Thursday, September 20, 2007

Preview: Virginia Tech vs. William & Mary

The ship has been righted in Blacksburg, as the Hokies pounded out a 28-7 win over Ohio this weekend. And while we hopefully won’t learn too much about this Tech team until October 6th at Clemson, Frank Beamer is hoping for another solid effort and lots of game reps for his freshman QB, Tyrod Taylor. Let’s take a quick look at Tech’s Saturday opponent, the William & Mary Pride.

William & Mary (2-1, 0-1 Colonial)

Offense: The Pride currently possess the second best offense in the division formerly known as I-AA (FCS). Needless to say, the competition hasn’t been up to snuff, but this is an offense that should be playing with confidence, averaging 47.3 points per game in its first three outings. They’ve scored at least 31 all three times, and both score and pass consistently. Jake Phillips has a beautiful QB rating of 202.7, and has already eclipsed his abbreviated 2006 yardage totals. Standing at 1010 yards after just three contests, the junior who’s started since his freshman year has made the biggest improvements in one area: interceptions. Phillips has thrown 0 picks in his first 84 attempts of 2007, and that efficiency will be key if W&M has any hopes of an upset. Don’t think that this is a dink and dunk attack either. Phillips is averaging 12.02 yards per pass attempt. Again, the competition hasn’t been ACC-tough, but this is a kid who’ll bring a great effort and tons of poise to Lane Stadium. On the receiving end, all of the Pride’s top 8 receivers average more than 10 yards a catch; this isn’t a team that really works a lot of “safety valves” in to their offensive plan. TE Drew Atchison has had two big-time games, catching 6 balls for over 100 yards and a touchdown against Delaware and Liberty. Junior WR Elliott Mack has been more consistent, however, with games of 4-53, 4-73 and 5-71. Coming out of the backfield, DeBrian Holmes is the workhorse, leading the team in carries by a mile (49) but with only 191 yards to show for it. Holmes broke his ankle at the end of the Liberty game, and probably won’t see action this week. Senior Tony Viola didn’t play against Delaware, but got 56 and 57 yards against VMI and Liberty; his presence as a counter punch has helped open the passing game. The offensive line faces the biggest challenge of any W&M unit this week trying to hold off Tech’s nasty pass rush. Because of Phillips’ downfield throws, the line is counted on to protect well. The Pride’s front five is young in the middle, but very experienced at the tackles with LT Brent Cochran and RT Brad Stewart making their 23rd and 25th consecutive starts, respectively. Tech will need to get pressure up the middle to harass Phillips.

Defense: As is so often the case, the counterpoint to an excellent offense is a brutal defense. The Pride D has given up 35.3 ppg this year against obviously weak competition, so look for Tyrod Taylor & Co. to look as polished and dynamic as they have all year. The defensive front is very young; the Pride will start three sophomores that average 259 pounds on the D-Line this week. The W&M pass defense is currently the best yardage-wise in the CAA, but don’t be fooled; that’s only because this front four is so weak against the run. One stat the D did improve on was red-zone efficiency. After giving up 6 TDs in 6 trips to Delaware, the line tightened up a bit and only surrendered scores on half of Liberty’s 20-yard line invasions. Ryan Jones is a Sophomore DT and former walk-on who might have the highest ceiling of the front four. At linebacker, the Pride have some experienced tacklers, with WLB Michael Pigram the stoutest of the bunch. Pigram is a tough customer at just 5-10 and 220, and has 25 stops on the year. Josh Rutter posted 15 tackles against Liberty. SLB Ryan Horvath is another former walk-on getting his third career start against the Hokies. The secondary is really young, with three sophomores and a junior, and the corners are making a ton of tackles thanks to the lack of support from the front four. CB Max Harris had 11 tackles and 8 solos against Liberty, and SS David Caldwell posted a career-high 15 tackles in the VMI victory. This secondary isn’t great at picking off passes, getting their first two of the year in the latter stages of the Liberty game.

Special Teams: Kicker Brian Pate was last week’s CAA player of the week for his performance against Liberty. Pate is 19-19 on the year on PAT, and is 3-4 on FG. Sophomore CJ Herbert has 3 blocked kicks in his career, so he may be a factor on special teams.

Overview: W&M may score a couple times, but this defense doesn’t have a prayer of stopping the Tech rushing attack, and will provide the perfect training wheels for Mr. Taylor as he gains confidence for the ACC battles down the road. Virginia Tech 38, William & Mary 13.

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