Transitions. Transition from Frank Beamer to Justin Fuente. Transition from mainstays like Kendall Fuller and A.J. Hughes to Greg Stroman and Mitchell Ludwig. Transition at quarterback, defensive end, backer, whip, rover...the list goes on. But with these transitions comes a renewed sense of excitement about Virginia Tech's 2016 football season. Thanks in part to the new staff's Cold War era level of secrecy, Hokie Nation is barely any more knowledgeable about this year's edition of the Hokies than the rest of the country. It has made for an equally frustrating and intriguing offseason.
With that in mind, The Key Play's staff decided to once again indulge Hokie Nation with its predictions for the upcoming football season.
Joe Lanza
Season Prediction: Highs and lows. The theme of Virginia Tech's 2016 football season will be growing pains. At moments, I believe Hokie Nation will be encouraged by the progress on the field, but will often be reminded there's a long way to go when lack of depth and experience clouds the bright spots. Justin Fuente went only as far to name Jerod Evans as Tech's No. 1 quarterback for the Liberty game, and left the door open for Brenden Motley or Josh Jackson. Not a ringing endorsement for the lauded JUCO transfer. There are also question marks at linebacker along with the second team defensive ends and wide receivers. Not to mention punting will make me anxious this season.
Final Regular Season Record: 6–6
Key Matchup: Virginia. I don't expect Tech to contend for the ACC Coastal division, but if the Hoos get the better of the Hokies, Justin Fuente will face immediate fan pressure in his second season.
Breakout Player: An Edmunds. I'll opt for Tremaine over Terrell since the latter got enough burn to somewhat breakout last season.
Alex Koma
Season Prediction:
In the macro sense, the big unknown coming into this season is Justin Fuente: will he prove to be the right fit, mesh well with Bud Foster, etc? But looking at just this season, it feels really hard to know what to expect from these Hokies thanks to some more micro questions. Jerod Evans could prove to be the Cam Newton clone everyone salivates over, an abject failure, or somewhere in between. Bud Foster could be right that his defense caught some bad breaks last year and just needs to be healthy for a season, or there really could be some serious depth concerns that will hold the group back. I think there's plenty to be optimistic about a year (or even two) down the line, but in the near term, it feels like there are too many unknowns for this team to make some serious noise in the first year of Fuente's tenure. Add in a tricky schedule, thanks to a tough non-conference slate and an improving Coastal, and simply heading to a bowl game seems like a perfectly reasonable bar for Fuente to clear in 2016.
Final Regular Season Record: 7–5
Key Matchup:
I'm going to go with every Hokie's least favorite road trip: Pittsburgh. The Panthers are on the rise and are (rightly) earning some buzz as a team to watch in the Coastal, and this strikes me as a key proving ground for Fuente. If he can show that his offense is flexible enough to adjust to a Pat Narduzzi defense, exorcise some demons from the Beamer era and make a statement over another ACC program beloved by pundits (all while on ESPN on a Thursday night), that would certainly prove to be a meaningful win this season.
Breakout Player:
Tremaine Edmunds. He has the size and the pedigree, and will slide into a backer position that's been responsible for making plenty of plays in the past. He can establish himself as a star in Foster's defense for the foreseeable future with a big 2016 campaign.
Brian Marcolini
Season Prediction: They'll be better. The most underrated thing about this team is that they've improved dramatically in their weakest area. Over the last two years, Tech's lost nine games by seven points or less. A big part of those defeats? Organization and communication breakdowns. Now the coaches seem to be on the same page, which at the very least means a decrease in terrifying two-minute drills and questionable timeout usage.
Even if the team can just swing one or two tight games their way this season, it'll mean marked improvement. Don't get me wrong, the Hokies still face a ton of obstacles. But it's a step. One thing at a time, right?
Final Regular Season Record: 8–4
Key Matchup: Back-to-back Thursday nighters against Miami and Pittsburgh. One of the Hokies, Hurricanes, or Panthers will contend for the ACC Coastal, and if Tech wants it to be that team they'll need wins over the other two. Anything less means another mediocre year in Blacksburg, but victories over both Pitt and Miami could keep Charlotte in the Hokies' sights.
Breakout Player: When Bucky Hodges contemplated declaring for the NFL Draft this winter, I felt Justin Fuente had one move to make. Sit down, and compare Jimmy Graham's contract with Seattle to the ones Julio Jones and Demaryius Thomas signed last summer. Graham's total deal, for one of the best tight ends in the league, is worth $40 million. The receivers are each guaranteed at least $35 million, and can earn up to double that.
