๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐The Hokies are headed to the @DukesMayoBowl! pic.twitter.com/jobEp4MoY2โ ACC Football (@ACCFootball) December 8, 2024
Heyo @DukesMayoBowl ๐#ThisIsHome pic.twitter.com/y73Le6HYs1โ Virginia Tech Football (@HokiesFB) December 8, 2024
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Looks like Minnesota is the opponent.
Not exactly sexy but a B1G opponent will give us a good test and opportunity for Pop.
6-6 doesn't get you sexy. I'm just glad it's not some 2 loss G5 team that we get no credit for beating and catch a load of shit if we lose.
PJ Fleck is going to have his team ready. You know that man wants to get covered in mayo on live TV.
PJ Fleck looks like a man who covers himself in mayo at home just for fun.
Started hatin' on a little early, sorry.
I think you mean... sorry, not sorry.
good match up. good bowl.
January 3rd feels late, or is that just me?
I think it is. Likely because of how late Thanksgiving was this year.
It's not Florida, but it's also not New York.
And it is not a G5 opponent which I had already resigned myself to being the likely opponent. Was expecting an underwhelming opponent. Finally, Charlotte is very doable for a large portion of the fan base.
This is a good matchup all things considered.
I will choose to be pleased with this news
I can live with this selection.
I don't even have to get a hotel!
Minnesota is a good team
We're a dark horse playoff contender for 2025!
If we win, we should be able to count it toward our 2025 win total IMO.
Go to Charlotte for the 3rd and 4th and get a twofer
A non ACC P 4 team. Everyone on this board knows how this game is going to go.
I dunno. VT is 1-1 against non ACC P4 teams in Charlotte (comeback win vs Arkansas and disappointing loss against the fighting Bowden clown show). At least both games were interesting.
Are we not counting ACCCG appearances?
Correct, we are not counting ACCCG appearances because by definition the opponent is NOT a non-ACC opponent.
Indeed, I missed that "non" above.
eh, both of those games happened before Pry.
Importantly, and I think what dc is getting at here, Pry is 0-5 vs non-ACC power conference teams. So, good chance he's going to go 0-6. I think dc will be shocked if we win against Minnesota and I think, unfortunately, I'm with him there.
in fact, Pry's best wins in his 3 years have come against 7-win ACC teams (3X) and a 10-3 Sunbelt team. That's it. 4 of Pry's 16 wins. The other 12 wins were against garbage teams with losing records. He hasn't beaten anyone in 3 years. Like, literally no one good.
Pry is 3-9 on the road in the ACC. He has beaten UVA, Stanford, and BC on the road as VT's head coach. Nothing about his resume is good thus far.
and that road win against 7-5 BC is probably his best win ever. It's either that, or the win against 10-3 sunbelt team, Marshall. Those are his top two wins all time and they occurred in different seasons. So he's good for one 'good' win against a decent G5 team or a 7-win ACC team per season. Everything else is trash. To his credit, he beats up on most sub-0.500 teams but any time he runs into a team with a pulse it's almost certainly a loss
The more I read, the worse it gets.
It's like that movie "Nothing But Trouble" with Chevy Chase, Dan Akroyd, and Demi Moore. Every time you think you're about to escape the nightmare, you get sucked in to a deeper level of hell!
With a better O-Line, we win against Miami, and a few other of our close games against better opponents.
Please tell me about their least productive player, so I can expect a career performance! /s
lol so true
Right, their first and second string QBs are gonna opt out but the 3rd stringer throws for 500 yards and 7 TDs.
This team has given me football fan PTSD.
Could be a script flip. We are staring our 3rd string......
Beaten Hokie Syndrome
Should be the punishment for losing. Winning coach gets to pour.
Losing coach then has to walk a lap around the field.
Ooooo. Interesting twist. Me likey!
I think the worst part of this is that they boink lil Beams in the head. Really adds insult to injury, or maybe they're adding injury to insult?
My favorite mayonnaise is Dukes; and I eat my share of it. But that right there is down right nasty! gag!
QB is a New Hampshire transfer. Protects the ball pretty well and can move in the pocket. Not a big run threat and has limitations stretching the field with his arm.
So, 100yards rushing and 250 yards passing, got it!
3 rushing TDs.
If Minnesota wants to use the bowl to get film on their younger QBs we might get to face former Hokie Dylan Wittke at QB for a few snaps.
Might go to this one. I went to the bowl game comeback in Charlotte against Arkansas and it was a fun time.
