BC-Virginia Tech preview

The season doesn't ride on this game, but it will be very telling of how O'Brien manages things. We've had a long break. A good coach will use that extra time to reset and figure out some new looks to use against VT. A bad coach let's it fall apart. The best BC coaches are the ones who manage to stop the bleeding. The Hokies are favored but certainly beatable. Let's see what O'Brien can do. 

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game)

All of these top teams losing is encouraging. I don't think BC is going to sneak into the playoff or anything like that, but I think the transfer portal and NIL has hurt the top teams more than the programs like BC. They don't have the depth that they used to have. Now there is more potential for an upset. Also the talent dispersal helps BC too. For so long good players sat on great teams. Now more will be willing the use BC as a second chance.

Three Simple Keys
1. Use TC as a run threat. His run production is way down. It is probably a little bit of design, injury and the other teams focusing on him. Regardless, BC needs to figure it out. He is a our best weapon and he is not being used to the fullest. 
2. Third down defense. We need to end drive earlier and get the guys off the field. Bend but don't break has its charms, but let's win a few more battles.

3. Win the turnover battle. Simple but true. Last week, without those turnovers, it is a different game.

Gambling Notes
-- Virginia Tech leads the series 21-11
-- BC is 5-10 in Lane Stadium

-- BC is 3-3 on Thursday night games against Virginia Tech
The current line is BC+6.5

Factoid
Addazio and Coughlin are the only BC coaches with records above .500 vs the Hokies.

Scoreboard Watching
Louisville-Miami. The Canes have had some friendly calls in close games. They remain the highest ranked ACC team. It will be interesting to see if they keep playing and escaping close games.

BC is in trouble if...we are not able to run the ball. A week off, a tough loss. It is time to get back to basics.

I hope to see...clean, good punts. Is that too much to ask?

Bottom Line
I think this will be a tight one. I think BC looks better but the Hokies match us most of the way. I think a late pick seals the day.

Final Score: BC 27, Virginia Tech 20

BC-Virginia Tech preview

This run has been fun. No debate. The games are back and forth. We have pulled off some upsets on the road. We have some exciting players. No complaints from me. But we should probably recognize that our record is probably better than it should be. BC enters this game with a +5 point differential total on the season. When your point differential is so small, you usually are a .500 team. Winning close games is better than losing, but you have to recognize that your luck will run out. If BC really wants to continue this win streak, they need to take their level of play to the next level and start winning these games decisively.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game)
This will be our last Saturday game of the season and our last ACC Network game. But when you wonder why, just look at the TV ratings for Syracuse-BC. 1.1M people watched! The 15th most watched game of the weekend and the second highest rated ACC game of the weekend. If BC wants to stay in the good graces of the ACC and TV execs, they should be willing to play on Friday and Thursday nights as often as they will have us. (And for anyone who says that is a Syracuse number not a BC number, Cuse-VT on Thursday the week before only drew 700K and the Friday night game the week before of FAU-Charlotte only drew 300K).

Three Simple Keys
1. Don’t make TC do it all. I know we are thin and banged up, but we can’t have TC carry the ball 20+ times a game nor throwing it 35+ times a game. We need a steady run diet with whoever is healthy and leverage TC as a threat vs just a workhorse.
2. Get VT off the field. They are going to try to do what we do: shorten the game, long drives, etc. We need to get them behind schedule and be the ones controlling the clock.
3. Don’t lose the gambling mindset. We are going bowling. That’s the baseline. Now there really isn’t anything to lose. So Hafley should keep rolling the dice on 4th down. Keep calling fake punts and trick plays. Let it all hang out. We want to win.

Gambling notes
-- VT leads the series 20-11
-- Pry has yet to win an ACC road game
-- Hafley is 1-2 vs Virginia Tech
The Current line is BC+1.5

Factoid Since BC’s move from independence to Big East football, we’ve played Virginia Tech more than any other team (31 games). The only break was in our final year in the Big East, but that is somewhat offset by the two times we played them in the ACC Championship Game.

