Disclaimer: This is Playmaker’s masterpiece.  I’m just posting it. 

What we witnessed on Saturday was one for the ages folks… a perfect storm seemed to be brewing in Charlotteville.  A confident, young, scrappy team led by an upstart coach.  A team that was tired of being treated like the runt of the family… a chance to go to the ACCCG for the first time in school history.  With all this riding on the Battle for the Commonwealth Cup, how did they respond?  By being put in their place that’s how, don’t bring that weak ass shit up in here.  The best way to describe Saturday’s facial is this video… with Virginia Tech playing the role of Terry Tate and the ‘Hoos playing the role of Paul.

Beamer and his boys played with the precision and execution like I haven’t seen in years… one might think they were a little fed up with all the UVA talk.  The win propels them to their 2nd consecutive appearance in the ACCCG and it also means I don’t have to pay 180 midgets $1 to use my manhood as their punching bag.  Yes, I bought my flight last Tuesday with the full expectation Virginia Tech would take home the W… frankly I don’t think the city of Charlotte, ESPN, John Swofford, David Wilson, or Tim Tebow would allow UVa to win.  It goes against everything America stands for.  Some quick observations from the game below: 

• I wonder if James Gayle stopped yapping?  Was is just me or did he not shut his mouth the entire game?  I guess with 3 TFL and 2 sacks, we’ll allow it.
• UVa played like a bunch of cowards all game… Of course I’m biased, but there were cheap shots all over the field from the ‘Hoos.  Not to mention they talked more shit than Gayle, and that was just about impossible.  Props to the Hokies for not stooping to the ‘Hoos level…
• The entire team played exceptional, however special shout out to LT3, DW, Marcus Davis (finally learning how to play the deep ball), Hopkins, Simon Phoenix, Tariq, and Tyler.  Thought they all made BIG plays when we needed them.
• Speaking of those guys, F the media… especially those who vote for the All-ACC team.  In the words of Bob Knight (1:18 mark), they only illuminated their relative lack of knowledge with a statement like that.  No Hopkins? Good work Norm Wood and Andy Bitter.  No defenders on the 1st team? Something is inherently wrong with this voting process.
• Fireball Whiskey is delicious, just ask Taco… FIRE IN THE HOLE. 
• Overall, the most complete game I’ve seen Virginia Tech play in over a year. Enjoyed the entire game from start to finish… damn it feels good to beat UVa.

Now onto Part Deux, your quick guide to Charlotte.  Brought to you by an old resident of the Queen City and Puff, the blogger formerly known as Fupp.  I plan on hitting all (take that back, most) of these places come this weekend… hope to see you all out.
 
Food:
Mac’s Speed Shop – My favorite BBQ in Charlotte… don’t let the bikes scare you away.  This place is legit.  With a large selection of beers and BBQ, I highly recommend making the stop this weekend.

Penguin Drive-In – If you like burgers and fried pickles, then you should eat here every single meal.  They also sell 40’s to have with your dinner… so there really isn’t an excuse to not go.  One side note, the service scares the shit out of me.
 
Bar:
Black Finn – Great food and good beers.  Black Finn also happens to be in the EpiCenter where you’ll find about 100 other bars and restaurants.  Not a bad place to grab dinner and drink.  Also used to be a Hokie Bar… don’t know if that is the case anymore
 
Dixie’s Tavern – Completely biased selection here… why?  Because it also happens to be a Steelers bar.  Besides that, the music is always good and the beer is cheap.  Don’t worry about dressing up either, a little more laid back.
 
Other “establishments”:
Uptown Cabaret (Not safe for work) – The name just sounds classy.  Now, I can’t speak from personal experience so I’ll just have to use direct quotations from others…
 
“Best Charlotte has to offer… get there early and often”
 
“Best buffet in Charlotte… no literally, the late night buffet is incredible.  Who doesn’t enjoy breakfast and women?!”
 
“Two words, Gym Shorts”
 
This place has to be good right!?
 
See you all in Charlotte!