Ditto
I took this pic because I felt so bad for the guy, but also schadenfreude.
I was visiting my parents in Hilton Head for this game we went to a sports bar where they decided to have trivia but also bowl games on. There were a few groups of Hokies in there and we got asked more than once to be quiet because people couldn't hear the trivia.....never went back to that "sports" bar.
Hilton Head. There's the problem. Can't get too rowdy.
If there was ever a moment to tell somebody to give their balls a tug.
My daughter is waiting to hear back from Minnesota, that's her first choice school for next year. It is unreal we're playing for THE FIRST TIME EVER. This might require some research...
I am SO interested about whether Minnesota barbecues.
I don't know about BBQ, but they've got the market cornered on lutefisk and hotdish.
I want a whole paragraph about their lefse vs. Wisconsin's.
BBQ is too spicy for them.
They probably call grilling hot dogs barbecuing.
This maybe be required to decipher the communications from the North in your research.
Here's what I know about Minnesota ay:
It's da boot of ๐จ๐ฆ
What's this about a boot? (in Canadian accent)
That's different
You bet
Ben's Midwestern facts about Minnesota:
1) Minnesota has fewer lakes than Wisconsin
2) the majority of the states population lives in the MSP metro region
3) they're building more miles of Bus Rapid Transit than any other US city
4) They stomped Wisconsin in football this year.
Then again, most everyone else Wisconsin played did, too.
Minnesota:
(1) Great place to learn how to dog sled. Check out Wintergreen Dogsled Lodge.
(2) Great place to go canoeing. Check out Boundary Waters Canoe Area.
(3) Have coaches who like to eat ice cream in the snow - major thumbs up from me there.
(4) Favorite phrases are "there ya go!" and "oh yah."
#4 HMs: "yoo betcha," "Donchano"
And Uffda.
Well, isn't that special?
Is it a better place to learn than Squid Acres Kennel, run by Hokie Iditaroder Paige Drobny?
Probably. Wintergreen is very much set up as a learning place for folks like me who had never done mushing before. Sure it's a lot less expensive to get to as well :-).
Not terrible. Not going but not terrible
Dammit, now I have to watch Chernobyl again.
Friday game... driveable... family ties to UM... yeah this might happen
Honestly I'm just happy that it's a night game and I can watch it while I'm not at work
Winner keeps the flag, once and for all.
I overwintered once in Minnesota. Cold As F.
Lots of drinking and ice fishing.
I spent 18 months in St. Paul, spanning two winters. You're right about it being cold as F. Miserable, just miserable.
That's why they have so many tunnels. They stay indoors and underground.
My sister spent two winters up in Ely.
That was six years ago.
I think she may just be thawing out.
faribault
Oh my gosh, Ely is a total blast. Have been there 5 times. 3 times in winter for dog sledding (and winter camping on 2 of those 3 years, did lodge-to-lodge day trips the other time) and 2 times in summer for hiking and kayaking. Probably 1 of my top 5 places to visit. I'm actually quite jealous of her.
Now the question is what will the roster look like. Who's transferring out? Who is opting out for the draft? Who is going to play QB? -- A very interesting month ahead for VT football.
Yeah I have a feeling we won't see Tuten. Especially as a banged up RB that's got NFL potential I'd be sitting this one out.
Tuten doesn't seem to have that in his DNA. When asked about his injuries his response was there will be plenty of time to heal up after the season is over. I expect Tuten plays.
Yeah he's surprised me before, I hope for my sake to see him play again. I was at the BC game where he went off, I'll likely make it to this one too.
Especially since we will have almost a month for him to get healthy and a good showing could go a long way to solidify his draft stock
Tuten also plans to play in the Senior Bowl so he will want to keep in sync rather than sit.
This is a solid matchup. Minnesota may be the best 7-5 team, having given some of the top teams in the country a run for their money. Virginia Tech, having done the same thing, will have it's work cut out.
Which team can rise to the occasion?
So basically the same team
I'm pretty sure that backs up my post. Similar profiles, other than the fact that Minnesota can win close games.
I like that losing to UNC is considered a worse loss than losing to Rutgers (who Minnesota also lost to). Just makes me smile.
Ugh....a thousand deaths to whomever approved the change of "Chicago Maroon" from RGB 102, 0, 0 (no idea what the Pantone code used to be) to RGB 134, 31, 65 (PMS 208). Thanks for the "Chicago Purple"!
