Furman fell to 0-2.
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Those details include blocking downfield to help the running game, being threats when left in one-on-one coverage and having earned the confidence of Motley, who had thrown just three college passes before Brewer broke his collarbone in the loss to Ohio State. The Hokies must now move forward without talented quarterback Michael Brewer for the next 4-8 weeks and that journey begins Saturday afternoon when unsafe FCS member Furman pays a visit to Blacksburg. But the redshirt junior did his part Saturday, completing 16 of 24 passes for 233 yards with two touchdowns, while rushing it four times for 38 yards with one more touchdown.
The Paladins, who scored 35 points and had 525 yards of offense in their season-opening loss to Coastal Carolina, finished with just 254 yards with three turnovers against the Hokies. Virginia Tech had a balanced attack, running for 299 yards and throwing for 284. Something happened during halftime against Furman, because when Brenden Motley stepped onto the field for the second half, he looked to have a bit of the swagger all quarterbacks need to succeed. The Hokies had 371 yards in the final 30 minutes, including 200 on the ground. Motley also looks more comfortable with a game under his belt. “I did feel good about doing that”. Each Frank Beamer and affiliate head coach and operating backs coach Shane Beamer stated Monday no definitive determination has been made but relating to a redshirt yr for Williams.
Motley is by no means a finished product, still very much rough around the edges. He converted a few first downs and made a nice throw to Kalvin Cline for 31 yards. While Meyer and most of his players downplay revenge as a motivator, quarterback J.T. Barrett has a photo of Lane Stadium as the background on his phone to remind him of what happened in 2014.
Also, true freshman Dwayne Lawson received his first taste of playing time last week and impressed.
“That is a North Carolina deal there, if I’ve ever heard of 1”, stated Beamer of Shoop’s run-oriented offense at Purdue.
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Maybe it was the ghost of James Madison clouding our judgment, but be honest, you were somewhat nervous that Furman could create some problems for the Hokies and expose a few warts. So when we see a guy that has a strong arm and nifty footwork like Motley, we expect more from him, fair or unfair. Cam Phillips and Ford each caught five passes for 86 and 77 yards, respectively. Now, it’ll have to figure out how to function without starting middle linebacker Andrew Motuapuaka for up to a month – beginning Saturday at Purdue.
