What, Technically, Is A Hokie?

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I learned an important lesson this weekend about (not) cheering for a team that you don't have a real connection with. This is one of the shortest trips I’ve made all season, in terms of distance as well as time. But I got in a little sightseeing on Friday, on my way up to Virginia. I was also tasked with delivering some brownies (no secret ingredients) to a certain PhD student at Virginia Tech. So it wasn’t just the football game I was interested in.

I left on Friday morning, which also happened to be my dad’s 70^th birthday. So happy birthday, dad. I did text in the morning as I was leaving, and I called to chat when I got back to my hotel room for the evening, so consider me a dutiful son. The day could have been quite short—the drive from my apartment directly to Virginia Tech takes 5.5 hours. But as it was, I had a few places I wanted to stop by on the way, and though it did lengthen the trip, it also made the trip much more manageable. It didn’t feel like it was so long.

Since I had attended a Wake Forest game about a month ago, and I already had a hoodie with that team on it, I decided to go all in for them during this weekend. This was a mistake, but such is the life of sports. But since I hadn’t visited the campus last time I was in Winston-Salem for the game (it was late and the swag store had already closed), I decided to remedy that. I also wanted to check out the PDQ restaurant again, since it was so good last time I was in the area. There was a single location in Winston-Salem, so that was my first stop. I left my apartment around 7:30 AM and pulled up at the restaurant at 11:45. Perfect timing for lunch. And it did not disappoint. I went for chicken this time; it’s what they’re known for, but I had gotten the turkey sandwich in my previous visit, and it was damn good. The chicken was good, too, but I think there was too much pepper on it for my taste. But after that, I was off to the campus of Wake Forest University.

This campus wasn’t big at all. It would be hard to get lost around there. They only moved into the area in 1956, having been located in the town of Wake Forest, near Raleigh, before then. So it was probably very easy to design a campus around a few landmarks the way they did. There’s a nice green space in the middle, with a big church and steeple at one end. So it’s hard to miss. I did find their swag store, since I checked out the forecast for the evening and next day in Blacksburg: low of 19, high of 48. I decided not to make the same mistake as last weekend: I bought a solid jacket with fleece lining and windproof shell. It’s black and has the Wake Forest logo on the front, but it’s kinda small, so it should be fine to wear elsewhere, too.

I probably spent an hour looking around the campus before moving on to the next target: Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA. Let me begin by saying that I would never have thought I would visit this place. Its theology and politics are repulsive to me. But faithful readers of my blog will remember that one of my life goals is to visit every FBS football stadium. Liberty University is my eleventy-first stadium (it brings my total up to 111, out of 130 total). It only required a 45-minute detour from the path between Wake Forest and my hotel in Roanoke, so it’s the kind of detour I don’t mind making. The school was founded in 1971 in response to racism and integration, much like most of the private schools in the South that popped up around that time. And like most things with the name “liberty” or “patriot” in their title, this university has a very specific type of liberty in mind. Anyway, I found their stadium, and it was open, so I popped in and took a few pictures. They also have a statue of their mascot, some kind of eagle (because of course they mix their theology with nationalism), outside the stadium. A lady was kind enough to offer to take my picture with it. Then I was off to the bookstore to, despite my better judgments, give money to this institution in exchange for a pennant for my pennant wall. And then after that, I went to find a parking spot in all of the insanity that was going on for their annual “College for a Weekend” (CFAW) visitation with families and prospective students. I did find a spot closer to the heart of campus, and I’ll say I was impressed with how nice everything looked. Clean, manicured, well-spaced, and pretty. Just like their theology. I even found Freedom Tower, which rises like a beacon of patriotism from the base, which is their seminary. How appropriate. I compared it to Nebuchadnezzar’s towering statue in the Bible, because both are quite idolatrous. But I digress. Next stop, hotel in Roanoke.

Roanoke is a lot bigger than I thought it was. I mean, like a decent sized little city, with skyscrapers and convoluted interstates. But my hotel, the Extended Stay America, was just off the exit ramp, and only an hour away from Liberty University. So I made it to the hotel just as the sun was setting. And since I had some extra time, I opted to go see Last Christmas at the local AMC theatre. It was cute, but I wish I hadn’t seen the previews, since they gave away too much, as usual.

And after an ok night of sleep, I left on Saturday morning for Blacksburg, the home of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University; Virginia Tech for short. It took about 45 minutes to drive in, and I parked at Blacksburg Baptist Church on Main Street for $15 (another school with no free parking). I arrived at the church just after 9:00 AM, which meant I had about four hours to wander around before I wanted to make my way to the stadium. I texted Natalie (the intended brownie recipient) when I arrived, but I didn’t hear back until after 12:00. In the meantime, I walked around the frigid campus.

This has to be one of the nicest receptions I’ve received from opposing fans at any school I’ve ever visited (Mizzou was very welcoming, too). I was wearing the Wake Forest gear, since it was still right at freezing temperatures, and no one said anything mean. Several people even wished me good luck. The only negative I got was from some guy who took a second to come up with a hearty “Down with the Deacs,” but it was all in good fun, based on his smile and his friend’s eye roll.

