BCS Rankings: Virginia Tech and the Top Overachievers Poised to Disappoint

You play the teams that are on your schedule.

It’s the mantra of all college football coaches, for better or worse. Some teams have an incredibly brutal slate that never leaves much time for a breather. Then you have the teams with tissue paper-soft schedules that are completely untested.

Here are three of those untested teams that will eventually succumb to a stronger opponent in the near future. (Hint: two of these teams will lose to Clemson).

No. 8 Virginia Tech

The Hokies played the likes of East Carolina and Arkansas State in September, and fell at home to their only real competition, 23-3 to No. 7 Clemson.

They have benefited from an easy ACC slate, which has allowed them to hide their fatal flaws on offense. Sophomore Logan Thomas is going to be a great QB some day, but for now he still makes too many mistakes in the pocket. The result is a passing game that is ranked 69^th in the nation in terms of yardage.

Clemson was clearly the superior team in their first matchup, and expect little to change at a neutral setting.

No. 12 South Carolina

The Gamecocks are way too one-dimensional to beat Clemson a week from Saturday (can you tell how I feel about the Tigers?).

They have been able to weather the storm without QB Stephen Garcia and RB Marcus Lattimore, but haven’t really been tested. In the one game they did face a ranked opponent, No. 6 Arkansas promptly spanked them, 44-28.

The defense has stepped up in a major way, ranked 19^th in the nation, but the offense can’t keep up. Expect them to be exposed for their cupcake schedule in a big way against Clemson.

No. 16 Nebraska

The Huskers have taken a step back in QB Taylor Martinez’s sophomore year. Having the 101^st-ranked passing game forces the Cornhuskers to run the ball far too often. Defenses know it’s coming, and their yards per carry average is dropping fast.

The defense is sound, if not spectacular. The loss of future NFL star Jared Crick is really starting to show, as you can now run the ball down their throats (just ask Northwestern).

With an extremely tough road game against No. 18 Michigan on tap before the regular season finale against Iowa, this team is not going to be in the inaugural Big Ten Championship Game, and will end up in a mediocre bowl game.