Normally this time of year, I am looking to preview the Hokies season opener opponent. Unfortunately, the Old Dominion team that will visit Lane Stadium in a couple of weeks is so radically different from last season, it will be a bit of a mystery for how the Monarchs will look Labor Day weekend.
The mystery starts with the quarterback position. Grant Wilson, a Fordham transfer, was named the starter this week, turning the prime time matchup into the Battle of the Grant Ws. I actually found some Fordham game film from last season, and quickly found out Wilson was a backup behind senior Tim DeMorat. Wilson was 4 for 5 passing all season, and I couldn't find any film on him. It appears he can run, as he was credited with 8 carries and had 45 yards rushing... although he also had negative 20 yards on sacks. Fordham ran a hurry up no-huddle type gun offense, so Wilson may be adept at playing at a fast pace.
Old Dominion runs a very similar offense to Virginia Tech, with lots of rub routes underneath and they will try to mix in a few vertical shots. But, once again the faces will be unfamiliar. Gone is top running back Blake Watson, tight end Zach Kuntz, and Ali Jennings will line up for the Hokies. The new top running back is transfer Kadarius Calloway, who was the number 2 recruit in Mississippi and 98th in the country coming out of high school, but had to go the JUCO route. According to 24/7, he was a safety recruit, and he had way more receiving yards than rushing yards according to his profile on ODU's page. At wide receiver, the only returning player who impacted the game against the Hokies last year is slot receiver Jordan Bly, who put up 22 catches for 10 yards a catch, but didn't find the end zone last year.
Defense is less of a mystery. Old Dominion's interior guys are going to pinch inside and try to tie up the Hokies inside zone combo blocks, and keep the linebackers clean. And we know they will blitz from all over, almost recklessly, on third down against the Hokies inexperienced offensive line. The Monarchs return an outstanding inside linebacker, Jason Henderson, who played a monster game against the Hokies last season. Otherwise, the names are new. Jahill Taylor, an experienced backup defensive tackle at North Carolina, transferred in to start inside. New starter Denzel Lowry got four sacks in limited playing time last season. Former Hokies commit Shawn Asbury returns in the secondary, along with former Hokies target Lamereon James. But, outside of Henderson and Taylor, it doesn't appear that many proven productive players line up on defense.
After the Hokies performance last season, I think it would be incredibly bad taste to say that this is a game the Hokies should win easily. Add in the respect between coaching staffs and the familiarity, even if the Hokies were running away with the game I don't think Brent Pry would push the envelope. But, this doesn't look like ODU will be a good team. If the Hokies struggle beyond typical early season struggles, it is a major red flag for the rest of the season.
Comments
22 catches for 10 yards? We should think about not covering him as he might just help our defensive stats .
Ypc
Ugh another backup QB for ODU
French just broke the starting QB news or did I miss the announcement?
I mean....it's gonna be Wells
It's probably Wells but they haven't said it's him so it could be Drones. I always thought Hooker was going to be the starter and boy was I wrong so I just wait till they announce it now before assuming starting QBs. I understand it's a new staff but we are still in the same pattern of a new starter every year so far. So no assumptions yet.
French got sauces...
Honestly, I'm fine if we don't know who QB1 is until Saturday. That means ODU will have to waste precious time game planning both options at QB.
Until I am told Drones has clearly locked down the job, I am assuming Wells is the starter. He likely will have a quick hook, but it will be Wells unless something drastically changes.
Looking forward to the Pry-ssr this week. Decision should have been made yesterday according to Pry's previous statements.
My worry is the Drones package will be 100% runs. If it is the other team by week three is going to pack the box like you wouldn't believe. He needs to have a Tebow pop pass to keep other teams honest in his run package.
Drones are versatile, they can be in the air or on the ground. Some have even seen them on the sea. Even the Admin doesn't hold Drones to only be on the ground.
+MANY!
^^^this^^^ is rich!
👊🏿
b.street
Agry.
Fully.
This game is all about us/VeeTee.
What we do -or do not show- is up to us. That said...
Beer+shot = Boilermakers look ahead trap a bit?
'cause the next 12 Q'ers of 'ball after what should be a Hokie win are very fency indeed.
💯
b.street
Every time I read one of your comments I ask myself if I'm having a stroke before I realize what's going on. Kinda fun though. Keep doing your thing.
I wonder if HE'S having a stroke
If he is, he's been having one for like 20 years... (I remember you from TSL B'Street.....)
I always read them in this guys voice for some reason.....
I'm impressed you can even read them.
Read, yes. Understand?
I will leg this GIF in any scenario.
I thought he was an AI with instructions to write as that coach talked.
It's like reading one of those ransom notes with all the letters cut out from other magazines and shit. Lol. That's the only thing I can equate it to.