It's clear Hodges' role will be as a splitout threat. If someone can get him the ball, Bucky has the talent to put up Mike Evans-type numbers lining up outside.
Pierson Booher
Season Prediction: One of the reasons why I have always loved Virginia Tech football has been its transparent identity: The blue-collar, punch-you-in-the-mouth approach. As a fan, you generally knew what the team's strengths, weaknesses and temperament were heading into the season. For better or for worse. The hiring of Justin Fuente brings with it a renewed sense of hope and excitement, most notably on the offensive side of the ball — a facet that Hokie Nation had grown weary of in recent years. Fuente inherits a slew of playmakers but is short on depth, testing his and Brad Cornelsen's pliability from the outset. Strangely, I have blind faith in their ability to get the most out of the quarterbacks and the multitude of rushing and pass catching options. I worry about the defense's lack of depth and relative dearth of experience. As bizarre as it is to say this, how quickly Bud's defensive unit can settle into their roles and gain confidence will dictate this team's season.
Final Regular Season Record: 7–5
Key Matchup: At Pittsburgh. I hate playing Pitt. Home. Away. I hate it. Every. Single. Season. I hate Walt Harris. I hate how they keep hiring (and losing) coaches who specialize in areas that continue to neutralize the things the Hokies do well. I hate how Tech never seems to be able to tackle any of their running backs. I'm not looking forward to October 27th.
Breakout Player: Tremaine Edmunds. He just seems to have, "it." When my family went to baseball games during my childhood, my father used to point out guys who, "looked like ballplayers." Physically, they looked the part and carried themselves with a certain degree of self-assuredness. You could always tell the wheels were turning in their heads, absorbing all of the information in front of them while never looking out of their element. I get that same vibe from Tremaine Edmunds.
TheFifthFuller
Season Prediction: A trail of complete and utter destruction populated by broken opposing quarterbacks and broken scoreboards. Joel already said Tech would beat LOLUVA 105-0, which I think translates to at least a five point advantage against real teams. Jerod Evans adjusts seamlessly to ACC play; Travon, Isaiah, Cam and Bucky do En Fuente things; Bud's defense reasserts its dominance; DBU BACK; and Shibest Ball makes a thunderous debut. And on the bye weeks, Fuente negotiates peace in the Middle East, solves world hunger and lays the groundwork for Vincent, Corey, Kyle, and Kendall to start the next generation, the Fuller Cousins.
Final Regular Season Record: 15–0. I'ma keep rollin' these dice til it hits.
Key Matchup: Miami, assuming we're not counting the revenge tour against Clemson in the ACC Championship and Stanford and Bama in the playoffs. In the Coastal Division, GT and LOLUVA will be...let's say not good; Duke and Pitt will be average; and UNC will be nowhere near as good as people think they will be (and no way we lose to a QB named Mitch in the Terrordome). So it's down to the Canes and Hokies for the Coastal in a Thursday night revenge match in Blacksburg, and frankly, Mark Richt has already lost control of South Beach.
Breakout Player: Cam Phillips. Everyone always talks about how Tech has two great wide receivers and then immediately focuses on how amazing Isaiah Ford is (and rightly so). Ford set Hokies' records last season with 11 TDs and 1,164 receiving yards, meanwhile Cam has amassed 5 TDs and 1,080 yards during his entire career. He's been the John Taylor to Ford's Jerry Rice, if you will. But this year, particularly with a shiny new offense, I think Cam combines his natural talent with all the attention paid to Isaiah and Bucky to emerge as a threat in his own right, forcing defenses to account for three truly dangerous receiving options.
Joel Smith
Season Prediction: I'm pretty bullish on Virginia Tech football. In 2017. I think most fans are really counting on a greatly improved offense, but based on Fuente's last two jobs it may be worth pumping the brakes a little. At TCU he inherited a very good offense and made them maybe slightly better in his first year. At Memphis he had to stock on talent, and didn't show much of a leap until year 3. I think VT's situation is somewhere in between, and while we can anticipate some improvement, it's unrealistic to expect miracles with a new QB, a new OC with a new system, and little WR depth. The defense should improve, but again with limited depth at key positions, the team is a couple of injuries away from mediocrity. I think the bowl streak continues but the team is a year away from taking the division.
