For Virginia Tech, Scheme Can't Overcome Personnel in 23-45 Loss Against Notre Dame

The young Hokies showed they weren't ready for primetime against a physical and disciplined Notre Dame squad on Saturday night. It was another disheartening loss on a big stage. Virginia Tech execution errors exacerbated the Fighting Irish's physical advantages, and the Irish played with a poised confidence as they blew open a close game in the second half.

Execution errors can be addressed. Darrisaw wandered a couple of steps too far down the field on a reverse pass to negate a touchdown. The Hokies could not score on three plays from the one-yard line. Ryan Willis tried to extend a play and gift wrapped a Notre Dame scoop-and-score. That 21-point swing might have put the pressure on Notre Dame in the latter half. Sprinkle in a bevy of offensive line penalties for snap infractions and false starts, and there are plenty of unforced errors which can be addressed.