PS, that representation of PMS 208 in that tweet actually looks like a heathered version of it.
Looks like it's only the $125 club seats available via the VT ticket office. I really was hoping to buy through VT but with a family of 5 I'll be hitting Stubhub.
Stick it in the mayo?
STICK IT IN, STICK IT IN, STICK IT IN
Stick the Mayo in the Basket
"It puts the mayo in the basket."
yeah, it's got that sorta tone to it
A bowl game with deep awareness of VT lore. Nice.
Gotta imagine a whole lot of Goldy fans are like WTF are they talking about?!
So how does Pry treat the portalling players for the bowl? Are the 100% out of the prep? (I'd assume so)
If I remember last year right, he allowed players that were entering the portal to play in the bowl game. But as for this year he hasn't made a comment yet
Portalling players should get to play QB1 on 100% designed QB run plays. Save the Pop for next season.
At this portal rate, I won't have to worry about buying tickets I'll suit up and burn a year of eligibility for the field level experience.
Why would portaling players want to play and risk injury for their next stop?
Well because for many of them the only reason they got into virginia tech - much less duke or michigan- is because they can play football. So Brent Pry gave them 75K dollars in education and got them into a school they otherwise would have never sniffed. Perhaps thank him by playing in the bowl game for him? too much to ask?
If there were contracts - and the game checks that go along with those contracts - you wouldn't have to hope that players would play in bowl games simply out of loyalty.
And if the contracts were multi-year contracts, you wouldn't have to worry about 50% of your roster transferring every offseason.
Something HAS to be done. And I think it will be because the big schools want this too. They don't like re-recruiting their teams every year, they don't like paying underperforming players anymore than Pry does. When the SEC wants something- it gets done. I think rather soon there will be contracts, pay limits, etc. - just like the NFL. yay.
Yeah its all going to settle out eventually but its going to take some time. It all leads back to how the NCAA handled it initially, they could have used some logical thought process or anything to put some restrictions or safegaurds in place but instead went full hands off and this is the result.
I cannot blame the NCAA for going hands-off.
They attempted to prevent this and present a somewhat even playing field for years.
Once that floodgate opened no one could predict where the legal ended and lawsuits began.
All the NCAA did was fight lawsuits to keep the status quo. And to be clear the playing field has never been level. We're seeing all of the money in the sport now, but players have been compensated under the table for over 100 years. Fans value their schools winning and are willing to funnel money into it. Just because it wasn't transparent, doesn't mean it has been fair.
The NCAA saw this coming down the pike for years as they lost multiple lawsuits. They ignored the problem instead of trying to put up any sort of guard rails at all. They could have acknowledged that NIL was coming and put in stronger rules regarding school related compensation - like making any school focused NIL against the rules to ensure only true NIL was occurring. Instead, they sat on their hands and this is where we are. I absolutely blame the NCAA. They made this significantly worse by sticking their fingers in their ears and refusing the ease the transition to a modern college football landscape.
The NCAA tried to make it somewhat level but under the table and actions contrary to the rules certainly did occur. these were done specifically to unlevel the playing field, as the nature of these things are.
That the rules were broken and blaming the NCAA is like blaming state laws because murder occurs anyway,
This is not to be construed that I support the NCAA but, it is an unsurprise that they were steamrolled by courts and lawsuits.
Anything that was a control was knocked off by lawsuits. This is as we predicted and there was not a dam thing anyone could do about it.
Am I seeing this correctly? Did VT already sell out their allotment?
We got tickets, and a hotel...but with all the Portal news, it has definitely dampened the enthusiasm.
That has been the main reason I had low interest in this bowl. We used to get excited for bowls..
Love this matchup! hate when we play the same teams we see all the time. Unless it's the playoffs give me a team we haven't played ever or in decades.
Looks like the NFL guys will not be playing. Defensive Line will be interesting.
APR and Peebles not playing is no Bueno.
How embarrassing would it be for Marve if his backfill does the same or better in the bowl game with the defense without two of the players that have propped it up?
I'm seriously wondering if this could happen.
Add Jaylin Lane to the list. He declared for draft today.
Our younger receivers need to start sometime. Why not now?
what is minnesota's situation? anyone know if they will be missing key players as well?
7 guys in the portal. Only 3 are contributors. One starting offensive lineman.
Looks as if most of their starters are opting in. One offensive lineman declared for the draft but appears to be playing in the bowl. Their QB has also announced he will play.
They actually have 10 commits from the portal. Six of those are from P4 schools.
