Huntington Times

West Virginia plays in Lane Stadium for the first time in 18 years when the Mountaineers meet Virginia Tech tonight in a Thursday night clash on ESPN.

 

It will be the 54th meeting between these two border rivals in a series that dates to a 1912 meeting in Blacksburg.

 

The two played annually from 1957 until 1968 when they were members of the Southern Conference, Virginia Tech leaving in 1965 and West Virginia departing three years later, and then from 1973 until 2005 before Tech left the Big East for the ACC.

 

After tonight's game, Virginia Tech will become the fourth most frequent gridiron opponent for West Virginia, surpassing Maryland (53 meetings).

 

Pitt (105), Syracuse (60) and Penn State (59) are West Virginia's most often faced foes.

 

West Virginia and Virginia Tech have played many memorable games, especially after Frank Beamer took over the Tech program in 1987.

 

In 1989, Beamer's Hokies came into Morgantown as 16-point underdogs and upset ninth-ranked West Virginia 12-10 without the benefit of scoring a touchdown.

 

Four years later, No. 25 West Virginia survived five turnovers to hold off Tech 14-13 in Morgantown when Ryan Williams missed a 44-yard field goal with 1:10 left that would've put the Hokies in the lead.

 

In 1999, Tech needed a Shayne Graham 44-yard field on the final play of the game to defeat upset-minded West Virginia, 22-20, to preserve its undefeated season.

 

West Virginia used a goal-line stand and an interception by Brian King in the end zone to hold off the 13th-ranked Hokies in Blacksburg in 2002, and a year later, thoroughly dominated No. 3 Tech 28-7 on a wild Wednesday night in Morgantown.

 

Two more meetings took place in 2004 and 2005 before the annual series went on hiatus.

 

A 2017 meeting in Landover, Maryland, went down to the wire, Virginia Tech winning 31-24, and last year, West Virginia needed a red-zone stop inside of a minute to play to thwart a Hokie rally and claim a 27-21 triumph.

 

With no future games scheduled, what's at stake tonight is lengthy ownership of the Black Diamond Trophy, created in 1997 by the Rish Equipment Company in Bluefield, West Virginia, to recognize the region's rich coal history.

 

The trophy has been contested 11 times with Virginia Tech holding it in seven of those.

 

"It's the only game we play for a trophy," West Virginia coach Neal Brown said.

 

Virginia Tech is 13-5 in ESPN Thursday night games played in Blacksburg, its first victory coming against West Virginia by a 34-6 score in 1994.

 

"It's going to be a great atmosphere, and I'm looking forward to it for the first time in my coaching career," Brown noted.

 

Tonight's game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. Here is tonight's Countdown to Kickoff:

 

10 – West Virginia has won TEN of its last 15 games played on ESPN Thursday night football.

 

9 – The Mountaineers have won NINE times (9-6) in games played on Sept. 22 but lost their only road game played on this date.

 

8 – Over the last EIGHT years, West Virginia has generated 114 takeaways.

 

7 – West Virginia has produced 1,000-yard rushers in five out of the last SEVEN years heading into this season.

 

6 – The Mountaineers recorded SIX rushing touchdowns during last Saturday's 65-7 win over Towson – the most by a WVU team since 2007.

 

5 – West Virginia freshman running back CJ Donaldson ranks FIFTH nationally this week in scoring (12.0) and total touchdowns (six).

 

4 – West Virginia's FOUR 50-yard-plus plays from scrimmage lead the country through three weeks of action.

 

3 – Virginia Tech comes into tonight's game ranked THIRD nationally in rush defense, allowing an average of just 42 yards per game. WVU's rushing offense ranks 28th with 217.3 yards per contest.

 

2 – Virginia Tech makes TWO Power 5 Conference opponents on West Virginia's schedule, joining Pitt. The Mountaineers are of only 10 Power 5 members and one of only two (Duke) to play both on the road.

 

1 – According to Pro Football Focus, West Virginia junior wide receiver Bryce Ford-Wheaton ranks FIRST in the country this week with eight contested catches. Ford-Wheaton is WVU's leading receiver with 24 catches for 296 yards and four touchdowns.

 

Mountaineer Sports Network coverage begins at 4:30 p.m. with the GoMart Mountaineer Tailgate Show leading into regular network coverage with Tony Caridi, Dwight Wallace and Jed Drenning beginning at 6:30 p.m. Both broadcasts can be accessed on many stations throughout West Virginia and online via WVUsports.com as well as the popular mobile apps WVU Gameday and Varsity Network.

You can also follow the live stats coverage of tonight's game as well.

 

Afterward, be sure to stop back for complete postgame coverage.

Original source can be found here.