The Hokies (5-1, 1-1 Atlantic Coast Conference), who drove 77 yards in eight plays to get the winning score, rescued their chances of still contending in the ACC's Coastal Division with the dramatic rally, keeping them from dropping two losses behind still-unbeaten Georgia Tech.
"Actually, I wasn't nervous at all," he said. "The offense had been doing its thing all game, so I wasn't really nervous. I knew we pretty much had their number in that aspect."
Thomas was looking only to gain the yard he needed on the big run, then call time out.
"I stepped through the hole and there was nothing there," he said.
The big finish left coach Frank Beamer taking a told-you-so tone about his quarterback.
"He's made out of the right stuff, and I always thought he was, always knew he was," he said. "He's poised, he's tough, he's under control, he's talented, he's a great leader, he's a guy you want leading your football team, and I thought he showed all those things tonight."
He also was almost perfect against the Hurricanes.
Thomas finished 23 for 25 for 310 yards with three touchdown passes and ran for two scores. His only two incompletions were a short pass that David Wilson dropped, and a ball that he threw away after picking up a bungled snap. He threw scoring passes of 40 yards to Danny Coale, 3 yards to Wilson and 60 yards to Jarrett Boykin. His only mistakes were a pair of fumbles.