Final Regular Season Record: 9–3. Most statistical ratings put the team at between 7 and 8 wins, but most (and maybe all) of them don't quantify the impact of a coaching change. I'm giving a bump for that and to continue a streak of irrational optimism.
Key Matchup: Battle at Bristol. Let's not overthink this one. Tennessee is a Top 10 team widely expected to win the SEC East, and the game will have a huge national audience.
Breakout Player: Tremaine Edmunds has already shown great ability, but I expect him to take a big leap forward and be one of, if not our top, defenders this season. Bonus answer: Josh Jackson if the season starter gets injured or doesn't perform.
Billy Berlin (BilldozerVT)
Season Prediction: I want to believe. Oh boy I want to believe this year everything turns around and Tech is returning to the ACC Championship game. Every year I drink my orange and maroon Kool Aid, hoping the Hokies win them all. Not this year though. I won't let myself get sucked in. I think Virginia Tech football has a bright future, but let's face it: This is the first year with a new head coach and a new offensive scheme. There will be flashes of brilliance, but there will also be growing pains. I do believe this team has a chance to be special, but realistically I just want to walk away from this season feeling like the program is headed in the right direction.
Final Regular Season Record: 8–4. I think 8-plus wins is a good sign things are heading in the right direction.
Key Matchup: UNC. I applaud what Larry Fedora has done at UNC. They had a tremendous season last year and preseason polls show that most expect that trend to continue. I think the Battle at Bristol will be an awesome early test, but this game is when the Hokies should be in a groove and know what to expect from a solid ACC team.
Breakout Player: Jerod Evans. I chose him because the season hinges so much on quarterback play and I want him to succeed. I think Motley has the experience and has shown growth over the past year, but I think Evans' ceiling is much higher. If the quarterback is a breakout player, we are all in for a treat this fall.
Joey Coogan
Season Prediction: I don't know what to expect from the Hokies this year. My orange and maroon goggles tell me that Brad Cornelsen inherits an offense with a plethora of playmakers, one that should eventually thrive under Justin Fuente's proven system. Standout seniors Chuck Clark and Ken Ekanem will lead yet another Bud Foster defense, but they won't be alone. Tremaine Edmunds is poised for a breakout sophomore campaign, and the Hokies haven't been this scary at defensive tackle since the Hopkins brothers roamed the dining halls in Blacksburg.
But there's questions. Big questions. Can Jerod Evans be the guy? Can the Hokies survive an injury at linebacker? Can A.J. Hughes suddenly apply for a fifth year?
Legitimate punting concerns aside, there are simply too many unknowns for me to predict a return to 10 wins for the Hokies. But I think they'll get close.
Final Regular Season Record: 8–4
Key Matchup: The Battle at Bristol. 155,000 people. College GameDay. Lee Corso picking the Vols.
I think Joel said it perfectly: "Let's not overthink this one."
Breakout Player: Tremaine Edmunds. Last year, I picked Deon Clarke as my breakout player in yet another prediction gone awry for TKP staff. I'm sticking with the backer position once again, but you can take this one to the bank — Edmunds breaks out in a big way this fall.
Mark Umansky
Season Prediction: The Hokies lost a million games by under a touchdown in the last 5 years. I think the simplification under Justin Fuente's new offensive philosophy will translate to a few more game winning extra first downs or field goal attempts that would have been lost in the last few years. Bud Foster's defense more or less stays about the same as last year, which combined with the ability to (hopefully) finish more games on offense will translate to a few more wins. I think Virginia Tech is in the running for a trip to Charlotte heading down the stretch, due to the meat grinder that the ACC Coastal will be this year.
Final Regular Season Record: 8–4
Key Matchup: Tennessee. The Hokies pull the stunning upset on national primetime television and find themselves ranked in the low 20s in Week 3 and riding high for a loss to ECU a few weeks later. Book it.
Breakout Player: Tim Settle. Big Tim is slimmer, faster, and has a redshirt year of practice under his belt. All of these translate to Tim being an absolute monster on the line (and on punt returns!), and to disrupt even the best offensive lines the Hokies face this season. Tim Settle For Piesman.
