Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry explains questionable and botched fake FG call

Looking for a fresh start with ACC play beginning, Virginia Tech football coach Brent Pry had a few trick plays up his sleeve for No. 7 Miami Friday night. With the way the first four games had gone, disappointing losses to Vanderbilt and Rutgers and wins over Marshall and Old Dominion, anything was on the table for the third-year head coach.

Pry and his staff went down to South Florida with a game plan and executed it well throughout the game. They limited mistakes and took advantage of turnovers by the Hurricanes. The biggest turnover happened in the third quarter and it allowed the Hokies to blow the game open.

Leading 27-17 and Miami driving, Miami transfer Kaleb Spencer had an interception of Cam Ward at the Hokies' 3-yard line and returned it deep into Miami territory. The Hokies had a chance to go up three scores with a touchdown and 13 with a field goal. They faced a 4th down and attempted a chip shot field goal by John Love.

Instead of taking the three points and building the lead to 13 points, Pry called for a fake field goal. It didn't work. Miami blew up the play, got a tackle short of the first down marker, and forced a turnover on downs. After a 38-34 loss that ended on a conversial ending of an overturned touchdown, Pry explained why he called for the fake field goal rather than taking the three points.

I get it, you wanted to catch Miami off guard, however, you're doing it behind a line that has been shaky at best all season long. Miami was getting good pentration all night and did so to force the turnover on downs.

Miami, which marched down the field on the ensuing possession for a touchdown and 10-point swing, took a 38-34 lead with just under two minutes left and Virginia Tech drove to the Hurricanes 38 with three seconds left. Instead of needing a touchdown, if they took the three points with Love, they would have only needed a field goal from him on the game's final play. He made kicks of 57 and 52 yards in the game. Instead, they needed a Hail Mary which fell short. Oh, what could have been.