Scoreboard Watching
Louisville-Virginia. A lot needs to happen for BC to make the ACC Championship Game. But the biggest hurdle is Louisville. We don’t need Virginia to pull off an upset, but it would help our chances.

BC is in trouble if…If we are truly down to one RB. Hafley said things are improved, but we have no idea if anyone is up for 20 carries.

What I hope to see…Better run defense. The Orange had too many big run plays. We can’t let that happen this week.

Bottom Line These two teams are very alike. I expect a slow-paced, grind it out affair. I think we have the better Oline and players and control in the second half. Final Score: BC 23, Virginia Tech 10

Game Day Info: Virginia Tech

Weather: Mid 60s and rainy

Radio: SiriusXM 204

TV: ACC Network

BC-Virginia Tech Preview

This is a must win. Not in the sense that Hafley will be fired or on some sort of hot seat. But it is critical to prove the staff can make adjustments quickly after just one game. If we lose this game, the new season momentum is dead and you can expect recruiting and fan interest to follow. I believe in Hafley still and very good coaches are usually able to stop losing streaks and keep everyone on track. Let's hope my belief pays off. 

What’s on my mind (not totally related to this game)
Even the ACC's big wins last week were sloppy close calls. That doesn't rationalize our performance but it does give me hope that BC can be competitive in every game on the schedule.

Three Simple Keys

1. Keep the protections and blocking schemes simple. As I believe someone mentioned on the broadcast, BC had multiple OL guys down field on pass plays. And that was just one of their problems. They were green and overpowered but also asked to do too much. This week needs to be simple. What we lose in the element of surprise, we hopefully make up with better play.

2. Use Jurk in the run game. It might be risky putting him in read option plays, but he is generally good at them. Doing it a few times early could help the running game and create play action passing.

3. Stop the run. VT is going to copy Rutgers and keep it on the ground.

Gambling Notes
-- BC coaches are 3-2 in their first games at Lane Stadium
-- VT was 4-5 at Lane Stadium last year
-- BC is 5-8 in Lane Stadium all time
The current line is BC+2.5

Factoid
Virginia Tech’s head coaches are 1-1 in their first games against BC.

Scoreboard Watching

The ACC Schedule is not great this weekend. UConn does play Syracuse. While that might not be an exciting game, it will be a matchup of future opponents. Maybe it will tell us how bad the Huskies are.

What I hope to see…
BC move the ball around. You want your best players targeted. That’s smart. But it is also a fine balance. Hitting the open man more often, giving Zay the occasional breather and mixing in other players will make the offense much better.
 

BC is in trouble if…
Jurk is turning the ball over again. Although he was under consistent pressure, neither INT was due to the Oline. He forced both throws. It is a lot to ask, but he needs to be close to perfect.
 

Bottom Line
I think BC wins this week. As deflating as last week was, I think they cut down on mistakes and BC’s D holds in the end.
Final Score: BC 24, Virgina Tech 14

BC-Virginia Tech preview

Let us start with the positive. Jeff Hafley built a lot of goodwill with fans, media and players last year. He lost his best player and still managed to pull off some early wins and nearly beat Clemson. He is also still a first time head coach who is learning. The bad news is that in my opinion he has botched the QB position the past month. I was relieved to see Morehead take the field since I have been begging for anyone other than Grosel to get a shot. As promised, Morehead was raw. But my frustration was the continued use of Grosel, especially when the game slipped away. I understand that Hafley is not in a good position, but I feel like every decision with the QB is making things worse. Or at least more frustrating. Does Morehead give us a better shot than Grosel? Maybe not. But we are not winning anything with Grosel, so you might as well give Morehead more time and sell it as building for the future. But Hafley seems like a learner and someone who will do everything he can to figure it out. I hope the plan this week changes the tide.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game)

There is a lot of talk that the ACC could do away with divisions and move to a rotating schedule. I would hope that the end of divisions would also mean the end of the cross division game. In the post-Beamer era Virginia Tech doesn't have the clear identity they had under their old Legend. I don't know anyone who is excited about them as a program or opponent. Even in Beamer's last days, those games still had some juice.