Since T Wallace started this good column idea, it is only natural that he is too busy to finish it.  Here are some topics and our thoughts.  Enjoy. 

1. Biggest surprise of the year:

Playmaker:  On the field, the offensive line… but it really shouldn’t come to any surprise as they returned 4 OL and center has been an upgrade.  I’m just used to the perpetual disappointment of a bad offensive line since my freshman year.  Sacks have been held to a minimum and David Wilson leads the NCAA in rushing.  The OL has been extremely helpful in Logan’s maturation as a college QB.

Off the field I’d have to go with Taco’s recent success with the younger women.  It’s a renaissance type year, like a Roger Clemens post-Red Sox combined with Lance Armstrong post-Testicular Cancer… the stuff champions are made of.  I applaud you sir.  

T Wallace:  LT, hands down. His game last week sealed it. I mildly remember at least 3 passes (Danny Coale’s TD being 1) where he threw the ball before the receiver became open. Huge sign of confidence and maturity in a QB when he starts making passes like that. Secondly, his total disregard for his own well being. Running wise, he reminds me of Mike Alstott + 5 inches and 30 pounds. We could turn over the playbook on 3rd and short and still get the first down every time.

24Kt: Rebounding from injuries/the loss to Clemson.  I’m kind of cheating by picking two but the main theme is rebounding.  With Dyrell Roberts and 1/4 of our defensive starters — Antoine Hopkins, Bruce Taylor and yes, even Hyphen – all lost for the season, there was a lot of room for doubt.  Not to mention Gayle, Hosley and Tweedy missing games due to less-serious injuries.  So I’m impressed and surprised that the defense continues to not only put us in position to win games, but is also causing more 3-and-outs than I can remember in quite some time.  To quote the great Ron Burgundy, “What? You pooped in the refrigerator? And you ate the whole…wheel of cheese? How’d you do that? Heck, I’m not even mad; that’s amazing.”
 
I thought our offense stunk, and that we were honestly in danger of losing our bowl eligibility streak after getting trounced by the Tigers, 23-3.  We looked so bad in that game that I thought Bud Foster would have pleaded to let Hosley play offense; anything to give us a spark.  Since then we’ve won five straight and are in prime position for a rematch against Dabo’s crew in the ACCCG.
 
2. Biggest disappointment of the year:

Playmaker:  Other than Clemson Part I (yes I’m counting on a rematch), I’m going with the injuries.  Bruce, Hopkins, Dyrell, JGW, Battle, and Tweedy are all out for the year as big time contributors.  Injuries are a part of the game but this year has taken it’s toll.  Hats off to Bud for getting things done this year. 

T Wallace:  That we got crushed by Clemson. It’s almost expected every year that we lose one game we weren’t supposed to and “rally around that loss”. But this is embarrassing. Clemson obviously isn’t unbeatable and after seeing our performance against Georgia Tech, we should have at least made it interesting. Schedules like we have this year, opening without a game against a national championship contender, don’t apparently happen every year. And unlike our basketball team, the way to a national championship is to play Western Kentucky 11 times a year.

24Kt: Special teams.  Our punting has been atrocious and I don’t know what our average yards-per-kick is but I’d guess somewhere around the upper 30s. Demler and Branthover just haven’t been good enough.  Since they obviously don’t have the leg, maybe they have something that resembles an arm and we should fake it more often.  Surely Danny Coale has a decent arm right?  Instead of him kicking it and chasing down tacklers, just have him save the energy, fake it by throwing it wide and if we don’t get the 1st down then our defense is no worse for the wear since they’re not used to field position anyway.  Come on Beamer, start a revolution!  Also, Cody Journell hasn’t been lighting the world up either.  How do kickers get hurt – They’re barely people let alone football players. 
 
3. What bowl are we going to?

Playmaker:  Orange Bowl… and since I am feeling this confident I fully expect The Hokies to drop 1 of the next 3 and find a spot in the Chicken Bowl.  Let’s give the offense another shot at Dabo and the boys in Charlotte.

