JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Texas Tech kicker Alex Trlica's fourth-quarter field goal sailed through the uprights to complete the Red Raiders' stunning 31-28 comeback victory against the Cavaliers Jan. 1 in the 2008 Konica Minolta Gator Bowl.
"We gave the thing away," Virginia coach Al Groh said. "Leaves a lot of heartbreak next door, but at the same time, it's still we, us and ours."
The 41-yard kick into the swirling wind completed a game full of wild twists and turns including two intentional grounding safeties, a record-breaking run, one bad snap and three turnovers.
Texas Tech's aerial assault started smoothly as the Red Raiders scored on their second drive, giving them a 7-0 lead.
The Cavalier defense settled down, however, forcing Texas Tech junior quarterback Graham Harrell to intentionally ground the ball in the end zone twice, each time resulting in a safety.
Virginia's defense held the forceful Texas Tech offense to 141 yards of total offense in the first quarter and only seven points.
"I thought the kids on that team -- the defensive unit -- really did a terrific job applying what we taught them against some terrific players," Groh said.
The Virginia offense also had one of its strongest games of the season. Early in the second quarter, sophomore tailback Mikell Simpson made his presence known, exploding through the line and breaking several tackles en route to a 96-yard touchdown run. The carry was the longest rush in Gator Bowl history and the longest rush in school history. It was also the second longest run in NCAA bowl game history.
The Cavaliers took a 21-7 lead into halftime but were caught off guard by an onside kick recovered by the Red Raiders to start the second half.
Groh, however, was not surprised by the play call.
"We were well aware of the fact that that's part of Texas Tech's very aggressive repertoire," he said. "They just executed the play better than we did."
The Red Raiders were able to convert the Cavaliers' mistake into a touchdown, making the score 21-14.
Virginia continued to make big stops on defense throughout the third quarter including a fumble recovery by junior safety Byron Glaspy following a long Texas Tech pass play.
As the fourth quarter got underway, however, sophomore quarterback Jameel Sewell was forced to leave the game with a knee injury.
Freshman Peter Lalich entered the game and quickly reassured the crowd, tossing an 11-yard touchdown pass to Simpson, increasing the Cavaliers' lead to 28-14.
The win seemed all but in the bag for the Cavaliers. The game, however, was not yet over, and the potent Texas Tech offense began to wear down the Virginia defense, converting on three of five fourth downs on the day.
Senior All-American defensive end Chris Long noted the difficulty of stopping an offense that is confident in its ability to convert fourth downs.
"They convert so efficiently on a regular basis, it's difficult," Long said. "You have to get four good plays instead of three. We were forced to be on our toes the entire possession."
With the score 28-21 late in the fourth quarter, Virginia took the ball at its own 20. The Cavaliers then drew an uncharacteristic false start penalty, pushing the ball back to their own 15. Swarmed by two Texas Tech lineman on the next play, Lalich fumbled the ball as he tried to get rid of it.
The play was reviewed to decide if Lalich's arm made forward progress, resulting in an incomplete pass. The damage was done, however, and the ruling on the field stood.
Lalich didn't question the ruling at all.
"I fumbled the ball," he said. "They were on me pretty fast. I should have just ate it."
After the fumble, Texas Tech scored easily, tying the score at 28.
As Virginia received the kickoff, the Cavaliers found themselves in a familiar spot, needing a fourth-quarter score to win the game. The Cavaliers had done it many other times this season, winning six games by six points or fewer.
Sewell returned to the game for the Cavaliers, trying to continue his success in fourth-quarter pressure situations.
Groh said after the game that Sewell was determined to play in the final series.
"It was one of those things with the warrior mentality. He was like, 'I don't care. I can do this,'" Groh said.
It soon became apparent, however, that Sewell's knee injury was slowing down his mobility. Virginia was unable to convert and was forced into a three-and-out.
A 23-yard punt from Virginia senior Ryan Weigand gave Texas Tech excellent field position at its own 47-yard line.
With a little more than two minutes left in the game, Harrell took the field, only needing a few first downs to lead his team into field goal range. After several quick first downs, the Red Raiders were ready to line up for Trlica's kick.
The field goal sealed Texas Tech's second come-from-behind bowl victory in as many seasons after they clawed back to beat Minnesota last season 38-31.
Groh, however, refused to let Lalich shoulder all the blame for the fumble's impact on the final score.
"The first thing that happens after a team loses is we begin the blame game," he said. "We all could have done better. I could have called a better game, we could have executed that play better, we could have scored more points."
The Cavaliers' loss was the last game in the orange and blue for many seniors including team captains Long and TE Tom Santi as well as junior Branden Albert, who announced after the game that he will forgo his senior year to enter the NFL draft.
"It's hard, but that's life," Long said. "It goes by fast. You just go out there every day and you go 100 percent and have a no-regrets attitude at the end of the day."
Groh said the loss was especially hard considering what this year's seniors brought to the team.
"Those players leave with us having the utmost of affection and the greatest amount of respect [for] what they put in to make this team what it was," he said. "It just tugs at your heart for some of them to not get what they so dearly wanted here today and for it to happen the way that it did"
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