Independence Bowl 2015, Tulsa vs. Virginia Tech, 55-52: Full highlights, final score and more

Frank Beamer and Virginia Tech held on against Tulsa to get the win in the 2015 Independence Bowl

In Frank Beamer’s final game as the head coach of the Virginia Tech Hokies, it looked like his team was going to run away with the 2015 Independence Bowl against the Tulsa Golden Hurricane. Led by Travon McMillian, the solid play of quarterback Michael Brewer, and a little bit of Beamer-Ball on special teams, the Hokies jumped out to a big lead going into halftime, leading 45-31 heading into the locker room. However, the games don’t end at halftime and the Golden Hurricane weren’t done fighting.

The offense was a bit harder to come by for both teams in the second half, but Tulsa began to chip away at the Hokies lead thanks to great play from quarterback Dane Evans and running back D’Angelo Brewer. Even better for the Golden Hurricane, though, was their defense that suddenly found the answers to the Virginia Tech attack that was running all over them in the first half.

In the fourth quarter with the Hokies looking to run away with the game, Tulsa started to make things happen offensively, most notably a huge drive that was capped off with a touchdown pass from Evans to Joshua Atkinson. The Golden Hurricane then converted on a two-point conversion to cut the Virginia Tech lead to 10. After another big stop by the Tulsa defense, Virginia Tech had to punt it away with time winding down and that allowed Evans to strike again with a deep touchdown pass to Keyarris Garrett.

With just under four minutes left on the clock, the Hokies got the ball back with the task of winding down the clock to secure the victory. Though they managed to run two minutes off the clock, they set the stage for a dramatic ending as they had to punt it away.

Tulsa started off the drive hot and moving the ball downfield with a couple of big-time throws over the middle. After an overthrown pass, a sack, and then an incompletion, the Golden Hurricane were left with one final fourth down play. Beamer’s defense came through when it mattered, though, registering another sack. That sealed the game for the Hokies in thrilling fashion, giving the Virginia Tech head coach the win in his final game on the sideline.

Three stars

Isaiah Ford had a monster game for the Hokies in the receiving game. He finished the night with 12 catches for a ridiculous 227 yards and a touchdown.

Travon McMillian wasn’t as productive as many people thought he would be, but he still game up big on a number of occasions for Virginia Tech as he finished the night with 16 carries for 82 yards and two scores.

Dane Evans kept Tulsa alive in this game, particularly with his explosive second-half performance. He finished the game going 27-44 for 374 yards and three touchdowns while not throwing an interception.

Highlights

Odds

The Hokies were 13.5-point favorites coming into this game, which they failed to cover despite picking up the win. The two teams hit the over on the 62.5-point O/U line in the first half alone and just proceeded to blow past it as the game wore on.