Three Simple Keys

1. Stop the run. Virginia Tech is not as one-dimensional as we are, but they are close. If we stop their run, we should win. 

2. Contain Burmeister on passing plays. Don't allow him to run for positive yards when everyone has dropped into coverage.

3. Get Zay at least seven touches. I said it last week and it remains true. Even if the deep balls are not working, try a sweep or give him a flanker screen or crossing route. Get him the ball in space.

Gambling Notes

-- The home team is 4-1 against the spread in the last five games in this series

-- Hafley is 0-1 against the Hokies

-- Fuente is 3-2 vs BC

The current line is BC+3

Factoid

The Hokies lead the series 19-10

Scoreboard Watching

At this point we need to root for Wake. They play UNC this weekend. If they go undefeated and sneak into the playoff, it will be validation that a private school without history or huge revenues or large fan base can  make it. 

I hope to see...

More of Morehead. He did look lost at times last week, but you can see some future out there (or maybe I am just talking myself into it at this point).

BC is in trouble if...

We have another 10 minute collapse. There is so much going wrong that I haven't harped on the growing pattern of games becoming out of reach in a few short possessions. That is on Hafley to control and it will start with fewer Special Teams mistakes.

Bottom Line

I don't feel great about this game. However, I do still trust and like Hafley. I am hoping he figures out a formula this week and BC runs the ball while stopping the Hokies run. This turns into a real old school ground and pound and BC holds on.

Final Score: BC 21, Virginia Tech 17

Ugly football but still optimistic

The fact that as BC's turnovers piled up, I still felt we could win is a huge sign of progress. But it was not to be as for the first time Hafley lost decisively as BC's coach. Turnovers are frustrating all the time, but especially on a night when BC moved the ball. The maligned OLine looked better but our RBs couldn't hold onto the ball and Jurk got careless a few times. But I still believe we are on the right track. It is up to Hafley to reset and get things fixed. I think he will.

Hafley: "Unfortunately in football, if you make mistakes like we did, you can't win. We'll look at the film and fix our mistakes."

— Tyler Calvaruso (@tyler_calvaruso) October 18, 2020

Game Day Info: Virginia Tech

No comments this year.

What you need to know

Weather: The game will start in the 50s and drop to the 40s. This is our coldest game of the season so far.

Radio: SiriusXM 382

TV: The ACC Network.

BC-Virginia Tech preview

I understand that is is very, very early in the Hafley era. I also know he will have to prove a lot as he brings in his own players, adjusts to a normal year, adjusts to teams getting a feel for how he coaches, and many other hurdles. But I am pretty confident he is the best and most aggressive game manager we've had in my time as a BC fan. Jags was aggressive but it always felt like he was going with his gut and sort of a gambler, where Hafley seems more analytical. The fact that we've been in close games nearly every week and continue to push to score instead of being conservative is a huge change. The fact that we can run a two minute drill is a huge change. But most important is that the sidelines don't seem chaotic during crunch time. Think of how manic Addazio and his crew were during the final minute against Wake years ago. That's not happening now and I think BC will win more just because of that approach. This week won't be the typical trip to Blacksburg, but that even-handed, smart approach should make a difference.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game)
Every week BC previews their uniform combo on social media and BC twitter (including me) weighs in on the latest look. This year has been heavy on the throwbacks. I have stated this in multiple places, but for the record let me say that I strongly prefer the throwbacks to our current uniform. However, I would like to see a full uniform refresh that has aspects of the throwback but looks most like the '90s BC uniform. There are plenty of rumors that a new look is coming. Hopefully it makes everyone happy...and has a single helmet stripe!

Three Simple Keys
1. Slow down their running game. It really is that simple. Our D has been good enough in bend but don't break mode. This week will be more about stopping the run on first and second down.
2. More production from Lamot. Because we've played so much nickle, Lamot hasn't been on the field as much. With VT being run first, that might change. Hopefully that means more support for McDuffie and Richardson.
3. Other guys in the passing game. It is nice that VT has to focus on Long and Flowers. That means other guys should have lots of opportunities. We could use big plays from Lewis, Gill and even Levy and Bailey.

