Virginia Tech vs. Arkansas, Belk Bowl 2016: Hokies prevail with 2nd half comeback

Washington drafted Arkansas tight end Jeremy Sprinkle with in the fifth round of the NFL draft on Saturday, 154th overall. Sprinkle had a weird ending to his college career.

Sprinkle he was accused of shoplifting during a pregame team function at one of Belk’s department stores, according to SEC Country’s Jason Kersey.

We judge a coach harshly for poor halftime adjustments when a team blows a halftime lead. We praise a coach to high heavens for the same thing if there’s a second-half turnaround.

But halftime adjustments aren’t nearly what we make them. For one thing, you’re adjusting all game, from the opening series. For another, though halftime is an opportunity for all of a team’s coaches to chat face-to-face in a less real-time atmosphere, by the time the guys in the booth get down the elevator and to the locker room, they’ve got about five or 10 minutes. Not exactly time to fill the dry erase board.

In this year’s Belk Bowl between Arkansas and Virginia Tech, there was a play late in the second quarter that had just about everyone confused. Arkansas punted on fourth down, and Virginia Tech muffed the punt recovery.

An Arkansas player landed on it but didn’t retain possession, and a Virginia Tech player proceeded to pick it up. Somewhere in there, a whistle blew. When the Hogs ended up with the ball, many assumed it was because of that whistle.

This year’s Belk Bowl between Virginia Tech and Arkansas looked as if, in the beginning, it wasn’t going to be a good game whatsoever. Arkansas came out in the first half and completely sliced through Virginia Tech’s defense, scoring 24 unanswered points and putting up 258 yards to go to the locker room with a commanding lead. It appeared that the game was long over in the first half.

But in the second, Virginia Tech’s offense came alive, and the Hokies managed to score 35 unanswered points. Arkansas had a chance to get something going on offense with less than eight minutes left. But a Hokie interception off Arkansas’ Austin Allen deep in Razorback territory set up an easy one-yard touchdown for the Hokies to secure a 35-24.

Oh, fullbacks can just run the ball you say? Well Virginia Tech fullback Sam Rogers is here to prove you wrong. In the third quarter of the Belk Bowl against Arkansas, with his team down 24-7, Rogers got the Hokies within 10 points with this beautiful, acrobatic touchdown catch.

Rogers has scored three touchdown passes all season. One of his more memorable plays of the season, besides of course his Belk Bowl TD, was on this beautiful touchdown pass he threw to fellow fullback Steven Peoples.

I think this is what Arkansas head coach Bret Bielema would call “borderline erotic.” Arkansas is taking on Virginia Tech in the Belk Bowl, and a Razorbacks fan in attendance stands out among the crowd. I mean, look at this dude. (Note the Razorback nipple stickers.)

As it turns out, this man has a real connection to the Arkansas program — he’s the brother of senior Razorbacks offensive lineman Dan Skipper. As an offensive tackle, Skipper’s got a massive frame, standing at 6’10, 319 pounds.

In the Coaches Poll controversy of the century, Bret Bielema did the unthinkable. He left the Hokies off of his final public ballot at regular season’s end. It probably wouldn’t have been too big of a deal, but then the teams got paired together in the Belk Bowl and now we have a story. All’s well that ends well, though, and Arkansas issued a statement saying it was just an error.

With the scandal behind us, it’s on to the actual football. Virginia Tech had some very strange games this season. Justin Fuente’s first season at the helm in Blacksburg was unquestionably a success. It was an interesting scheme marriage. Fuente, a proponent of high-octane offense, and longtime defensive coordinator Bud Foster, who preaches gritty lunch pail defense. But with a 9-4 finish and an ACC Coastal title in a very crowded division, Virginia Tech rose above expectations. The Hokies never said die in the ACC title game against Clemson, either, and gave the Tigers all they could ask for. But their other three losses each came by double digits. When they were clicking things were great, but the real Virginia Tech team must please stand up in the bowl game.

The college football Coaches Poll isn’t exactly as it seems. It’s an open secret that many (most?) of the “coaches” voting on the sport’s top 25 teams really aren’t coaches at all, but rather sports information directors who might briefly consult with their bosses.

The last Coaches Poll before bowl season, from early December, included the Virginia Tech Hokies at 19th after losing the ACC title game. But Arkansas coach Bret Bielema, in what must have been taken by someone as a grievous assault on Tech’s character, did not rank the Hokies. (See Bielema’s ballot here.)

FPeak SEC occurred in late-October 2014.

When the College Football Playoff committee unveiled its inaugural midseason rankings, the league claimed four of the top six teams in the country: No. 1 Mississippi State, No. 3 Auburn, No. 4 Ole Miss, and No. 6 Alabama. At 6-1, No. 11 Georgia was within striking distance of a Playoff bid as well.

Arkansas is a 7-point underdog in Charlotte at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com. In their last 12 games as a betting underdog, the Razorbacks are 7-5 SU and 8-4 ATS.

The Razorbacks were one of the most inconsistent teams in the nation this season, earning some impressive wins at their best and getting blown away at their worst. Arkansas finished the regular season 7-5 SU and 5-7 ATS, losing by an average margin of 25 points per game in their defeats. But Arkansas also won five times as an underdog including wins as a double-digit underdog over TCU and Ole Miss.

Both sides are right. Bowls are a cynical money-making exercise, an excuse for ESPN inventory, and an outdated way for all the wrong people to maintain some semblance of control over college football. They’re also happy, bonus football.

We are at both extremes in 2016. We once again had 80 bowl bids to give out and fewer than 80 bowl-eligible teams, a sure sign of bloat and excess. We’re also loaded with perhaps more interesting bowl matchups than we’ve ever seen.

All wagers at -110 odds unless otherwise noted. Visit Odds Shark for updated lines throughout each game week.

College football bowl games are a different beast for bettors. Sure, the typical handicapping elements apply. Offense and defense matter. But there are some key elements at play that don’t apply as much during the regular season.

College football’s bowl season is upon us. A full schedule is here.

There are 40 bowl games spread from Dec. 17 to Jan. 2, with the National Championship on Jan. 9. Unless you’re watching on multiple monitors and are really committed, you won’t catch all of them. (If that is your plan, more power to you.)

Also, head over here for the fully updated bowl season calendar as it fills in, from the New Orleans Bowl through the Rose Bowl. We’ll also add picks, scores, and more to that calendar over time.

The Internet’s favorite bowl game, the Belk Bowl, gets underway Thursday afternoon from Charlotte. The matchup will feature Virginia Tech and Arkansas, according to the Virginia Daily Press.

The Clemson Tigers have officially punched their ticket to the 2016 College Football Playoff. The No. 3 team in the country beat No. 23 Virginia Tech 42-35 to win its second straight ACC title, and continue to stay in the national championship conversation.

Virginia Tech kept things interesting for the whole the game, staying within one score throughout the majority of the night. The Hokies went to the locker room trailing just 21-14 at the half. Clemson went up 35-14 in the third, but the Hokies scored two touchdowns, one in the third and another to open the fourth quarter to make it a 35-28 game. Both teams scored back-to-back touchdowns on the next two drives to keep it a seven-point game