Bronco: Countdown Clock Reminder That Tech Isn’t Just Another Game

By Jerry Ratcliffe

Walking out of the postgame interview room after Saturday’s win over visiting Liberty, the countdown clock inside Virginia’s locker room shouted out the constant reminder: “Beat Tech, 5 days, 19 hours, 35 minutes, 58 seconds.”

The clock has been ticking since last year’s overtime loss to rival Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, a game most Cavalier fans believe should have ended the Hokies’ winning streak in the series, which is now 15 straight years. UVA led 31-24 with 2:41 to play, but Tech tied the game with 1:51 remaining, and eventually won in overtime.

That’s when a new clock started, leading up to this week’s Black Friday noon showdown in Charlottesville’s Scott Stadium, where the Cavaliers are unbeaten this season (6-0).

Asked about the clock during his Monday presser, Virginia coach Bronco Mendenhall was candid about its constant presence.

“I think the reality is to try to pretend the game isn’t important or that it’s not different, it’s not real,” Mendenhall said. “It is. It’s important to the university. It’s important to the state. It’s important to the UVA alumni.

“It seemed important to me because I like being transparent with my team, to acknowledge that. It’s counting down the entire year. I’m not saying that we even pay much attention to it other than when we get to this week, but I like the constant presence of it while we just go about our business.”

Mendenhall said his team has bigger goals that it’s pursuing, however the only way those goals are going to be reached is by addressing the losing streak to the Hokies. 

The two teams are tied for the ACC’s Coastal Division lead at 5-2, so it’s a winner-take-all scenario on Friday. The team that wins the game will be division champion (UVA is the only team in the seven-member Coastal that has never won the title) and will face Clemson for the ACC Championship on Saturday, Dec. 7, in Charlotte.

Most likely, the Coastal champion will also gain a spot in the Orange Bowl, assuming that it’s the highest-ranked team behind Clemson in the College Football Playoff rankings.