T Wallace:  Anything less than the sugar bowl for the Bleed Bourbon crew is a failure. As for Virginia Tech, we’ll probably end up in Miami again. 24kt owes a brunette at Tootsie’s a visit anyways, probably some child support checks too.

24Kt:  Orange.  I think we can beat Clemson in a rematch so it looks like another trip to Miami and the Orange Bowl is in the cards.  This should excite me more than it does.  Unfortunately, we’re all spoiled Hokies and want more; Filling that empty National Championship case in Cassell Coliseum will have to wait for next year once again.
 
4. What will you do if we lose to UVA?

Playmaker:  I will be in attendance at this game and after the 2000 students there rush the field I will go home… grab my bottle of Pappy… and not leave the house for 2 weeks.  Since my freshman year, Frank Beamer has yet to lose to the Frenchies and I’d like to keep that record spot free.  Have you seen the “I Pledge” video?!  It was so pathetic they actually took it down… HOW COULD ANYONE TAKE LOSING TO THIS!?  F it, Danny Coale won’t let them lose.  

T Wallace:  Some mixture of half a bottle of bourbon and the largest girl at Clarendon Ballroom that night.

24Kt:  I’ll shut off my phone/computer/TV and brain for a while and probably look into mountain climbing and read all the Twilight books within 48 hours.  I don’t expect this to happen and even if it does, FSU is going to beat UVA so we’ll have the Coastal Division locked up before Thanksgiving.  Cue Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson: Lock it up boys!
 
5. Prediction for UNC game?

Playmaker:  12 NCAA violations, 1 agent runner, 1 tutor providing illegal benefits, 3 firings, and the resignation of Coach Withers.  Cold weather, Hootie singing the National Anthem, Jenn Brown, and some fireworks.  The Heels always get up for this game so I expect it to be close into the 4th.  I’m riding Logan in the final quarter to a 27-20 win.

T Wallace:  That I’ll probably end up with a restraining order. Did you know Jenn Brown was in Blacksburg??

As for the Hokies, if we play like we did last week I’d expect a 34 – 14 blowout. But this is a classic hangover game for the Hokies (no punn intended), we played a great game last week and expect a pass because it’s a Thursday night at home. It’ll be closer then we think 24-17. Put the money on the Tar Heals +10.5.

24Kt:  The Hokies will start off slow (unfortunately a reoccurring theme) but will have a huge 2nd and 3rd quarter to put this one away.  There will not be any late-game heroics from Bryn Renner.
 
6. Joe Pa got us hammered last week, what are we drinking for this week? 

Playmaker:  Jenn Brown sighting – 1 drink
            Jarrett Boykin hand reference – 1 drink
            Lunch Pail sighting – 1 drink
            JoePa/Penn State – 4 drinks
            Craig James says something idiotic (so every time he opens his mouth) – Give 4
            Logan Thomas Trucking – Finish your drink
            Clip of the Ryan Williams fumble – Grab the bottle of bourbon

T Wallace: Any mention of Butch Davis or John Blake – take a drink
            DW breaks a tackle -  take a drink
            Jenn Brown sighting -  take a drink
            A mention of Joe Pa, Sandusky, children under the age of 13 or gingers – take a shot
            Ovechkin hatrick – Shotgun
            We don’t run LT on 3rd and 1 – Shotgun

24Kt:   Whatever we can find a reason for.   I’m 100% all-in for Playmaker and Taco’s suggestions.  Anything to get away from the most tiring sports-related story in recent memory.  Actual text alerts that ESPN sent me the past week-and-a-half:
 
11/11/11: “Police confirm pieces of a cinder block thrown through window at Jerry Sandusky’s home Thursday.”     This barely qualifies as news.  I’m sure Nick Saban probably stubbed his toe and Bo Pelini bought a pack of gum somewhere in the world at this time as well. 
 
11/14/11: “Jerry Sandusky concedes in NBC interview: ‘I shouldn’t have showered with those kids.’”  Gee, ya think?
 
