liberty * ACCN W 36–1362,234 September 10 8:00 p.m. vs. No. 17 Tennessee * ABC L 24–45156,990‡ September 17 3:30 p.m. Boston College Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA (rivalry ) ESPNU W 49–060,054 September 24 12:30 p.m. East Carolina * Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA ACCN W 54–1763,712 October 8 3:30 p.m. at No. 17 North Carolina No. 25 ABC/ESPN2 W 34–333,000 October 15 3:45 p.m. at Syracuse No. 17 ESPNU L 17–3133,838 7:00 p.m. Miami (FL) Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA (rivalry ) ESPN W 37–1663,507 7:00 p.m. at Pittsburgh No. 25 ESPN W 39–3640,254 November 5 3:30 p.m. at Duke No. 19 ESPNU W 24–2138,217 November 12 3:30 p.m. Georgia Tech No. 14 Lane Stadium Blacksburg, VA (rivalry ) ESPNU L 20–3065,632 November 19 3:30 p.m. at Notre Dame * NBC W 34–3180,795 November 26 12:00 p.m. Virginia ESPN2 W 52–1063,120 December 3 8:00 p.m. vs. No. 3 Clemson No. 23 ABC L 35–4250,628 December 29 5:30 p.m. vs. Arkansas * No. 22 ESPN W 35–2446,902
Schedule Source: [ 1] ‡ – Current NCAA record for largest attendance for a collegiate football game.
Game summaries
Liberty
1
2
3
4
Total
Flames
6
7
0
0
13
Hokies
7
17
9
3
36
Vs. Tennessee
1
2
3
4
Total
Hokies
14
0
3
7
24
#17 Volunteers
0
24
7
14
45
Boston College
1
2
3
4
Total
Eagles
0
0
0
0
0
Hokies
14
7
21
7
49
East Carolina
1
2
3
4
Total
Pirates
0
0
14
3
17
Hokies
14
24
9
7
54
North Carolina
1
2
3
4
Total
#25 Hokies
6
7
14
7
34
#17 Tar Heels
0
3
0
0
3
At Syracuse
1
2
3
4
Total
#17 Hokies
3
0
6
8
17
Orange
7
10
0
14
31
1
2
3
4
Total
Hurricanes
3
6
7
0
16
Hokies
3
13
14
7
37
At Pittsburgh
1
2
3
4
Total
#25 Hokies
6
10
13
10
39
Panthers
0
14
7
15
36
At Duke
1
2
3
4
Total
#23 Hokies
7
14
0
3
24
Blue Devils
7
0
7
7
21
Georgia Tech
1
2
3
4
Total
Yellow Jackets
6
14
0
10
30
#18 Hokies
0
0
7
13
20
At Notre Dame
1
2
3
4
Total
Hokies
0
14
7
13
34
Fighting Irish
10
14
7
0
31
Virginia
1
2
3
4
Total
Cavaliers
0
0
3
7
10
Hokies
7
21
24
0
52
1
2
3
4
Total
#19 Hokies
7
7
7
14
35
#3 Tigers
14
7
14
7
42
1
2
3
4
Total
Razorbacks
17
7
0
0
24
#18 Hokies
0
0
21
14
35
Rankings
Ranking movementsLegend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking Week Poll Pre 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 Final AP — — — RV RV 25 17 RV 25 23 18 RV RV 19 18 16 Coaches — — — — RV RV 19 RV 25 21 22 RV RV 18 19 16 CFP Not released 19 14 — — 23 22 Not released
Personnel
Coaching staff
At the start of the 2016 season, Head Coach Justin Fuente began a tradition of selecting an outstanding special teams player to wear the #25 jersey in honor of former head coach, Frank Beamer, who wore #25 as a player for Virginia Tech.
The players honored in the 2016 season are:
References
External links
2016 Virginia Tech Hokies football team at Wikimedia Commons
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