The only thing I really knew about Virginia Tech was that there was a shooting on campus back in 2006, and it was the first of its kind that I can remember. They have a monument to that; rather, there’s a plaque with some flowers around it, across from the main administration building, just as you walk onto the Drill Field. Or is it Drillfield? The road is Drillfield, and yes, the campus has a pretty big student-military contingent. They have their own cool uniforms, and they stand guard at the war memorial. They also have their own band and their own seating at the football game, which is in the endzone opposite from the students. But anyway. The war memorial was cool. Several large concrete slabs on each side of a raised stone platform, each slab inscribed with the names of Virginia Tech students who served in the world wars (and even a few in Korea and Vietnam). And there are always two of those student-soldiers standing guard. The memorial looks out over the Drill Field, which is pretty massive. I suppose it serves to anchor the university, always a good point of reference.

Next I stopped in the swag store, but they didn’t have anything that I needed. Since I already had Wake Forest stuff on, it wouldn’t be necessary to get any Virginia Tech stuff. Also, I hate orange, and one of their primary colors is orange. I do love purple, and that’s their other primary color. So if I had wanted to spend money, I would’ve found something nice and purple to wear. I didn’t spend much time in there. And by the time I left, the temperatures were warming up. So I made my way downtown, because Natalie had said that we should probably meet in that area.

Side note: Virginia Tech's mascot is the Hokie, which is also called a Hokie bird for some reason. I had no idea what this was for the longest time, or whether it was even real. It turns out, a Hokie is related to the turkey. And in fact, a Hokie is basically a neutered turkey. So I'm not sure what to make of that, that a university decided to adopt this type of animal as its mascot. They used to be called the Gobblers (check the photos for a sign with that name on it), and I think that's a better name honestly. Alas, they didn't ask me.

But back to my day in Blacksburg. On my way, I found an Art Deco building—a former bank, but it was closed and had been turned into a couple of stores. I looked around for a place to eat, since it was about 11:30 and I didn’t want to wait until I got to the stadium to pay more for less food. I ultimately settled on the Mellow Mushroom; I like to try local places, and this is a chain that we even have in Athens, GA, so it wasn’t my first choice. But I don’t regret it one bit. I got there before the rush (I was taken to a table immediately, whereas the people arriving after I got there were having to wait 15 minutes or longer to be seated). Also, this was probably the best Mellow Mushroom pizza I’ve ever eaten. I built my own pizza, but I don’t think that was the main reason, since that’s what I normally do. I even felt compelled to remark to the waitress that it was the best. She was glad to hear it. While here, I got a text from Natalie (finally!) and we decided to meet up just outside the restaurant.

We chatted for a few minutes and I delivered the package, as promised. Natalie is doing a PhD in physics, and god bless. Not me. We talked about the graduate school experience, and how football does/doesn’t fit into it. And after about twenty minutes, we parted ways. I did have to get to a football game, after all. And Natalie isn’t exactly what we would call a football person.

Lane Stadium was not very far from Mellow Mushroom, and along the same street. So it was easy to find. There was also a little fan zone across the street, in what looked like the grass parking lot for baseball or soccer games. Even here, an elderly gentleman approached me and said that I was welcomed here and that there were police around in case anyone got a little too hateful towards me. But that was never the case. I did end up getting a large button that said it was my “1^st Game in Lane” and, later on, a free Virginia Tech beanie, in case the wind got too chilly by the end of the game. I was actually going to buy one earlier at the swag store, just in case, but I got lucky here. Then the game happened, and all that luck went away.

Now inside the stadium, it wasn’t as big as I expected. It seats about 65,000 people, but it wasn’t filled up today. It was probably 90%. My side was in the sun (I intentionally bought a ticket on this side so I could stay in the sun as long as possible), and the sun kept us feeling very nice until the half, when it disappeared behind the bleachers on the opposite side of the field. At that point, a jacket was definitely necessary.

And as customary for me, I went to find a souvenir soda. Unlike other stadiums, though, they had a variety of souvenir cups. I saw at least three. But the concession stands on my side (the visitors side) didn’t have any souvenir cups; in fact, they didn’t have soda machines at all. Only bottled sodas. So I had to go back down to the endzone (my seat was near midfield, for a change) to get a souvenir soda ($6). And I got to watch the teams warm up when I got back to my seat. There was a nice family to my right: mom, dad, and two grown children. No one on my left, but there was still some time before kickoff. Then before the game began, I went to get a milk shake from the VT Dairy Club, which had set up a stand in the endzone concourse. Cool idea. I had left all my swag underneath my seat when I went to get the milk shake, and when I returned, my gameday experience turned sour, and it never recovered.

I know what you might be thinking: someone stole all my swag. Nope. But someone was in my seat. The stands were getting a little fuller, since the game was beginning shortly, and when I pointed out that she was in my seat, the woman remained seated and gave me a “so what” look. So I looked at the guy next to her, and he didn’t seem to comprehend either. I waited for a few seconds, and neither of them did anything. At all. Normally, people check their tickets to make sure they’re in the right spot, or defend themselves, or scoot over to acknowledge that they may have taken up more room than necessary. Nope, none of the above. Since the seat next to them was still empty, I sat in it and then pointed underneath the woman to my stuff and said, “That’s my stuff.” Still nothing. Not a damn thing. At least none of it was missing. But I had my milkshake so I sipped on it and awaited the big Virginia Tech tradition of the team running out onto the field to the song “Enter Sandman.”

