It wasn't supposed to end this way.

As those precious final seconds ticked off the Pro Player Stadium clock, the tears started to well into the eyes of several Tech players. It looked like a funeral -- only it wasn't the end of a life, just the end of an era.

Seventeen seniors played in their final game, a 41-21 Orange Bowl loss to two-time defending national champion Nebraska. No shame there.

As Nebraska fans cheered after the game, they couldn't be heard over the standing ovation given to Tech by its throng of 20,000 strong. Tech fans made as strong a showing as their team. After the game, no Tech merchandise could be found in Pro Player Stadium. Alumni, students, and fans had bought everything in sight.

The Tech players, though, weren't thinking about that as they walked off the field. Most cried, including Jim Druckenmiller, who sobbed along with offensive coordinator Rickey Bustle as they left the field for the final time.

"That's the saddest part. I'm gonna miss a bunch of guys I love to death," Druckenmiller said. "We've been through some hard times together. Memories will always be there but the toughest thing is knowing we won't ever sweat together again."

Orange Bowl week began for the Tech players the day after Christmas, when the team headed to Barry University, a Division II school, for practice. When someone asked Tech head coach Frank Beamer about being a 17-point underdog, Beamer quipped, "Yeah, and they told me we lost a couple of more points on the plane ride down."

On Dec. 27, more than 80 Tech players went to the Carquest Bowl game between Virginia and Miami, and one of the more interesting questions posed to Beamer was who he would pull for in the game. He referred the question to his players. "I want to keep it in the Big East," receiver Shawn Scales said.

That seemed to be the consensus. But let's be real here. Who were these fellas trying to kid? Ain't no way a player or coach at Tech is gonna pull for UVA, no matter who they play -- Big East foe or not.

Back at the Orange, some team members met Merrill Crews, a Virginia Tech graduate and a devout alumnus who also serves as a member of the Orange Bowl committee. The committee, Crews said, loved having Virginia Tech in the Orange Bowl because of all its great fans. Tech's contingent didn't shame itself at all, grabbing up all of its 15,000-ticket allotment and more. Nebraska sold only about half of its 15,000.

The day of Dec. 30 proved to be a special one. That night, everyone -- players, coaches, alumni, administrators, and fans -- headed to the pep rally at Bayside. Several thousand fans roared as the Tech cheerleaders and players arrived on a boat.

Tech gave a valiant effort against the Huskers but fell to a superior team. After the game, a lot of people celebrated a great season by Tech's football team with an all-night party in the hospitality room at the hotel. Hey, the Orange Bowl committee said Tech fans could stay as long as they wanted, so they did. What better way to cap a glorious year.

Jimmy Robertson is the editor of the Hokie Huddler.

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