I have two memories of the Virginia Tech Hokies and neither one has to do with Lousaka Polite. The first one was an away game that was on ESPN and the Hokies were pissed off about the 38-7 whipping Pitt gave them the year before. All I can remember is the analyst on ESPN, in the pregame (and his name escapes me), saying that after last year and the quotes in the paper Virginia Tech needs to (and I’m paraphrasing here) “find the toughest guy on Pitt….that’s Gerald Hayes by the way….and smack him in the mouth and see how tough he is.” They then cut to a shot of Hokie fans holding up newspaper clippings of Panther player comments from the aftermath of the 38-7 game the year before to the Hokie football players as they were walking into Lane Stadium. It didn’t help. Pitt won that game.
The second one occurred when I lived in the DC metro area and I ventured out to a Dave Matthews concert in the area with some friends. We were tailgating and stumbled upon some Virginia Tech girls. Pretty buzzed, I approached one with a VT hat on and said, “ahhh, Va-Tech huh?” She immediately snapped at me and decided to give me a 2 minute lesson on how no one from Virginia Tech likes to hear the school referred to as “Va-Tech.” I turned and looked at my friends through glassy, buzzed eyes and turned back around to her and put up my hand in a high five fashion, and yelled out, “VA-TECH IT IS!” She was not amused.
Unlike those stories, this season’s game between the Panthers and Hokies will probably not end with me giving high fives or smiling. It very well could end with me in a drunken haze though. VA-TECH rolls into Heinz Field for a noon kickoff (on ESPNU) ranked number 13 in the country and as always has a very strong defense. Not exactly what the doctor ordered for Tino Sunseri and company.
VA TECH is 2-0 with a victory over Austin Peay and an OT edge over unranked Georgia Tech at home. So, the question can be asked, how good are the Hokies? Unfortunately for the Panthers, they are probably a team that will only improve as the season wears on this year. On offense they are led by Junior QB, Logan Thomas. Thomas has 442 yards and 2 TDs through the air and while his accuracy can be a problem from time to time, he does have big play ability and can run. The Hokies have handed the ground game over to two freshmen running backs. Michael Holmes and J.C. Coleman lead VA TECH with 94 and 54 yards respectively. Holmes has rushed for 2 TDs. When Thomas airs it out, he has three receivers that he favors. Senior wide outs Corey Fuller, Marcus Davis, and Dyrell Roberts are all favorites, since Senior DJ Coles went out with a knee injury (while Coles’ injury is less serious than first anticipated, he will probably miss almost all of this season). Davis is also a threat once or twice a game to run the ball.
The Hokies line is a little bit of a weak spot and they are replacing a lot of players on offense. They have also struggled early in games and that could be a place where Pitt could capitalize. They will have to jump on VA TECH early and often. The weather will be nice and the Hokies are a big name, so Pitt is hoping for a big crowd.
Stop me if you have heard this before….VA TECH has a solid defense. Yes, this year is no different. They return 9 starters this year, although they are without linebackers Bruce Taylor and Tariq Edwards. Taylor is expected back this week (which is a treat for Pitt) and while both have been out, Junior Jack Tyler has filled in VERY nicely. Also leading the way for VA TECH will be Junior DE James Gayle and Junior CB Kyle Fuller.
The positives for Pitt are that they are coming off a nice rest after a Thursday night game, it is expected to be a decent crowd (by Pitt standards anyways), there will be a number of recruits there, and they are another week more experienced in the Paul Chryst era. Also, sorely missed linebacker Todd Thomas was in full pads today, as was CB K’Wuan Williams. Both would be nice to have back, but the smart money says the Panthers will only get one of them……I doubt it will be Thomas. They will probably want to be cautious with him. He would be a welcomed edition if he is inserted (as would Williams).
My prediction for this game?? Yea…it could be ugly. It has been a while since I have feared Pitt taking the field against someone, but this is one of those times. The Panthers MUST show up and show some heart. It is absolutely a game where Pitt fans would be happy with improvement and a close game. It would at least show that maybe they are headed in the right direction. I do think Pitt jumps out early and keeps it close for a half. VA TECH is just too strong and unfortunately, I believe may poor it on with their dynamic special teams and defense. Final score….Virginia Tech 38 Pitt 10…..yea, that bad. Sorry.
Hey…if you want some good news, there was some today. Notre Dame is joining the ACC in all sports, but football. While they are not a full member, they will also play 5 games per year against ACC opponents…and they will not have a say in who they schedule, as they will have to play everyone. That signifies that ND could be joining full time down the road, or at least gives the ACC a leg up on the competition when they decide they have to join a conference. With conferences going to more games within their own divisions and leagues, ND’s schedule flexibility is dwindling by the year. That is good news for Pitt. They are not the powerhouse they used to be, BUT, they are still a BIG name and provide big ratings. Speaking of ratings, this could lead to renegotiating the TV deal and making ACC teams 1-2 million dollars richer. That should appease those that were not happy with the original deal (I’m looking at you Clemson and FSU). One more piece of good news….the conference also decided to raise their exit fee to approximately $50 million. That will make it extremely difficult for anyone to leave for the extended future, making the ACC strong and committed.
No comments:
Post a Comment