Notre Dame Football: 3 Bold Predictions vs. Virginia Tech
By Chase Eyrich
VT will be held to under 300 yards of total offense.
Not once this season has Virginia Tech been held under 300 yards of offense. In fact, in two games their offense produced 586 and 600 yards.
The Hokies have been rolling with a balanced offense. For the most part, if the passing game is producing decent numbers, the rushing game jumps. When the rushing game just isn’t there, the passing game steps up even through adversity.
As Josh Jackson went down with a fractured leg, back up quarterback Ryan Willis quickly filled the role.
After the upset loss to Old Dominion, Willis led his team to a bounce-back win over a ranked Duke team. While his completion percentage of 57.7 percent is not where he wants it to be, the Kansas transfer has found ways to get it done.
The Hokies rushing attack has either been there or it hasn’t in their first four games this season. They opened the season with 112 rushing yards against Florida State and then reached over 300 yards on the ground in their next two games. Most recently, Duke held Virginia Tech to only 81 rushing yards on 41 attempts.
Virginia Tech will face the toughest defense it has seen to date when they play Notre Dame on Saturday.
Not only is Notre Dame’s defense good, but they’ve also continued to improve as the season has gone on. Jerry Tillery is coming off of a four-sack game. Te’von Coney leads the Irish with 39 tackles this season and came away with a clutch interception last week. The front four is something the Hokies haven’t seen this season.
If there’s one thing going for the Hokies, it’s that Drue Tranquill, who leads the Irish with 29 solo tackles, has fractured his hand. But the captain will play and will likely continue to be a menace to any offense he faces.