How come everybody we ever play is able to convince their draft picks to play?
Except we played a depleted Tulane last year, basically getting the opposite medicine this year.
I don't think it's necessarily about convincing your draft picks to play. I think some of it has to do with, once you hire an agent, you are then ineligible to play any more. Some of these guys may just be hiring agents (I say hiring - signing with). Granted, some is based on not wanting to potentially get themselves injured in a game that doesn't mean much and potentially risking their draft position or general draft-ability.
College athletes can hire agents to negotiate Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) contracts and other NIL activities. The 2021 U.S. Supreme Court decision in NCAA v. Alston changed this.
Agents can't represent student-athletes in negotiations or market their athletics ability to professional teams without jeopardizing their eligibility.
Sounds like it depends on what actions the agents are taking on whether these guys can play.
Yes, sorry, I oversimplified. I looked up the rules related to agents and it does delineate between NIL representation and then a lot of "going pro" - draft strategies, marketing yourself to teams, etc.
It's the representation related to getting drafted that precludes you playing any more. And apparently, players can interview and talk to agents, they just can't sign with them.
I should probably change my pick 'ems pick for this game
Current line is Min -6.5.....eventually vegas will stop giving away money on these bowl games with opt outs. I'd love to look up how many times teams with fewer contributing opt outs covered the spread I'd bet its pretty high
Calling my bookie
I'm just mad I wasn't paying attention when it opened at -1.5 after the first day in the portal it went to -4.5 and its still creeping. I bet Tuten and Strong not making announcements are the only things keeping this line in the single score range.
I'd take a P4 team over VT with no opt outs. I'd take Minny -6.5 in week 1. Free money until we prove otherwise.
I really really hate the fact that I agree with this....but....he's right
0-5 against non-ACC P4 teams all time. And only won 3 games against 7 win P4 teams (BC x2, GT). Those are his best wins in 3 years, by the way, and they were against teams that either had backup QBs or benched their QB permanently immediately after our game. We really only won those games because we were going against teams with bad QBs. IDK what Minnesota's QB situation is (because, outside of VT, I really don't follow CFB) but I'd take 7+ win P4 teams against Pry's Hokies every single time. We'll see who he hires on defense in the off-season but he's going to have to prove himself early on in 2025.
I would've seen the 6.5 and assumed it was an over/under for VT players entering the transfer portal after kickoff.
Funny enough that's also the second and third team.
Yeah, bet accordingly
Ghannam not beating out Schick is very sad
Definitely has pinstripe bowl vibes to it.
So Parker Clements, Jennings, Fuga(?), and the Gosnells are the only players that were 1st string or OR designated this year? Solid.
Good to know that's what he was dealing with while being used as a battering ram against Clemson.
Exactly... our last QB that wasn't hurt every game was druckenmiller
I always called Al Clark "Ow MaGroin". I wish I still had a recording of Druckenmiller's Tech Bookstore commercial. Comedy gold.
Those are the injuries today. I'd be interested to know what he was dealing with against Clemson.
Those same injuries Bitter expanded in another tweet.
What he doesn't have two legs?
via GIPHY
Give me 105 of him
Strong declared for the draft this morning so assume he will not be in the bowl game.
Josh Fuga announced for NFL Draft.
I assume he's still in the bowl? If not that's disappointing, just from a depth standpoint
All the players opting out just further reinforces my view that at least half of the bowl games need to be eliminated. They have become a total joke.
Remember a while ago when DC suggested play the bowl games first. At this point, have to agree. Shorten the season a game. Who the [bleep] wants to see Alabama vs. Alabama-Birmingham, Clemson-Citadel, Penn State-Temple ... all these stupid early season games. Let the bowl games be the first game of the season. The teams that qualify get extra practice at the start of the year instead of the end. Have the playoffs and dump the rest of the meaningless bowls with all the players opting out, declaring for the draft, entering the portal ... The set up now (on so many levels) is a joke. Bowl games in week 1 and then an 11 game season.
Edit: by the way, anyone else on here that has not watched 1 second of any of the bowl games?
The problem with this is you don't know what you're going to get at the beginning of the season. Just look at FSU - 13-2 at the end of last year. You'd put them in an excellent bowl game, but you wouldn't with 2-10 FSU. With wins against Cal and Charleston Southern, if you eliminate the games against the weak opponents, you get a 1 win FSU. Granted, my understanding is that schools like that really like playing big schools because they get a nice payday for their program (at least from their perspective).
