Tennessee Volunteers vs Virginia Tech Hokies Match Player Stats On Sep 10, 2016

The Sports Xchange
Sep 11, 2016

BRISTOL, Tenn. -- In front of a record crowd of 156,990 at Bristol Motor Speedway, 17th-ranked Tennessee got its motors running after a slow start in the Battle of Bristol.

Quarterback Joshua Dobbs set the school's career rushing record at his position, compiling 106 yards and two touchdowns on 14 carries Saturday night in the Volunteers' 45-24 verdict over sloppy Virginia Tech.

Dobbs, who also threw for 91 yards and three scores on 10-of-19 accuracy, broke Jimmy Streater's old mark of 1,374 yards with a 31-yard run midway through the third quarter. That set up his 23-yard touchdown pass to Alvin Kamara which made it 31-14 with 7:04 left in the period.

Dobbs tacked on a 27-yard scoring run with 6:45 left for a 38-17 advantage and teammate John Kelly's 4-yard run 13 seconds later -- after the Hokies' fifth lost fumble on a bad shotgun snap -- finished the scoring.

Virginia Tech (1-1), which coughed up four fumbles in its season opener with Liberty, also mixed in eight penalties for 101 yards. Most of the errors occurred after it raced to a two-touchdown lead during a dominant first quarter.

Travon McMillian collected 127 yards on 14 carries for the Hokies, while Jalen Hurd gained 99 yards on 22 rushes for Tennessee (2-0). Teammate Micah Abernathy set a school record by recovering three fumbles.

Virginia Tech controlled the first quarter, initiating the scoring with 4:32 left on a 7-yard touchdown pass from Jerod Evans to Sam Rogers, capping an eight-play, 62-yard drive. The two hooked up for the key play, a 30-yard pass over the middle to start the march.

After a three-and-out, the Hokies made it 14-0 with 2:48 left in the quarter when McMillian raced 69 yards off left tackle, taking advantage of a good seal block and poor run fits by Tennessee. At that point, the Hokies was outgaining the Volunteers 193-6.

But Virginia Tech fumbled the ball away on the second quarter's first play, with Evans botching a handoff on a jet sweep, and Abernathy recovered at its 5. Tennessee cashed in right away as Dobbs hit Jauan Jennings on a fade pattern 17 seconds into the quarter.

The Vols tied it with 9:42 left in the half as Dobbs found Josh Malone for a 38-yard touchdown pass, with Malone boxing out cornerback Greg Stroman for his second long scoring catch in as many games.

Aaron Medley's 34-yard field goal gave Tennessee its first lead with 5:30 remaining, and Dobbs capped a 24-point quarter with a 5-yard run on a designed quarterback draw 39 seconds before the half.

NOTES: Before Saturday night, the teams' last meeting was in the 2009 Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta, a 37-14 Virginia Tech win that capped Lane Kiffin's only season as Tennessee coach. ... There was plenty of star power at the coin toss as Peyton Manning represented the Volunteers and Bruce Smith and Frank Beamer represented the Hokies. ... Tennessee DE Jonathan Kongbo (ankle/foot) left in the first quarter but was able to return.