What is so sad is that, after the past several years, I cannot possibly be the only person reading this and translating it into the following:
Someone writes: "Grant Wilson, a Fordham transfer, was named the starter this week ... Wilson was a backup behind senior Tim DeMorat. Wilson was 4 for 5 passing all season." = I think "He is throwing at least 200 yards and 1-2 TDs on us."
Someone writes "It appears he can run, as he was credited with 8 carries and had 45 yards rushing." = I think "Add in probably another 100 yards or so rushing and another TD."
Really hoping Pry and company have turned the corner and are on the way back up on the field this year. Off the field is going as well as anyone could reasonably hope for. On the field, not expecting much. Just want young players to get experience so they can grow into the future, the bad penalties drastically cut, some minimal hope of picking up a first down on 3rd-and-1 or 4th-and-1 (I had 0 faith in that the last few years) and 1-2 more wins. But good lord, please take care of business against ODU. At home no less.
Talking about actual football that is about to be played vs rehashing the same threads ad nausem
This game has to be a tone-setter for Pry (and Grant Wells) after last year.
You can't turn the ball over 5 times and commit 15 penalties like 2022. VT had no business losing that game last year with lesser talent against a better ODU team. This team has to show that it is different and the culture is changing.
WIN (VT 31 - ODU 10)
I've echoed a similar sentiment frequently. This should be a comfortable win if we can do two things that are largely in our control.
1. Fewer penalties. Some amount of penalties are unavoidable, but 15 penalties is way above average, and something we struggled with last season that we can show material improvement from last year.
2. Fewer turnovers. Four interceptions and a field goal attempt turned into a TD for ODU is not normal amount of random variance, and four picks reflects carelessness with the football when contextualized.
This should be enough for us to win this game comfortably. I'm not expecting this team to look amazing.
Agree - it really is just about improvement in the most fundamental areas.
Also - it seems like everyone is knocking our general talent level which I understand on offense - but I don't agree with on defense. Pry has not built up real depth yet - but guys like Keller, Lawson, Jenkins, Delane, Strong, Stroman, APR, Pollard/Kendricks/Fuga, etc. have legit physical talent. We don't really know about the McDonald's yet - both those two are physical freaks. Add in Canteen and Peoples who will likely be consistent/reliable - and this defense could be really good if it stays healthy.
The offense won't put up a bunch of points but if they can run the ball and not be a 3-and-out machine like last year - the defense is in a better position to succeed. For their stage of development - this is how they'll have to win and do it ugly.
Yeah this is much more of a problem than talent this year and the sole reason I'm weary on a ton of progress in the W-L column we're an injury away from disaster. We've got P5 talent at pretty much every spot now on offense and defense but our 2 deep is still extremely young and our OL is still very not proven.
I think many of us are weary... but guessing from context you meant wary?
boy I've been using that spelling for years good thing I don't use that word much
I think he meant wooly.
At least we're way above average in something!
VT 41-10
If we can get out of our own way enough to score 41 against anyone I'll have an entirely new outlook on this season
Agree - I think this needs to be a statement game for Pry that this is a new season with new expectations. Sorry its your friend on the other sideline but he needs to show that we are not at odu's level with a RUTS performance to set the tone with everyone from players to fans.
If I am ODU's staff, I am taking the stairs or Pry should make an off the field statement with a locked elevator.
We haven't scored 30+ in a game in over a year (believe we have the longest current streak in FBS). If we score 30 in this game, the year will go better than expected...taking the pressure off the defense. If we don't, the pressure will build until the offense clicks and executes at a manageable level.
Boy, that is some stat. I'm not sure if we'll score 30 on odu. That will likely be our best chance to do so, though, unless the offense gets better as the season progresses. That might only happen if game day Wells proves not to be as good as practice Wells and he's supplanted by Drones. We'll see.
Potentially unpopular opinion here, but...
I've never understood this part about respect where when [insert team a] is winning there's a point where they need to "take the gas off the pedal" and play backups. Yeah, there's a point where it happens, but imo it's gotta be 4+ TDs and the second half. Heck with playing backups up 24-7 in the fourth out of "respect". Go beat them. In all honesty, I don't see the point in that at professional or college level, leave that for the kids. "tHeY sHOuLdnT rUN tHe sCoRE Up iN sPOrtS" yeah that's kid level stuff. You can absolutely beat a team 70-7 and be respectful as opposed to playing mamby pamby and winning 28-7 because "respect". There's a difference between showboating and building/maintaining a winning culture.
*steps off soap box*
I'm with you. I actually think taking out your starters when you're up 3 scores is more disrespectful than crushing them by 5 scores. Depending, of course, on how you do it. If you're up 3 scores and going for it on 4th and 3 near mid field then you're just being a dick. But if you're making normal play calls as if the game is tied in the 1st quarter then I'm cool with it.
