Pittsburgh
Last year: 8-5 (6-2 ACC), lost 44-28 to Navy in the Military Bowl
Best win: vs. Louisville, 45-34 Worst loss: vs. Miami, 29-24
Coach: Pat Narduzzi (second year)
Starters returning: 18 (8 offense, 8 defense, 2 specialists)
Offensive player to watch: RB James Conner and RB Qadree Ollison. It's difficult to put into perspective Conner's struggle to get back on the field. I try to keep these previews objective and base them on stats and analysis, but many will be pulling for Conner after what he endured last season. The former ACC player of the year sustained a season-ending knee injury in the Panthers' first game. If that wasn't enough, he was then diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma three months later. Incredibly, at the end of the spring, he was declared cancer-free and has been working hard to get back into football shape ever since. The big, 6-foot-2 235-pounder ran for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns two seasons ago. Either way, the Pitt rushing game should be in good hands, because Ollison stepped in last year as a redshirt freshman and was the conference's rookie of the year, rushing for 1,121 yards and 11 scores.
Defensive player to watch: DE Ejuan Price. Bothered by injuries in previous seasons, the disruptor broke out in 2015 with 48 tackles, 19.5 for loss, 11.5 sacks, and a fumble forced and recovered each.
Special teams player to watch: Quadree Henderson. As a freshman last year, he returned kicks an average of 28 yards and scored a touchdown in the Military Bowl.
Schedule: vs. Villanova, vs. Penn State, at Oklahoma State, at North Carolina, vs. Marshall, vs. Georgia Tech, at Virginia, vs. Virginia Tech, at Miami, at Clemson, vs. Duke, vs. Syracuse.
Outlook: Record-setting receiver Tyler Boyd is on to the NFL, but otherwise, there is lots of promise on offense for Pitt with a possibly potent one-two punch in the backfield of Ollison and Conner to run behind an offensive line that returns four starters. Additionally, QB Nathan Peterman is back, and he was solid last season and has room to improve, as he completed 61.5 percent of his passes for 2,287 yards, 20 touchdowns, and eight picks. The defense has plenty of returning starters and should get better under Narduzzi, who has a solid defensive background and built up one of the nation's best units at Michigan State from 2007-14. In addition to Price, other impact players are LB Matt Galambos (88 tackles, 10 for loss, five sacks, two INTs), safety Jordan Whitehead (109 tackles, six for loss, half a sack, one pick), and cornerback Avonte Maddox (75 tackles, three INTs). The non-ACC schedule is fairly tough with Villanova and Penn State, and Marshall is no pushover. Road ACC games against Clemson and North Carolina are tough. Pitt has some really nice pieces, though, and could potentially compete for the Coastal division title.
Win-loss prediction: 8-4 or 9-3
Virginia Tech
Last year: 7-6 (4-4 ACC), beat Tulsa 55-52 in Independence Bowl
Best win: vs. N.C. State, 28-13 Worst loss: at East Carolina, 35-28
Coach: Justin Fuente (first year, 26-23 career)
Starters returning: 15 (8 offense, 6 defense, 1 specialist)
Offensive player to watch: RB Travon McMillian. As a redshirt freshman last season, McMillian had an opportunity with Marshawn Williams recovering from a broken leg and Shai McKenzie suspended and made the most of it, carrying the ball for 1,043 yards and seven touchdowns. He also tallied 12 catches and one score receiving.
Defensive player to watch: LB Andrew Motuapuaka. A sophomore last season, Motuapuaka recorded 73 tackles, 11.5 for loss, four sacks, one pick, a pair of fumble recoveries, and three forced fumbles.
Special teams player to watch: K Joey Slye. Slye made 23 of his 30 field goals last season.
Schedule: vs. Liberty, vs. Tennessee (at Bristol, Tenn.), vs. Boston College, vs. East Carolina, at North Carolina, at Syracuse, vs. Miami, at Pittsburgh, at Duke, vs. Georgia Tech, at Notre Dame, vs. Virginia.
Outlook: Like Virginia, and other teams with new coaches this year in the ACC, the Hokies should be one of the most interesting teams to watch this season. Fuente comes over from Memphis, where his record in four seasons is nothing special -- but if you look at the past two years, his Tigers went 19-6. He brings a high-octane offense to Blacksburg, and he helped develop Paxton Lynch at Memphis and Andy Dalton at TCU into fine quarterbacks. He appears to have the chops to help revamp what has been a mostly
disappointing Hokies offense in recent years. He has plenty to work with, too, in a promising (if lacking depth) offensive line, 1,000-yard returning back in McMillian, all-ACC wideout in Isaiah Ford (75 catches, 1,164 yards, 11 scores), and a versatile tight end-playmaker in Bucky Hodges (40 receptions, 530 yards, six TDs).
