Virginia at Virginia Tech gets rescheduled; Week 2 college picks

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The Virginia at Virginia Tech game, which was originally scheduled for this Saturday but then postponed last weekend, got its new date today. The Cavaliers and Hokies are slated to square off in Lane Stadium on Dec. 12, the first time the rivals have met in the final month of the year.
I expect mid-December in Blacksburg will be a little colder than mid-September. Also, by then, there could be more fans in the stands, though I doubt there would be a full house. But more fans would likely give an advantage to the Hokies. That's OK, though, I am just glad that the game has been rescheduled. We will see if it holds up. Now on to the picks for this week.
Virginia OL Ryan Nelson holds
the Commonwealth Cup aloft after
the Cavaliers topped the Hokies last year.
The game is taking place almost
three months later than expected in 2020.
(Ryan M. Kelly/Getty Images)


Last week: 6-1

In Week 1, I did a good job of picking a closer-than-expected (relatively speaking) margin for Clemson at Wake Forest (guess was 38-7, actual score was 37-13). I was one UAB touchdown away from getting that score against Miami correct (guess was 31-21, actual score was 31-14). I was pretty close on the margin for Louisville-Western Kentucky (guess was 41-24, actual score was 35-21). But Florida State losing to Georgia Tech surprised me (guess was 27-17 FSU, actual score was 16-13 GT).

For Week 2, in addition to the postponed Virginia-Virginia Tech matchup, two other games that were scheduled have been called off, one for good. Charlotte at North Carolina was canceled today after contact tracing for COVID-19 wiped out too many offensive linemen for the 49ers. No. 21 BYU at No. 22 Army was supposed to be one of two top 25 vs. top 25 games this week, but it was postponed a few days ago because BYU had a few players test positive. The top 25 vs. top 25 contest that is still on takes place in the ACC.

It's worth noting the rankings are kind of weird right now because Big Ten and Pac-12 teams aren't included. So Virginia Tech is No. 20 without playing a game. Army is No. 22. Louisiana-Lafayette is No. 19 after winning at No. 23 Iowa State. North Carolina is already No. 12. But that will soon change, because the Big Ten voted Wednesday to start its season in October, a schedule consisting of eight conference games for each school. The Pac-12 also could make a similar decision soon. So get ready to see Ohio State and Penn State back in the top 10. These additions will boot out some of these more novel ranked programs.

Syracuse (0-1) at No. 25 Pittsburgh (1-0), Noon, ACCN
The Panthers have won 15 of the past 18 meetings. Six of the past eight, though, have been decided by single digits. However, it is difficult to predict a tight contest right now with Pitt clearly looking like the better team.
Pittsburgh 28, Syracuse 13

Boston College (0-0) at Duke (0-1), Noon, ESPN3
The Blue Devils stuck with Notre Dame last week in a 27-13 loss. The Eagles are opening their season under first-year coach Jeff Hafley.
Duke 24, Boston College 13

South Florida (1-0) at No. 7 Notre Dame (1-0), 2:30 p.m. USA Network
Notre Dame 38, South Florida 10

No. 14 UCF (0-0) at Georgia Tech (1-0), 3:30 p.m. ABC
We will get to see if the Yellow Jackets continue to make improvements under second-year coach Geoff Collins. Defeating the Knights will probably be tougher than beating the Seminoles last week, but I don't think many people expected them to win that game either.
UCF 24, Georgia Tech 20

The Citadel (0-1) at No. 1 Clemson (1-0), 4 p.m. ACCN
Hopefully the Bulldogs are getting paid a handsome sum of money to get blown to smithereens.
Clemson 51, The Citadel 3

No. 17 Miami (1-0) at No. 18 Louisville (1-0), 7:30 p.m. ABC
In one of the stranger games of the 2019 season, the Hurricanes pounded the Cardinals, 52-27. Last week, Miami picked up more rushing yards against an FBS team than it had in six years, 337, with Cam'Ron Harris rushing for 134, and transfer QB D'Eriq King notching 83. Louisville struggled on defense last season despite winning eight games; it is too early to know how much the Cards have improved on that side of the ball. But Louisville did do a better job of controlling its game last week against Western Kentucky than Miami did against UAB. Miami led 14-7 at the half, and it was 17-14 in the third quarter. Louisville led 28-7 at the half and 35-14 at the end of third quarter. Despite some second-guessing on my part, I still believe early in the season, I need to stick to my guns. I predicted Louisville would have a better season than Miami, so I think the Cards win this one with QB Micale Cunningham and their offense.
Louisville 34, Miami 31

Wake Forest (0-1) at N.C. State (0-0), 8 p.m. ACCN
The Demon Deacons made the final score respectable against Clemson last week. The Wolfpack are coming off a 4-8 year and will be breaking in a new QB in their first game. This is a big matchup if either of these teams hopes to attain what it would call a successful season. Wake has won the past three in the series, including 44-10 at home in 2019. Give me the Deacs. 
Wake Forest 23, N.C. State 20

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