Orange Bowl Preview: Cincinnati, Virginia Tech Have No Shortage of Defense

Keys to the Game

Cincinnati

1. Make it a perfect “10”

For Cincinnati, this marks their first major BCS Bowl game after partaking in a past history of nine Humanitarian, International, and medley of *insert unnecessarily long and obscure bowl name here* bowl games.

The Bearcats should think of this as nothing more and just play 60 minutes of Bearcat football without the extra pressure or stress. That includes a steady balance between Tony Pike’s passing attack and the rushing capabilities of their two-headed monster, Jacob Ramsey and John Goebel, both of whom average over four yards per carry.

These two tailbacks are going to have their hands full with a steady Hokie front seven that only allows 107 rushing yards per game, 38th in the nation, which is their weakest ranking in the four major defensive categories (PPG, rush YPG, receiving YPG, and total YPG). If their backs are shut down, the burden may fall on Pike.

Pike does a very good job of taking care of the ball, completing nearly 63 percent of his passes and possessing a touchdown-to-interception ratio of 18-to-7. He has two very effective wideouts to throw to, most notably 1,000-yard man Marshwan (Mardy) Gilyard, who leads the team in receiving yards (1,118) and touchdowns (10). Similarly as dominant is Dominick Goodman, who ate up 977 receiving yards and scored seven touchdowns.

Pike is going to need these two receivers to truly step up against a stubborn Virginia Tech defense that is 36th in the nation in passing yards allowed, with 170. The gameplan for the Bearcats must be a steady balance, and above all, not cracking under pressure. Two strong defensive teams spell out a smashmouth, close game, with America watching.

2. Hit them in the mouth

In past years, Cincinnati has been a defense-minded team, getting the job done with average offense but stellar defense (not unlike the NFL’s Baltimore Ravens in their post-Super Bowl years). They’ve since fallen off a bit, but still rank strongly in PPG (53rd with 20.2), YPG (51st with 316.1), rush YPG (30th with 104), and receiving YPG, allowing only 212.1.

Lucky for Cincinnati, Virginia Tech is a far cry from what would be considered an offensive powerhouse, registering a paltry and downright embarrassing 128.1 pass YPG and a more acceptable 167.9 rush YPG. They only score an average of 22.2 points per game, and the Bearcat defense needs to exploit their offensive shortcomings.

The front four must pressure Tyrod Taylor and force him to make errant throws and mistakes in general...something he's definitely susceptible to.

Darren Evans, a 1,000-yard, 10-touchdown back, must be kept in check, thereby leading to the QB shouldering the burden. Keeping constant pressure and shutting down any signs of explosiveness from Virginia Tech should help offset any shortcomings the Bearcats may have offensively.-WP

Virginia Tech

1. Beamer Ball

The Hokies will need to play their best impression of themselves to win this one. Cincinnati is a solid football team all around, so excelling on defense, special teams, and not turning the ball over will be the key here.

This must sound very familiar to most folks who follow college football because it's exactly what Frank Beamer's teams are infamous for. Defensively, the Hokies are 13th in the nation in scoring defense, allowing just over 17 points per contest, and seventh overall in total defense.

This bodes well against a Cincinnati team that's worked well with interchangeable parts at quarterback recently.

The Hokies have also forced teams to turn the ball over to the tune of 30 turnovers forced this season, but will also have to limit their own mistakes against a Cincinnati defense that features three very solid seniors in the secondary (Mike Mickens, DeAngelo Smith, and Brandon Underwood). This puts the onus on quarterback Tyrod Taylor to keep the offense moving without giving up the ball involuntarily.

2. You're the ACC champions—don't play like it!

The last ACC champions to win a BCS game were the 1999 Florida State Seminoles, and I'm not making that up. The ACC hasn't fared well in this decade in BCS games, mustering only their conference champions in the series with no at-large bids.

Why do I mention this? Well, Virginia Tech wasn't exactly a favorite to win the title, and even though they've played relatively well down the stretch, winning four of their last five (only losing to Miami by less than a field goal in mid-November), it's still a monkey on their back that they're going to have to deal with.

Playing a team that itself is playing in its first ever BCS game may be a blessing, but the Hokies will still have to play their best game to shake the ACC curse. Tyrod Taylor will have to throw the ball relatively well against a Cincinnati defense that ranks 13th in the country against the run to keep the Bearcats off balance. -CGKey Matchup

Cincinnati vs. Cincinnati’s inner demons

Nobody gets to the Orange Bowl, or any BCS bowl for that matter, by being lousy and losing close games, but Cincinnati came so very close to settling for a Meineke Car Care or International Bowl bid considering some of the games they were able to win.