Gambling Notes
-- Virginia Tech leads the series 18-10
-- Fuente is 34-20 at Lane Stadium
-- BC has never won three in a row in this series
The current line is BC+12

Factoid
Henning, Jags, and Addazio each won on their first trips to Blacksburg. TOB and Spaz did not.

Scoreboard Watching
I am curious to see how Louisville does with Notre Dame. I think the Irish are very overrated, however, Louisville has been a major dissapointment. Can they regroup against Notre Dame? Can someone show the Irish are not a Top 5 team? We face both and I think both of their records are decieving. It should be interesting to see if they play a close game.

I hope to see...continued great punting from Carlson. Obviously, I truly hope we never punt, but if we do, I trust Carlson. He's been very good so far this season.

BC is in trouble if...the offensive line continues its uneven play. Hafley addressed it after the game and with the media. He says we are just a few plays here and there from looking great. I hope he is right, because the breakdowns and misses put way too much pressure on Jurk to escape or throw into bad situations.

Overall
I don't get what the oddsmakers see. Is Virginia Tech good? Probably. But I think we are good too and have proven that we play to the level of our opponent (for better or worse). I think this is a back and forth game with lots of passing. I think a few turnovers go BC's way and we hold on to win.
Final Score: BC 31, Virginia Tech 27

Good start

A great first half turned into a nerve wracking second half, but in the end, BC held on for an important win. Like a lot of season openers, there were good moments yet plenty of room for improvement.

As for prospects for the season...BC clearly has playmakers beyond Dillon. The question is can those play makers dominate for moments or can they play a full game.

I will have grades and viewing thoughts later this weekend.

Game Day: Virginia Tech

No comments this year.

What you need to know

Weather: Perfect. In the 70s with no chance of rain.

TV: The ACC Network. If you don't have it...bother your provider here.

Radio: XM 201

BC-Virginia Tech preview

The beauty of sports is that come Saturday none of the periphery really matters. It doesn't matter what I think of Addazio or what you do. It doesn't matter what limitations BC has or doesn't have. It doesn't matter if Father Leahy cares about sports. What matters are the guys that take the field. The new season is a blank slate and each game is truly an independent event. That unknown...that newness...that's what gives me hope. I can predict a blah season, but starting Saturday there is the chance for greatness.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game) 
I was at one of my kids games the other day and a couple of Georgia Tech fans were exchanging horror stories about access or lack thereof to the ACC Network. So whatever problems you are having, know that it is not exclusively a BC-fan gripe. While the model is questionable and the carriage battles really just hurt the fans (since the ACC is guaranteed its money), I do think in the long run this benefits the typical BC fan. If you want a reliable high quality provider of lots of BC content, you will get that in the ACC Network. Whatever extra charge you pay will probably still be a comparable spend to what you might pay for sports or entertainment elsewhere.

Three Simple Keys
1. Keep it simple with Dillon. I know we have a new OC. I know we have a team ready to stop Dillon. But don't do anything stupid. Just give him touches, open up holes and let him be.
2. Let Brown run a bit. I don't know if fear of injury of coaching kept Brown from taking off more, but I hope this year if he doesn't like his passing options and has room, he takes off. Like so many things, I will open up things on offense.
3. Get pressure from surprise areas. The further we move away from Don Brown, the less we use his blitz philosophies. I don't think we have enough pure talent upfront for them to win battles on their own, so it would be nice to copy some of Brown's ideas of bringing pressure from anywhere.

Gambling Notes
-- Addazio is 5-1 in openers at BC
-- Addazio is 3-3 vs Virginia Tech
-- Addazio is 2-4 in his first ACC game of the season
The current line is BC+4

Factoid
Virginia Tech leads the all-time series 9-18

Scoreboard Watching
Boise State takes on Florida State. This interests me on two fronts. One, last season ended in such an abrupt and strange way, I still have no idea how good Boise State is or was. Two, I don't know if Florida State is on the road to recovery or will remain a mess.

