Virginia Tech Football: Game-by-game predictions for 2017
The East Carolina Pirates are usually a thorn in the Virginia Tech Hokies’ side as an out-of-conference foe, but things have changed under second-year coach Scottie Montgomery.
The Pirates went 3-9 (1-7 American) in Montgomery’s first season as head coach. When they visited the Hokies in Blacksburg, things got ugly to the tune of 54-17.
On the brightside, wide receivers Jimmy Williams and Zay Jones had big days in the receiving department. Williams had three catches for 179 receiving yards and two receiving touchdowns. Jones had 10 catches for 115 receiving yards.
The transition to a new quarterback to go smooth with graduate transfer Thomas Sirk entering the fold. Sirk was the starting quarterback for Duke before reinjuring his Achilles tendon at the beginning of last season. He threw for 2,624 passing yards, 16 passing touchdowns and just eight interceptions as the starter for the Blue Devils in 2015.
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Defensively, East Carolina returns just four starters. Their defense gave up 30 points or more in nine games last season. With holes all over, the Hokies could find themselves in another barn burner on the road.
Although, its worth noting, the Hokies are seeking their first win in Greenville since 2013. Montgomery’s defense is transitioning to a 4-2-5 scheme so things could still be competitive. However, Virginia Tech should be focused going into this one.
Final: East Carolina 27, Virginia Tech 42 (3-0)