The No. 10 Virginia Tech football team must improve on last season’s results to keep its respect in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
After winning the 2005, 2007 and 2008 conference championships, the Hokies were picked to win the conference in 2009 and are again favored in 2010 according to media covering the ACC.
Tech earned a No. 7 preseason ranking in 2009, but had to face No. 5 Alabama in the season opener. The 34-24 loss stunted the Hokies’ hopes of a national title, but certainly didn’t put the team out of contention for it.
Looking back on the game, the offense wasn’t nearly as efficient as later in the year. Running back Ryan Williams had yet to emerge as a star and quarterback Tyrod Taylor still hadn’t shown his consistency.
Things seemed to be coming together as the Hokies moved all the way up to No. 4 in the polls midway through the season, with a nationally televised battle against Georgia Tech looming.
However, a dismal defensive performance against the Yellow Jackets followed by a weak showing against North Carolina — at home on a Thursday night — led to two consecutive ACC losses.
The hopes and expectations of the season vanished over that 12-day stretch.
You have to give head coach Frank Beamer a ton of credit for inspiring his team for the rest of the season. The Hokies came out and drilled their remaining five opponents, capped by a 37-14 domination of Tennessee in the Chick-fil-A Bowl.
If nothing else, this success provided momentum going into the 2010 campaign.
With No. 13 Miami and No. 20 Florida State’s programs quickly ascending back toward national prominence, the Hokies have to hold their ground atop the conference.
It is hard to overlook the depth of the ACC Coastal Division, with No. 16 Georgia Tech and No. 18 North Carolina joining Miami and Virginia Tech. I forgot to mention Duke and Virginia but they have had their hands full with Richmond and William & Mary, respectively.
A small reprieve in competition may come from the current NCAA investigation into certain North Carolina players for allegedly receiving improper benefits from agents and others being investigated for possible “academic misconduct.”
North Carolina head coach Butch Davis’ depth chart is still up in the air as he awaits determinations on players’ eligibility.
Either way, the Hokies will have to battle just to make it to the ACC title game, especially when you consider the three-game stretch against Georgia Tech, North Carolina and Miami late in the season. Remember, two of the Hokies’ three 2009 losses came against the Yellow Jackets and Tar Heels.
Despite the Coastal Division being the much tougher half of the ACC, the Hokies must find a way to make it to the conference title game.
A slip up preventing such an appearance would guarantee the Hokies’ exclusion from the BCS National Championship game, even if Tech only has one loss.
A team not playing for its conference title has never played in the championship game.
For example, look at what happened in the 2008 Big 12 South Division. In the regular season, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas Tech were each 7-1 in conference — the conference loss being each team’s only loss.
However, a tiebreaker sent Oklahoma to the Big 12 title game against a very average Missouri team from the North Division.
Oklahoma blasted Missouri 62-21 and went on to play for the national championship while Texas played in the Tostitos Fiesta Bowl and Texas Tech was relegated to the Cotton Bowl.
This was quite a difference in bowl game notoriety for one-loss teams from the same conference and same division.
The point being, if the Hokies are to play for a national title or even an ACC title, they better pick their losses wisely — or not lose at all, as the Coastal Division will be a battle until the very end.
I would say the best time for a loss would be in the opener against Boise State, because Tech would have plenty of time to learn and recover in time for conference play.
Yet, for the pride of the program and to gain momentum on the drive to the title, this needs to be the year when the Hokies finally win the big game at the beginning of the season — and stay consistent from there.
The 2010 Tech squad has to rely on the experienced offense led by Taylor, the most efficient passer in the ACC last season. He has grown into a smart decision maker who will be relied on, along with star tailbacks Williams, Darren Evans and David Wilson, to keep the defense off the field while they work through growing pains.
With Beamer deciding to play sophomore Wilson instead of redshirting him, I could not think of three more talented backs to ever play together in college.
Let’s hope the 2010 edition of Tech football can live up to the hype and take the program to a level it has never before seen.