Ryan Dye
Season Prediction: This is an interesting year at Virginia Tech. You transition from a legend to an upstart who has the ability to turn things around. You have loads of top end talent on the offense and you have Foster back to coach up the defense. However, there's not much depth. Regardless, I see the Hokies bouncing back a bit and finishing up near the top of the Coastal. No one would second guess you if you went ahead and put the Tennessee and Notre Dame games in the loss column. I'll go ahead and throw North Carolina in that column as well. I think the Hokies likely will lose one of Miami, Pitt, Duke, and GT. For me, that falls on Pitt. You all know the story, and it isn't a very pretty one.
Final Regular Season Record: 8–4
Key Matchup: Miami. In my mind, this game is almost a no-brainer as the key game this season. It's a home matchup against a rival on a Thursday night in Lane. You have to win this type of game if you want to turn the national perception back in your favor.
Breakout Player: Divine Deablo. Fuente has brought him up time after time, which seems to indicate that he's had a great offseason and has carried the momentum into fall camp. With the revelation that snaps at wide receiver will be split more heavily this year, look to the talented true freshman to make an impact when he gets his shot.
Comments
You're all fired! Except for FifthFuller. He can stay.
As TKP descends into chaos...thefifthfuller doling out bans to anyone that questions his unwavering homerism...all donations are funneled into Vegas, those 300-1 odds are looking mighty tempting.
I find it safe to assume they will each impregnate their respective significant others with 4 children each. Meaning we have a solid squad coming 2032 thru at least 2040. During which period, we can also safely assume the defense will be 100% Fuller for at least 2 seasons.
no french?
French has said many times that he doesn't do record predictions. I'm guessing that's why.
Upvote for paying attention. I don't predict, I know, and there is no reason to spoil the surprise.
I like the 8-4. Let 's go Hokies
Agree. I've been on the 8-4 train since spring ball. Hype, but not full speed. 9-3 if we perhaps shock ND, but I'm sticking by 8-4 and hoping to be pleasantly surprised.
I'm on the 8-4 hype train because it means one of two things. Either we lose to the two big OOC games we are expected to lose and go 6-2 in the ACC, which might be enough to make the ACCCG. Or we end up beating Tenn/ND and get a big national upset.
... or we can join the 10-2 hypetrain to pull another 2010 and lose to Liberty and one other team, and run the ACC table. Just sayin'.
Agree with the 8-4 and if we get a shock win ending at 9-3. However, surprised you went with ND as the upset win, I'd be more inclined to say UNC.
I think of Pitt, UNC, and Miami as pure toss-ups. Could go either way depending on what we see out of each team. I think ND has a general talent advantage and it would be one heck of a statement to beat them near the end of the year.
Oh god would I love that, just found out this past weekend I have a ticket to the ND game.
This.
I think people forget because of other perceived issues with the defense that Bud has had Fedora's number unlike any other coach. That includes Brent Venables. He held that offense to 17 points in 2013 and 2014, and 24 in regulation in 2015 and that was with two enormous defensive busts by Deon Clarke. NOBODY has consistently stopped that offense like Bud.
We should matchup better against Pitt and Miami this year along the front and that should help mitigate some of our issues.
I agree about ND, if they are near last season's caliber, this going to be our toughest game. On the road, late in the season, the same benefits of it being late in the season for us will be there for ND as well.
Well, color me pleasantly surprised, and I think that we did, in a way, shock ND. Even though they had a tough year, it looked initially like they were going to steamroll us and we came down from a massive deficit to win.
Overall, I am super pumped about how the season played out and, more importantly, the trajectory this program is on. Need to finish out the year with a bowl win and some recruiting victories and we will be well on our way to continued success.
Joe, are you predicting the 6-6 record mainly from the shroud of secrecy that the program has been under this summer, or do you actually think they'll finish .500 based on their talent?
I could see 6-6 happening simply due to a tougher schedule than last year. I believe that we pretty much have to be better than last year, don't really see how we can't, but the schedule might disguise that improvement.
I would imagine it's because a coaching change can be difficult no matter what the talent level is
We win a few we weren't expected to win, and lose one we were expected to win, combined with the other standard Vegas predictions = 9-3
1) I love you Fifth.
2) For new TKPers, do not google Billy's name.
I couldn't resist. Good news for Billdozer is that he's more popular than the gay porn star as his Twitter account is listed first in the Google search.
He merely adopted the name. I was born with it, molded by it.
And why are you not charging royalty and licensing fees?
Where do you think the media center money came from?
I stand corrected.
Im okay with a 7 - 5 floor. I think this year we might surprise some teams. Honestly, if we can improve to top 50 offense and Bud can return back to the mean of a top 10 defense, we can go 9 - 3. Last time we had those numbers was 2011 and we went 11-1, lost to Clemson twice and beat Michigan in the bowl game on an amazing catch by Danny Coale.