I hope to see...
A smooth offensive game. Bajakian has a lot riding on his shoulders. Forget dynamic, we haven't been an efficient, productive offense since Ryan Day left. If we can just get in the top half of CFB production and efficiency, I would consider Bajakian a great coach.

BC is in trouble if...
Brown's passes are getting batted around. Beyond the loss of down, it would show a lack of development and coaching.

Bottom line
This game is very winnable. I know this doesn't line up with my season predictions, but these game previews always have me looking for reason for a win. I think BC can control the clock and tempo. Make a few plays and start the season the right way.
Final Score: BC 21, VT 13

Basketball comes up short at VT

BC took the lead into the half after a solid defensive performance. However, the second half was not as good. BC came out flat, got whistled for seemingly everything and watched the Hokies build up lead. BC chipped away down the stretch but it wasn't enough. The Hokies held onto the win.

The story of the game were the officials. I know it is whiny. I know that the difference in fouls was only 4 (BC 22, VT 18), but it killed our momentum and we had two guys foul out.

The Hamilton brothers were solid. Chatman looks to be getting back to his usual form. Bowman was ok...too many misses and turnovers.

Virginia Tech was favored and at home, so this was always going to be a tough game. But it would have been nice to put together two solid halfs instead of one.

Levy sparks comeback at Lane

I always felt recruiting and talent accumulation was going to be Addazio's biggest strength. It paid off today as one of his backups -- Travis Levy -- made some huge runs to seal a critical win against Virginia Tech. With the win, BC now hosts Clemson for control of the division.

There were plenty of rocky moments in the first half, but the coaching staff and team deserve credit for rallying.

Now bring on Gameday!

In-game comments post: Virginia Tech

Lane Stadium has been the end of many BC hot streaks. But on occasion, we've pulled off a big win that propels us through the rest of the season. What will it be today?

Leave your thoughts and comments below.

You can also follow me on Twitter.

BC-Virginia Tech preview

I wasn't trying to jinx BC with my "what if" talk. I actually believe that things are lining up well for the BC home stretch. But the key is to execute on these winnable games. If BC really wants a special season, it would start by taking care of business Saturday.

What's on my mind (not totally related to this game) 
I haven't written much about Maryland's inept and tone deaf decision path, but I am glad they decided to fire Durkin. A program can rationalize all sorts of behaviour and culture from a college football coach who wins. But there is no reason to take on public criticism, fan revolt and recruiting challenges for loser like Durkin.

Three Simple Keys
1. Establish the run early. Last week Addazio had trick plays ready to go against Miami and it set the tone. This week BC needs to keep it simple and run straight at them until the Hokies can prove they can stop a power run game.
2. Don't give up huge Special Teams plays. Beamer is gone, but the "Beamer Ball" legacy remains. BC has been wildly inconsistent on Special Teams. It needs to be clean this weekend.
3. No dropped passes. Brown's passes can be a problem, but his teammates are not always bailing him out. This week we need great effort and hands from the TEs and WRs.

Gambling Notes
-- BC is 4-7 all time at Lane Stadium
-- Virginia Tech leads the series 18-8
-- Addazio is 2-3 vs the Hokies

The current line is BC-2

Factoid
Spaz is the only BC coach who played Virginia Tech, yet did not have a win at Lane Stadium.

Scoreboard Watching
It is all about Clemson now. We need them to be No. 2 going into our game and to do that, they need to beat Louisville this week.

I hope to see...
Dillon at 100%. I think we can win with the sort of effort he gave last week, but if he is healthy, this game won't even be close.

BC is in trouble if...
If it comes down to field goals. Addazio needs to keep that in mind and stay aggressive in four-down territory. We need touchdowns, not long field goal attempts.