A different take - you take the starters out and play the second and third team players to give them in-game experience and film for the coaches. An additional benefit is keeping your first string healthy.
Much has been made of how thin our O-line is. You don't want to get those guys banged up. Playing them when the game all but over is an invitation to a rolled ankle, an injured ACL, etc. I've heard many times that a player has gotten injured when they got sloppy and / or tired. Get them out and put some hungry young blood on the field.
I agree with that. But imo taking the starters out is a luxury afforded to the teams that put the nail in the coffin early; leave no doubt.
That being said, if a team (mainly us) is up 28-7 in the 4th, or maybe even earlier, it's fine to put in backups for play time, but don't give me the bullshit about respect. 'We really respect that team over there so we didn't want to make them feel bad' bullshit that's a loser mentality at this level.
Pulling the starters also helps to avoid injuries we can't afford. We don't have the depth to take an injury to a key starter. If a starter gets hurt in the 4th quarter of a 30 point blowout, the coach screwed up.
Regardless on when the backups go in, continue to call your plays. These backup players might not see the field much and deserve more than to hand the ball off on every play. If you light the game up in an air raid with your starters, continue to sling the ball. Way to often, the backups go in and we turtle the offense running up the middle every play.
It is worse when they settle or let the time run out. Those 2/3rd stringers might not ever get a chance to score a TD again in College, let them.
wins weigh the sameSorry, what type of offense does VT run? I watched 11 games last year and don't really know. /s but not really
Anyways, VT wins 30-10, scoring the most points ever in the Brent Pry era.
The same kind of offense we've always run.
multiple
Offenses are kinda like QBs. If you have multiple, you have none.
VT hasn't had an offense in like 20 years. Tyrod, Wilson, Boykin etc. played hero ball to get relatively decent stats but schematically we have been outclassed on that side of the ball ever since Stinespring took over OC duties. Until I actually see an offense materialize in Blacksburg I'm going to continue working off the assumption that our offense is absolute crap every single year. I haven't been able to trust our offense to do anything, like, ever. I used to trust our Defense but that trust is gone too, unfortunately.
VT never really had an offense in terms of putting up numbers and ranking high relative to CFB.
They did have an offensive identity during their most successful years which was to run the ball. Splash plays came on the back end of running the ball because you had to defend it first. Pry clearly wants to get back to his - run the ball and play good defense.
I think VT's offensive identity is simple. Just have to execute it.
The one piece of our identity that we definitely lost is a general nastiness on defense. There was so much energy and aggression on those elite Bud defenses - I miss that more than an offense that never really wow'ed anyone even when it was full of NFL talent.
The best offenses in modern college football are able to run the ball well. They also have sensible passing structures and are able to punish teams pretty regularly through the air. VT has never really done that. I think we need to accept the fact that a ground and pound offense just isn't going to work most places in college football. It may have been our identity 20 years ago, but it's not going to fly this day in age. We have needed to modernize our offense for a long time now and we have failed to do so. Pretty spectacularly, actually.
That might sound great to some, but it sounds like going backwards to me. I don't want to go back to the 90s where we lined up in power formations and slammed huge backs into the line for 3 yards and a cloud of dust. That just isn't feasible in today's game. For starters, we're having a hard enough time finding talent on the OL just to keep the QB clean for more than 2 seconds. How can we expect to recruit the type of road-graders it takes to run a power offense? Secondly, college mirrors the NFL (whether you like it or not) and the best recruits are trying to get to the league so they're going to want to play in offenses that will get them there. The RB heyday is way behind us. We're not going to find every-down backs and huge OL and run blocking TEs who want to maul people on the line of scrimmage because hardly anyone in the NFL does that anymore. We need quick, athletic OL who can pass block, WRs TEs and RBs who can run routes and catch, and a QB who can make all the throws quickly in a shotgun/pistol RPO offense. Play action is kind of the way of the past, IMO.
I think to be able to execute the offensive identity that you think we have/need, we would need recruits that just don't exist anymore. We need to adapt. I'm tired of trying to shove square pegs into round holes.
I agree with this and I miss it too. However, I think an element of that can be blamed on rules changes (targeting, mostly, and roughing the passer) which favor offenses and I just don't think we can ever get back to that kind of nastiness on defense again. The sport has shifted to favor offense and I think it would be wise to adjust and use that to our advantage rather than fight against the grain. That is, I think we should focus on getting a modern offense that can take advantage of the rules that are designed to favor an offense rather than try to create a defense to fight an uphill battle.
These are all good points - I'm just not sure what a modern offense means.