11/15/11:  “PSU interim coach Tom Bradley said he “did not see” NBC’s interview with Jerry Sandusky.”  WHO EFFING CARES!?  It’s an interview, not breaking news; tell me more about Vick’s playing status for Sunday.

7. Over/Under how high Jesse Palmer’s hair is on Thursday:

Playmaker:  Over the Taco Wallce flip circa 2005.  On a more important Jesse Palmer note, how has he not hit Rece Davis with his overuse of the hands!?  Please tell me someone else notices this?!  He’s an accident waiting to happen in close quarters… the guy needs a 4-ft no fly zone around him. 

T Wallace:  Looks like a 3/4 moon tonight, so 4.7 inches front to back.

24Kt:  All you need to know about Jesse Palmer you can learn from this Axe commercial.  Rumor has it he is the brainchild for that move and also the move that spawned it, the Double Pits to Jesse move to wax his hair.  Also, don’t forget that he was on The Bachelor.

Go Hokies!

First and foremost, a big thank you to all the veterans and active military members.  Your service and sacrifice is unparalleled and without your sacrifices we wouldn’t be able to sit here and reflect about something as mundane as sports.

So here is our little back-and-forth discussing anything and everything but mostly about last night’s victory.

9:06 AM, Playmaker wrote:

It doesn’t get much better than beating Paul Johnson and the Yellow Jackets at their own game.  Virginia Tech controlled the clock, ran the ball with authority, and made the QB sneak the most efficient play in the game.  Bud Foster’s changes on defense proved to be the difference in… Tyler played fast, Collins was a force, and Wilson held his ground.  This has been stated a few times, but the defense held the Bees to -14 yards in the 4th Q… Bud shouldn’t have to pay for drinks all weekend.  An all around impressive win for the Hokies who take the driver’s seat in the Virginia Tech Division of the ACC (it really should be renamed).  The only thing holding back the boy from another trip to Charlotte is the university up the road, so hurry and book your trip to the Queen City!  As an ex-Charlotte resident I plan on writing up a guide to the city and some “must-see” establishments.  More to come on that…

So what do you fellas think?  Did the Hokies impress?  Should we send thank you cards to #45 with boxing gloves?

9:18 AM, T Wallace wrote:

Hopkins should drive up here and slap you for not mentioning him.  He was a monster inside all game. As sick as the defense was, especially my boy Kyle Fuller, I’m more impressed by the offense (probably because expectations are so low).  LT3 continues to look like he’s been here for years, he made some really great passes, especially that first TD to Coale. Who by the way, deserves every one of the plethora of freshman girls who will throw themselves on him tonight.

9:37 AM, T Wallace wrote:

****Side note: did you start posting this shit?  Or an explanation of what we’re doing?

10:06 AM, Playmaker wrote:

Doesnt look like it… but we have like 83 followers on twitter! Yeah buddy.

10:07 AM, T Wallace wrote:

You want to set it up or you want me to?

10:11 AM. Playmaker wrote:

Im leavin for a lunch in about 30… so I’d say you.

10:13 AM, T Wallace wrote:

So I’ll just have a chat with myself?  And who goes to lunch at 10:45?

10:15 AM, Playmaker wrote:

Meeting at 11;30 and i need to get gas… so there. And ill be back on around 1.

10:21 AM, T Wallace wrote:

Buy a plane ticket to denver then I’ll start listening to your excuses.

10:29 AM, Playmaker wrote:

Si!

10:35 AM, 24Kt wrote:

Settle down kids.  Just waking up now; I haven’t slept in till 10:30 since my college days and I only had 4 beers and a shot last night, that is the epitome of getting old.  Happy Veteran’s Day.  Let’s get back to the Hokies.

What a sweet victory last night was.  Touching on both Playmaker and T Wallace’s comments, we did an excellent job running the ball and stopping GT when we needed to.  Hopkins was a beast and Bud’s changes on D were noticeable and a big reason why we got the W.  Tyler played well except for that dumb personal foul after their RB was way out of bound.

