Boston College Preview

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Who: #16/T14 Virginia Tech Hokies (6-1, 2-1 ACC) vs Boston College Eagles (1-5, 0-3 ACC)

Time: 3:00 PM

TV Coverage: RSN (Rich Waltz, Keith Jones, Jenn Hildreth)

Venue: Lane Stadium, Blacksburg, VA (66,233 – Grass)

Series History: Virginia Tech leads 13-6

  • Last Meeting (2010): Virginia Tech 19, Boston College 0
  • The Hokies have won the last three meetings between the two, dating back to the 2008 ACC Championship
  • Boston College has scored in just three of the last 14 quarters against the Hokies
  • In 2009, Boston College had 3 yards of offense in the first half in a 48-14 loss

Injury Report

  • WR E.L. Smiling – Out for Season (wrist)
  • OL Mark Shuman – Out (knee/ankle)
  • TE Eric Martin – Out (shoulder)
  • OL David Wang – Out (foot)
  • CB Jayron Hosley – Doubtful (hamstring)

The Opponent: The Hokies return home for Homecoming to face the M*A*S*H unit known as Boston College. The Eagles enter Saturday’s contest at 1-5 and have faced a rash of injuries to critical players, making Virginia Tech’s injury problems seem minute. BC has lost five starters to injury and an additional two players left the team.

The most difficult injury was to All-ACC running back Montel Harris, who is BC’s all-time leading rusher despite not playing a single snap his senior season. He’s currently in the process of applying for a medical hardship redshirt.

  • On Offense: As for what the Eagles do bring to the table, it’s not a lot. Their top tailback is out for the year, the quarterback is a true sophomore, and there’s only three upperclassmen on the two-deep at offensive line. Needless to say the injuries have left the cupboard a bit bare for BC.

    Chase Rettig (6-3, 212, SO) has taken over as the starting quarterback for the Eagles, attempting to assume a position that has been in flux since the departure of Matt Ryan. He’s completed 53.4% of his passes, but has just six touchdowns and has been sacked 14 times in six games. Some of his inability to perform comes from lack of talent elsewhere.

    BC has two main targets at wide receiver, but neither is overwhelmingly threatening. Bobby Swigert (6-1, 184, SO) leads the team with 30 catches, but is averaging just 9.5 yards per reception. Colin Larmond (6-3, 202, JR) is the Eagles’ main deep threat, averaging 17 yards a reception. He leads the team with 2 touchdowns and has a team-high 374 yards receiving. Nobody else has more than 11 catches, including starting tight end Chris Pantale (6-6, 251, JR).

    As weak as Boston College is at receiver, the main reason why they haven’t had success is the lack of a running game. Much like Virginia Tech, the Eagles’ goal is to run the ball to set up the pass. Without Montel Harris, that’s been an issue, which is why BC is 105th in the nation in both total and scoring offense. His backup Andre Williams (6-0, 222, SO) has rushed for 325 yards and 3 touchdowns, but is dealing with an injured ankle. He is expected back this week, however. Rolandan Finch (5-10, 209, SO) is the primary backup, averaging 4.2 ypc on 41 attempts this year.

    Up front, the Eagles have solid size, but have struggled a lot due to inexperience. Mark Spinney (6-4, 282, SR) is the lone senior on the line at center, and four of the five positions are backed up by redshirt freshman. This lack of experience and depth has stalled the running game for BC, which in turn stops the whole offense. It’s pretty easy to see why the Eagles have yet to score 20+ on an FBS opponent this season.

  • On Defense: The Eagle defense hasn’t been stellar either this year. BC enters this game among the bottom 20 percent in the nation in total defense, yielding 420 yards per game. Opponents convert on third down 43 percent of the time and the Eagles have six sacks in six games this year.

    If there is one strength of this BC team, it’s their linebackers. Luke Kuechly (6-3, 235, JR) is one of, if not, the best linebacker in the nation. Through six games he has 99 tackles, including 58 unassisted. He has worthy counterparts in Kevin Pierre-Louis (6-1, 212, SO) and Steele Divitto (6-3, 225, SO). Pierre-Louis starts on the weak side and is second on the team with 56 tackles, while Divitto on the strong side sits third with 36 tackles.

    Aside from that trio, though, there is a lot of inexperience. Up front, Dominic Appiah (6-5, 286, r-FR) and Max Ricci (6-4, 330, FR) start at defensive tackle, while both backups at defensive end are freshman. Max Holloway (6-2, 253, JR) leads BC with two sacks from his defensive end position.

    In the secondary, both starting safeties left the team, which opened up the spot for two freshmen. Spenser Rositano (6-1, 200, FR) and Sean Sylvia (6-0, 196, r-FR) start at strong and free safety, respectively. Contrastingly, the corner positions are locked down with Donnie Fletcher (6-1, 195, SR) and Jim Noel (6-4, 185, JR) providing stability with solid play all year.

    There’s not a lot of experience on this BC defense, as has been said numerous times. Even when there is talent, there is no depth with freshman backing up numerous positions. They’ve had a tough time controlling offenses, and with Tech seemingly hitting its stride, it could be a long day for this unit.

Players to Watch:

  • Virginia Tech
    • QB #3 Logan Thomas
      • Last Week @ Wake Forest: 17/32, 280 yards, 2 TD; 11 carries, 30 yards, 2 TD
      • This Season: 115/189, 1,476 yards, 9 TD, 5 INT; 61 carries, 198 yards, 5 TD
    • DE #42 J.R. Collins
      • Last Week @ Wake Forest: 3 tackles, 1 for loss, .5 sack, 1 QB hurry
      • This Season: 27 tackles, 8 solo, 6.5 for loss, 6 sacks, 11 QB hurries
  • Boston College
    • QB #11 Chase Rettig
      • Last Week @ Clemson: 13/20, 129 yards, TD, INT
      • This Season: 101/189, 1,181 yards, 6 TD, 5 INT
    • LB #40 Luke Kuechly
      • Last Week @ Clemson: 16 tackles, 11 solo, 2 for loss
      • Last Year vs Virginia Tech: 16 tackles, 7 solo, .5 for loss, .5 sack
      • This Season: 99 tackles, 58 solo, 7.5 for loss, 1 INT

Matchups to Watch:

  • Boston College Wide Receivers vs Corner Detrick Bonner
    • Bonner played well but had a lot of mental mistakes last week. With a full week to prepare, how will he respond?
  • Boston College Offensive Tackles vs Virginia Tech Defensive Ends
    • J.R. Collins has been a force on the edge and James Gayle returns this week after missing last week with an ankle injury. How will they do against a weak BC offensive line?
  • Logan Thomas vs Consistency
    • LT3 has started to get into a flow the last couple weeks after a rough Clemson game. The first quarter against Wake raised some questions of whether or not he can maintain success for all four quarters on a week-by-week basis.
  • Virginia Tech Running Game vs Boston College Linebackers
    • This is strength vs strength. BC’s linebackers simply have to make plays against the Hokie running game if they want to be successful.

Keys to Victory:

  • Virginia Tech
    • Start Off Hot, Keep Pedal to Medal
    • Play Smart, Don’t Turn it Over
  • Boston College
    • Get the Running Game Going, Create Big Plays
    • Force Turnovers, Play on a Short Field

Projected Score: Virginia Tech 38, Boston College 9

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