Game Preview - vs. East Carolina

(22/24) VS

Virginia Tech Hokies 5-3, 3-1 ACC @ East Carolina Pirates 5-3, 4-1 C-USA

Kickoff: 7:45 pm
Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, Greenville, N.C.
TV: ESPN
Radio: XM 190; Sirius: 213
Series vs. ECU: VT leads, 9-5
Series Streak: ECU, 1

With losses to Georgia Tech and then UNC, the past two games have certainly served up some hard pills for Hokie fans to swallow, but as we come into the home stretch of the regular season, let's hope that our Hokies play with all the same heart as a team marching towards a conference championship. Our boys still have yet to reach bowl eligibility, and finishing strong in the remainder of the regular season increases the chances for a better bowl bid against a formidable opponent.

The rest of the Hokies' season begins today against the East Carolina Pirates. The Pirates upset the Hokies in last year's season opener at Lane Stadium. They gave the Hokies the wakeup call they needed to understand that they'd have to earn the ACC title rather than have it just fall into their laps. This season, the Pirates enter the game with a record of 5-3, same as Virginia Tech. Two of their losses come at the hands of BCS conference opponents West Virginia and the very same North Carolina team who defeated the Hokies last week. ECU plays out of the same conference as Marshall, another Conference USA team on the Hokies' 2009 schedule. Virginia Tech travels to Greeville today to play in an ECU stadium that many expect to fill up with very exited fans who would love to witness an upset against a prestigious team from a BCS conference. The Pirates smell blood in the water because Virginia Tech, who has just taken a mid-season skid, fits that bill very well. Skip Holtz, son of college football commentator Lou Holtz, says, "There is an awful lot of buildup and excitement for this game, venue and atmosphere. I think Greenville will come alive a little bit Thursday. We're really excited to not only play Virginia Tech, but to play the team at home." Expect an ECU team ready to bring their A-game to demonstrate that last year's victory over the Hokies didn't come as a fluke.

East Carolina has demonstrated some strong offense this season, and to no real surprise with 8 returning starters. Quarterback Patrick Pinkey takes the helm as a Senior with plenty of experience dating back to the 2007 season. His numbers have improved since he started playing the position. Haling from Fayetteville, NC, he stands at 6'1" and 205 lbs. He has thrown for 1515 yards, 8 touchdowns, and for a completion percentage of 57%. Dominique Lindsay and Brandon Jackson fill the role of the primary ball carriers for the Pirates. Lindsay has rushed for 570 yards and 3 touchdowns over 99 attempts. The Senior doesn't stand as the largest in the lot of college football running backs at 5'10" weighing 202 lbs, and neither does Jackson also standing at 5'10" and weighing 202 lbs. His numbers fall shy of Lindsay's at 264 yards and 3 touchdowns over 73 attempts. In the area of receiving, Pinkey primarily looks to Junior wide receiver Dwayne Harris. He has made 47 receptions and caught for 521 yards and 3 touchdowns. Senior wide receiver Jamar Bryant has caught for 200 yards, 21 receptions, and 2 touchdowns. Standing at 6'1" and 6'2" respectively, neither creates too much of a height problem for the Hokie secondary. Also, the ECU injury report has Bryant listed as doubtful for today's game with a shoulder injury. In total offense, the team places fourth in their home conference, but the vast majority of their yardage gains comes from rushing. Expect Holtz and ECU to rely heavily on the running game, especially with Bryant sidelined.

On the other side of the ball, ECU's defense also has eight returning starters and also ranks fourth in their home conference. Mirroring their offense, they have a much poorer passing defense than running defense. If you'd chose to have one over the other against the Hokies, a better rushing defense makes for a better bet. However, there does lie a very big BUT here. Hokie Quarterback Tyrod Taylor has begun to turn the page this season as a quarterback who can consistently pass for yardage gains. He has demonstrated that in the midst of some tough mid-season losses, not that that the Hokie offense has looked great as a whole for all this time. This contest may make for the perfect opportunity for him to establish some rhythm with his young receiver core and boost one another's confidence. Something does work in ECU's favor in this aspect on the other hand. Their defense has a high number of quarterback hurries at 35 on the season. Now, they have done that primarily against weaker teams than the Hokies, but they have nonetheless demonstrated their ability to do it. 32 of those hurries happened during games they won, so if that starts happening a lot to Taylor, get worried.