The spread that Rich Rod, Chip Kelly, and others made popular is what I think comes to a lot of people's minds when they think of modern college offense - but even that was 15-20 years ago at this point.
Who do you view as having a modern offense in CFB that VT can emulate? Alabama, Georgia, Michigan, etc. are not running any crazy innovative schemes on offense - they have great defenses and elite talent on both sides.
Alabama, Georgia, and Michigan may not have the latest and greatest innovative offenses but they are absolutely using concepts that have been developed in the last 20 years. When I think of modern college offense, I think of Shotgun/Pistol formations with 4 and 5 WR sets. I think of RBs who flex out into the slot in motions. I think of quick 3 step drops and throwing to combo routes that stress defenses and force linebackers and safeties to break their rules. I think of teams that can run different types of plays from the same looks to keep the defense guessing. I think of teams that can attack all parts of the field, thus spreading teams out.
What I mean, really, is that I don't think of I formation, Ace sets, or Wisconsin with their cows on the OL.
see, the thing that is great about spread offenses, and why they have become so popular (and especially so in the G5) is that they are the great talent equalizer. Most teams aren't going to have the luxury of "elite talent" at their disposal so they have to use scheme to get an advantage. You can't just play "man-ball" anymore unless you're a blueblood and have the talent to out-talent your opponent. I would love nothing more than to have a great defense and elite talent to beat teams but that just isn't a reasonable or even realistic goal for VT right now. We're better off finding advantages in scheme to mitigate the talent differences.
Agreed with this. And, correct me if I'm wrong, for I'm just a young lad, but the reason that Beamerball was so successful for so long was Beamer did things on special teams no one else did. He innovated and tried new things. I'm not saying we need to reinvent the wheel, but as VPI said above having a difficult to defend scheme is the great equalizer, we've never had that in Blacksburg. Honestly I can't even tell you what our scheme has been offensively.
There was also a game against Miami back in the early 00s, where there were some Miami fans sitting next to me, who were also calling out the plays our offense was going to run on the upcoming snap, but the defense couldn't stop them. The comment I got from those Miami fans was, "You run a simple and predictable offense, but you run it so well."
That's was Stinespring 100%. When fans got really mad at him Frank said that he was one of the best X's and O's csoch which he might very well be because everyone did their job very well, but his play calling wasn't great and when we didn't have the best talent it showed.
Top 15 offense in 2009, top 25 offense in 2010 (per sp+). The rest were hot garbage.
Yeah that happens when you aren't great at calling plays in game.
Those top offenses were mostly due to pure talent than anything else. Maddening to think how good those offenses could have been with a better play caller. Stinespring was a hell of a recruiter tho. Gotta give him credit for that.
Totally agree - I actually think the 2009 play calling wasn't bad... at least it fit the personnel.
(Edit to elaborate on above: I don't really remember the play calling in 2009. But the offense was efficient which leads me to believe the play calling was decent)
2010 is a different story... we had so much talent, and needed to be super creative in order to maximize our potential. Spoiler: we were not.
i watched some old games this week, from the mid-late 00s.
its wild how much bigger we were physically back then
Watch the Florida puff piece on Netflix. That Florida offense with Tebow and Leak was very, very basic. They just had a battering ram back there to keep the chains moving. It was not a complex offense at all, and it won 2 national titles.
Remember Percy Harvin? That was a miss...
Yep- Should have been Beamer's clue that kids didn't want to play in Stiney's offense. Harvin himself said he wanted a more modern offense. Ironically their offense was no more "modern" than VT's. A bunch of zone read stuff and reverses to Harvin.
Add to that, a somewhat local OL in the 2011 class went to UNC over VT in large part because of the offense (Butch Davis was the HC at UNC).
To be fair, he has nothing but outstanding remarks about Stiney as a person (Curt Newsome on the other hand is a very different story), however he wanted to be somewhere with a competent OL coach and offense... his words.
stiney is an absolute solid guy, the players love him, and probably the best recruiter we ever had. garbage oc though.
His Olines were very good. I really think calling plays was were he lacked. But very good position coach and great recruiter.
One of the reason(s) behind the rise of modern offense in CFB is the paucity of line talent. The same reason a team may run a 3-3-5 on defense, is the same reason a team will use spread concepts.
Offenses that can run multiple looks from one personnel grouping will always be a good thing. But this hinges on having versatile skill position players:
- Is your TE a receiving threat?
- Can your TE play FB?
- Is your FB a receiving threat?
- Can your big slot WR block?
Probably these players who can be this versatile go to big schools too.
I don't know how "right" this is, but I feel like Ace and I-form can help the o-line with blocking angles because QB/RB mesh point can move relative to if the QB/RB are in shotgun. I also like the option of QB boots, moving the pocket which "seems" easier from under center.
