Marty Gordon
History will be made when VMI and Virginia Tech square off in football this coming weekend. The matchup is the 80th edition of the Original Military Classic of the South, dating to 1894, a series that hasn’t been played since 1984.
The series began in 1894 and grew over the decades into the Military Classic of the South—an annual Thanksgiving Day matchup played almost exclusively at Victory Stadium in Roanoke from 1913 to 1971.
The game became one of the premier sporting events in the Commonwealth, highlighting the rivalry between the two Corps of Cadets and drawing crowds well beyond the two campuses.
The two schools first met in 1894 and played annually from 1913 to 1971, usually in Roanoke on Thanksgiving Day. The game was called the Military Classic of the South, because it matched a state-supported military academy against an engineering school which had mandatory ROTC for the male student body until 1964. Virginia Tech and Texas A&M are the only major public universities still designated as senior military colleges, because of their corps of cadets and large ROTC programs.
After a one-year hiatus, the VMI-Virginia Tech rivalry resumed in 1973 for another dozen seasons. The teams played in Virginia Tech’s Lane Stadium at Blacksburg in odd-numbered years and in 1978; the remaining games in even-numbered years were at either Richmond or Norfolk, in the Tobacco Bowl (1974, 1976) and Oyster Bowl (1980, 1982, 1984), respectively, with VMI serving as the “home” team. Games tentatively scheduled for Blacksburg in 1986 and 1987 and Norfolk in 1988 were never played.
More fun facts about this matchup:
Separated by 84 miles, the two schools were in the Southern Conference from 1924-1964. Virginia Tech holds a 49-25-5 advantage in the all-time series, but the rivalry was never just about the scoreboard. The original Military Classic of the South has always been a contest between two Virginia schools built on the same foundation of service and tradition.
No symbol tells the story better than Skipper. For years, VMI cadets fired their own cannon, “Little John,” taunting Hokie fans afterward by asking, “Where’s your cannon?” In 1963, Virginia Tech Cadets Homer “Sonny” Hickam, Alton “Butch” Harper, and George Fox decided Virginia Tech needed an answer. They built a cannon from brass collected from fellow Cadets, metal sent by Hickam’s father from Coalwood, West Virginia, and some Navy gun metal brass added at the foundry for strengthening.
The Cadets learned of President Kennedy’s assassination the same day they picked up the finished barrel and carriage, and in tribute to Kennedy’s Navy service, they named their cannon “Skipper.”
The name was also fitting given the term “Skipper” is used to reference a fifth-year Cadet that is still in the Corps. It made its public debut at the 1963 Thanksgiving game against VMI, with a charge strong enough to reportedly knock hats off Keydets across the field. The original Skipper served 19 years before a 1982 blowout retired it in favor of Skipper II, and the original cannon has resided at the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets Museum in Blacksburg ever since.
The two institutions’ bond runs deeper than the field. When Virginia Tech opened in 1872, its first Commandant of Cadets, Gen. James H. Lane, was a graduate of VMI. Lane wrote Virginia Tech’s first cadet regulations and helped establish the Corps that still marches today.
The heritage will be on full display at the home opener as more than 2,200 cadets from Virginia Tech and VMI take part in a day-long series of events ignited by the combined march to Lane Stadium. Tech’s Corps of Cadets (1,400 students) is nearly the same as VMI’s total enrollment (1,500).
In celebration of the 80th Edition of the Original Military Classic of the South, fans may experience several gameday events that highlight the history and tradition of both institutions. Before kickoff, Virginia Tech’s 37th commandant of the Corps of Cadets, U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Gen. William H. Seely III, will join VMI’s superintendent, retired U.S. Marine Corps Lt. Gen. David Furness, at midfield for the ceremonial presentation of the Governor’s Sword.
The Spanish ceremonial sword was first awarded in 1955, when Gov. Thomas B. Stanley presented it to Virginia Tech for their win of the series’ 51st meeting.
The Governor’s Sword returns to the field on Sept. 5 to reclaim its place as the rivalry’s prized trophy. Following the Governor’s Sword presentation, the national anthem will conclude with the firing of Skipper and flyover.
Virginia Tech alumni and co-founders of Skipper I, Homer Hickam and Alton “Butch” Ben Harper, will join the Skipper crew on the field as honorary guests along with Industrial and Systems Engineering Department Head Dr. Eileen Van Aken, representing the late Professor H. L. Manning who assisted in the creation of Skipper I while serving as the head of the industrial engineering department.
The accompanying flyover will feature two HH-60 helicopters and an HC-130 cargo plane, flown by Virginia Tech and VMI alumni from the 347th Rescue Group at Moody Air Force Base in Georgia. Fans will have the opportunity to visit Skipper II and view the Governor’s Sword at Hokie Village before the game.
