Here are my predictions for the upcoming season. On the left, the predictions I could see happening realistically...on the right, the predictions I'm hoping for. Have at it! Go Hokies!!!
Aug 31. Alabama Bama 28-13 VT 27-21
Sept 7. Western Carolina VT 35-16 VT 48-0
Sept 14. East Carolina VT 31-24 VT 35-10
Sept 21. Marshall VT 35-17 VT 42-3
Sept 26. GT GT 24-21 VT 24-10 This is my toss up game..could easily see VT 24-21
Oct 5. UNC UNC 41-24 VT 34-28
Oct 12. Pitt VT 24-17 VT 35-10
Oct 26. Duke VT 27-17 VT 42-21
Nov 2. BC VT 28-7 VT 31-0
Nov 9. Miami Miami 31-21 VT 31-28
Nov 16. UMD VT 28-10 VT 41-3
Nov 30. Uva VT 24-17 VT 62-0
(8-4) (12-0)
This obviously isn't an exact science and some of these games are toss ups for sure. I think UNC and Miami will be our toughest games after Bama and I gave GT the edge since we have them after a short week. I'd love to see what everyone else thinks!
Comments
Reality sucks. I live in the dream world.
If you look at each game individually the Hokies have a chance of beating anyone, including #BEATBAMA. So I choose to realistically believe they will run the table.
I think 8-4 is nice and is a heckuva lot better than 6-6 and scraping by into a bowl game. I think 9-3 will be a bit more realistic because out of UNC, GT, and Miami I think we will at least go 1-2 if not 2-1. The question will be can Pitt, who has notoriously played us tough, compete this year? I think 9-3 is more than obtainable and if the Hokies reach their full potential, 10-2 or 11-1 aren't out of the question.
EDIT: what fernley said above me. If you don't go into each game thinking you can win, whats the point. I think the Hokies are capable of winning each and every game on that schedule. So let's wait and see what happens. #BEATBAMA
I apologize for the accidental downvote. I promise to now follow your posts religiously and upvote anything and everything for the next week.
Realistically.....
9-3 with losses to Bama, UNC or Miami (not both), and GT.
But to say it a third time, we have a chance in all of our games. 11-1 is very attainable (one loss being to Bama).
Until somebody else from the Coastal wins the ACC, the road to Charlotte will always go through us.
I'll go with this. Massey is predicting the same thing.
http://www.masseyratings.com/team.php?t=8459&s=199231
He has us losing to bama by 27. Yikes.
You really think we will lose to GT, UNC, AND miami? With the defense having one more hear of experience under their belt, I think we shut down and beat Georgia Tech, and there is no way that UNC is putting up 40+ on us again, not after what happened last year. Miami is the toss-up game in my opinion.
That being said, I still say, like in my predictions, that we get back to 10 wins.
Let me put two "no way in hell" statements out there:
1. No way in hell UNC puts up 40+ on us again. Without Bernard and Cooper, that offense will not tear us up like that. The UNC game is a toss-up in my mind, depends on how healthy we are and how we've been playing up to that point. I think it also depends on whether or not it's a night game. Terror Dome!
2. No way in hell we lose to Pitt this year. They've had our number for a long time, but we laid a massive egg last year and without Shell on their side, we get some revenge this year.
Good statement, but I wouldn't be so sure about #1. Sure, they
probaly won't put up 40, but they could score a lot. Some may not agree with this, but I think that their 2013 passing game with Renner, Davis, and Ebron could be just as good (if not better) than their 2012 running game was with Gio Bernard and Blue.
I considered that, and came to a similar conclusion - they will probably have to beat us in the passing game. I based my thinking on (1) the fact that I expect Exum to be back by this point, (2) our young talent should be pretty well-seasoned, even if there are hiccups early in the year, and (3) our D-line is probably our greatest strength overall, and I expect Gayle and the gang to hassle Renner constantly. All three of those factors, plus the X-factor of being in Lane (get off your asses and stop snapping selfies, you lazy students!) could very well put us over the top.
If we #BEATBAMA, the score will be 21-16 for that sweet sweet justice.
Might be the fact that I'm commenting at 1 AM, but I don't get it.
The Game That Must Not Be Named ended in the same score, though some say that particular game never happened anyway, just a bye week after Boise...
I have no idea why some people must insist that there was a game that weekend. I clearly remember a soggy saturday afternoon in which I spent the day with my roomies bro'ing out and an awesome party that night. THATS MY STORY AND I'M STICKING TO IT
Gotcha. I was trying to connect it to Alabama '09 and was like "they beat us 34-24..."
It we can beat bama then any team on the schedule can go down at the hands of bud and the boys. I have a good feeling about this team and the bama game but i felt the same way when we went up against Lsu, Boise st, Kansas, auburn, Georgia etc.. Hope this game is much different!
Not sure you are familiar with western Carolina. They are pitiful - your fantasy projection is less than we will actually win by.
Agree. Gave Western Carolina WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAY too much credit.
second game of the season..after a tough game against bama..you have to imagine that our #1's are going to get some rest here...we'll see a lot of 2nd and 3rd string in this game..I think it will be 28-0 by half time at least and then we'll see players we probably won't see for the rest of the season
WESTERN FREAKIN' CAROLINA.
Tevin Washington threw for 271 against them.
They're that bad.