Should Virginia Tech drop this game, it would mark their first three game loosing streak since 2003. At the same time, however, this game offers Virginia Tech a chance to get back on the saddle of winning and handing a defeat to a pumped up opponent on their own field. That could set the tone for a strong Hokie finish to their regular season.

TSF Poll (Week 9)

Due to a family matter, the TSF Poll is short one member this week. The two remaining pollsters agree that the number one team is in the SEC. They differ on which division. Virginia Tech falls out of the top 25 to number 27.

TSF Poll (Week 9)
#	TEAM	Points
1	Alabama (1)	74
1	Florida (1)	74
3	Texas	71
4	Cincinnati	67
4	Iowa	67
6	Texas Christian	64
7	Boise State	63
8	LSU	61
8	Oregon	61
10	Georgia Tech	58
11	Houston	53
12	Pittsburgh	52
13	Penn State	51
14	Utah	50
15	Miami (FL)	48
16	USC	46
17	Ohio State	41
17	South Florida	41
19	Oklahoma State	38
19	West Virginia	38
21	Wisconsin	33
22	California	32
22	Notre Dame	32
24	Arizona	29
25	Rutgers	28
26	Brigham Young	27
27	Virginia Tech	26

Game Review - vs. North Carolina

VS

Just two short games ago, the Hokies held a number 4 ranking in the polls, and they had put together a great streak of wins against some quality opponents. Virginia Tech fans saw only one major contest ahead of them in Georgia Tech. After that, they could hope for smooth sailing until reaching the ACC championship game and with a victory there maybe even an arguable claim to the National Championship Bowl Game. A loss to Georgia Tech put a major setback on this great season, and now a loss to North Carolina has brought the season down to the point of simply striving for bowl eligibility. Hokie fans don't find this late season skid as terribly unfamiliar. I can think back to a number of seasons where the Hokies held a single digit ranking in the late weeks of the season but lost to an opponent over which the pundits had deemed them as favorites to win thus shattering fans' hopes of a major bowl appearance. That has happened this season, and it stings especially much because I think most Hokie fans agree that this season's team in particular does have the potential to play against any of the top 5 ranked teams. But as much pain as it brings, I go on with the review...

Let's recap the offense's performance. Virginia Tech opens the game with two plays gaining 45 yards between a Ryan Williams rush and a reception by Jarrett Boykin. Boykin then fumbles after his reception for a turnover to the Tarheels. Believe it or not, the Hokies made this as their best offensive drive of the quarter. The subsequent two drives would lead to a punt and then a turnover on downs. The second quarter offered more of the same. Virginia Tech went for two three-and-out's and another turnover on downs. All the while, the UNC offense had managed to put a touchdown onto the board. The Hokies went into the locker room scoreless. Over the past few games, we've watched Virginia Tech offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring make some big strides with this offense, but his squad failed to make the adjustments needed to get into the endzone. That is absolutely unacceptable for a program aiming for success in the bowl season. I don't want to take away anything from the 'Heel's defense; let's congratulate them on the success. Their defense ranks as second best in the ACC, in points per game, trailing only Clemson. In yards per game, they rank first. The real possibility exists that the Hokie offense hasn't faced a defense this strong since the season opener against Alabama or against Nebraska.

The Hokie defense on the other hand, played a marvelous first half. They forced three consecutive three-and-outs, one of which happened right after the early momentum shifting fumble by Boykin. They only broke down on one drive allowing UNC to march 84 yards down the field for a touchdown.

The Hokie offense in the second half finally started to pick up. After the defense forced another UNC three-and-out, they marched down the field 82 yards to put up a touchdown and even the score. But the very next drive, the 'Heels put on another long sustained drive of their own for 84 yards to take the lead. At that point, we had begun to witness the Virginia Tech defense start to falter. The third worst offense in the ACC had just conducted two 84 yard drives resulting in touchdowns against Virginia Tech. All the while, the Hokies had kept themselves very much in the game. The defense came up big with Rashad Charmichael intercepting UNC quarterback TJ Yates' pass at the UNC 10 yard line, which he ran down to the UNC 5. This set up a quick Hokie touchdown to draw the score to 17-14 in favor of the Hokies. But on a crucial possession the Hokie defense allowed UNC to pile on one more long drive of 78 yards, finishing that off with a field goal. With the score tied, Virginia Tech had a short gap of time to get a late score to win the ball game. The offense turned to the explosive Darren Evans replacement, Ryan Williams, who fumbled the ball in Hokie territory. With only 2:02 left to play, the 'Heels effectively burned the clock down to the final seconds and kicked the winning field goal.