ACC Championship game...
They were the ONLY team we lost to that year, no other team beat us, not even a team that starts with M. Only two losses and a huge bowl game win.
triple pun intended
I don't know shiite like the gurus here, but I'm in the Evans corner and was sold by watching his team's highlights from last year (not the hudl stuff). Of course, no one knows for sure, but having watched a few Memphis games from last year too, I think in his own mould he fits what Fuente wants to do (that's why Coach went after him) and can get it done. Paxton Lynch was special, but Evans is a superior runner and team's will have to account more for that. As well, his eyes always seem to be down field. More than the speed of the game, I think the size of the competition will require some adjustment on his part. There will be some pains, of the physical and growing kind, for him and the team, but when it all comes together, this Hokie team is going to surprise with him at the helm.
TVCC highlights (Sorry not embeded)
I tell my friends 8-4 when they ask, but in my mind I really think 10-2, and in my heart we crush Clemson in the ACCCG and finish the season 15-0.
If we finish 10-2 I will have an erection that lasts for a solid year. And I won't even call my doctor.
If anything, just call to brag.
Call the lady neighbors?
I keep saying 8-4 as well, with a floor of 6-6 I'd be okay with as long as we're competitive with Tenn and ND. But really I think we can win in Bristol, my hatred of Notre Dame goes so deep that I literally can't imagine a scenario where we lose to them, I think everyone is downplaying Pitt losing a generational talent at wide receiver, and Miami and UNC don't scare me too much. So in my heart of hearts, it's 10-2 (we'll end up dropping a couple no matter what...)
Breakout player: Chris Cunningham
I agree with this. This kid may be the answer to the H-back dilemma that French has written about. He may not have a fancy stat sheet at the end of the season, but if this offense turns out to be good then someone has played the H-Back spot very well.
FOR THE RECORD: I wrote the Hodges thing before the depth chart even came out with him at receiver. I'm kind of a big deal.
You're like, so smart
All of these TKP articles being released this week. The season is here! I survived the off-season!
Mark. So help me. If we lose to ECU for a THIRD straight season, I'm coming straight for you.
You won't be coming at him alone.
The first football game I ever photographed was the ECU game in Charlotte in 2008. I've seen things, man.
Feel your pain, that was my first game freshman year in the band. Had to wake up way too early, hot as hell, nasty purple haze from ECU's entrance, and got surrounded by like 20 girls in my section before the game to cover my face in glitter - being a guy in the piccolo section can be both heaven and hell sometimes, especially as a rookie.
Glitter bomb or Tuba dogpile?
Speaking as someone who spent a lot of years in marching bands, you are one twisted individ.
Ugh ECU '08 was my first VT game too... I feel your pain....
Cam Phillips - Breakout player... I love that thought. I think the fifth Fuller might have nailed it on that one. (And really, not something I would have thought of)
15-0 and CJF walks away from Bristol like a boss
I'm with Joe on this one, lack of depth and even more unknowns...I think we see some progress, but I definitely have my expectations tempered for this season.
even if we do marginally better, I'll happily eat crow.
I'm with Joel on this one, plenty of depth on O and Bud Foster coaching the D...I think we see progress from the O quicker than we think (yay competent coaches!), and besides Tennessee, the schedule allows us to build up confidence early in the season.
even if we finish worse than 9-3, I'll happily
eat crowburn shit to the gound.VT 57, Liberty 3
Tennessee 24, VT 20
VT 30, BC 6
VT 40, ECU 17
UNC 34, VT 30
VT 41, SU 20
VT 27, Miami 20
VT 20, Pitt 10
VT 37, Duke 13
VT 39, GT 22
ND 17, VT 10
VT 34, UVA 17
I can live with that.
Sees losses to UT, ND, and UNC.
Sees all the other wins.
i feel a stirring in my shorts..>>>>>>
I was about to comment on how unrealistic 40 point scores are for this team then remembered we have a new offense. Carry on.
It's tough to tell how we'll do this year. When you check out the roster, we
definitely have some talented players. Impact people on offense and defense, really.
Interested to see how the season goes.
I'm just glad every year we have TheFifthFuller to bring sanity to the predictions. The rest of these guys clearly dont know what they are talking about!
I like the 8-4 picks.
