|
North Carolina
–3 vs Virginia Tech
9/20/08
The 2-1 Virginia Tech Hokies make the relatively short trip to
Chapel Hill to face 2-0 North Carolina in the ACC opener for the
home team Tar Heels.
The Tar Heels opened the season at home with a 35-27 win vs a pretty
decent Div 1 AA McNeese St team, but followed that up by totally
destroying Rutgers on the road last week by a score of 44-12. Tar
Heel QB T.J. Yates was an efficient 14 of 22 for 221 yds and 3 TD’s,
and the offense was also able to rack up 157 yds on the ground. The
North Carolina defense came up big in holding Rutgers to 0-9 on 3rd
down conversions and picking off 4 passes, returning one for a TD,
which now gives this defense 6 TO’s in their first 2 games. Carolina
is coming off of a disappointing 3-9 2007 season which was actually
much better than it looks, as 4 of their losses were by 4 pts or
less and 2 more losses were by a TD or less. They actually
out-played Virginia Tech in last years 17-10 loss at Blacksburg,
out-gaining the Hokies on offense 306 yds – 241 yds, and holding the
edge in first downs 18-11 and time of possession 34:00 – 26:00. But
a Tar Heel fumble at the goal line took away a potential game-tying
score in the 3rd Q, and a subsequent Yates INT later in the quarter
gave the Hokies a short field at the Tar Heel 12 yd line, resulting
in a TD to put V.T. up by 14.
North Carolina returns virtually their entire team this year, with10
returning starters on offense and 8 on defense, so it is not
surprising that they have gotten off to a quick start.
Virginia Tech started out this year with a tough 27-22 road loss at
East Carolina. The offense managed just 243 total yds and 12 FD’s in
that game, and Hokie QB Sean Glennon served up 2 INT’s to no TD’s.
But the Hokie defense and special teams, as usually, was able to
bail the offense out a bit by returning a fumble for a TD, and
returning a blocked PAT for 2 more points making the final score
look somewhat respectable. That loss was followed by an uninspired
24-7 home win vs Div 1 AA Furman, a game in which the Hokies managed
just 14 FD’s and led just 3-0 at the half.
GET A FREE HALF POINT
ON ALL YOUR FOOTBALL BETS! - SKYBOOK.COM
Last week, Virginia Tech held off visiting Georgia Tech, 20-17, in
their ACC opener despite being out-yarded by 140 yds. In an effort
to spark the offense, Coach Beamer went with QB Tyrod Taylor, who
was initially slated to redshirt this year in order to save him a
year of eligibility. It didn’t help much though as the Hokies were
held again to a pretty paltry offensive output of under 250 yds. But
the defense bailed them out, yet again, with an INT and 2 fumble
recoveries setting up enough scoring opportunities to squeak out the
win.
The Hokies return just 11 starters, 6 on offense and 5 on defense,
from a team that finished the 2007 season at 11-3. They’ve got some
huge holes to fill on offense as they have lost leading rusher RB
Brandon Ore (992 yds, 10 TD’s), as well as WR’s Eddie Royal and Josh
Morgan, who are both in the NFL now. And even with those star
players, the best this offense could muster was a 100 overall
ranking out of 119 Div 1 A teams last year. But the Hokies have
usually survived due to tremendous defense and special teams play,
as those units were responsible for 9 of the teams TD’s last year.
This North Carolina team looks really sharp so far though, and many
of those close losses from last year should turn into wins this
year. Tar Heel QB Yates has already thrown for 5 TD’s in just 2
games, with just 1 INT, and the offense has averaged 160 yds rushing
per game. They have shown a quick strike capability, with TD passes
of 57 and 69 yds. And defense and special teams have played very
well and contributed 2 TD’s and good field position.
Most of the Hokie’s offense has come on the ground this year, as
they have only managed a total of 30 completions for 255 yds, and
only 1 TD to 3 INT’s through 3 games. They have dumped Glennon
already and are hoping Taylor can generate some offense. Taylor can
run, so if the Tar Heels can contain him and force him to pass more,
and not turn the ball over themselves, they have a great chance of
coming out of this game with a big win. They’ll be fired up in
Chapel Hill for this one and I’m expecting a great effort from this
Tar Heel team. Despite Virginia Tech being a public favorite, the
oddsmakers have made North Carolina the favorite here. And the line
has already been bet up from 2 to 3, so this team is no fluke. I’m
picking North Carolina to win and cover this conference opener in
front of the home crowd to improve to 3-0 for the season.
NC -3 over Va Tech
THE WORLD 1ST OFFSHORE SPORTSBOOK - BOOKMAKER.COM
|
