Hokies Football Vanquishes California In Double Overtime

"To start with, I couldn't be more proud of our football team and our coaching staff." said Virginia Tech interim head coach Philip Montgomery. "These guys have been through a lot. This is a tough ball game. That's a good Cal team. [They] came in here 5-2, been playing extremely well.

"We knew we were going to have our hands full tonight and we knew it was going to take all three phases to get this thing done. I thought [we] came out of the gates the way I wanted us to. What we talked about. Got off to a really good start, again in all three phases. Defense came out, got big stops, offense went down, got points. Second quarter was a little rough. Come back, we're down 10. And then the second half, I thought our guys just stepped up and just continued to battle, continued to fight. They were resilient all all game long."

With the victory, Montgomery now has tallied a 2-1 record in one-score games, compared to his predecessor Brent Pry's 1-12 record in such contests.

"Just played a full four quarter game," aid Virginia Tech quarterback Kyron Drones. "That's what we've been talking about for weeks, that we got to put a whole game together and just fight to the end, And that's what we did."

Virginia Tech went to the tune of 357 rushing yards, a season-high and the tenth-most in a single game in program history. The effort was anchored by running back Marcellus Hawkins, who totaled a career-high 167 rushing yards on 21 carries.

"Go get some," Hawkins said when asked what his running mentality was.

The effort was a crisp contrast to California, which posted 39 rushing yards. Signal-caller Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele tallied -27 rushing yards, being sacked on a trio of occasions. All three times, the sack was by defensive tackle Kemari Copeland.

"He's doing everything we asked him to do," Drone said. "He was set back last year, and now he's trying to unleash it all, and he has the last five games to go do that. So, him having these three sacks is good and great for us. I'm glad he's on our team."

Drones' passing statistics were rather pedestrian; the redshirt senior completed 9-of-18 for 119 yards, but racked up a trio of passing touchdowns. Of note: Drones tallied a season-high 137 net rushing yards on 21 carries despite absorbing three sacks. Tech's defensive line, thanks to Copeland, negated that with three sacks of their own.

"It means everything," Copeland said of what his performance meant to him. "My whole life I've been working so hard and trusting in God and thinking when that game is gonna happen. Because in practice, I make plays a ton. I got to show it out here, having trusting our teammates, my coaches. Luckily I got out here, put on the show."

The game ebbed and flowed, pulsing from one side over to the other. Virginia Tech held a 10-3 advantage after a quarter, but California responded with 17 unanswered points in the second frame to take a 20-10 lead entering the halftime break. However, in the second half, the Hokies outscored the Golden Bears, 17-7.

"Our mindset, no matter where we was gonna do it, whatever it takes to win this game," Drones said when asked what shifted at the half. "And that's all I told the team. It takes what it takes. Do what you got to do."

The Hokies entered the final quarter knotted with the Golden Bears, and what followed served as a adequate snapshot of Virginia Tech’s 2025 season: a stretch defined by flashes of promise offset by equally flashy lapses. To begin quarter No. 4, the Hokies stood at a first-and-10 scenario at California's 25-yard line with a chance to grab a seven-point lead. However, Drones' pass was intercepted by defensive back Cam Sidney in the endzone for a touchback.

Though the Hokies picked up an unnecessary roughness call, assessed to linebacker Caleb Woodson, on the ensuing drive, they forced California back to its own 23-yard line in a drive that resulted in only three yards for the Golden Bears.

The ensuing drive saw Virginia Tech pass the ball... zero times. The nine-run drive that ensued saw the Hokies take the ball 64 yards, punctuated by a 24-yard gain from Hawkins and a 14-yard score from Drones that put Virginia Tech ahead, 27-20.

With seven minutes remaining, the Golden Bears ventured on their drive, one that was successful due to a penalty. On third-and-five, Sagapolutele was sacked for a loss of eight and coughed up the ball, which the Golden Bears recovered. However, defensive end Ben Bell was whistled for a roughing-the-passer call, which set California at the Hokies' two. A play later, tailback Kendrick Raphael, who accumulated 71 rushing yards for the Golden Bears, punched it to knot the score once again at 27 with 2:06 remaining.

And yet, the game — and all its troubles — refused to fade quietly. Somehow, someway, the chaos kept unfolding. On the following drive, Drones scampered into enemy territory on a 28-yard gain, but a third-and-3 false start on center Kyle Altuner led to the Hokies taking a field goal attempt. However, kicker John Love's potential game-winning field goal was no good, doinking off the right post and giving Cal the ball back at its own 28-yard line.

Sagapolutele then found tight end Mason Mini on a short throw down the middle that resulted in a 22-yard reception; the call was initially ruled as targeting on Tech linebacker Kaleb Spencer, but was overturned after review.

With nine seconds left, Sagapolutele spiked it then sailed a second-down pass over to the sidelines. Sitting at third-and-10 with six seconds left, the Golden Bears went for the game winning field goal.

It was no good.

" I was excited," Copeland said. "I was, I was praying like, 'Please miss it. Please miss.' And they missed, let's go. So, I was definitely excited."

That allowed the Hokies, who had tallied 116 rushing yards and no passing yards in the quarter, to kneel down and send the contest to overtime.

And again, somehow and some way, the chaos continued to unfold.

To start the overtime quarter, California received possession first and Sagapolutele found Mini down the middle at the five; the tight end barreled down through several Hokies defenders to give the Golden Bears the lead back on the first play of overtime.

But two plays later, the Hokies answered, utilizing an outside run that created enough space for Drones to break free for his fifth total touchdown of the day. Tech received the ball to start the second overtime and despite a false start penalty, the Hokies persevered, moving the ball down to California's seven.

Then, Drones found Heath on a short slant route behind his defender for a seven-yard gain and the touchdown.

"That was a great catch," Hawkins said. "Takye's a great player."

Seconds later, Drones' two-point conversion run was good, putting the Hokies up, 42-34. The Golden Bears quickly burned three downs, following two quarterback hurries and an incomplete pass that was ruled targeting on the field and again overturned after review.

Facing a fourth-and-10, Sagapolutele's last-gasp toss to wide receiver Trond Grizzell was no good, securing the Hokies their third win of the 2025 season in a cathartic and chaotic contest.

Virginia Tech football takes on Louisville next on Saturday, Nov. 1 at 3 p.m. ET, with viewing for the game available on the CW.