When I look back on this game summary, I think about the major failures of the Hokies. First, and foremost, the offense cannot play an entire half without putting points on the board. Just for sake of morale for the fans and the defense, they have to demonstrate they ability to get within scoring distance and execute. I restrain some of this criticism considering that UNC has one of the best defense's in the ACC, arguably the best depending on which stats you want to emphasize, but I can't restrain it too much due to their strength of schedule. They have not faced opponents such as Miami, Nebraska, and Alabama. The Hokie offense failed to adjust to UNC's pressure, and the successive three-and-out possessions underscore that. The lopsided time of possession, 36:14 to 23:46 in favor of UNC, also underscores that even further, and it translates to how well the defense plays. A defense on the field for that amount of time has to overcome fatigue and exhaustion. Allowing three drives ranging between 78 ad 84 yards to put points on the board means playing well against an offense of Florida, USC, Alabama, or LSU for example, but when the defense allows those kinds of drives by an offense that ranks third worst in the ACC, that means Bud Foster's squad didn't make the necessary adjustments. I have full confidence that Bud Foster can correct the problems, but I do find it unsettling that this defense has not played like the one Hokie fans have come to know and love for two games in a row now.

At this point in the season, we Hokie fans don't have a high profile bowl game to which we can look forward, but our squad can still make this into a good finish and earn a bid to play against another out-of-conference powerhouse team who has likewise had a few bumps in the road for their season as well. Let's get behind our Orange and Maroon and cheer for a good finish.

LET”S GO HOKIES!

3 Key Plays - VT vs. UNC

1) On the first series of the game, the Hokies gained 45 yards on their first two plays (they would have a total of 26 yards gained on the next 5 SERIES). At the end of the second play which was a 20 yard pass to Jarrett Boykin to the UNC 27 yard line, Boykin didn't secure the ball and for the second time in three games (@Duke) Boykin fumbled after a big gainer deep in opponent territory. The offense went completely into the tank the rest of the half, whereas if this play would have held up, the offense might have gotten into gear and certainly would have scored early. Good teams come out swinging and the Hokie offense for the 2nd week in a row, self-destructed in the first half wasting a brilliant half of football by the defense.

2) At the 11:51 mark of the 4th quarter having just taken the lead at 17-14, the Hokie defense was in the midst of holding UNC to a three and out and really swinging the entire momentum of the game towards VT. Rock Carmichael defended an extremely well-thrown pass on 3rd and 4 from the UNC 26 yard line and somehow the referee decided it was pass interference. It simply was not. The phantom holding call on Ryan Williams' "TD" run 1 minute prior was the worst call of the game (I have watched that play over and over again focusing on a different player each time. Not only did Blake DeChristopher not hold, no offensive player held, it was one of the cleanest blocked plays you can imagine. High school coaches should receive film of that play to demonstrate exactly how you are supposed to block). In instances like that, the refs usually give a make-up call going the other way. But in this instance they followed the non-existent holding call with a non-existent pass interference call and both were on VT?! The announcers, who are even instructed to take it easy on the officials, clearly questioned the interference call, it was so blatant. The Hokies didn't lose the game simply because of this call, but it certainly had a huge impact on the momentum of the game as UNC went on to score on this drive to tie it up.

3) You all expect the Ryan Williams fumble here on 3rd and 7, I suppose, but that wasn't the third key play (though that was an absolutely idiotic, let's-play-for-overtime, typical Stiney play call). The third key play was 3rd and 3 from the VT 17 yard line with 1:51 left in the game. UNC RB Ryan Houston ran for a first down on this play and it allowed UNC to run the clock out to give their FG kicker a chance to win as time expired. Had the Hokies stopped Houston on this play several things would have happened - a) Barth would have had to make about a 33-34 yard FG which, to win the game, would not have been a gimme and b) even if Barth had made it, the Hokies would have gotten the ball back with about 1:10 left and with the way the offense was playing in the 2nd half, and the kickoff return game was working, could have been plenty of time to get into FG range to send the game to overtime. Credit UNC here, but there's just no way, after having carried the ball two times previously, that Houston should have been able to gain 3 yards on this play. I can't believe a Bud Foster coached defense, with the game on the line, gave up 3 straight runs for 10 yards even after 2 timeouts were used to keep the players fresh. By converting that down, UNC secured the win thereby completely breaking my heart.