If our 4 losses are to Tenn, ND, UNC and Miami I can accept that. If we pull what Mark suggests, a repeat of the 2014 season with a with against a top ranked team and then lose to ECU the following week I will be pissed. We should never lose to ECU, never.
Pitt. I can't stand playing either. Hate it. Even though they usually have good backs they don't seem to really ever dominate us, yet somehow we let those games slip through our fingers. Last 2 losses were by less than 7 and could have been won. I see those losses due to Tech typical inept offense and the defense finally breaking down because the O couldn't even sustain drives to give them a rest. Not this year, Fuente gets the offense going and even if it is close the O is able to score enough and give the defense enough rest to outlast Pitt.
UNC lost a close one against Clemson in the ACCCG that I'm sure they are still bitching about. Fedora has gotten them to improve. As long as they maintain what they have by the time we play I guess I could "accept" a loss to them.
We should never lose to Duke and I don't think we will this year especially with Sirk out. GT is GT. I hate that game and PJ. Fuente scores and forces GT to have to start passing to catch up to a 20 pt deficit. As usual, it doesn't work for them.
I think an 8-4 regular season is very acceptable, however if we are able to knock of Tenn, I don't want to see any hangover games. 10-2 is very feasible as well. I'd like to get back to the ACCCG, as we all would but to at least be in the conversation for it late in the season will be good enough for this year.
LETS GO!!!
There's just soooo many coin flips and what-if's on our schedule. We have a new coach, but so do 3 other teams we play (Miami, LOLUVA, ECU), not to mention that BC had to replace both coordinators. The way I see it, we have:
If we win half our coin flips, that puts us in the 7-8 win range.
I'm really looking for improvement over time. If we go 4-2 in our last 6 regular season games, and look good in the process, I'll be very optimistic for the 2017 season.
Yea and not to mention, assuming that all the highly touted skill players return (and perhaps Bucky is a lock for not returning), we basically are set to lose very little talent next year. Think 2017 is ACCCG and this year is 7-5 or 8-4.
Ford and Bucky are pretty much guaranteed out. We'll be losing talent next year for sure.
Reading this article....
There is no feel better, only Zuul!
What if I told you...we're already undefeated!
The 2017 hype train is going to be on a scale never seen before. Second year with Fuente, more depth, and an easier schedule.
I think I'll ride the hype train I'm on, bro. Plenty of time to get tickets for next year in the next interminable offseason.
I'm not saying you gotta switch trains. Just serving up a warning.
I like the Divine Deablo pick as breakout player. He won't lead the team in receiving but I think he will exceed expectations and provide some depth at the position.
just for funsies
VT 63 LU 0
VT 41 Tenn 30
VT 31 BC 0
VT 70 ECU 17
VT 48 UNC 38
VT 31 SU 20
VT 35 UM 21
VT 24 Pitt 10
VT 42 Duke 17
VT 59 GT 10
VT 34 ND 20
VT 84 UVA 0
VT 42 CU 41
VT 24 Bama 20
VT 38 Mich 17
that was fun
Going with Michigan in the playoffs instead of Stanford, huh. Bold, sir, but I like the cut of your jib. Minor quibble, really.
Offense. It's fun.
My only issue with this is I don't want Michigan in the National Championship. For that to happen we would have to suffer obnoxious Jim Harbaugh updates on E$PN and their insufferable fans all season. Let them loose early and often.
AND DANNY COALE FUCKING CAUGHT THAT BALL!!!
but, wouldn't it be so sweet to beat Michigan and Harbaugh for the Natty?
I could see Harbaugh running across the field after the game and punching someone in the face. Dude's a nut. *picture of Don Knotts referring to someone as "a nut*
THAT'S THE FACE I WAS IMAGINING.
I drifted off and had a dream, we were beating ECU by 53. But I woke up kind of sad. But then I realized it was only a dream.
We'll beat ECU by more than that.
"And yeh though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no #&%%)&@ from Greenville"
Hey if we can average 41.6 points a game with our schedule then I don't see why we shouldn't win the natty.
8-4 and I'd be happy, 9-3 would be exceeding my expectations.
I lucked out and ended up with tickets to the two biggest games this season: Tennessee and ND. Here's to hoping they're both good games, would hate to see two blowout losses...
If we go 0-2, it's your fault.
Dammit. You know its serious when a mod calls you out.
I'll be at ND to balance out the bad juju.