Notice I said nothing about the QB? Ah, yes, the QB, another question Tech shares with UVa this preseason. The two main contenders appeared to be redshirt senior Brenden Motley and junior college transfer Jerod Evans, who has two years of eligibility remaining. And then today, the newspaper I work at, the Richmond Times-Dispatch, reported that true freshman Josh Jackson, who enrolled in the spring, has had a great camp so far and could have something to say about who starts. He and Evans come in highly regarded, but obviously have zero FBS experience, while Motley played a lot last year after Michael Brewer broke his clavicle and completed 56.1 percent of his passes for 11 touchdowns and seven picks. Whoever gets picked will probably have been vetted fully given Fuente's track record for QBs.
Honestly, the defense might be a bigger question mark. It kind of feels like Fuente will cobble together a good offense that has solid pieces. Tech's defense has been short of excellent recently and doesn't have as many returners as last year's unit that was supposed to be awesome and was at times, but wasn't other times, ie, giving up 52 points to Tulsa in the bowl game. The Hokies need to be better in facing strong passing games and up-tempo spreads, and maybe having Fuente installing his offense can help Bud Foster in that regard. The other lingering question is Foster's attitude. It was great that he was retained, but is he into it? Does he wish he was picked as Frank Beamer's successor? Is he as loyal to this staff as he was to Frank Beamer? Time will tell, but that might not end up having a lot to do with how the defense performs in the end. Foster is 57, so if the defense is still below his and Tech's standards, he will probably move on if he wants to before he gets older, or retire. On the schedule, Tech once again gets lucky in the rotation and skips Clemson and Florida State, but does have several tough games on the schedule, such as Tennessee at Bristol Motor Speedway (the "Battle at Bristol"), a trio of tough road games at North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and Notre Dame, and, even though it is at home, we might as well include East Carolina, which now owns three wins over Tech since 2008. Success for Tech this year depends on the development of an effective quarterback, and whether the defense is average or very good.
Win-loss prediction: 7-5 or 8-4
Last year: 8-5 (6-2 ACC), lost 44-28 to Navy in the Military Bowl
Best win: vs. Louisville, 45-34 Worst loss: vs. Miami, 29-24
Coach: Pat Narduzzi (second year)
Starters returning: 18 (8 offense, 8 defense, 2 specialists)
Offensive player to watch: RB James Conner and RB Qadree Ollison. It's difficult to put into perspective Conner's struggle to get back on the field. I try to keep these previews objective and base them on stats and analysis, but many will be pulling for Conner after what he endured last season. The former ACC player of the year sustained a season-ending knee injury in the Panthers' first game. If that wasn't enough, he was then diagnosed with Hodgkin's lymphoma three months later. Incredibly, at the end of the spring, he was declared cancer-free and has been working hard to get back into football shape ever since. The big, 6-foot-2 235-pounder ran for 1,765 yards and 26 touchdowns two seasons ago. Either way, the Pitt rushing game should be in good hands, because Ollison stepped in last year as a redshirt freshman and was the conference's rookie of the year, rushing for 1,121 yards and 11 scores.
Defensive player to watch: DE Ejuan Price. Bothered by injuries in previous seasons, the disruptor broke out in 2015 with 48 tackles, 19.5 for loss, 11.5 sacks, and a fumble forced and recovered each.
Schedule: vs. Villanova, vs. Penn State, at Oklahoma State, at North Carolina, vs. Marshall, vs. Georgia Tech, at Virginia, vs. Virginia Tech, at Miami, at Clemson, vs. Duke, vs. Syracuse.
Outlook: Record-setting receiver Tyler Boyd is on to the NFL, but otherwise, there is lots of promise on offense for Pitt with a possibly potent one-two punch in the backfield of Ollison and Conner to run behind an offensive line that returns four starters. Additionally, QB Nathan Peterman is back, and he was solid last season and has room to improve, as he completed 61.5 percent of his passes for 2,287 yards, 20 touchdowns, and eight picks. The defense has plenty of returning starters and should get better under Narduzzi, who has a solid defensive background and built up one of the nation's best units at Michigan State from 2007-14. In addition to Price, other impact players are LB Matt Galambos (88 tackles, 10 for loss, five sacks, two INTs), safety Jordan Whitehead (109 tackles, six for loss, half a sack, one pick), and cornerback Avonte Maddox (75 tackles, three INTs). The non-ACC schedule is fairly tough with Villanova and Penn State, and Marshall is no pushover. Road ACC games against Clemson and North Carolina are tough. Pitt has some really nice pieces, though, and could potentially compete for the Coastal division title.
