Friday, October 19, 2007
It's still right there for Hokies
Randy King
Randy King's Tech Insider is exclusive to roanoke.com and is posted by 5 p.m. Thursdays in season.
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So what the offense ranks 112th in the country. So what its running game is averaging 3.3 yards per carry. So what it has been outgained by its first seven foes.
So what. Bottom line is Virginia Tech's football team is right where most expected it to be heading into the final five games of the regular season.
Tech is 6-1. It's ranked 11th in the writer's and coaches' polls.
Face it, the Hokies could have had Joe Montana behind center, and they wouldn't have beaten LSU in Baton Rouge on Sept. 8. That's how proficient the Tigers were that night.
As bad as that 48-7 drubbing was -- the worst loss in Frank Beamer's 21 seasons as Tech coach -- to swallow for all involved in the program, the Hokies have managed to survive. It hasn't been real pretty at times, but Tech has managed to do what it has needed to do to remain online for what still could be a special season.
A second ACC championship in four years in the league? It's still right there for the Hokies. A top-10 finish in the final polls? It's still right there for the Hokies. Not bad stuff really for a team that has yet to play its best game.
Sure, a schedule that has included the likes of Ohio University, William and Mary, North Carolina and Duke has been a huge helper in Tech ripping off five wins in a row. Say what you want, but that five-game run is currently for the eighth-longest winning streak in a college football season in which little has gone to form.
Now comes the Hokies' five-game stretch drive. There's no a gimme in the bunch, but still it's very doable.
First comes unbeaten Boston College in Lane Stadium next Thursday. The Eagles will fly into Blacksburg ranked No. 2 in the nation following South Florida's loss at Rutgers last night. And guess what? They might not even be the favorite.
Then comes a trip to Atlanta the next Thursday to face a dangerous Georgia Tech team that seems to be up one week, then down the next. Whatever, Tech will be the favorite if they take care of business against BC.
Next on the agenda is back-to-back home games against the ACC's fallen Florida entries, Florida State and Miami.
Forget the fact that Beamer's teams are 0-7 vs. Bobby Bowden's Seminoles. If Tech comes into that contest 8-1 and sitting somewhere around eighth in the polls, it will be at least a touchdown favorite over an FSU team that be making its first trip to Lane since 1989.
Then comes Miami in Lane the next Saturday. Tech has handled the 'Canes in three of the past four years. The Hokies could be as much as a double-digit favorite to do it again.
Tech then goes to Charlottesville to face arch rival Virginia in the Nov. 24 regular-season finale. Right now, the surprising Cavaliers are sitting at 6-1 and tied with Tech at 3-0 for the Coastal Division lead. This game could determine who wins the division and who goes to the Dec. 1 ACC Championship game in Jacksonville, Fla., for a meeting with likely Atlantic winner Boston College.
Run the table and Tech heads back to another BCS Bowl sitting at 11-1 and possibly ranked as high as fifth in the polls.
Not bad stuff for a bunch whose best offensive days certainly have to lie ahead, right?
One has got to figure this Tech team has got to get hot at some point. Last year's club ran off six straight victories to close the regular season after suffering back-to-back early October losses to Georgia Tech and Boston College. In 2004, the Hokies won eight consecutive games after starting 2-2 and captured the ACC title in their first year in the league.
The one uncontrollable factor in all this conjecture is injuries. The Hokies have been hit hard the past couple weeks with leading tackler Vince Hall (fractured left wrist) and starting quarterback Tyrod Taylor (high right ankle sprain) both going down. Hall is expected to miss the BC game; Taylor's status is questionable.
Despite its misfiring offense, despite all the moans and groans from a sizable portion of Hokie Nation, Tech still has a shot at a great season. It's right there in front of the Hokies. All they've got to do is take it.
QUICK KICKS: Tech hopes eight is enough when Boston College comes to town next Thursday. BC and Hawaii each have won eight games in a row, tying them for the nation's longest I-A winning streak. ... Not impressed with Tech's schedule so far? Well, check out BC's. Since opening with three straight ACC wins over Wake Forest, North Carolina State and at Georgia Tech, BC has faced Army, I-AA Massachusetts, Bowling Green and a bad Notre Dame outfit. Tech's schedule is rated 45th in the Sagarin ratings; BC's is rated 79th. ... Tech's Eddie Royal needs only 70 yards to pass Maryland's Steve Suter and become the ACC's all-time leader in punt return yardage. Speaking of Royal, the senior will be part of an upcoming piece on punt returners being done by Sports Illustrated.
