Ethan Grunkemeyer threw for 314 yards and three touchdowns, and Virginia Tech held off Maryland 35-26 on Saturday night, snapping the Terrapins’ 20-game nonconference winning streak.
It was the first test against a Power Four opponent for the Hokies (3-0) under new coach James Franklin, and they led from the start. Virginia Tech scored touchdowns on five of its first six possessions, taking a 35-14 advantage into the fourth quarter.
Maryland’s nonconference winning streak was the longest in the Football Bowl Subdivision. That now belongs to BYU at 16 games.
“We’re fortunate to get out of here with a win,” Franklin said. “I thought we played really good complementary football.”
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Maryland’s Malik Washington threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns, but a pair of missed 2-point conversions in the fourth kept the Terrapins (2-1) from pulling within one score.
Grunkemeyer opened the scoring with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Luke Reynolds on the game’s first possession. Then on third-and-goal from the 18, Grunkemeyer was able to escape the pocket and run for a TD.
Iverson Howard scored on a 2-yard run for Maryland, but a 49-yard catch-and-run touchdown by Virginia Tech’s Jeffrey Overton Jr. made it 20-7 with 9:14 left in the half.
Washington threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to Chris Durr Jr. with 2:11 remaining in the second quarter, only for the Hokies to march 75 yards for a touchdown. Grunkemeyer’s 2-yard pass to Ja’Ricous Hairston made it 27-14 at the half.
Virginia Tech went 8 of 9 on third down and gained 302 total yards in the half.
Overton scored on a 2-yard run in the third quarter. Washington threw scoring passes of 2 yards to Dorian Fleming and 13 yards to Durr in the fourth.
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