Tangentially, I've been watching a lot of 2010-2012 Oregon games on YouTube. Those Chip Kelly rushing offenses were a sight to behold. Rushed for over 400 against USC in '12.
Everyone remembers Mariotta and LaMichael James but they had a great tailback named Kenjon Barner who had the best jump cuts I've ever seen.
I never saw seams soooo wide open before or after that in college or the pros. It was unreal. There wouldn't be a defender near the play on a basic running play. It helps when you buy recruits openly, but still.
Very few teams outside of the late 90s Denver Broncos zone blocked as well as Oregon. When you added in all the variations, even though the concepts were simple, the defense didn't know to wind their ass or scratch their watch.
it was really something! I'm waiting for UCLA to look similar. I'm curious how they'll play this year
Fully X's/O's agry here.
Broncs are my go-to "mention" on how to do this over and over and over.
+1,
b.street
Wonder what happened to that OL coach...
The OL coach for the late 90s Broncos died two years ago at the age of 80.
The assistant OL coach is now coaching middle school football in Augusta, Georgia
I meant the Oregon OL coach...
Retired 4 years ago. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steve_Greatwood
Delete repost
Sorry, what type of offense does VT run?
Having gone from 3 OC's down to one, we should be able to sort it out. How do you get halfway thru a season before you realize you are "running the wrong offense"?
Last year was a mess for a couple reasons. It helps an offense if you have more than one receiver who can reliably get open and catch a ball, and I don't think we really had that. So Pry went and got several proven receivers from the portal and recruited a few more.
I think a lot of what we did last year was just to try to find plays the players we had could be successful at. If we have better players and more experience (I believe we do), you should likely see better performance and execution of plays that we will likely see as an offensive concept that is coming together. {crosses fingers}
You aren't wrong but how poor of a recruiter do you have to be to miss on all of (in terms of catching a football and getting open) : Tuner-Bradshaw, Boyd, Sutton, Wright, Moss, Jones. Not asking for Jerry Rice. Not even mentioning Payoute. How can you miss on that many receivers- just asking them to catch and get open- basic contributions.
I don't like to go into a season thinking any game is an absolute must win.
But god help us all if we somehow lose this one.
if I'm ODU, I'm sitting on a quick out route to try for a pick 6 on VT's first play on offense
VT's first play on offense will be a run
I'll put $50 down that VT's first offensive play is a false start
*ducks head*
Lol. This is kinda true tho
Could be delay of game.
That's not bold enough, puntrooskie as the first play, that's a statement play!
Do you have odds on this and where can I bet it?
the odds are 50-50. bet your pride here
They payout is a bit under with false start acting like the green dot on the roulette wheel.
I think run is a good bet, I don't see it onf DK or Caesars, but maybe it'll come up next week.
Correct- zone read inside handoff.
I did not see the game (was playing a gig) and the highlight replays don't show it...
what was VT's first play from scrimmage?
Wells over threw a nicely set up screen pass.
I mean if we were setting up a board with a bunch of options this one would have gotten a lot of action.
The more losses to online Sunbelt teams a P5 program has, the more it wilts away on the vine, so yeah - must win.
Its a must win for the fans. I think the staff is smart enough to know what they do and do not have ahead of them in terms of program development. But to keep the momentum going the fan base has to believe. A win here shows the fans we're making progress. A loss might immediately implode the fan interest for the remainder of the season, which then trickles down to a less than enthusiastic saturday for the remainder of the year in Lane, but recruiting experience, lost ticket revenue from a lack of fans, and it just continues to snowball.
A win will help make sure the stands are packed on the 9th.
If they lose this game, there are serious problems, and not just from a fan interest perspective.
VT had zero business losing to ODU last year and it took a catastrophic implosion (4 interceptions, 15 penalties, and a FG snapped 20 yards over the kicker returned for a TD) to lose. These coaches now have another year under their belt, took ODU's best player, and have home field advantage.
So you are saying a team that won 3 games made mistakes in all 3 phases and lost. Not surprising an not a fluke. We weren't good. ODU beat us because we made many many mistakes in all 3 phases. That's what bad teams do. The question is, will we play a cleaner game this year? I'd like to think so, but I don't think that is set in stone. We are young on the OL- very young- an injury there could halt the offense. And the defense couldn't force turnovers last year. Has that changed? We shall see
The key caveat here is that ODU was also a terrible team that only managed to win 3 games. So we didnt just make some mistakes, we colossally shit the bed.