Paul Johnson is such an arrogant SOB/coach that he went for it on 4th-and-1 from the GT 31 early in the 4th quarter.  We stuffed it and that was the play of the game.  The quick cut to a disgusted PJ numerous times during the broadcast was really the cherry on top.

Stupid #45 on GT should get suspended but definitely a gift basket from us.  T Wallace, you still have an account on that site that sells gorilla manure from when you sent that bar in Richmond a special package?

10:55 AM, Playmaker wrote:

Apologies to Hopkins, but i just expect a performance like that from him. Can you imagine how much better the d could of played with antione, taylor, hyphen (i almost has a spasm writing that), and/or tweedy!? Love how the guys are stepping up.

Let’s get into the punch… did anyone else notice Captain PJ yell “bullshit” after #45 went all Ronnie on Logan Thomas!? Has Georgia Tech ever committed a penalty under him??

11:10 AM, T Wallace wrote:

Much like the cast of the Real World (that’s right, another MTV reference), Scientologists and Fox News viewers; Admiral Paul “once got a hand job from a stripper named sparkles” Johnson is living in a different world then the rest of us, where cut blocks are legal and 47 option plays are exciting. You’d think someone who came from coaching at a military academy (shout out to the vets today) would hold his players to a little higher standard. Without that play though, we’re having a completely different conversation today.

Side bet, a Car Bomb says we never run the option again this year. Take it?

11:18 AM, 24Kt wrote:

@Playmaker – Would have been nice to have a healthy D (questioning your Hyphen request though) but you’re right, the guys out there really stepped up.  I missed PJ yelling and cursing but I basically picture him as a kid whose ice cream was just taken away and he just has that sour and pissed off look all the time.  I think it’s his normal face.

@T Wallace – How do you find this stuff out?  Outstanding research.  You’re right though about the punch and regarding the irony of PJ’s offense, he comes from such an honorable background but has bent the NCAA blocking rules and practically asks his players to cheat.

I know it was mentioned earlier but about Danny Coale’s ”breakaway” speed on that long TD?  He makes a great cut but embarrassed their DBs.  They should have tackled him three times during that run.

Oh, and I’ll take the side bet.  I think we’re going to try it again to get Wilson on the outside in the open field or just have LT3 hit the truck stick like in Madden and run some people over.

11:55 AM, T Wallace wrote:

Too many conversations going on…. time for bullets:

- After watching the option single handily sink our 2003 season during the WVU game, I’d like for it to be torn out of our playbook forever.

- Danny Coale’s been touted as one of the top 5 fastest guys on the team, just a blatant lie. They probably just feel bad for his NFL prospects, the Patriots seem to be full on white wide receivers for the next 7 years.

- Poopsenders.com still in business and slanging poop with the best of them. I’d love to send Ensign Paul “I drive a PT Cruiser” Johnson a steaming pile of elephant turds but from that stupid look on his face, I’d say he’s already smelling shit 24/7.

I haven’t gone over to ESPN today for fear of seeing Joe Pa’s face again, has David Wilson started to get any national attention after last night’s performance?  That dude cannot be tackled.

12:05 PM, 24Kt wrote:

I didn’t think the bet was whether or not it’s a good idea, it was whether we’d do it again.  It’s a terrible play for our offense, no doubt.  Stinespring will find a way to convince O’Cain that it will work again, I’m sure of it.

Coming into last night’s game, David Wilson was 2nd in the FBS in rushing yards.  175 yards later he might be #1 now.  The funny thing is, this is his — incorrect — stat page link on ESPN.com: http://espn.go.com/college-football/player/_/id/478955/david-wilson.  Hofstra Pride!? Marques Colston and Wayne Chrebet should be so proud.

Also, I hope we somehow hit a subject where we have to pull a Bill Simmons and just end this article with, “Yup, those are my readers” but in this case, it’d be, “Yup, we just spoke about a coach and a player getting Fed Exed animal poop.”