Win-loss prediction: 8-4 or 9-3
Virginia Tech
Last year: 7-6 (4-4 ACC), beat Tulsa 55-52 in Independence Bowl
Best win: vs. N.C. State, 28-13 Worst loss: at East Carolina, 35-28
Coach: Justin Fuente (first year, 26-23 career)
Starters returning: 15 (8 offense, 6 defense, 1 specialist)
Offensive player to watch: RB Travon McMillian. As a redshirt freshman last season, McMillian had an opportunity with Marshawn Williams recovering from a broken leg and Shai McKenzie suspended and made the most of it, carrying the ball for 1,043 yards and seven touchdowns. He also tallied 12 catches and one score receiving.
Defensive player to watch: LB Andrew Motuapuaka. A sophomore last season, Motuapuaka recorded 73 tackles, 11.5 for loss, four sacks, one pick, a pair of fumble recoveries, and three forced fumbles.
Special teams player to watch: K Joey Slye. Slye made 23 of his 30 field goals last season.
Schedule: vs. Liberty, vs. Tennessee (at Bristol, Tenn.), vs. Boston College, vs. East Carolina, at North Carolina, at Syracuse, vs. Miami, at Pittsburgh, at Duke, vs. Georgia Tech, at Notre Dame, vs. Virginia.
Outlook: Like Virginia, and other teams with new coaches this year in the ACC, the Hokies should be one of the most interesting teams to watch this season. Fuente comes over from Memphis, where his record in four seasons is nothing special -- but if you look at the past two years, his Tigers went 19-6. He brings a high-octane offense to Blacksburg, and he helped develop Paxton Lynch at Memphis and Andy Dalton at TCU into fine quarterbacks. He appears to have the chops to help revamp what has been a mostly
Notice I said nothing about the QB? Ah, yes, the QB, another question Tech shares with UVa this preseason. The two main contenders appeared to be redshirt senior Brenden Motley and junior college transfer Jerod Evans, who has two years of eligibility remaining. And then today, the newspaper I work at, the Richmond Times-Dispatch, reported that true freshman Josh Jackson, who enrolled in the spring, has had a great camp so far and could have something to say about who starts. He and Evans come in highly regarded, but obviously have zero FBS experience, while Motley played a lot last year after Michael Brewer broke his clavicle and completed 56.1 percent of his passes for 11 touchdowns and seven picks. Whoever gets picked will probably have been vetted fully given Fuente's track record for QBs.
Honestly, the defense might be a bigger question mark. It kind of feels like Fuente will cobble together a good offense that has solid pieces. Tech's defense has been short of excellent recently and doesn't have as many returners as last year's unit that was supposed to be awesome and was at times, but wasn't other times, ie, giving up 52 points to Tulsa in the bowl game. The Hokies need to be better in facing strong passing games and up-tempo spreads, and maybe having Fuente installing his offense can help Bud Foster in that regard. The other lingering question is Foster's attitude. It was great that he was retained, but is he into it? Does he wish he was picked as Frank Beamer's successor? Is he as loyal to this staff as he was to Frank Beamer? Time will tell, but that might not end up having a lot to do with how the defense performs in the end. Foster is 57, so if the defense is still below his and Tech's standards, he will probably move on if he wants to before he gets older, or retire. On the schedule, Tech once again gets lucky in the rotation and skips Clemson and Florida State, but does have several tough games on the schedule, such as Tennessee at Bristol Motor Speedway (the "Battle at Bristol"), a trio of tough road games at North Carolina, Pittsburgh, and Notre Dame, and, even though it is at home, we might as well include East Carolina, which now owns three wins over Tech since 2008. Success for Tech this year depends on the development of an effective quarterback, and whether the defense is average or very good.
Win-loss prediction: 7-5 or 8-4
I always chuckle when I see anyone talk about the Battle at Bristol. It's like VT is going out of its way to play into the stereotype of their fans. Lol.
ReplyDeleteNo joke one of the official brandings of the game is "College Football's Biggest Ever"
ReplyDeleteLOL that's great.
ReplyDeleteYeah how is that possible for a) not No. 1 vs. No. 2, and b) not at the end of the year?
ReplyDelete