1981 Peach Bowl (January)
The 1981 Peach Bowl was a post-season American college football bowl game between the Virginia Tech Hokies and the Hurricanes from the University of Miami at Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta, Georgia on January 2, 1981. The game was the final contest of the 1980 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams, and ended in a 20-10 victory for Miami. Another game by the same name followed the 1981 NCAA Division I-A football season and was played in December, 1981.
Virginia Tech was awarded a bid to the Peach Bowl as a reward for finishing 8–3 during the regular season, a record that included wins over nationally ranked teams such as the Clemson Tigers and the Virginia Cavaliers. Facing Virginia Tech was a familiar post-season opponent—Miami—whom the Hokies had played in the 1966 Liberty Bowl, Tech's last bowl appearance prior to the Peach Bowl. Miami finished the regular season with an 8–3 record, including wins over Florida State and Florida.
The game kicked off at 3:00 p.m. EST under sunny skies and in temperatures of 46 °F (8 °C). Unlike the 1966 Liberty Bowl, in which Virginia Tech scored first, it was Miami who dominated the game's early going. The Hurricanes scored a touchdown on the first drive of the game and tacked on another touchdown early in the second quarter. Tech was held scoreless in the early going, thanks to two Miami interceptions at the goal line as Virginia Tech was threatening to score. Late in the second quarter, Tech was finally able to get on the scoreboard with a field goal, but at halftime, the Miami Hurricanes led 14–3. After halftime, the Hokies threatened Miami for the first time all game. Virginia Tech mounted an 80-yard drive that resulted in a touchdown, cutting Miami's lead to 14–10. But the Hurricanes' defense clamped down on any further offensive attempts by Virginia Tech and denied the Hokies more points. Miami added two field goals: one in the third quarter and one in the fourth quarter that finally put the game out of reach for Virginia Tech. Miami's win was its first bowl victory since the 1966 Liberty Bowl, which also featured a Hurricane victory over Virginia Tech.
Read more about 1981 Peach Bowl (January): Game Summary, Statistical Summary, Postgame Effects, Later Aftermath
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—Alexander Solzhenitsyn (b. 1918)
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—Bill Bryson (b. 1951)