The 2006 Virginia Tech Hokies football team represented

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six regi ...

during the

2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 31, 2006 and ended on ...

. The team's head coach was

Frank Beamer Franklin Mitchell Beamer (born October 18, 1946) is a retired American college football coach, most notably for the Virginia Tech Hokies, and former college football player. He is the father of current South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Shan ...

. The team tallied a 10–3 record, going 10–2 during the regular season before losing 31–24 in the

2006 Chick-fil-A Bowl The 2006 Chick-fil-A Bowl was a college football bowl game between the Georgia Bulldogs and the Virginia Tech Hokies at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, Georgia. With sponsorship from Chick-fil-A, it was the 39th edition of the game previously ...

against the Georgia Bulldogs.

Preseason

Virginia Tech began the season ranked #16 in the ''

USA Today ''USA Today'' (stylized in all uppercase) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth on September 15, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headquarters in Tysons, Virgi ...

'' Coaches Poll and #17 in the Associated Press Poll after going 11–2 (7–1 ACC) in 2005 and winning the Coastal division of the Atlantic Coast Conference. ''See also

2006 NCAA Division I-A football rankings Three human polls and one 2006 BCS computer rankings, formulaic ranking make up the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) football rankings, in addition to various publications' preseason polls. Unlike most sports, college football' ...

Schedule

Game summaries

Northeastern

North Carolina

Duke

Cincinnati

Georgia Tech

Boston College

Southern Miss

Clemson

Miami

Kent State

Wake Forest

Virginia

Georgia

Rankings

Personnel

Coaching staff

Roster

Discipline issues

The first half of Virginia Tech's season was characterized by a lack of discipline for the Hokies, both on and off the field. * Safety

Aaron Rouse Aaron Roosevelt Rouse (born January 8, 1984) is a former American football safety who last played for the Virginia Destroyers of the United Football League. He was drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft. He ...

was penalized twice against

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they are rank ...

for roughing the passer. His second hit on Duke quarterback Thaddeus Lewis was a helmet-to-sternum hit that whiplashed his head with such force that it gave him a concussion. Duke's backup quarterback said of Tech, "They are a fast team. I'm lucky to come out in one piece. ... The roughing of the passer, the late hits, they were coming for us." * DE Chris Ellis and WR

Josh Morgan Joshua Lewis Morgan (born June 20, 1985) is a former American football wide receiver. He was drafted by the San Francisco 49ers in the sixth round of the 2008 NFL Draft. He played college football at Virginia Tech. He also played for the Was ...

were arrested late Saturday night after the Hokies' victory over

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

and charged with resisting arrest and obstructing justice. Morgan was also charged with disorderly conduct. Both players were suspended for the following game, a home loss to

Georgia Tech The Georgia Institute of Technology, commonly referred to as Georgia Tech or, in the state of Georgia, as Tech or The Institute, is a public research university and institute of technology in Atlanta, Georgia. Established in 1885, it is part of ...

and were later sentenced to one year of probation and 100 hours of community service. * WR Josh Hyman was suspended for the Boston College game after an arrest for driving under the influence. * During the ESPN broadcast of the Boston College game, announcer

Kirk Herbstreit Kirk Edward Herbstreit (; born August 19, 1969) is an American sportscaster and former college football player. He serves as an analyst for ESPN's '' College GameDay'', a television program covering college football, and he also provides color ...

became angry when cameras showed Tech players Vince Hall and

arguing on the sidelines and showed linebacker Brendan Hill dancing on the sidelines with Tech trailing late in the game. The video of Herbstreit's rant was shown to the Tech team in Sunday meetings following the game. Tech's discipline troubles came to a head when the Hokies were blown out in consecutive weeks by

and Boston College. Beamer responded by cracking down on trash-talking, personal fouls, and other negative behaviors. The team responded and committed no personal fouls and only two defensive penalties total in the three games following the BC loss.

Defense

Virginia Tech finished the regular season leading the nation in total defense, scoring defense, and pass defense. This was the second year in a row that defensive coordinator

Bud Foster Robert Eugene "Bud" Foster Jr. (born July 28, 1959) is a retired American college football coach and former player. He currently serves as a Special Assistant to Athletics Director Whit Babcock. Following the 2006 season, he received the Frank Br ...

's unit had led the nation in total defense.

References

{{Virginia Tech Hokies football navbox

Virginia Tech Virginia Tech (formally the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University and informally VT, or VPI) is a public land-grant research university with its main campus in Blacksburg, Virginia. It also has educational facilities in six re ...

Virginia Tech Hokies football seasons

Virginia Tech Hokies football The Virginia Tech Hokies football team represents Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in the sport of American football. The Hokies compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athletic Association ...