Three Things We Learned From Virginia Tech’s 21-14 Win Over Boston College
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Virginia Tech moved to 4-0 on the season for the first time in nine years in a 21-14 monsoon-impacted comeback win over Boston College on Saturday in Chestnut Hill.
As anticipated, both teams struggled to put points on the board in the heart of a Nor’Easter in Massachusetts, but in the end, the Hokies found a way to grind out 15 fourth-quarter points offensively and string together multiple defensive stops to secure the win.
Here are three things we learned from Tech’s fourth victory of the season.
Three Things We Learned From Virginia Tech’s 21-14 Win Over Boston College
Virginia Tech Has Established Its RB1
Virginia Tech has found its starting running back in sophomore Jeffrey Overton Jr. Overton was outstanding in the fourth quarter on Saturday, where he contributed to multiple chunk plays, including a 76-yard touchdown run with 4:58 to play that put the Hokies up for good. In total, Overton accounted for 98 of his 209 rushing yards in the fourth quarter, where he firmly established himself as the team’s top running back.
Marcellous Hawkins Jr. appeared to get a little banged up in Saturday’s win, and he should still spell Overton and play a significant role. However, Saturday showed that Virginia Tech has a clear alpha in the backfield in the way of its true sophomore running back in Overton.
But the Running Game Still Has Questions
Virginia Tech ran the ball effectively when it needed to on Saturday, and ultimately, that’s all that matters.
However, the schedule is getting much tougher from here on out, and Virginia Tech will need to find a way to become more efficient running the football. Overton and the offensive line were stellar in the fourth quarter, but the Hokies’ rushing attack really struggled throughout the game to get a consistent push up front against a mediocre Boston College front seven.
This isn’t the first time that Virginia Tech has struggled to consistently run the football this season. The Hokies were not able to run it all that effectively against Maryland or Old Dominion in the team’s previous two games, but the passing game more than made up for it.
That was very likely the worst weather game that the Hokies will face all season, and the passing attack has proven to be effective when it’s not playing in a monsoon. But even so, the Hokies will need to lean on their running game at points throughout the rest of the schedule, and improvement will still need to be seen there before I’m confident that Tech can consistently win in multiple ways offensively.
To make matters worse, Virginia Tech will be without starting left tackle Justin Terry for several weeks due to injury. The good news? The Hokies are expected to have right guard Montavious Cunningham back against Pittsburgh on Friday after he missed the Boston College win.
Virginia Tech’s Defense Has Made Significant Strides
There have been times throughout the last four years where Virginia Tech’s defense has failed to adapt to an opposing offense’s strengths throughout the game and find a way to mitigate it. Fans don’t need to be reminded about how the program has defended Rutgers’ outside running game and short passing attack over the last couple of seasons when it felt like the same plays were run over and over and over again without an answer from the Hokies’ defense.
Saturday felt a little bit like that. Boston College’s best offense all season has been the running game with quarterback Mason McKenzie. He’s been the program’s primary ball carrier, and Saturday was shaping up to be no different regardless of the weather. Add in the rain, and there was all the more reason for the Eagles to lean on the strength of their offense with McKenzie’s legs.
Virginia Tech failed to stop it. Quarterback sweep. Quarterback option keeper. You name it, and it felt like it worked for Boston College throughout the contest. The Hokies finally brought a safety into the box in the fourth quarter and shut things down for good, putting together multiple stops in the midst of the comeback. However, the feeling felt all too familiar throughout the game with Virginia Tech failing to adapt defensively.
But ultimately, the defense did adapt. The Hokies’ front seven has been the unexpected strength of the unit through the first third of the season, and it came up with timely plays when it mattered the most. And while Saturday was certainly up-and-down throughout on that side of the football, the Hokies were still able to notch three sacks, eight tackles for loss, and hold Boston College to a 2-for-13 mark on third down. According to Collin Wilson of Action Network, Virginia Tech has one of the most chaotically-good defenses in the country through the first five weeks of the season. That’s a testament to the prowess of Brent Pry, who remains one of the country’s best defensive play callers.
Even if things may be rocky in a given week, it’s clearly a new era on defense with Pry at the controls under Franklin.
Main Image: Edward Finan-Imagn Images
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