I mean, if we want to stop the opt-outs, make it a condition of their NIL contract to play in any bowl they qualify for. If they sign with an NFL agent before the bowl, they have to return the whole amount. Something along those lines.
Yea, college coaches want a tune up game, and as long as being undefeated means something (it still does, albeit not nearly as much as it did even 5 years ago, much less 15+), you won't see body bag games go away.
Except NIL aren't contracts that can even hint at playing requirements. Only way I could see it working is if you specified a specific amount of NIL to be paid for bowl game media appearances but that still might not make them play. They could travel to the bowl, meet the media and still decide not to play. It would also only be an addendum to their base NIL agreement since bowls aren't a guarantee.
A better option is on renewing any bowl agreements, force the bowls to commit to an NIL pot as a set aside amount to be distributed to the teams. That way it doesn't even have to come from the schools. Still not sure how you break that up though. Also not sure it would be enough to motivate the players to play.
I'm sure the NIL could be structured at playing requirements. Remember, the person/company is supposed to be getting value from paying. And paying for the name, image, and likeness doesn't really give any value if the player doesn't play. There is some risk that freshmen won't live up to expectations, or play much as freshmen, but ultimately, a company won't want to pay for someone who isn't going to play because people wouldn't want to buy a jersey with that kid's name on it, or have the kids picture in an ad.
You would say, if you are a starter, you will start all games unless held out by injury, including all post-season games your university is eligible for.
I'd rather be ignorant and not know what I'm getting at the beginning of the year vs everyone bailing on a team and not knowing what I'm getting at the end of the year with a JV squad.
meh, since the CFP started, it's become clear that bowl games are just exhibitions, but now I'm thinking of them more like the spring game - it's a good way to watch younger talent.
But I agree on moving them to pre/early-season.
Me, but I think it has more to do with my current phase of life (3 kids under 4) than the quality of the games (although I won't act like that's not a factor). I used to love bowl games more than March Madness (I still do tbh - I only watch the first weekend or two of march madness, rarely the final four). This year I'm probably only watching the CFP + The Hokies (maybe Navy and GT too, my wife/in-laws' teams).
Players for lesser bowls opting out- if you want this fan to go see a game, the bowl game needs to be somewhere I can get warm and a sun tan. Otherwise,not interested
Can he play in the bowl game?
I'm too lazy to look it up, but I thought we had a similar situation last year with someone finishing early and going through bowl practice. They didn't play but it was an interesting story since it hadn't ever happened before.
It was Chanz Wiggins
Thank you. I remember it was a receiver, but couldn't recall the name. Leg for you sir.
this bowl game is gonna suck. I hope it's not as bad as that one against Maryland... but we'll see .
Is there a depth chart posted anywhere yet for the bowl game? I'm curious who's actually playing for us.
Bottom half of image
Thanks, bud. Appreciate it.
๐
Zero downside to this. Let Bud cook.
As long as his cardiologist gave him the green light, zero downside to this.
Bud:
Based on how the LBs have been playing, they might want to have 17-34 headsets up there.
Say what you want, but those two have been serviceable through the years. They've stuck around and put in a lot of work just to be Hokies. Here's to hoping they show out and have a great bowl.
I loved cheering Fuga and Pene when they made plays, I wish they made more of them, but that's pretty much my thoughts on the whole team.
Fuga is a great hokie, loves VT. He is also a microcosm of the last 12 years of VT football. He's OK, he's not nearly the talent of the early mid 2000's. He is the type of guy Fuente recruited.
Tuten has very little to gain, particularly running behind a mishmash of an OL. I hope he doesn't play for his own best interest.
Moore and Jenkins, not totally sure why they wouldn't play---don't think either have high hopes for NFL but more tape couldn't hurt.
Brumfeld I thought announced he was gonna use the "Pavia Rule" and go into the Portal??
Yeah I guess Moore and Jenkins feel pretty good about their draft chances? Kinda surprised by those
Yeah Moore makes basically zero sense, he needs good tape and more reps. Jenkins had a good year, not sure what one more game does for him
Felton is another one that was sort of surprising to me. He's got to be a late round pick at best and more likely than not a UDFA.
I know this is a dinosaur take here in our new enlightened age of the playoffs and NIL, but this is most likely the last meaningful football game he'll be a part of. In the risk reward equation of bowl games, I think I would play if I were him.
Any chance we will see a "foe"โrensics for Minnesota before the game?
It's been 2 minutes- bump