CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The deep, historic rivalry between the University of Virginia and Virginia Tech takes many forms.
On Friday, the rivalry reached the football field — and the stakes were high.
UVA hosted Virginia Tech for the annual Commonwealth Cup, with the winner earning a spot in the Atlantic Coast Conference championship.
Fans from both sides flocked to Charlottesville to watch the big game.
“We’ve all been waiting for this one. It’s been a big buildup," said University of Virginia second-year Emily Rounsley. “Where I’m from, a lot of kids go to both schools. It runs pretty deep.”
“It’s been crazy, I think I’ve seen more Tech fans here than Hoos," said Virginia Tech senior David Kelsey, who drove two and a half hours from Blacksburg to watch the game.
Both Hokies and Hoos fans said the big conflict of this year’s Commonwealth Cup was Virginia Tech’s 15-year winning streak over UVA.
“We’ve had a good year for sports in 2019, so I’m hoping we can pull this out and break the losing streak,” Rounsley said.
“We want to keep the streak going. We don’t want to be the class that ends it," said Kelsey. "We’re just hoping to send Bud Foster off the right way.”
UVA ultimately won the game, 39-30, after a crucial Virginia Tech fumble led to a Hoos touchdown in the final minute.
“We’ve got a couple of UVA friends, but we’ll see if they’re friends today," said Virginia Tech senior Chris Redmon, who traveled with Kelsey to attend the game. "We haven’t decided yet.”