Virginia–Virginia Tech football rivalry

The Virginia–Virginia Tech football rivalry is an American college football rivalry between the Virginia Cavaliers football team of the University of Virginia (called Virginia in sports media and abbreviated UVA) and Virginia Tech Hokies football team of Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (called Virginia Tech and abbreviated VT). The two schools first met in 1895 and have played annually since 1970. The game counts for 1 point in the Commonwealth Clash each year, and is part of the greater Virginia–Virginia Tech rivalry.

Since 1964, the game has always been played at either Lane Stadium or Scott Stadium on the campuses of the two universities. But the series has at times been played in Richmond (1903–1904, 1957); Norfolk (1940–1942); and at Victory Stadium in Roanoke (17 of 19 years from 1945 to 1963). Since 2000, the game has been held in late November, often on Thanksgiving weekend.

Virginia Tech leads the series 58–37–5, and the Cup series 20–3. Virginia Tech has held the Commonwealth Cup for the past 15 consecutive years with UVA's most recent win coming in 2003. Virginia Tech holds the third longest active winning streak against a conference rival in college football. (Michigan and Ohio State currently have a 23 game winning streak against Indiana).

Virginia and Virginia Tech were both led by College Football Hall of Fame coaches in the 1980s and 1990s. George Welsh led UVA to a four week stint as the AP No. 1 ranked team in 1990, conference championships in 1989 and 1995 and holds a 9-10 record against Virginia Tech. Frank Beamer led Virginia Tech to a BCS National Championship appearance in 1999, conference championships in 1995, 1996, 1999, 2004, 2007, 2008 and 2010 and holds a 20-9 record against UVa.

Commonwealth Cup Trophy
In 1996, a trophy was created for the rivalry, known as the Commonwealth Cup. The winning team holds the trophy until the next game, which has been held annually since 1970. Currently, Virginia Tech holds the cup, having won the 2018 game. Their 2018 win marks 15 years of consecutive wins against UVA. The trophy is constructed of marble and cherry wood, and is four feet high. It also contains the scores of all of the games in the series. The cup is engraved with the names of the two schools and is mounted atop a trapezoidal base that makes up most of the trophy's length. The front of the base features a stylized map of Virginia with Blacksburg and Charlottesville represented by stars on the map. '

History
The Virginia-Virginia Tech rivalry has existed since the late 1800s, but did not reach pre-eminence until the 1980s. Traditionally, Virginia's primary rival had been the Tar Heels of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which remains the South's Oldest Rivalry. Virginia Tech's rival was the Virginia Military Institute, with whom they shared a military tradition and similar acronyms (VMI and VPI).

Memorable games
1995: "Upset In Charlottesville" The Virginia Cavaliers came into the 95 contest looking for their ninth regular season win. Virginia led 29-14 going into the fourth quarter, however Virginia Tech then stormed back and a Jim Druckenmiller touchdown pass to Jermaine Holmes gave the Hokies the lead with forty seven seconds left. The Hoos last attempt to win the game was then snuffed out when a Mike Groh pass was intercepted and taken to the house by Antonio Banks, who avoided a sideline trip by UVA coach Joe Gieck. This humiliating loss was the third that season that the Hoos lost in the last minute. The win gave the Hokies a birth to the Sugar Bowl, while Virginia had to settle for the Peach Bowl

1998: “The Comeback” Both teams entered the 98’ matchup in ranked in the Top 25 and looking for their ninth win. Virginia Tech took no time jumping out in front. The Hokies took a 17-0 lead early and led at halftime 29-7. The Hoos then came out in the second half and outscored the Hokies 29-3. A now legendary touchdown pass from quarterback Aaron Brooks to Amhad Hawkins put Virginia up by four, and a Wali Rainer interception preserved a Virginia comeback victory, arguably their most impressive win in Blacksburg.

2003: “The Tech Killer” The Virginia Cavaliers entered the 03’ Commonwealth Cup looking to snap a four game losing streak against the Hokies. Virginia Tech led 14-7 at the half, but Virginia came out in the second half firing on all cylinders, and outscored Tech 21-0 by the 14 minute mark in the fourth quarter. Up by seven with only a few minutes left, Virginia pulled off a fake field goal on fourth down to keep possession away from the Hookies. Wali Lundy ran in it for the score on the next play, capping a dominant performance of three rushing touchdowns and a receiving touchdown. Virginia held on to the win 35-21. This game also saw Matt Shaub tie Shawn Moore for all time passing touchdowns at Virginia.

2011: “38-0 Bro” The 2011 matchup was one of the more anticipated matchup in the series history. The game served as a de facto play-in game for the 2011 ACC Championship as the winner would claim the Costal Division crown. The week prior to the game centered around UVa's sudden rise in the polls (24th in the AP) after four straight wins. Many media members believed UVa had a chance to topple the then ranked #5 Hokies in Charlottesville. . Virginia Tech won the anticipated matchup 38-0. The Hokies defense shut out the Cavalier offense, limiting them to 241 yards and four turnovers. Future first round pick David Wilson led the Hokie offense with 153 rushing yards and two touchdowns. After the game was over, Hokie quarterback Logan Thomas tweeted "38-0 bro" after being trolled by a UVa fan on Twitter. Thomas' tweet went viral and now "38-0 bro" is a common refrain among Virginia Tech fans.

2018: “The Fumble” The 2018 Commonwealth Cup saw arguably the most dramatic ending in the entire series. Virginia had high hopes of ending it’s brutal fourteen game losing streak against a Tech team that had struggled most of the season. Virginia Tech led 14-0 at halftime, only to fall behind by seven with only two minutes remaining. On the ensuing Tech drive, the Hokies drove all the way down to the redzone. Steven Peoples fumbled inside the five yard line, however Virginia’s defenders failed to scoop the ball up, and it was recovered by Hezekiah Grimsley in the endzone for a touchdown. The game went into overtime (the first in the series history) and the Hokies kicked a field goal to go up by three. On Virginia's second during their possession, quarterback Bryce Perkins fumbled a hand off to Jordan Ellis, which was recovered by the Hokies defense, ending the game.