Georgia Tech Game Time Set
ABC has picked up the Virginia Tech-Georgia Tech
game in Blacksburg on September 30 and will televise it at 3:30 p.m. The game
will be a regional telecast, and will be the biggest ACC game of the day.
The Hokies and Yellow Jackets played on an ABC
Split National game at 3:30 last season. The Hokies won the meeting 51-7.
TechSideline.com's football schedules have been
updated with the game time and broadcast information.
Hokies Move up in Polls
The latest polls were released on Sunday, and
following their 36-0 thrashing of Duke, Virginia Tech has moved up. The Hokies
are up to 11th in the A.P. Poll and find themselves at #10 nationally in
the USA Today Coaches’ Poll. The Hokies were ranked #14 in both polls last
week.
Virginia Tech is now the highest ranked team in
the ACC. There are still four ranked teams in the ACC, but the big surprise is
that Miami is no longer ranked on the top 25 in either poll. The Hurricanes were
blown out 31-7 by Louisville on Saturday. After being unranked for a week,
Clemson moves back into the top 25 after knocking off Florida State 27-20.
| The ACC in the Polls | ||
| Team | A.P. Poll | USA Today Poll |
| Virginia Tech | 11 | 10 |
| Florida State | 18 | 17 |
| Boston College | 20 | 21 |
| Clemson | 19 | 23 |
Boston College was very close to dropping a
home game to BYU, but they eventually prevailed 30-23 in double overtime. An
Eagle loss would have knocked them out of the top 25.
With the Hokies ranked in the Top 10 in the USA Today Poll, it means Tech has been ranked in the top 10 for at least one week in one poll every year since 1998. Since 1994, the Hokies have failed to reach the top 10 for at least one week just once -- in 1997.
| Hokies in the Polls | ||
| Year | Highest A.P. Rank |
Highest
Coaches’ Poll Rank |
| 1994 | 13 | 10 |
| 1995 | 10 | 9 |
| 1996 | 10 | 9 |
| 1997 | 14 | 12 |
| 1998 | 14 | 10 |
| 1999 | 2 | 2 |
| 2000 | 2 | 2 |
| 2001 | 5 | 4 |
| 2002 | 3 | 3 |
| 2003 | 3 | 3 |
| 2004 | 9 | 9 |
| 2005 | 3 | 3 |
| 2006 | 11 | 10 |
That's an impressive streak, and the
Hokies have a chance to move up even further if they can knock off Cincinnati on
Saturday.
Updated ACC Stats
It has been well documented that the ACC is down as a conference this season, especially on the offensive side of the ball. Those trends continued after another weekend of college football.
| Key ACC Offensive Statistics | |||||
| Team | Scoring Offense |
Passing Offense |
Rushing Offense |
Total Offense |
Average |
| Clemson | 12 | 42 | 41 | 35 | 32.5 |
| Boston College | 32 | 8 | 90 | 38 | 42 |
| Virginia Tech | 15 | 44 | 83 | 69 | 52.8 |
| UNC | 67 | 46 | 56 | 47 | 54 |
| Georgia Tech | 52 | 96 | 19 | 53 | 55 |
| Miami | 72 | 53 | 60 | 63 | 62 |
| Maryland | 63 | 84 | 50 | 77 | 68.5 |
| Wake Forest | 83 | 93 | 61 | 93 | 82.5 |
| NC State | 84 | 98 | 70 | 98 | 87.5 |
| Florida State | 84 | 54 | 118 | 105 | 90.3 |
| Duke | 117 | 75 | 113 | 110 | 103.8 |
| Virginia | 107 | 80 | 117 | 112 | 104 |
Virginia Tech's offense is just below the
middle of the pack nationally, but so far they have been in the top half of the
ACC. Their scoring offense (many points set up by defense and special teams) is
making them seem like a better offense than they actually are, but even in total
offense (yards from scrimmage), Tech is sixth in the ACC. Who would have thought
Florida State would be 105th in the nation in total offense?
The ACC's defense statistics are much more impressive.
| Key ACC Defensive Statistics | |||||
| Team | Scoring Defense |
Passing Defense |
Rushing Defense |
Total Defense |
Average |
| Virginia Tech | 1 | 8 | 30 | 8 | 11.8 |
| Wake Forest | 18 | 50 | 40 | 35 | 35.8 |
| Florida State | 41 | 71 | 8 | 26 | 36.5 |
| Miami | 41 | 75 | 9 | 29 | 38.5 |
| Clemson | 50 | 45 | 34 | 28 | 39.3 |
| Georgia Tech | 28 | 66 | 31 | 36 | 40.3 |
| Virginia | 62 | 28 | 71 | 44 | 51.3 |
| Duke | 57 | 88 | 37 | 53 | 58.8 |
| NC State | 62 | 41 | 81 | 55 | 59.8 |
| Maryland | 69 | 31 | 99 | 72 | 67.8 |
| UNC | 106 | 55 | 100 | 87 | 87 |
| Boston College | 87 | 119 | 61 | 113 | 95 |
These numbers are pretty good, especially
for the Hokies. Just looking at those stats, it appears that Tech hasn't
missed a beat despite losing Jimmy Williams, Justin Hamilton, Jonathan Lewis, James Anderson and Darryl Tapp to the NFL.
There are a few other stats worth noting as well. Sean Glennon is ninth in the nation in passing efficiency, with a rating of 170. Chris Leak of Florida and Justin Willis of SMU lead the nation with a rating of 177.5, so Glennon is very close to the top of the list. He has many tests remaining this season, but he is off to a good start.
The Tech defense ranks highly in two other categories as well. They are fifth in the nation in pass efficiency defense and 11th in sacks. They are averaging 3.67 sacks per game. Put an asterisk next to that last stat however, as not everyone in the ACC has had an opportunity to square off against Duke's offensive line.
Also, for an offensive line that was much maligned heading into the season, Tech's group has protected Glennon very well. They have given up just two sacks on the season, an average of 0.67 per game. One of the sacks was given up by backup offensive tackle Nick Marshman, who played in place of Brandon Frye in the UNC game, and the other sack was given up when starting guard Sergio Render missed an assignment against Northeastern.