Virginia Tech Bowl Game 2010: Breaking Down the Hokies in the Orange Bowl
Following a September 11th loss to James Madison, the Virginia Tech program was in shambles. A season that had the potential for greatness was now trying to figure out if they could get a winning record.
The seniors called an ad hoc meeting, mandatory for all players. They each took a turn speaking about their experience as a Hokie and how much this season meant to them.
The success didn’t come overnight but from week to week, improvements could be seen at every position.
The number of big plays allowed dropped, the offense put up four consecutive 40+ point games, they found a way to win games, they forced turnovers and then beat Florida State in the ACC Championship Game to preserve their 11-game winning streak and secure a spot in the Discover Orange Bowl.
The “what if” questions circulate throughout Hokie Nation, but the past is the past and the present presents the unenviable tasks of facing the Stanford Cardinal.
With the Heisman runner-up at quarterback and an offensive line that is worth its weight in gold, Stanford will test the Hokies like only the season opener against Boise State even came close to doing.
How the Hokies will fare will ultimately come down to how much they have grown and developed throughout the course of the season, position by position.
Quarterback
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Virginia Tech would not even be Coastal division champions without the play of dual-threat quarterback Tyrod Taylor. He would have been in the Heisman discussion without the opening losses, losses in which his play didn’t cause the loss.
Once he felt comfortable with his receivers in 2009, the passing game that was always in him got a chance to shine.
With a full three seasons with these receivers, Taylor is one of three quarterbacks in the country with four interceptions on the season on 275+ attempts and ranks as the 13th most efficient passer in the country.
Despite Stanford’s fantastic turnover margin, don’t expect Taylor to turn the ball over too many times, if at all.
But everyone knows that he is most dangerous with his feet. It seems as if he finds a new way to make it onto the highlight reel every game.
Taylor played a near flawless game in the Hokies’ win over Florida State, but it wouldn’t be surprising if his performance in the Orange Bowl tops it.
He has consistently been his best on the biggest stages and coupled with a Stanford defense that has yet to hold a team with eight or more wins to under 30 points, Taylor may steal the show from Andrew Luck in his final game in a Virginia Tech uniform.
Running Back
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During the preseason, all of the talk was about how Virginia Tech’s backfield would be too much for opponents to handle.
While the numbers are hard to argue against—just under 209 yards per game—the Hokie backfield hasn’t been the dominating force people expected it to be for the entirety of the season. In their final games, though, the backfield has been all of the hype and more.
Ryan Williams was out for a large portion of the season and has been stifled by defenses that have stacked the box against him, holding the stud running back to an average 4.5 yards per carry. But the Hokies have been the most productive with Williams in the game; he has nine touchdowns on only 106 carries.
Darren Evans has had the most carries and been the most consistent, averaging 5.9 yards per carry and 11 touchdowns. He has drastically improved from his inconsistent 2008 season but has flown severely under the radar as an NFL prospect.
David Wilson has been the biggest threat this season and is a true triple threat running the football—he averages 5.6 yards per carry and has five touchdowns, has over 200 receiving yards and three touchdowns through the air and has returned two kickoffs for touchdowns. Depending on the stock of Williams and Evans, Wilson could be the next first-round pick out of Virginia Tech.
The trio of backs have been able to absolutely slice any defense but only when they have a little space. For much of the year, that has been hard to come by but, as you’ll see in a moment, recently it hasn’t been a problem.
Look for the Hokies to grind out a solid game on the ground.
Offensive Line
3 of 9Every year, it seems to take the offensive line too much time to gel, and 2010 was no exception. However, now that they have, the offensive line has become the exclamation point to an offense bursting with talent at the skill positions.
Take a look at the highlights from the ACC Championship shown above, especially at 3:05. The offensive line was the unsung hero of the game and largely had their way with a Florida State defensive line that averaged over 3.5 sacks a game.
Blake DeChristopher highlights the line and is projected a first-round pick who should play until he graduates from Tech. Andrew Lainer and Greg Nosal have also improved over the course of the season. Nosal even had the tip of his pinky ripped off against Central Michigan, and he returned later in the game to play.
The Stanford defensive line is no walk in the park, but the Hokies have battled lines just as good as and better than the Cardinal throughout the season.
While they struggle at times to play the full 60 minutes, the Hokie offensive line figures to continue opening up holes and protecting Tyrod Taylor as well as they did against the Seminoles.
Wide Receivers
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Wide Receivers
Highlighted by Jarrett Boykin, the Virginia Tech receivers rarely drop a catchable ball.
They aren’t the most touted group in the country, but what they lack in hype, they make up for in yards after the catch.
The screen play has become more prevalent in the offense as the season has gone on, and it consistently goes for medium to long gains.
Offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring seemed to be trigger happy with go routes, but he’s toned it down enough to let the true talent of the receivers shine.
The addition of David Wilson split wide has caused matchup nightmares for opposing defenses. His 4.3 speed draws attention from the safeties for just enough time to get one-on-one coverage where the Tech receivers rarely lose.
The Stanford defensive backs will have their hands full as there is really no weak player for the Hokies. They surrendered just under 400 yards passing to USC’s Matt Barkely which doesn’t bode well.
