BC-Virginia Tech preview

Every year college football fans see down on their luck teams with lame duck coaches sleep walk through their last few games. I am afraid we are about to fall into that category. There will be players and coaches who give their all against the Hokies, but I don't expect to see the whole squad playing well and with maximum effort. If we couldn't convert the excitement and emotion of the Notre Dame game into a win, how are we going to do against Virginia Tech?

Hot Seat Thermometer
After strolling the sidelines for 16 years, this is probably Spaz's last game coaching football in Alumni Stadium. I imagine things will have a weird feeling in that everyone knows its over, but there certainly won't be any official acknowledgement. I guess there is still the chance that Spaz could announce his retirement tomorrow, but I don't expect that to happen. Instead he'll get the unspoken good-bye.
Temperature: NA (it is over)

Overlooked Storyline: Virginia Tech and BC having down years at the same time
Virginia Tech can still pull out a winning season but struggling like this is rare for the Hokies. If they don't get to .500 it will be the first time since the formation of Big East football that both the Hokies and BC finish the season with losing records.

Three Simple Keys
1. Stretch the field. We had two long TD passes just out of the reach of Dudeck and Amidon last week. While they didn't work, it was the right idea. We need to go downfield on the Hokies. It should also help our running game.
2. Stop the run. We haven't stopped anyone this year, but if we for Thomas to put the ball in the air, we could get some big turnovers.
3. Redzone scoring. I've given up on our running game, so maybe now it is time to try some rollouts or try to slip Pantale through traffic over the middle.

Gambling Notes
-- BC is 6-1 on Senior Day since joining the ACC
-- Virginia Tech has won four straight in the series
-- Both of Spaz's wins this season have come at home
The current line is BC+10

Factoid
Frank Beamer now has six wins in Alumni Stadium. That is tied with Joe Paterno for wins by a visiting coach. Former West Virginia Don Nehlen has the most wins at Alumni by a visiting coach with eight.

Scoreboard Watching

I am interested to see how NC State play against Clemson. Most of their fans think TOB is on his way out, so it will be interesting to see if the Pack come out ready for Clemson's offense or if they sleepwalk through the game.

I hope to see...

The Seniors go out with a win. The current 5th years committed when BC was on top of the world. Since then it has been all downhill. I am sure the ones who stayed are frustrated by their time and lack of success. A final win in front of friends and family would be nice.

BC is in trouble if...

Virginia Tech gets to Rettig. Their coverage guys are not great. If they want to shut Rettig down, it will be through hurries, pressures and sacks.

Bottom Line

I think BC will play hard for a while but Virginia Tech controls by pounding the ball. They will lead throughout but we will tack on a late score to beat the spread.

Final Score: Virginia Tech 17, BC 14