1:47 PM, Playmaker wrote:

Back from lunch with Jonathon Moxon, he’s excited about tonight’s show…  and I’m glad to see you guys are staying active with no posts in the last hour and a half.

There will never be enough nicknames for Paul “short bus” Johnson, I’m all for a top 100 list… then we can narrow it down to one.  But back to this football game… a couple of quick observations:

-Hosley has not played well the last 2 weeks… need him on top of his game against Dwight Jones next week

-Shane Beamer is quickly moving up my list for favorite coaches.  His back high five with Logan Thomas was on point

-Danny Coale is my hero… the guy just knows how to play the game.  I am really going to miss watching him on Saturday’s

-It’s times like these I wish I was still in school… next Thursday is going to be insane

-Jenn Brown will be in Blacksburg next week

Do you think people would donate to send Paul Johnson a special package from poopsenders.com?

2:21 PM, 24Kt wrote:

Even people that don’t have to work have a lunch hour but I’m glad you got to meet up with Dawson.

- You’re right, Hosley has been beaten a few times and been the recipient of some pass interference calls.  Although who would have expected a white WR from Duke abusing him.  I’m not terribly worried about UNC, he does need to step up to the challenge that is Dwight Jones.

- Young energetic coaches doing back high fives are epic to watch.  Bud did this as well but I can’t remember the game but it was under important circumstances, i.e ACCCG or against Miami to win the Coastal Division.

- We’ll definitely miss Danny as he’s brought countless exciting plays to our lives; the Nebraska catch probably at the top of the list.  We’re going to lose a lot of WR talent this year but I hope Dyrell gets a medical waiver and we’ll have Marcus Davis and DJ Coles stepping up for the years to come.

- Don’t know too many people going to the game next week.  Jenn Brown > Erin Andrews.

- If we could only get his address, PJ would be in trouble.

2:26 PM, T Wallace wrote:

I had a very thought out and well written response to 24kt but my computer crashed harder than Lindsey Lohan’s career.  Let’s wrap this up.

I think that about does it for us today.  See ya next week for UNC breakdowns and the like.

Just a disclaimer: my distaste for Paul Johnson and Georgia Tech has resulted in an extremely unfunny article.  Seriously, this might as well have been written by someone in desperate need for anti-depressant medication.

Here we go again.  This will be the 3rd year in a row that the winner of this game will – in all likelihood – represent the Coastal Division for the ACC Championship.  A constant thorn-in-our-side, Georgia Tech has provided the biggest challenge for us because of their triple option.  In other news, the sky is blue.  This is nothing new to most people who follow college football.  Wikipedia calls their “Offensive Scheme” the “flexbone” which just sounds like the lost 5th member to Bone Thugs-N-harmony.  We’ll just call it the triple option.  T Wallace will break down the x’s and o’s to demonstrate the discipline needed to succeed the way the Yellow Jackets have while running this offense.  We came up with characters so that it seems more interesting.

There are three main players in Georgia Tech’s spread/triple option attack. The QB, A-back and B-back.  Or in Georgia Tech’s case, The Bag From American Beauty, Ross Perot and Rosie O’Donnell.  The Bag From American Beauty will line up under center with Rosie O’Donnell directly behind him. Ross Perot will be offset on either side.

At the hike of the ball, Rosie O’Donnell will dive straight up the middle like the Middle Linebacker is a Baconator. The Bag From American Beauty’s first option is to hand the ball off to Rosie O’Donnell. If The Bag From American Beauty sees the defensive end crash to the middle, he’ll keep the ball and sprint to the outside.

At this point The Bag From American Beauty has the option to keep the ball and head up field, or his third option is to pitch the ball to Ross Perot.  He’ll be reading the defensive end on that side of the play the whole way to make his decision.  Much like The Bag from American Beauty, Georgia Tech’s QB has no need for an arm to throw the ball.

To see this play going to the left, simply hit the R2 button on your PS3 controller.