We will take a lot of lumps this year as well. But barring the top 2 quarterbacks getting game-ending injuries, there's no acceptable world where they lose this game to an ODU team picked to finish dead last in the SunBelt
I'll bet money at least one person wrote this(or something similar) before our loss last year
We absolutely shouldn't have lost that game. We shouldn't have lost in 2018 (or whenever it was) either but that's why Fuente isn't coaching anymore. In an ideal world we'd blow the doors off ODU. We just don't have the offense to do it. I hope we win and I'll gladly take it if we do but it won't be pretty.
Last year I'm willing to pin on a new coaching staff and a team that saw a purge of talent via the portal and a team that was vastly inferior to what we're used to.
With a full year of practices and a coaching staff which should know where our strengths are, there's no excuse this year. We lose this one, its time to seriously question what we're doing.
Which is why I'm saying, if they lose this game there are serious problems. We will not be a great football team this year. ODU will be significantly worse.
I'm not talking about blowing the doors off of them or even covering. I'm just talking about winning a game against an inferior team. Something competent coaching staffs are able to do. If VT doesn't do this, then I think it's fair to question if they are a competent coaching staff.
For the record, I think VT will win and i'm optimistic this is a good coaching staff. I just wanted to point out in response to the OP, that the downside of losing this game isn't just low fan morale; it's that this staff might be in way over their heads
I'm going into this one hoping for a win. But I'm also not going to be surprised if we sh*t the bed, again. Until the team can prove to me that some confidence and credibility has been re-established, I'm not expecting a win, for any game.
Just re-watched the ESPN "highlights" of last year's ODU game. Boy did we kill ourselves. A number of observations actually make me feel like we can and should beat them soundly:
- Only 2 of Wells' 4 INTs were really his fault. One was bobbled and one was the last hail mary.
- On Wells' first TD run, the two WRs on the field were Lofton (who may not even be in the 2-deep this season) and Kakavitsas. No offense to them, but our WR talent level is SO much higher this season.
- Keyshawn King ran all over them. Gotta think Tuten and Thomas can as well.
- The defense held up pretty well - until the end (way too common story last year). If we can possess the ball a little and play smart enough to make ODU have to drive the length, we should be able to shut them down.
- Jennings is on our side now. He made us look silly a few times at the end of the game.
Everybody knows these things, but watching the tape really does bear out that we beat ourselves last year. I am going to chalk that up to a first year coaching staff learning their way. Let's see if they can be better dialed in for year two!
Hopefully no elevator issues too....
Biggest worry about Jennings is dropping the ball. He had multiple drops in the spring, and there have been chirps that he had similar issues in fall camp.
The next time we play well against ODU in football or boston college in basketball will be the first time
ODU plus 15.5 is such easy money, it should be illegal to bet on it. I'd take ODU plus 5.5
Love reading your commentary DC, but I hope you eat those words. The team really needs to make a statement against ODU and win by the most points possible.
I'm hoping we dominate physically early on, from the first play. Really make it painful to be ODU. Make them regret what they signed up for, etc.
They have beaten us 2 out of 4. How could they possibly regret that? I don't care if we win by 50, we've already legitimized their program by losing to them and agreeing to square off for the next 20 years.
BINGO. If VT signed a 15 year series with Roanoke College or VMI- we would lose to them at some point. I swear we would.
You have to be a really shitty football program to lose to the same team 15 years in a row.
I hope I eat these words too. But the game will be close. And even if Pry trys to step on the gas late, we will make mistakes on offense and cower into a shell in the red zone - see last 20 years. So until I see otherwise, that's my take.
same. Blacksburg is where offense comes to die. We haven't had a truly* good offense for as long as I've been a fan and I refuse to believe that anything will be different until proven otherwise.
*2009, 2010, 2016 offenses posted good numbers despite the scheme. Those offenses had generational talents carrying the team on their backs. The scheme was bad, though.
That's just how it is. You show me 20 years of incompetence on offense, shame on me for expecting anything else.
Tease it down and take a huge payout. Make sure you post your bet slip for posterity though :)
Huge payouts don't exist anymore- as you know, but I will happily post my odu plus the points screenshot on here. Easy money.
I was saying you should tease it down to +5.5. Payout should be pretty solid. I'd look it up, but I've realized I'm terrible at sports betting and deleted the apps.
Hope you didn't lose too much "easy money".
Spread is ODU +16.5. I say take it. What say you?
I just don't see tech being able to win by more than 2 scores unless the defense has 3+ turnovers with one pick 6. I'm certainly here for that though.
Feels like easy money. We barely scored more than 15 ppg last season. We'd need either a shutout or a defensive score (possibly both?) in order to cover the spread. I'd take ODU all day every day on this one
If I gambled - which I don't, beyond $5 or $10 with a friend or co-worker on rare occasion - I would jump at that taking ODU.
