The 1986 Peach Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game at Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the North Carolina State Wolfpack from on December 31, 1986. The game was the final contest of the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams, and ended in a 25–24 victory for Virginia Tech, the first bowl victory in school history.
Virginia Tech came into the game with an 8–2–1 record that included a lopsided loss to the Temple Owls, who would forfeit the season two years later after using an ineligible player.Temple Forfeits 6 Games from 1986 Season, accessed December 9, 2017 Facing the Hokies in the Peach Bowl were the 18th-ranked Wolfpack from North Carolina State University. N.C. State was led by head coach Dick Sheridan and had a regular-season record of 8–2–1 that included five wins over Atlantic Coast Conference teams.
The 1986 Peach Bowl kicked off five years minus one day since Virginia Tech had last played in Atlanta—during the 1981 Peach Bowl. Virginia Tech scored first in the game, but NC State's Bulluck blocked a Tech punt in the Tech end zone and recovered it for a tying touchdown. Virginia Tech kicked a field goal at the end of the quarter to take a 10–7 lead, but NC State fought back, scoring 14 unanswered points in the second quarter to take a 21–10 lead by halftime. In the third quarter, the game turned into a defensive battle. Neither side scored until late in the third quarter, when Tech took advantage of a State fumble to score the first touchdown of the second half. Tech failed to convert a two-point conversion, but NC State fumbled again on the ensuing possession, and Tech was able to drive for another touchdown. Leading 22–21, Tech attempted another two-point conversion, which also failed.
NC State, needing to score, drove down the field and kicked a go-ahead 33-yard field goal with 7:12 remaining in the game. After a failed possession, Tech was forced to punt the ball, allowing NC State to run down the clock. The Virginia Tech defense eventually forced a stop, giving the Tech offense one final chance to win the game. With 1:53 on the clock and beginning from their own 20-yard line, the Hokies drove 57 yards to the NC State 23-yard line. With under a minute left, Virginia Tech had no timeouts, but NC State committed a pass interference foul in the end zone, allowing kicker Chris Kinzer to successfully kick a 40-yard field goal as time expired to give Virginia Tech the win.
Team selection The Peach Bowl game was created in 1968 by the Lions Club of Atlanta as a means to attract tourism to the city. First played at Grant Field on the campus of Georgia Tech, the game was moved to Fulton County Stadium in 1971. By the mid-1980s, the Peach Bowl was facing hard times. At the time, NCAA guidelines for bowls required 75 percent of gross receipts to go to participating schools, with 33 percent of tickets to the game also required to go to each school. In 1983, the NCAA threatened to revoke the Peach Bowl's charter when ticket sales hovered around 25,000 with a week to go before the bowl. Last-minute sales saved the game, as attendance at the 1983 game climbed to 40,000 and a new television contract allowed the bowl to make a payout of $580,000 to each team. Still, the bowl's future was in doubt.Center, Bill. "Lesser bowls don't paint rosy picture," The San Diego Union. November 30, 1984. Page F1.
In the spring of 1986, the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce (MACOC) took over the Peach Bowl. The bowl executive director at the time was Dick Bestwick, and he encouraged the Chamber to step up its support of the game over what had been provided by the Lions Club.The History of the Chick-fil-A Bowl Chris Coleman, Techsideline.com. December 15, 2006. Accessed July 26, 2008. In 1986, the Peach Bowl had no contractual obligations with college football conferences, as its successor, the Chick-fil-A Bowl, does today.Packett, John. "Projected sellout gives Peach Bowl a boost," The Richmond Times-Dispatch. December 31, 1986. Page D5. Team selections were made by the Peach Bowl committee, a board of Atlanta community members, business leaders, and organizers of the Peach Bowl. To form one half of the matchup, the committee selected second-place Atlantic Coast Conference team NC State, which accepted the bowl bid on November 22, 1986, the day of their final regular-season game.1986 N.C. State The New Peach Bowl Media Guide, NCSU Sports Information Office. Raleigh, North Carolina. December 1985. Page 10. The other half of the matchup was Virginia Tech, a football independentConference Affiliation History Virginia Tech Sports Information Department, Hokiesports.com. Accessed July 9, 2008. that had finished with nine wins, one loss, and one tie during the regular seasonVirginia Tech Football Past Schedules: 1986–1987 Virginia Tech Athletics Department, Hokiesports.com. Accessed February 22, 2008. and received its invitation one week after the regular season concluded.
Virginia Tech had not participated in a bowl game since the 1984 Independence Bowl against Air Force, while NC State was playing in its first postseason game since 1978. The two teams had played each other 39 times prior to the Peach Bowl, with Virginia Tech leading the all-time series, 20–16–3.
Virginia Tech
In the days leading up to the Peach Bowl, one sportswriter called Virginia Tech's 1986 football season a "season of surprises."Packett, John. "In a season of surprises, the Hokies didn't fold," The Richmond Times-Dispatch. December 28, 1986. Page D8. Tech began the season having gone 6–5 in 1985.Virginia Tech Football Past Schedules "1985–1986," Hokiesports.com. Virginia Tech Athletics Communications Department. Accessed July 31, 2008. In their first game, the Hokies faced the Cincinnati Bearcats. Tech lost, 24–20, on a last-minute play that saw a Cincinnati pass tipped twice and caught for a sustaining first down. The drive eventually resulted in a game-winning touchdown for Cincinnati.