Random question, but speaking of staff, what happened to Mason? Haven't seen him post anything in months.
If this has been answered countless times before and/or there's a lot of drama behind the explanation, please disregard.
I thought he took over a management position for Gobbler Country, or something. But my memory isn't very good so I'm probably way off base there
He took over as the manager of Gobbler Country two years ago and his involvement there only lasted a few weeks.
I reached out to him many times during the offseason through different mediums and he never responded. Hopefully he is okay and is focused on work and school.
interesting. Hope he's doing okay. One of the groomsmen in my wedding was actually roommates with Mason for a while...I can ask him how he's doing
Anything below 7-5 will be a disappointment.... We havent had this type of talent at skilled positions in a very long time, no matter the quarterback situation... If we struggle to point up points, that is going to be very concerning.. JMO
I'm for 10-2 with losing to ND and Pitt.
I listened to French on the podcast and he said if we make Dobbs beat us with his arm then it'll be like OSU circa 2014 all over again. UNC doesn't scare me and Miami lost some talent on the defensive side of the ball due to suspensions and Kaya (sp) has the mobility of a tackling dummy in the pocket. Pitt will lose two coastal games and we'll lose a close one to Clemson in the ACCCG.
you did it again.
Are you challenging me to a duel?
If it's ten paces and flintlock pistols you may just have a duel on your hands!
Tomorrow we row for Weehawken!
What podcast is this?
http://www.thekeyplay.com/content/2016/august/31/french-bench-visits-two...
I feel like people are being overly conservative this season. It's understandable due to what we've endure the past 4 seasons, but I don't see any reason why we shouldn't get less than 8 wins.
We have one of the best wide recievers in the game and our best running back since Wilson. Bucky is a star. Our OL is finally experienced (I hated hearing that as an excuse the past 4 years), we have a Sam Rodgers. Our WR core is decent and I refuse to believe Jerod can be that much worse than Brewer. No offense to Brewer but he was an average QB at best. Great, tough kid though. Jerod is much more talented and should be better at the job.
I get that we've had a coaching change but again, the pieces were always there, it's just that Loeffler could not use them.
I would honestly say the defensive side is more of a question mark but our defense wasn't that great by VT standards last year, I expect an improvement.
The only issue is a tougher schedule, but other than Tennessee and ND I would give a 50/50 split or better to VT. I expect improvements this year.
Brewer wasn't even healthy last year. With better O coaches, a healthy QB and more talent at the position, I see no problem eclipsing last years offensive production in short order.
Its a shame Brewer got hurt so early. Spring game Brewer was a different Quarterback. He was actually able to drive and step into some of his throws, Im not sure the season would have been different, but who knows.
I predict at least 10 wins, because predicting 6-6 sucks, and I like to party.
While watching some film of the VT NCst game last year, I stumbled across a horrifying statistic: In the last quarter of the the Pitt game and the first quarter of the NC State game, we had a combined 11 yards of offense.
The kicker, we had -18 yards of offense in the last quarter against Pitt.
it can't get much worse, right?
Never ask that question. You might get an answer.
And we damn near won the game.
I don't remember a first quarter to the NC State game last year. Didn't they just skip to the 2nd quarter due to lightning issues?
Just think, last year was the year that Loeffler's offense was going to come together.
Loeffler just needs "his guys". Heard that a few thousand times here.
Honestly, I think TheFifthFuller needs to ratchet back on the pessimism a bit.
Blow Liberty out late 2nd half. Embarrassed by Tennessee like @ LSU in Baton Rouge. Barely beat directional Carolinas the next 2 weeks. Blow past Syracuse then play a coin toss against Miami. Beat PITT (we are due right?). Duke is closer than should be. Lose to GT and ND. Then beat lolUVA 138-0 Bro.
Watching Appy State give Tenn all they can handle right now. I am feeling better about next weeks game.
8-4 w/ Losses to pitt, unc, tenn, nd
Undefeated at home....I can live with that,
TheFifthFuller
"Sorry pup, it's not for sail"
Sort of off topic:
Which new ACC coaching staffs will have the most success in year one? (this year; Jimbo doesn't count)
Hokies, obviously!
Congrats Joel
The question with a 9-3 prediction (and no Coastal championship) is to whom are we going to lose?
If you assumed ND and UT, that probably leaves a 1 or 0 loss Miami or UNC. To think we had 2 conf. losses, and neither was to the division favorites, is largely unfathomable.