Virginia victory would end Hokies' bowl hopes

Virginia Tech (5-6, 3-4) has won eight in a row in the series, and 12 of the last 13.

Last season's meeting was viewed as the biggest ever with the Cavaliers in the midst of a resurgence and the winner representing the Coastal Division in the ACC championship. The Hokies rolled 38-0.

"We felt like we were having a good year last year," junior defensive end Jake Snyder said Monday. "We had more wins than we've the last few years, and they came in here and smacked us around."

The Cavaliers finished 8-5 last season, and went to a bowl game for the first time since 2007. Their hopes for making the postseason this year ended last Thursday night in a 37-13 loss to North Carolina.

The Hokies, meantime, barely kept their hopes for a 20th consecutive bowl appearance alive with a 30-23 overtime victory at Boston College. They tied it on a field goal with 1:05 left in regulation.

"This is a very capable football team," said Hokies coach Frank Beamer, who is 16-9 against the Cavaliers. "And of course this is the big battle in the state and we need to get ready."

Five consecutive senior classes at Virginia have left school without ever having beaten the Hokies, and the only game in the last eight that wasn't lost by double digits came in 2008 (17-14).