The success of the play relies on:

• The Bag from American Beauty correctly reading the Defensive off the snap and on the pitch.
• Rosie O’Donnell selling the run up the middle.
• The Offensive Line diving at the defense’s knees like prostitutes at an 8-ball of coke.

As for the man behind this cockamamie scheme?  Paul Johnson took the head coaching job at GT in 2008 after many successful years at Navy.  Now in his 4th year and 5 pant sizes later, PJ continues to orchestrate an explosive offense that is tough for most teams to stop (this year they are currently 2nd in rushing yards amongst all Div-I/FBS teams).  This is a team that will run the ball for 80% of the game.  How do they recruit WRs and sell them on their program when there is practically no involvement from that position?  I suppose Stephen Hill is that deadly WR option and is basically a poor man’s Calvin Johnson, but that is still saying a lot.  Same height as Megatron, just 25 lbs thinner.  [Author's note: when I search for information about Paul Johnson, google auto-populates "Paul Johnson Jabba the Hut" and "Paul Johnson fat", then "Paul Johnson coach" on my computer.  These are things you need to know.]

The last game for both the Hokies and the Yellow Jackets resulted in a win but with drastically different moods afterward.  For VT, we barely beat Duke who is counted on to be consistently terrible but this year has been consistently scrappy.  For GT, they beat Clemson quite handily and have more momentum coming into tonight’s showdown.   This begs the question, how did GT lose to Miami and UVA?  I guess the same way that we almost did to ECU and Duke; overlooking opponents and being susceptible to the “trap game” rationale.

On to the million dollar question: how can we stop or slow down the Yellow Jackets, or at least attempt to this year?  Enter Bud Foster who is going all ”musical chairs” on us/GT with his defense.  Jack Tyler will be the starting middle linebacker instead of Barquell Rivers.  He’s putting J.R. Collins at tackle replacing Luther Maddy and all 219 lbs of Tyrel Wilson at DE to replace Collins.  Alonzo Tweedy was rocking a blue non-contact jersey earlier this week in hopes of being a gametime decision.  Unfortunately, it was already announced that he is sitting this one out and Kyle Fuller will be stepping in at the whip position.  Cris Hill will be the cornerback opposite of Hosley.  This patchwork defense is a unique adjustment due to the Yellow Jackets’ running attack.  Bud’s philosophy is combatting speed with speed; can’t blame him there.   We’ll see how it works out.  At least Cody Journell — and his “C” and “J” tricep tattoos – is probable so we hopefully won’t miss any more 29-yard field goals (cough, Tyler Weiss).

On offense, let’s hope they figured out how to come up with a gameplan that preaches consistency.  Run with Wilson, run with J.O. and have Logan throw when need be.  I can’t stress the “need be” enough.  Logan, you are not a 41-year-old retired lawnmower driver from Kiln, Mississippi.  Don’t sling it please.  Make the safe throw and run the ball for 7 yards then lower your shoulder to those DBs like I know you can.   We have the receivers but more importantly, Wilson is tearing it up and on pace to break Ryan Williams’ rushing record.  Let’s keep it simple please.  Also, Beamer, when Logan almost throws a 50-yard INT (would have been safety Matt Daniels’ 3rd of the day if Frank didn’t challenge) and our punters have been averaging at least 10 yards less than that, please take the INT.  Who cares about stats, play the field position.

Finally, as we watch this game tonight, the BB staff will be taking notes and discussing in a “live” forum tomorrow with the site constantly updated so that we can rant about anything and everything.  You’re welcome.  Go Hokies!

With back-to-back bye weeks — yeah Duke, that’s right, I went there — we don’t have much in the way of a preview this week.  Instead we’ll look at how everyone in the ACC stacks up currently, and remember, making fun of Georgia Tech is a right, not a priviledge.