Overall
We are winning this thing. Addazio has been using all sorts of different types of running plays this year to varying degrees of success. This is the game where it pays off. BC emulates Georgia Tech's strategy and runs over the Hokies.
Final Score: BC 35, Virginia Tech 20

Time to get overly excited about BC Football news

As I tweeted when Syracuse won, BC controls its own destiny. Win out and we are in the ACC Championship. Win that and we have a pretty good argument for the Playoffs. Seems simple, right? If you are on social media, you will see lots of people are playing the "what if" game. Let's break it down and also look at other things on the table.

Beat Virginia Tech...
If BC wins this weekend and Clemson holds their own against Louisville, the BC-Clemson matchup would likely be a primetime game on an ESPN network and also have an outside chance as being the location for Gameday! It would be one of the few battles of ranked teams that weekend. It would be a chance to have an ACC location for Gameday and return to BC after a long absence. Gameday remains an incredible tool for selling the program and would be another validation of the season. It would also provide energy to the home atmosphere that has been lacking in the years since our last Gameday.

Then beat Clemson...
At 8-2 and having just knocked out an elite team, BC would probably get close to Top 10 in the rankings. There is still a lot of bottlenecking in the polls, but more teams will lose in the next two weeks and very few two-loss teams would have such a win. Beating Clemson would also give BC the head-to-head tiebreaker in the division standings.

Win out the regular season...
Once you've knocked off Clemson and won in Blacksburg, you've done the hard part. BC would be a heavy favorite over FSU. Then it is Syracuse at home Thanksgiving Weekend with everything on the line. What could go wrong there?

Win the ACC Championship...
If BC really does run the table, we would also be a favorite in the ACC Championship. Win that and we are guaranteed a major bowl -- the first since Flutie. But at this point, we would also be in the playoff discussion. If you are following the Playoff release and the computer projections, you will see BC is in the low 20s. That basically means it could happen, but would be the longest of long shots. Because of the human element, I don't think a two-loss BC team would ever be included. But there is only one way to find out!

Now the first step is winning this weekend.

Gametime set for Virginia Tech

The ACC announced the Virginia Tech game will be a 3:45 start in Blacksburg. It will be an ACC game, but might not have the same affiliates the game usually does. Because most of the bye weeks are over, things get a little more complicated for ACC scheduling in November. All teams are playing and there are fewer traditional time slots available, so the second Raycom game comes into play.

I don't mind. I am always glad when we avoid a night game in Blacksburg.

BC wastes crazy comeback in loss to VT

As excited as I was by BC forcing ovetime with seven foul shots, I still feel frustrated by the loss to VT. BC exchanged baskets with the Hokies in OT, but then fell into bad habits (allowing open 3s and forcing bad shots) that led to the VT win. 

Robinson put up 32 and had some incredible stretches. But he also had seven TOs. Bowman finished with 22 and missed a lot of 3s. Chatman had an off night.

Even with the OT, Christian didn't use much of the bench. Reyes actually made a decent stop and moved well, but remains a problem on the offensive end. 

The team has now lost three in a row and needs a win Sunday against VT. 

Second viewing thoughts and grades: Virginia Tech

Addazio will spin this until his last breath, but there is no excuse for the continued issues this team has. So much of it is execution. And when you have continued problems with execution, it is because the coaching staff is not teaching and not adapting. This game was more of the same.

Offense: D

I know there were plenty of drops, but Brown is not accurate. He's behind on slants. His downfield stuff is a mixed bag. He is too quick to throw things away. I believe in his future but we are not using him well now. The only bright spot was he did run more. Those plays with his feet will open up other things.

Levy looked good catching the ball. Why not give him more touches? We need someone with a spark. It wasn't Hilliman's best game. He didn't have the holes, but he also didn't make people miss. Dillon was fine and didn't look slowed from last week.

It was a rough game for Sweeney. Drops and false starts. White had a good catch but also needs to pull in anything close. Thadd Smith ran the sweep well. I am so frustrated with Jeff Smith. How is he not better by now or at least have better hands? The other TEs are not even getting targeted.