Tech recovered from that season-opening loss by going on a four-game winning streak, defeating Clemson in South Carolina, Syracuse in New York, and East Tennessee State and West Virginia in Blacksburg. On October 11, against South Carolina, the Hokies tied, 27–27.Virginia Tech Football Past Schedules "1986–1987," Hokiesports.com. Virginia Tech Athletics Communications Department. Accessed July 31, 2008.
Then, on a trip to Norfolk, Virginia to face the Temple Owls in the Oyster Bowl, Tech fell 29–13 for what appeared to be its second loss of the season. It was later revealed, however, that Temple used an ineligible player in the game, and the Owls were forced to forfeit the win. Following the Temple game, Tech returned to its winning ways, defeating archrival Virginia, Kentucky, Richmond, and Vanderbilt. One week after defeating Vanderbilt, November 22, 1986, Tech received an invitation to the 1986 Peach Bowl.
NC State
NC State began the 1986 college football season coming off three consecutive losing seasons. Those losing seasons also resulted in the firing of head coach Tom Reed, who was replaced by Dick Sheridan.Stinson, Thomas. "Hokies, Wolfpack starving for a bowl win," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 30, 1986. Page D1. Sheridan's first game with the Wolfpack was against East Carolina on September 6. NC State won, 38–10. After a 14–14 tie the next week against Pittsburgh, the Wolfpack won their next two games, against Wake Forest and Maryland.
On October 11, NC State traveled to Grant Field in Atlanta, Georgia, home of the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. There, they suffered a lopsided 59–21 loss, the worst ever suffered by a Sheridan-coached team at the time.Sheely, Glenn. "Wolfpack's back, but don't expect 59–21 rout again," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 28, 1986. Page C1. Following the loss to the Yellow Jackets, said linebacker Pat Teague, "the coaches and players came together. The coaches were hurting as bad as we were. We pulled them up and they pulled us up. That was the turning point."
Following the "turning point," the Wolfpack won three consecutive games, boosting their overall record to 6–1–1. One of the victories was against the Clemson Tigers, who would ultimately go on to win that year's ACC football championship. On November 8, NC State traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia, to play the Virginia Cavaliers. In a close-fought game, State lost, 20–16. Though the Wolfpack won their final two regular-season games (against Duke and Western Carolina), the loss to Virginia denied them a share of the ACC championship. Despite that missed opportunity, NC State finished the season with a winning record and received a bid to the Peach Bowl."All-Time Results: Wolfpack History (PDF p. 27) 2008 NC State Wolfpack football Media Guide. NC State Sports Information Department, Page 191.
Pregame buildup The Peach Bowl was the final game as head coach of Virginia Tech for Bill Dooley, who had accumulated a record of 62–38–1 for the Hokies since assuming the head coaching job in 1978. Tech president William Lavery had long disagreed with Dooley about the role of football at Virginia Tech, and prior to the beginning of the season, Lavery told Dooley that his tenure as coach would end on January 1, 1987. This fact was revealed to the football team and the general public after Tech's third game of the season. At the time, Dooley was the winningest head coach in Virginia Tech history,The first 111 seasons of football at Virginia Tech "Bill Dooley," Virginia Tech Sports Information Department, Hokiesports.com. Accessed July 8, 2008. but was under investigation for recruiting violations and had settled a breach-of-contract lawsuit against the university for $3.5 million. As part of the out-of-court settlement, Dooley was required to quit his position following the Peach Bowl. In the weeks leading up to the game, Dooley dodged questions about his future.Stinson, Thomas. "Peach Bowl Notebook – Dooley downplays his ouster," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 30, 1986. Page D5. On December 23, it was announced that Murray State head coach Frank Beamer would replace Dooley after the Peach Bowl.Wire Reports. "Beamer named head coach at Virginia Tech," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 23, 1986. Page D5. Facing Dooley across the field was NC State head coach Dick Sheridan, who in his first year as head coach of the Wolfpack, was named Atlantic Coast Conference coach of the year and guided the Wolfpack to eight wins.1986 N.C. State The New Peach Bowl Media Guide, NCSU Sports Information Office. Raleigh, North Carolina. December 1985. Page 3.
Offense The game was expected to be an offensive struggle that could potentially break the then-record 74 points scored in the 1970 Peach Bowl.McCollister, Tom. "Peach coaches look for shootout," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, December 31, 1986. Page 5D. During the regular season, NC State averaged 359 yards on offense per game, while Virginia Tech averaged 358 yards. On defense, State gave up an average of 402 yards per game, while Tech allowed an average of 366 yards. NC State averaged almost 28 points per game, while Virginia Tech averaged just over 24 points. This statistical parity was reflected by pre-game point spreads, which favored NC State by two points.Packett, John. "Will the Dooley factor decide Peach Bowl?," The Richmond Times-Dispatch. December 31, 1986. Page D1.Stinson, Thomas. "Kinzer's nearly-perfect year makes the difference for Va. Tech," The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 31, 1986. Page D5.