Their two losses came at the hands of Oklahoma (I think we can give them a pass on that one) and a blowout road defeat at Connecticut—the same Connecticut team limping into Toronto for their bowl game.

Some wins did not come easy either: Akron gave the Bearcats everything they could possibly handle in a 17-15 Cincinnati victory, the at-the-time swiftly sinking Scarlet Knights of Rutgers kept it close before the ‘Cats pulled out a 13-10 win, and Cincy needed to play catch-up to the Hawaii Warriors before rattling off 19 points to escape with a win.

Fact is, Cincinnati is not a powerhouse team and is susceptible to falling behind or keeping things closer than they may find comfortable. They need to set the tone of the game early and avoid digging themselves a hole they may have trouble escaping in 60 minutes. It also comes back to not caving under pressure...something the players and coach Brian Kelly need to remain cool under. -WP

Tyrod Taylor (QB) vs. Corey Smith (LB)

Tyrod Taylor is an effective running quarterback, but with Cincinnati, he'll have an equally talented linebacker shadowing him and attempting to contain him in the Bearcats' Corey Smith.

For the Hokies to move the ball, Taylor will have to play well enough in the passing game to loosen up the Bearcats defense and create room for Darren Evans to run. He'll also have to deal with a talented but raw DE in Connor Barwin, and a talented DT in Terril Byrd.

How Taylor is able to handle the pressure that will be placed on him by this quick and agile Bearcat front seven will determine Virginia Tech's chances on offense in this game. -CG

X-Factor

Mike Mickens

The senior defensive back has been the face of the Cincinnati secondary for years, and he is having a strong showing this year, notching four interceptions with 157 return yards, one of those four taken back for a touchdown.

Without a doubt, Mickens is going to be instrumental if Cincinnati is going to make the Big East 4-0 in bowl games for '08-09. Hokie quarterbacks have a total TD/INT ratio of 6/11, with backup Cory Holt the only one with a positive ratio at 1/0, on only six passing attempts.

Should the front seven, as mentioned earlier, get pressure on Taylor, expect Mickens to be there grabbing the interception, and maybe even taking it to the house for six. For his final game in a Cincinnati uniform, expect him to go out with a bang.-WP

Victor "Macho" Harris

Harris will be very important for the Hokies in this game on both sides of the ball. Harris could provide a spark in the passing game if used correctly, and on defense at his natural position of corner, he'll draw a tough assignment in covering either Mardy Gilyard or Dominick Goodman.

The Bearcats offense is a much easier beast to deal with when one of the two options is taken off the table. Just ask Hawaii, who almost pulled off the upset a few weeks ago when Goodman went down on the first play from scrimmage for the Bearcats. Later on, when Gilyard started to get free and make plays, the upset special light went off and the Bearcats came back to win the game.

Harris is the key to the game here in that he must be successful in taking away one of the two receivers to limit the Bearcats' damage through the air. -CG

Prediction

I expect to see a close, slug it out football game between two of college football's more underrated teams. Expect Tony Pike to have an overall solid game, and look for Mardy Gilyard to have an exceptional game in front of a national audience.

Virginia Tech will attempt to keep up with Cincinnati, but in the end, I anticipate all facets of the Bearcat football team to be too much and too overwhelming for the Hokies to overcome. They'll keep it close, but just won't be able to get it done.

Cincinnati Bearcats 28, Virginia Tech Hokies 22 -WP

This game should be a close one, and the outcome will not shock me either way. If Tyrod Taylor can get the passing game going, the Hokies will have a better than average shot to knock off the Bearcats, but barring that, I'm predicting that the Cincinnati Bearcats defense will just be too much for the Hokies to handle.

When Cincy has the ball, expect one of Dominick Goodman or Mardy Gilyard to have a great day catching the ball, and be watchful of Bearcat quarterback Tony Pike if he's healthy—the guy will eventually be playing on Sundays.

Cincinnati Bearcats 27, Virginia Tech Hokies 14 -CG

This is an original Bowl Preview by Pigskin Heaven Writers Whit Prowdy and Chris Grewe. You can read it, more Bowl Previews, and more from the Pigskin Heaven staff, here.