Everyone looking at the spread and I'm over here looking at the 48 o/u with the projected 120th worst offense in the country playing us who finished right around there last year.
yeah, I'd hammer the under too
I think the game will end 17-10
Yeah if you're going to take ODU the under is a no brainer to parlay this with.
I'm less inclined to take ODU but the under is very interesting.
Good luck finding that combo allowed on an app. Same-game college football parlays outside of the corny canned ones the site offers are rarely allowed on apps.
My state doesn't allow betting apps but that's sad to hear. I don't same game parlay like ever
Good thing my state doesn't allow betting.
lol
This is why I don't gamble. No such thing as a "no brainer" or "easy money".
Though I would have taken the under if I were a betting person, but will admit I'm getting a perverse pleasure that those who bet on the under lost AND especially those who bet on us not beating the spread! All too rare for the last several years!
Yeah, I mean I can't get too mad at people thinking we wouldn't score a lot of points as that has been the trend. I guess if you pick Tech not to cover and they do, then you might have lost money but you still got to enjoy the win, right?
Keep in mind the new rules are going to be conducive to the under too. Especially early in the year before the vegas algorithms adjust
Yep - week 1 is ripe with inefficiencies in the prediction market. Sometimes Vegas is really right though - Just look at UNC/VT 2020. Vegas was all over VT, despite betters being all over UNC (I once listed to a 15 minute segment on this line, and how it showed what Vegas knew/didn't know, hence why I remember)
Vegas is mathematically nearly perfect now. they use millions of data points. Very few can beat them regularly.
The only way you can beat them is to find spreads that are off which no longer exist for D1 college football.
If Vegas is mathematically perfect (which I agree) - then VT is a healthy favorite and Vegas is all over it (you'd take ODU at +5.5 pts?! C'mon DC!). I got VT at -13 at the end of July - money has been on VT steadily to push up to 16.
Would I take VT at 15.5 - 16? Probably not, but -13 yes.
fair point. I am taking ODU plus 15.5 - full disclosure
I get what everyone is saying about how bad our offense was last year, how it's the first game, how we can't expect too much. However, I'm not sure everyone understands how bad ODU is going to be this season. If we aren't cruising midway through the 3rd this season, we have a serious problem on our hands.
Yep... SP+ preseason ratings have us 15.5 points better than ODU. 2 points for home field advantage puts us at 17.5 favorites.
It's worth noting how much ODU lost from that team last year. Bitter mentioned ODU had 58 new players and a lot of that is due to attrition out via the portal. Their leading QB, RB, and WR all transferred out. Their QB for 2023 is Fordham backup QB of 2022 (5 total pass attempts). ODU was bad in 2022, but with levels of portal attrition that make the Fuente years look respectable, ODU will really have issues this year.
I don't have a lot of confidence in VT's offense, but I do have confidence that VT will have enough athletes at the skill positions that they will score at least two breakaway long TDs on offense or special teams when ODU breaks down. And VT's defense will be good this year. With an FCS backup as their starting QB and not much else at the skill positions, I don't see how ODU will be able to sustain any drives. And bring in the factors of revenge, improvement in offseason workouts, and the overall edge/hunger/momentum this team has right now, this game has route all over it.
That said, VT is known to s--- the bed. But if this game is close, it's a freaking massive Jurassic Park s---ing of the bed.
I'll believe it when I see it. I don't trust our offense any further than I could throw a lineman. I won't trust our offense to score 3 times per game until I see it consistently for several weeks. IIWII
I don't trust our offense any further than I could throw a lineman.
This is very subjective though.... You could be at the edge of a really tall cliff and if you throw him off, he would go very, very far.
ODU has sucked wind for 5 years. Miraculously they have beaten VT twice. This whole "ODU won't be as good as last year" is irrelevant when said team sucked anyway. Which has been the case for ODU for 5 years. VT makes them look good. Which shows you how bad we have been.
Be honest about history though. VT has only made them look good once in 2018. The series (2-2) goes back 6 years, but sure go with 5 because it's convenient to leave off the 38-0 that happened in 2017. Additionally, both losses were at Norfolk. At home, VT has an average margin of victory of 26 points (38 pt win and 14 pt win).
Now let's talk further context about that 2022 game. Make no mistake, ODU did not look good. Instead, VT crapped the bed so hard and lost by 3. Five (5) turnovers including 4 ints and one 10-pt swing fumble. Fifteen (15) penalties for 106 yards. ODU only has about 125 yards of offense going into the 4th quarter. In the 4th, VT's D gives up its only TD in final minute after a Wells interception at mid-field. It's completely inconceivable that such a performance could be repeated. It was historic with the most extreme luck and bed s---ing.