My prediction: VT exacts its revenge on all detractors, and Frank Beamer ascends to Valhalla triumphant in his conquest of the BCS!
Aug 31. Alabama Bama 23-7 VT 13-9 (I like our defense in this, if we win, it's a soccer game score)
Sept 7. Western Carolina VT 44-3 VT 67-0 (WCU sucks)
Sept 14. East Carolina VT 34-10 VT 41-3 (ECU sucks)
Sept 21. Marshall VT 41-10 VT 56-7 (Marshall sucks)
Sept 26. GT VT 27-17 VT 31-7 (A lot of GT's success against VT has been Al Groh. Seriously.)
Oct 5. UNC VT 27-24 VT 31-10 (UNC is the 2nd best team we play)
Oct 12. Pitt VT 31-10 VT 44-10 (Pitt's going to stink)
Oct 26. Duke VT 35-24 VT 40-10 (Cutcliffe always has a good gameplan for Bud)
Nov 2. BC VT 24-10 VT 31-0 (tough roadie)
Nov 9. Miami Miami 24-20 VT 31-13 (we played so badly vs Miami last year, it will be a very diff game this year)
Nov 16. UMD VT 34-10 VT 40-7 (I've got no idea what to expect from UMD)
Nov 30. Uva VT 27-17 VT 42-10 (At some point, they will win. Just don't think it will be in LT's last game)
(10-2) (12-0)
EDIT: 0. I expect, as you do, a win over Alabama will be a low scoring affair.
1. I wouldn't overlook ECU and Marshall like that...ECU has been doing a great job in recent years playing tough and Marshall has also been rising. I don't think either team will win against us, but I think they could be closer than 34-10 and 41-10...
2. I also don't see how a worst case scenario for the VT GT game is a Virginia tech win by 10 points. We are coming off of 4 days rest and are playing a team that is always tough and physically demanding. Worst case is a GT win, best case is a VT win but by about 10 points.
3. I think worst case with Miami is a 10-17 point loss and I think best case is a 7-10 point win.
4. Your predictions show a worst case 2-1 split (UNC, the U, GT) and a best case (3-0). I would venture that 2-1 is best case and 1-2 is worst case.
5. Also, best case you have us 12-0, worst case is 10-2. I don't see this team being a team that will carry VT to it's first 12 win season, let alone in regular season, but all things are possible. I think a worst case scenario is 7-5, realistic is 9-3 and optimistic is 10-2 (maybe even 11-1 if they gel real quick).
That being said, you have to play the game to win each week...predictions mean nothing except to pass time in the off-season.
It's not worst case, it's "realistic." I take "Realistic" to mean "what I would project as the VT game-by-game.
I'll do "worst case for you:
VT 0-12, Beamer fired, Bud goes to coach at uva, Newsome returns, Bill Roth does risque calendar.
I guess that would be a worst case scenario.
that escalated quickly
The scariest part of this is Newsome returning.
Couldn't agree more. With the schedule we have, everything after Alabama in winnable, but having been a VT fan for long enough, I know we won't go 11-1.
People tend to forget we have 4 days in between games before GT, that's not a great situation at all when facing the triple option and IMO really puts us behind the eight-ball against them. It will take quite an effort for us to win that one.
I say we split UNC and Miami realistically. So you're probably spot-on with everything I see here.
We will learn a lot about this team week 3. I don't think it's going to be fair to judge them against Bama because any weaknesses we'll really be magnified. However, anything that we do particularly well this week likely will be a huge strength for us (i mean if you can do it well against them you can probably do it well against anybody). Week 2 against WCU is a laugher probably and really won't show our true talent. ECU is good, they know us well and play us hard so that should be a fun test.
I know we all want to think every year we have a shot at a BCS bowl or going undefeated, and I do think we have the chance to win every game we play this year, especially after Alabama. But if we are being "realistic", we have to look at facts.
Our offense is extremely unproven. We have a young line, no obvious standout at RB, a QB who looked pretty mediocre last year, and a WR corps that is very inexperienced. Our defense looks good, but they have some injury issues and some young guys in key roles. That is being realistic.
If we win 9 games this year it's a great season. If we win 10+ I'd call it vastly over achieving. If we win the ACCCG and/or go to a BCS game then we struck gold and our entire coaching staff deserves a huge pay raise. It's all possible but let's wait to see them actually play before we give them too much credit.
I'm not trying to be a negative Nancy, but if the point of this thread is to be honest about what we see then that's how I see it.
My thoughts exactly. We have decent talent at every position...talent that tech has had in the past that has come together for 10 win seasons. It can be done, but it's about showing up every week ready to play hard. My worst memory from last season was watching Cincinnati jump and sprint down the field with their fourth quarter fists pumped in the air and seeing tack in the background just lazily making their way down field. I remember the years when just the opposite was true...tech has their energy back, it seems...every game is winnable.
I'm not a believer in what happened in the past is predictive of this team. It's all independent. I just look at the teams and think we probably have better talent + coaching than everyone but Bama. I'm also a big believer in the experienced QB + strong defense = winner equation.
Finally, I think this team has talent, a lot of it. On par with the '99, '00, '03, '05 and '10 teams. You will notice two things from that list: we stunk in '03...but our talent was very high. We also succeeded greatly between '06 and '09 but our talent was not that high. Why? A lot of reasons, but QB play, defensive play and competition are big components.