Hokies Football: Isaiah Ford, Woody Baron Are Our Hokies of the Game Against Syracuse

The Virginia Tech Hokies were heavy favorites on the road in the Carrier Dome yesterday but the Syracuse Orange pulled off a big 31-17 upset of the Hokies that has Virginia Tech back outside of the top 25 after getting up to 17th this past week. The Hokies' put out a lackluster performance largely due to the Hokies' lack of energy in addition to the extremely fast pace of Syracuse causing its fair share of problems. However, there were some solid performances so with that said, here are our Hokies of the game.

Offensive Hokie of the Game: WR Isaiah Ford

Isaiah Ford was healthy and the Hokies' star receiver actually didn't have too bad of a game with 8 catches for 83 receiving yards and a touchdown that tied him for the Hokies' all-time receiving touchdown lead at 22 with Antonio Freeman. Ford has continued to be one of the top receivers in the nation and his numbers should start to take off as the Hokies play tougher opponents and more four-quarter games. Ford's performance could have even been bigger if it wasn't for Jerod Evans overthrowing a couple of deep balls including one that Ford still nearly pulled in for a touchdown. Ford will have bigger games than this and it wouldn't be surprising if he put up some huge numbers on Thursday night in the huge Coastal showdown between Virginia Tech and Miami. Jerod Evans once again received consideration as he went 20-for-33 for 307 passing yards, 2 touchdowns, and 1 interception plus 11 carries for 61 yards. However, Evans's failure to help the Hokies get a couple of touchdowns including his interception deep in the red zone plus his late fumble prevent him from earning this week's honors.

Defensive Hokie of the Game: DT Woody Baron

Virginia Tech's defense struggled a lot giving up 560 total yards but there were some players who didn't have too bad of games including Woody Baron who made some big plays and had a solid performance overall. Baron had 5 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 1 sack, and 2 QB hurries in what was a solid performance for the senior defensive tackle who has been reliable all season long. Baron's emergence started last year when he hopped ahead of Nigel Williams on the depth chart and has continued this year as Baron already seems likely to receive some sort of All-ACC honors at the end of this season. Tremaine Edmunds received consideration after having 16 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 1 QB hurry in what was a busy game for the sophomore linebacker while Ken Ekanem only had 2 tackles and 1 QB hurry but seemed close a few times to getting a sack. Meanwhile, Vinny Mihota also made some plays and had a solid game with 6 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a blocked field goal. Congrats to Isaiah Ford and Woody Baron on being our Hokies of the Game this week.