1) Clemson – Tajh Boyd has silly numbers (24:3 TD-to-INT ratio with one being Hosley’s if I might add) and his surrounding playmakers Sammy Watkins, Andre Ellington and DeAndre Hopkins make the Tigers the best in the ACC.  Normally, that’s not saying much but Clemson is a top-5 team with four conference games left and yes I’m including the ACC Championship game.  Not much to make fun of right now, other than their coach is still named/referred to as Dabo.

I dug this gem up to remember the feeling of a time when Clemson was always that team who came up just a little short.  Ahh, the good ole’ days.

2) Virginia Tech – Hopefully we’ll be seeing Clemson in the ACCCG rematch.  Rematches are our thing – just ask Boston College.  Unfortunately, injuries on defense are mounting up and starting to take a toll, with Bruce Taylor the latest to go on IR.  In order of least likely to play against Duke is Tweedy, Gayle and Hosley.  Let’s rest them and get the young guys some experience.

3) Miami – What in the name of Jacory-Harris-is-playing-pretty-well is going on here!?  It looks like their close game against us was a turning point for them as they have reeled off two quality wins-in-a-row against UNC and GT.  Al Golden is a good coach and a nice guy so I’m glad that he has had some success after the shitstorm that happened at the beginning of the season.  I’m sure he’s too nice of a guy to wonder if Nevin Shapiro is someone’s bitch in jail.  Not me though.

4) Wake Forest – The surprise of the Atlantic Division and the team that is impossible to hate, well, until they get a win against VT at least.  We haven’t lost to the Demon Deacons since 1983 when minimum wage was $3.25 and Michael Jackson was still black, and a male.  Just saying.

5) Florida State – Well hello there “others receiving votes”!  Actually, they’re not even receiving votes yet.  Yes, it’s been that bad for what was once a pre-season top-10 team on paper.  Florida State is unquestionably a good team when they have EJ Manuel at QB.  Maybe next year they’ll be a top-5 team before they make an epic tumble out of the rankings.  Something to shoot for eh Jimbo?

6) Georgia Tech – Nothing would make me happier than the Yellow Jackets going into a tailspin losing four straight (Clemson on Saturday and our Hokies on Nov. 10) and Paul Johnson admitting that the triple option, although usually effective, is a terrible offense when other teams shut down their running game.   Come on Clemson, help a Hokie out.

7) North Carolina – They’re scrappy, you have to give them that.  They lost close games to Miami and Georgia Tech and had a shoot-out going with Clemson until midway through the 3rd quarter.  All this means is that they are a decent team, but boring as hell without Butch Davis around.  Anyone heard from him lately?  To wikipedia I go….

All I found was that he enjoys watching his son’s senior year of football; that and derailing his son’s dreams of playing for him at UNC.

8) NC State – Coach Tom O’Brien.  Words.  Mike Glennon.  INTs.  Words.  Wolfpack.  Hangover.  Words.  Loud Noises!

9) Virginia – Mike London’s gang seemed to be turning a corner after their defeat of Georgia Tech a few weeks back.  One Mike Glennon beating later — in Charlottesville by the way — and it’s back to mediocrity for the Wahoos.  Like seeing relatives during the holidays, we’ve gotten into a routine Thanksgiving weekend for our annual in-state “rivalry” game: “Good to see you again, no don’t get up.  Thanks for the W.”

10) Maryland – Ralph Freidgen to turkey drumstick telephone:  “See what happens when they make the wrong decision and fire an undeserving coach?”  Blame Randy Edsall (my pick).  Blame the hideous uniforms.  Blame the fact that they weren’t that good to begin with.  A youtube classic, this kid still has faith as Halloween approaches.  Fear the tortles!

11)  Duke – Ahh, there you are.  Like a cold beer on a hot summer day, beating Duke isn’t the best thing in the world for you, but damn is it refreshing.  I might copywright this.

12) Boston College – They are here because they haven’t won a conference game and because they lost to Duke while at home.  Duke!  Injuries have played a big roll but all teams have to deal with injuries.  Coach Spaz’s moustache might be on the hot seat next year if they’re not a dark horse in the Atlantic race.

Enjoy the two weeks off Hokies and Hokie fans!