Dreams are fickle.
The controlled idealism constructed by the mind can be beautiful in its eloquence and fulfilling in its positivity. Yet, dreams always end the same way. You wake up and they fall away into the ether, blown to dust by the reality of current existence, which is what Virginia Tech learned all too well in Blacksburg on Saturday.
It was Frank Beamer’s last game coaching at Lane Stadium. Hhe Hokies had capped a 14-point comeback with a touchdown in the final 75 seconds, and they scored during their possession in overtime (but only a field goal). The dream was coming true, and then the Hokies woke up. The reality was that Marquise Williams and North Carolina were one step and one play better than them.
The Tar Heels scored a touchdown to escape Blacksburg with an overtime win. The Tar Heels, now 10-1, lurk in the background of the playoff picture. The win clinched the ACC Coastal Division title, and they’ll get a crack at Clemson in two weeks as their reward. The Heels still have to play at N.C. State next weekend.
For North Carolina it was all about Marquise Williams, for better or worse, and the better parts showed up enough to matter. Williams accounted for 63 percent of UNC’s yards, 205 passing and 74 rushing, and had a hand in two of Carolina’s four touchdowns. The Heels needed every bit of Williams’ brilliance as they gave up leads of 7-3 and 24-10. Williams committed the turnover which enabled Virginia Tech to tie the game and send it into overtime, and he made a few ill-advised throws into traffic, but when given a chance to claim the Tar Heels’ first-ever ACC title game berth, Williams met the moment.
The win should vault the Tar Heels into the top 15 in the next College Football Playoff poll, but not much higher. The Heels will clamor to be at the table for a playoff spot, but they’ll remain in the lobby waiting for a seat to open up. The best wins for UNC are a throttling of Duke in Chapel Hill, a mauling of Miami, and a seven-point win at Pitt — all nice wins, but none will move the national dial. That’s nothing in comparison to the zit on UNC’s resume that is the season-opening loss to South Carolina. That’s the same South Carolina team which lost to The Citadel about 30 minutes before UNC scored its touchdown in overtime.
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Before Frank Beamer there was no Virginia Tech football in a national context. Virginia Tech began football in 1892. In the ensuing 123 years the Hokies have won nine or more games 18 times in a season. Frank Beamer coached 15 of those teams. In 29 seasons at the helm, Beamer has made Virginia Tech one of the premier programs in America. His teams won 10 or more games every year from 2004-2011. He coached seven teams that finished in the AP Top 10.
College football is a coaches game. The top programs are defined by top coaches. Players rotate through every four years, but coaches stay. The game will go on as it has for nearly 150 years, but Beamer’s retirement — he has at most two games left on the sidelines — brings the sport closer to the end of an era. Gone will be one more of the last few coaches who had ties on his record. Gone will be one of the last men who coached college football before the influx of money and media into the sport. Gone will be one of great ambassadors of college football. Thanks Frank.