It was fun, and loud, and everyone sang along. The guy on the other side of me turned to me and asked if I could think of any better entrances to the field than that, and I diplomatically said that I couldn’t. I could. But I wasn’t going to tell him. Everyone was on their feet and enjoying the atmosphere. I would say that it was getting to be of the electric variety, but then that damn woman sat on my milkshake and really ruined my day.

I had placed it on the bench when I got up to take some videos of the team running onto the field. The milkshake wasn’t in my former/her current seat, off to the side and closer to where I was standing. Still, she sat on it. And when she did, it crushed the Styrofoam cup and spilled milkshake all over the floor of the row behind us. Those guys got out of the way, and she turned to see the mess. But in typical “her” fashion, she said nothing and did nothing else. No “sorry about that” or offer to pay for a new one or help clean up the mess that she f*cking made. I just looked at the mess and missed the taste of milkshake.

Later on, when it got colder, I politely asked them if they could give me my own stuff underneath her damn legs. They were quick to acknowledge that. My new Wake Forest jacket was there; I had rolled it up since the sun was keeping me warm enough. But dammit, that milkshake that she had exploded had leaked down the side of the stands and had gotten on my new jacket. When I unrolled it, the liquid got on my pants, too, and now I have to wash them before I can wear them again. I was extremely nonplussed. And not a single damn apology for the entire game. At least the jacket wasn’t ruined. And I could still wear it without any smears of curdling milkshake staining it.

What was the game like? Well, after I stopped fixating on ways to kill that woman, or at least incapacitate her, I realized that I shouldn’t have worn Wake Forest stuff. Even though I already had it. One of the other ladies, from the polite family on my right, had said before the game that she was really worried about the outcome; she was afraid that Virginia Tech was going to get blown out. I reassured her that it wasn’t likely. And that it really could go either way.

The first three quarters were exactly as I predicted. Both teams traded field goals to end the first quarter tied 3-3. Then Virginia Tech got a second field goal before Wake Forest got a touchdown, making the score 10-6 at the half. I frankly expected this situation to be repeated in the second half. Several bad turnovers, mostly decent defense on both sides when it counted. In the third quarter, Wake was stuffed on the opening drive, and Virginia Tech scored a touchdown to go up; but then Wake Forest got the ball back and answered with their own touchdown to take the lead, 17-13. And then Virginia Tech decided they wanted to win the game. They got a touchdown and then took advantage of a Wake Forest screw up to get a field goal and go up 23-17. And Wake Forest really didn’t know what to do, throwing an INT inside their own ten-yard line and setting up an easy Virginia Tech touchdown, making the score 29-17 early in the fourth quarter. Tech tried for a two-point conversion but failed. Tech people kept saying that they just needed to score once more and they would be fine. It took a few more minutes, but they got their wish: another touchdown to put the game out of reach. New score, 36-17. And that was it. Nobody scored again. When Wake got the ball back, they played with no sense of urgency. They knew it was over. Or they didn’t think they could come back. Not sure what the mentality on their sideline was. I can say that I did watch them come back from being 21 points down—twice—in the last game of theirs that I attended. So I wasn’t convinced they were out of gas. But they had convinced themselves that they were, and that’s all it took.

The day was also a celebration to honor the upcoming retirement of Bud Foster, the defensive coordinator for Virginia Tech for over thirty years. They were giving out foam lunch pail signs as we entered the stadium. At first, I was unsure what the hell it was. But as the pregame ceremony showed me, that was his symbol of the working-class defensive line that always put in a full day. Or something like that. Anyway, it was funny to hear some of the fans talk about why he hadn’t been given the head coach position when Beamer retired in 2015. They were VERY honest: gambling, extramarital affairs, other vices. My response to them was that it sounded like Bud enjoyed his life. They agreed. Anyway, his defense came up strong today, holding 19^th-ranked Wake Forest to its lowest point total all season. And it made the game a bit miserable for someone wearing those colors. Not to mention someone stealing my seat and exploding my milkshake without a single word. Bitch.

Afterward, there wasn’t much to say. People were polite, bordering on kind, to me once the clock hit 0:00. Thanks for coming. Good luck against Clemson next week. I do intend to go to Clemson next week, but I won’t be wearing Wake Forest apparel. Learned that lesson hard. Don’t support a visiting team when you don’t really support them.

And the drive back was uneventful. I chose to drive all the way back home after the game, since, well, money, and I had some unexpected duties in Athens on Sunday morning. Traffic was pretty bad getting out of Blacksburg; like Starkville, there appears to be only a single road in and out of town. But once I got onto I-77 heading south to Charlotte, the traffic disappeared. And I made it home just before 1:00 AM. Not a bad drive at all.

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