Overall, expect the Virginia Tech offense to gain a substantial number of yards, 400 at least. However, the Stanford offense could pose just as big a problem for the Hokies.
Defensive Line & Linebackers
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The first thing people need to know about the Virginia Tech defense is that it, for whatever reason, refuses to play a good first drive. The poor play can sometimes extend a whole quarter.
But once these guys have settled into the game, they are the typical wrecking crew that Virginia Tech has built its reputation on.
John Graves highlights the interior of the line while Steven Friday has quietly become tied for 35th in the country in sacks per game.
The backers have had their inconsistencies throughout the year, especially on the run where they rank a measly 59th in the country.
Bruce Taylor, though, has been a beast for a large part of the season and leads the team in tackles. Lyndell Gibson will miss the Orange Bowl due to injury and will likely be replaced by Tariq Edwards who returned an interception for a touchdown in the ACC championship.
Stanford’s offensive line is almost without a doubt the best Tech has seen this season and quarterback Andrew Luck and running back Stepfan Taylor are both talented with their feet.
If the Hokies plan on even containing the Cardinal offense, the defensive line and the linebackers can’t take one play off.
Defensive Backs
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Virginia Tech annually puts out some of the best talent at cornerback and safety, and this year is no exception.
Sophomore Jay Hosley leads the nation with eight interceptions on the year including a three-interception performance against “allergic to interception” Russell Wilson.
Senior Rashad Carmichael hasn’t had the numbers of Hosley, but that’s because he is rarely caught out of position. When he is, he makes up for it with his blazing speed like he did against Georgia Tech.
Eddie Whitley seems to be around the ball and lays a mean hit when he can. Davon Morgan and newcomers Antone Exum and Kyle Fuller fill out the rest of the coverage.
Virginia Tech is holding opposing quarterbacks to just above a 50 percent completion percentage which is third best in the country. Stanford’s outstanding quarterback and deep receiving corps will be tested like they haven’t been this season.
With 22 interceptions, it would be a surprise for the Hokies not to pick off Andrew Luck at least once during the game—he’s thrown two interceptions in each of his games against defenses holding quarterbacks to a passer efficiency of 115 or better. To compare, Tech averages 105.
Coaching
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As per usual, the Virginia Tech coaching staff is one of the best in the country. Frank Beamer was just awarded the first annual Joe Paterno Coach of the Year Award for the job he’s done in Blacksburg.
Bud Foster finally has his defense where he wants it after allowing too many yards against weaker foes like East Carolina and Central Michigan.
But the biggest surprise has been Bryan Stinespring who had the game of his life against Florida State. He called a nearly perfect game and put up 44 points as a result, and it could have easily run into the 50s if Beamer hadn’t let his foot off of the gas.
The coaches have the players ready to play with a lot of confidence but not cockiness.
They still feel like they have something to prove to the country and between the coaches and the senior leadership on the team, it’s almost a sure thing the Hokies will come to play in Miami.
Intangibles and Ineligibility
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Outside of the previously mentioned chip-on-their-shoulder, the biggest intangible is Tyrod Taylor. Go back and look at his highlights against Boise State, and you’ll see he was without a doubt the best quarterback on the field.
Andrew Luck is a fantastic quarterback who will excel in the NFL, but there is something about Taylor that inspires confidence in the players around him. He has a will to win unlike almost any quarterback in the country—see Nebraska 2009 for details on that.
Last year, ineligibility struck the Hokies harshly when cornerback Stefan Virgil was ruled out for the game against Tennessee. While Virginia Tech won the game easily, the absence of Virgil was felt on the Vol’s scoring drives which would have been stopped dead had an overeager and an inexperienced Hosley not taken over.
Once a list of who is and is not eligible is released, expect a short article outlining how it will affect the game. Until then, it’s all pure speculation.
If the Hokies come to play, the game will at a minimum be decided by a few points. But if the defensive line and linebackers are able to bottle up the run, Virginia Tech could end up with a program-defining win.
Outcome
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Virginia Tech has the talent and fire to beat their first top five opponent in years in one of the most anticipated bowl games of the season.
They will have the significant edge in fans since they don't live on the west coast and are well-known as an excellent group of travelers.
The Hokies have proved they can play with the significant layover between games in years past and in the opener against Boise state, albeit only for about 40 minutes.
They're comfortable playing from behind as they've done all too many times this season and shouldn't be phased by the cameras or the national audience.
Tech won't be able to completely stop Andrew Luck and that bullish offensive line, but Jim Harbaugh doesn't seem like the type to completely throw out his game plan just for a bowl game like Alabama did early in last year's national championship.
Expect Bud Foster's defense to be prepared and stack the box against the run, forcing Luck to beat the Hokie secondary with his arm. Some people may scoff at the idea but the run defense has been the weakest link of the team and while the Cardinal receivers are a great group, Tech's creative blitzes and talent should hold the pass game to an average day.
The Stanford defense is largely unproven against top opponents and the depth at running back should ultimately burn the defense out. Expect a lot of points late in the game.
Despite a pretty big gap in rank, Virginia Tech should match up well against Stanford and should give them quite the game.
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