2022 Game Previews – The Hokies Come to Durham

At the end of the 2021 season, the following Coastal teams hired new coaches – Duke, Miami, Virginia and Virginia Tech. Of those teams, only the Blue Devils, at 6-3, have a winning record. The Hurricanes and Cavaliers look like dumpster fires and the Hokies don’t look much better. In fact, at 2-7 (1-5), they are at the bottom of the division and appear to have a long way to go before they will be competitive again. But, as we’ve seen with Duke this season, change can happen fast.

Which brings us to what to expect on Saturday. Any rational observer would take the Blue Devils by a healthy margin. Virginia Tech is in the midst of a six game losing streak and is averaging only 20.22 points per game. But despite those two warning signs, the Hokies have a few things going for them. While scoring around 20 per outing isn’t great, Virginia Tech is only giving up 25.11 points per game. That means a lot of those losses are close ones. For example, the Hokies lost to Old Dominion by three, to Miami by six and to both NC State and the Yellow Jackets by one. While you are what your record says you are, close losses say that you’re not that far away from being competitive and may be able to win a game you shouldn’t.

That’s certainly possible given that Duke has an annoying habit of playing to the level of competition. The Blue Devils only managed to beat a bad Northwestern team by eight and nearly gave up a touchdown at the end of the game that, with a two-point conversion, could have sent it to overtime. On the road against Georgia Tech, Duke lost by a field goal in overtime. And then there was last week against Boston College. Do we need to go over that again? We don’t? Good. Then I’ll get to my point – this team hasn’t shown the ability to dominate lesser teams which puts them at risk against Virginia Tech. That’s especially true given that injuries are starting to catch up with the Blue Devils. First it was Maurice McIntyre. Then it was Eli Pancol. Now it’s Jacob Monk. And then there’s the whole running back situation. I’m not really sure what’s going on there, but it seemed like we’re starting to get thin at that spot.

So, you’re probably thinking that I’m taking the upset, right? Well you don’t know me like that. I’m with this team, ride or die. I’m going with Duke to win by a score of 31-20. The Blue Devils have the tools and they have the talent. Duke is better at most every position than their opponent. Further, despite the challenges that the injuries and inconsistent play have created, this team doesn’t like to lose and isn’t going to be satisfied with six wins and a bowl. There is a lot of senior leadership on this team which will hold everyone accountable. These guys are about one thing – winning. They won’t stand for anything less. I just don’t see the Blue Devils missing out on a chance to get to seven wins this Saturday.

But enough about what I think. Let’s check in with the guest picker, Matthew, who has this to say, “Duke 28 – Virginia Tech 13. Virginia Tech doesn’t have the talent to overcome mistakes.” Thanks, Matthew for doing this. You all can listen to his ACC podcast which he cohosts with friend of the podcast Jeff here.

Now, as I’ve been doing of late, I’m going to drop an old-time tune that me and Tim recorded a while back. It’s called “Seneca Square Dance” (aka Waiting for the Federals) and is one of my favorite old-time tunes. You probably all remember the cover that we did of this song earlier this year. Well, here’s what it sounds like without a great singer putting some lyrics to it. Enjoy!

That’s it for the game preview. Let me know what you think about what I think in the comments, on Reddit or Twitter!

As always, Go Duke!