VT isn't a great team or even a good team, but ODU will be historically bad this year. ODU was really bad last year and got worse as the season progressed and in the offseason. VT got better. And history shows VT has done well against ODU at home. I just don't see how ODU keeps this one close. It would take way more luck and way more bed s---ing than we've ever seen. ODU will be lucky to win a game this year.
Taking ODU and the points this game is so far from easy money that I just don't know how anyone makes that bet with confidence. But, idk, you do you.
Who else on ODU's schedule had 5 turnovers? Who else gifted them games? ODU- so very sadly- is like Pitt now for VT... or Boston College for VT in hoops. ODU can and will loose to Kennesaw State, but beat VT. Pitt can lose to Cuse at home, Youngstown State, etc and destroy VT. No different with ODU. So honestly no- I don't think it matters what team they have coming back, how good they were last year, etc. They will look better against VT- for whatever reason- than they do against JMU or Liberty or Jacksonville State.
It is really a reach to suggest a trend based on the most dysfunctional VT team and the greatest statistical outlier game.
What do you call that plus giving up 700 yards passing 3 years prior? not a trend?
lol, ODU had 250 total yards last year, 125 total going into the 4th. They had 300 total yards in 2019. What are the trends you're talking about? Plot it and show me the trend line.
62-0 baby!
this would be epic. And it would COMPLETELY change the tenor of discourse around here for the better. I'm here for it.
That assumes VT is the team that has the 62.
Sigh.
It would complete raise everyone's expectations, and people would be even more pissed when we lose to Rutgers 7-6.
Especially me, as I'll be at that Rutgers game.
A la Syracuse 1999? Bring it on!
🚨 heads up if your going to the game add time to your entrance. VT has added metal detectors to ALL entrance gates. The kind being used don't require you to empty your pockets of items but first game use expect backups.
Great, it was already bad going in as they never had enough people scanning tickets. This is not going to make people happy.
Country we live in. White Sox just had a gun go off in the stands that a woman snuck in.
people are dumb
Police report "snuck gun in her rolls of fat below her breasts"
Epic.
I always suspected being overweight wasn't healthy.
yeah, its a lot to unpack. you can hide a gun in your "fat rolls"? and you take a gun to a baseball game? why?
Well, it is the South Side of Chicago. You know, the baddest part of town. If you go down there, you better just beware ...
Might run into bad, bad Leroy Brown.
One of my all time favorite songs for any people out there who might be on the younger side.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JzYf6qskdfA
I was living in the NW suburbs of Chicago when the 'new' Comiskey opened. It was very close to the notorious Robert Taylor Homes complex, an ill-fated, drug & gang infested public housing project. Supposedly, right before Comiskey opened to much fanfare, some crack-head in one of the top floors of that shithole fired some shots towards the empty bleachers. Can you imagine getting to your seats in the bleachers on opening night and finding bullet holes in the backrest of your seat? Yeah, that must have been a comforting feeling.
Comiskey is one of the last dinosaur parks built with absolutely no personality. The first row in the bleachers in the new Comiskey is farther away from the field than the last row of the old Comiskey.
Professor in my department at VT when I was there did his (I think) graduate work at Northwestern. Might have been undergrad, but pretty sure it was grad. He and some friends were going to see the White Sox at the old ballpark. One of them gets the bright idea to take the train down. They get on and it has - how shall I phrase this - is a certain demographic. The further and further south they go, the demographics change. They get to the stop for Comiskey Park and as they are leaving, someone on the train tells them 'Yeah, you better get off.'
Edit: yes, confirmed it was graduate school at Northwestern back in the 70s.
Don't think this violates community guidelines, but if it does, will remove.
My airplane bottles laugh at this
Seems like we all have football PTSD
Am I missing all of the usual hype videos for this year?
Can't have hype videos if there aren't any highlight plays from last year. Nothing to hype.
I went through all of the ACCN highlight videos last year. There isn't a lot there. It was a rough watch.
Edit: my slapped together video from said ACCN footage for you hustle. Not quite a hype video, hopefully this season offers some inspiration for those more talented in video editing than I.
Maybe this doubles as one?
Gotta have hype for a hype video. When a majority of tkp is saying 6 wins would be a big success...there just isn't much to hype
It sucks to suck.
Hang in there. We royally sucked last year and my guess is will be pretty bad next year. improved, but I'd consider 5-7 a substantial success. But thinking respectable in 2024 and the potential to be legitimately good in 2025. Keep the recruiting on the upward trajectory and we will get there.
We need a consistently accurate QB with a good set of legs in the worst way.
Said every coach everywhere always
I think Saban just asks his OC, "which one of the several five-star QB's with great accuracy and superior speed are you planning to start this season?" But yes, most head coaches have that same dream of top-shelf QB talent.