Petrula got a bad holding call, but was okay. There was a time early when the ESPN crew blamed him for a broken play, but I think it was really Phillips' man who got through. Overall the line was not the problem.

The play calling and game plan was a mess. Start aggressive, go conservative and fall way behind, and then open things up again late. Even if you want to blame Addazio for stuff like that, Loeffler still hasn't managed around Addazio or developed Brown into anything like a starting ACC QB. As a reminder, VT's QB was also young. And you know things are bad when the ESPN crew questions how we use Brown and the touches Hilliman gets over the young guys.

Defense: B

Allen had another great game. I know I was critical of him early in the year, but he has really come on of late. And it is helping Landry too. Merritt was fine. Our DL did a good job of stuffing those dives and powers up the middle.

Schwab played well. Bletzer was put in some tough spots with coverage, but still played pretty well. Lamont struggled a bit and missed some tackles.

The DBs played well at times but also allowed too many big plays. There was some bad tackling and confusion at times. Yiadom's pick was a heads up play. Denis had plenty of tackles, but some misses too. Moore was fine. Harris had some stops and a few misses.

I think Reid put together a decent game plan. They gashed us for some big plays -- which is not new -- but we also contained them for many, many plays. Plus keeping it together when the Offense can't score and keeping them out of the endzone is admirable.

Special Teams: C

Is it time to worry about Lichtenberg? One of the misses could be blamed on awkward snap. Not the other. I hope there is a plan in place if he starts missing again.

Knoll punted well.

The punt and kick coverage was good. In fact, the punt coverage is one of the best units on the team.

Walker's returns were fine. VT wasn't as careless as Central Michigan.

Overall: C-

Do you want to capture Addazio's poor game management in a single play? When we go for it on 4th and 2, there is confusion with alignments. Brown and Sweeney seem to disagree on where Sweeney should be lined up. Now this drive is critical. We need points. It is 4th down. BC still has timeouts. As soon as Addazio sees the confusion, he should be calling timeout! He can't let this play fail and if the primary target is not in the right spot before the snap, it will probably fail. But the coach let's it roll. Brown rolls left and Sweeney is the target. It is sort of a rub route. The pass is a little off and Sweeney's footwork is a bit twisted. Incomplete. What is going on? Does he get lost in the moment? I don't know.

The other infuriating thing was BC's ultra conservative play calling on 3rd and long. Running plays. Dump offs. Short routes. I understand low risk, but you have to take some risk. How does he expect to win if he doesn't ever convert? 3 and out followed by 3 and out. He thinks this is beautiful? He thinks this is a player issue!

The guy will never be more than a 7-6 coach and much worse on down years. I don't expect a change midseason, but I hope Jarmond has seen enough. I know this team has enough talent to get to six wins. I also know that with the way Addazio is coaching them, it won't happen.

Might as well fire Addazio

UPDATE: I just watched Addazio's post-game presser where he said the investment is coming and it will be beautiful. There is no reason to believe him now. I do believe this team has promise, but he has not shown that he can unlock that potential. If he goes 3-9 in Year 5, he does not deserve the chance to unlock that potential. It would just be wasting it.

I am against mid-season firing, but I think we might as well get rid of Addazio. If he is going to approach every game against a ranked team as a "L" why do we need him? The loss to VT was more of the same. We are so conservative -- taking no risks on 3rd down, he either doesn't get it or doesn't believe in his own team.

Anthony Brown shows he has some wheels? But we don't run him much. Wouldn't want to get him hurt! Instead let's have him in the pocket trying to throw accurate passes.  But Brown is not the real problem. Our whole offensive approach is. As Hoffses pointed out, Addazio is averaging 10.6 ppg in his last 19 ACC games. You can't win that way.

I feel for the D. They played well and kept the Hokies out of the endzone. But you can't win when you don't score.

The Post-Game Periscope is below. I will have grades and second thoughts up late Sunday.

Post game Periscope: Virginia Tech https://t.co/RDsxzCTZ6M

— Bill Maloney (@bcatleagle) October 8, 2017