EhhTee's Picks (Week 9)

Last week was one of my better days. Sad when 4-3 vs. the line is one of my better days. In straight pick 'ems I did much better with 5-2. I even nearly nailed the GT v. UVA score.

Last Week's Results

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Florida St. @ UNC	GT @ UVA
Line: UNC -2	Line: Georgia Tech -4
Pick: Florida St.	Pick: Georgia Tech
Score: FSU 23 - UNC 17	Score: GT 33 - UVA 13
Actual: FSU 30 - UNC 27	Actual: GT 34 - UVA 9
Maryland @ Duke	BC @ Notre Dame
Line: Duke -6	Line: Notre Dame -9.5
Pick: Duke	Pick: Boston College
Score: UMD 0 - Duke 34	Score: BC 17 - ND 21
Actual: UMD 13 - Duke 17	Actual: BC 16 - ND 20
Clemson @ Miami	Oregon @ Washington
Line: Miami -7	Line: Oregon -7.5
Pick: Miami	Pick: Washington
Score: Clemson 15 - UM 31	Score: Oregon 21 - UW 33
Actual: Clem. 40 – UM 37	Actual: Oregon 43 - UW 19
Penn State @ Michigan	This Week (Overall)
Line: Penn State -4	Line: 4-3 (23-32)
Pick: Penn State	Picks: 5-2 (33-23)
Score: PSU 34 - UM 21
Actual: PSU 35 – UM 10

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This Week's Picks

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Georgia Tech @ Vanderbilt
Line: Georgia Tech -13.5

Georgia Tech steps out into non-conference play before finishing their conference play. Tech is looking solid all around and I see no reason for them to lose this one but it'll be closer than the odds indicate.

Pick: Vanderbilt
Score: GA Tech 28 - Vandy 17

Duke @ Virginia
Line: Virginia -6.5

Duke is on a roll and is looking to become bowl eligible with two more wins. This would be the first time since 1994. Virginia can become bowl eligible with a win on Saturday.

Pick: Duke
Score: Duke 34 - UVA 15

USC @ Oregon
Line: USC -3.5

This one's the game of the week. Both teams are vying for the PAC 10 championship and a shot at the Rose Bowl. USC still has an outside shot of playing a week later for the national title. Will they survive? Or will Oregon dash the Trojans hopes... again?

Pick: Oregon
Score: USC 24 - Oregon 43

Texas @ Oklahoma St
Line: Texas -9

Oklahoma State stands as Texas's last big obstacle to the Big Twelve title and on to the national title game. Oklahoma St is down a few players and is rolling since a disappointing loss to Houston. Texas still hasn't proved to me that they are a top five team. It took Sam Bradford going down for them to seal the deal against Oklahoma despite OU giving them the ball like a hundred times. A win here might change my opinion.

Pick: Oklahoma St
Score: Texas 27 - Ok St. 37

Miami @ Wake Forest
Line: Miami -7

Miami's loss to Clemson was a shocker. I couldn't believe it and had to look at it twice when I saw it. This team reminds me of some Hokie squads we've seen. Winning huge and looking top ten like one week and losing big and looking like a bottom dweller the next.

Pick: Miami
Score: Miami 31 - Wake 18

NC State @ Florida St
Line: Florida St. -7.5

With all of the national hype over Bowden/Fisher controversy subsiding, Florida St. can once again focus on football. The Seminoles need to win out to be bowl eligible and I don't foresee them having an issue picking up this win.

Pick: Florida St.
Score: NC St. 17 - Florida St. 34

Tech Must Avoid The Trap...

It's a trap!
- Admiral Ackbar

Virginia Tech (5-2, 3-1) is coming off a disappointing loss to, now front-runner in the Coastal Division, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets. The Jackets (7-1, 5-1), who soundly defeated the Wahoos on Saturday, need wins against Wake Forest and Duke to clinch the title.

Meanwhile, the Hokies have had to deal with having their outside hopes of playing for the national title AND hopes of playing for the ACC title stripped in one fell swoop. The Hokies have had extra time to think about those implications, but this Thursday night's game could very well be a trap game for them.

	at
19:30 EDT
29 Oct. 2009

The North Carolina Tarheels (4-3, 0-3), under the direction of Coach Butch Davis, have had a rocky first half of the season despite high early expectations. The Tarheels are also coming off a disappointing loss. Leading big against Florida State, North Carolina watched a late 3rd quarter lead of 24-6 disappear. UNC may have a bit of bitter taste in their mouths after performing so well early only to end up losing 30-27.

