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BLACKSBURG, Virginia (Ticker) -- Keith Burnell and Kevin Jones, the replacements for Lee Suggs, combined for 149 rushing yards as ninth-ranked Virginia Tech rolled past Western Michigan, 31-0, in the first meeting between the schools. Burrell, a junior, started in place of the injured Suggs, who led the nation in scoring a season ago, and totaled 75 yards on 21 attempts while scoring the game's opening TD on an 11-yard run later in the first quarter. A 6-1 freshman, Jones added 75 yards on just 10 attempts for the Hokies, who have won 14 straight games at Lane Stadium. Suggs, expected to carry the load after the early depature of All-American quarterback Michael Vick to the NFL, is out for the remainder of the season after tearing knee ligaments last week. In his second game taking over for Vick, Grant Noel completed 13-of-25 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown while also scoring on the ground. After Carter Warley booted a 20-yard field goal 2 1/2 minutes into the second quarter, Noel dove into the end zone from one yard out approximately six minutes later to give the Hokies a 17-0 halftime advantage. Jason Ferguson added a 24-yard TD scamper in the third quarter and Noel hit running back Doug Easlick for a 22-yard touchdown that capped the scoring with 2:45 to play in the third quarter. Virginia Tech (2-0) posted its first shutout since blanking Rutgers, 49-0, on September 16 of last year. The Hokies have recorded at least one shutout in each of the last seven seasons. Western Michigan (1-1) totaled just 166 yards and had only seven first downs compared to 27 by the Hokies. Senior Jeff Welsh was 12-of-25 for 100 yards and threw one interception for the Broncos, who are 2-3 all-time against Big East Conference schools. Phillip Reed led Western Michigan on the ground with 45 yards on 16 carries.
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