Last year's showdown between Tech and UNC had similar results. The Tarheels held a 17-3 lead deep into the thirdth quarter, however three quick scores within a six minute span by the Hokies gave Tech the come-from-behind victory in Chapel Hill. The Tarheels will have both losses in mind and either will rally to keep bowl hopes alive or fold to the emotions of defeat. Coaching and desire will define which direction they choose.

During that contest in Keenan Stadium, Quarterback T.J. Yates (Jr, #13) left the game with an ankle injury in the third quarter ahead 10-3. The next play was a 50 yard run for a touchdown giving them the 17-3 advantage, but eventually the Tarheels killed their own momentum with five penalties that kept the Hokies' drive alive on several occasions. Committing three turnovers all giving the Hokies the ball in or near the red zone didn't help their case either.

This year Yates has been healthy but he is still turnover prone. Yates has had decent numbers this year with 1,028 yards passing for seven touchdowns, but his eight interceptions and fifteen sacks have led the Tarheels to a less than stellar start.

Yates' two main targets this year have been Erik Highsmith (Fr, #88, 295 yards with two touchdowns) and Greg Little (Jr, #8, 290 yards with a touchdown), were held to just 65 yards against Florida State.

Junior running back Shaun Draughn (#20) has 481 rushing yards and one touchdown. This pales in comparison to Virginia Tech's Ryan Williams (r-Fr, #34) who has 834 yards rushing with ten touchdowns.

Overall, the Tarheels are highly talented, but perhaps still too young and inexperienced to get the big victories.

In the Hokies' game against the Yellow Jackets, as MadJay predicted, the first play from scrimmage on offense was a play action pass setting the tone for what appeared to be a return to the old ways. If the Hokies are going to win this game, they will need to return to what worked in the weeks leading up to the Georgia Tech loss. Specifically, they need to commit to the run again.

Offensive Coordinator Bryan Stinespring has had flashes of brilliance [Never thought I'd use that word with Coach Stinespring in the same sentence, didya?], and had an actual complete game or two of good coaching decisions this year. He needs to take a good look at what worked in those games and what didn't against Georgia Tech and bring them to the field Thursday.

On defense, the Hokies need to focus on disciplined assignment coverage. Georgia Tech quarterback Josh Nesbitt (Jr, #9) completed just two passes in just seven attempts. One of those was an interception! Would you believe a quarterback with those stats could lead a team to victory? Defending the run has hurt the Hokies this year and needs to be stepped up this week.

All of this needs to come together for the Hokies to have a solid victory. But what I haven't mentioned yet is that Lane Stadium, or should I say Terrordome, [Yes, Corey Moore realizes that Lane is not actually a dome.] is one of the toughest places to play on the planet on Thursday night. Tech is 15-4 overall and 9-2 at home in their previous 19 appearances on ESPN College Football Primetime. The only teams to beat the Hokies on Thursday night (in the modern era*) are Boston College and Miami.

However, one of those losses to Boston College came in October of 2006, when the Hokies had their national title hopes smashed by Georgia Tech and ten days later played on Thursday night. (Sound familiar?) The Hokies came into that game dejected and let Boston College walk all over them losing 22-3.

What it all boils down to is that this will be an exciting game to watch this Thursday. The last six games between the two schools had been decided by seven points or less. Break out the antacid. Strap in to your favorite chair. And lets watch some Hokie football!

GO HOKIES!

* Tech used to play VMI on Thanksgiving Day each year between 1913 and 1969.

The second TSF poll sees little movement among the top six. After losing to Clemson, Miami falls eight spots to number 20. Boise State gets little respect here falling two spots as Oregon and Georgia Tech rise to front runners to win their respective conferences. The Hokies gained two spots with the Miami loss and perhaps some reconfiguring on the voters parts.

TSF Poll (after week 8)
#	TEAM	Points
1	Alabama (2)	74
2	Florida (1)	73
3	Iowa	66
3	Texas	66
5	Cincinnati	62
6	USC	60
7	LSU	56
8	Texas Christian	55
9	Oregon	47
10	Georgia Tech	46
11	Boise State	45
12	Oklahoma St.	37
13	Pittsburgh	36
13	Virginia Tech	36
15	Penn State	35
16	West Virginia	31
17	Utah	30
18	Houston	27
19	Ohio State	21
20	Mississippi	12
20	Miami (FL)	12
22	Wisconsin	9
23	Notre Dame	8
23	South Carolina	8
25	Brigham Young	6