College Football Playoff: Which Top 25 teams are contenders, pretenders?
After losing starting quarterback Jerod Evans to the NFL following the 2016 season, the Virginia Tech Hokies haven’t missed a step behind the arm of freshman signal-caller Josh Jackson.
Jackson, a 6-foot-1, 211-pound three-star recruit from Ann Arbor, Mich., has picked up 1,127 yards on 75 completions for 11 touchdowns and only one interception in his incredibly brief time as the Hokies’ signal caller.
Paired with senior wide receiver Cam Phillips, Jackson has led Virginia Tech to a 4-0 record, including a 31-24 victory in Week 1 against ranked rivals the No. 22 West Virginia Mountaineers, and outscored opponents by a combined score of 160-41.
And even though Virginia Tech’s 14th-ranked offense has helped the team to win games, it’s their 28th-ranked defense that has helped to keep the games close.
While not as good as the team’s 18th-ranked defense of 2016, Virginia Tech’s veteran defense has held opposing offenses to only 1,245 yards and an impressive five opposing touchdowns in 2017.
With only two games against ranked opponents, including a Week 5 contest against the No. 2 Clemson Tigers and a Week 10 game against No. 14 Miami, left on the team’s schedule, Virginia Tech will be directly competing with Miami for a spot atop the ACC Costal, and a shot to compete for the ACC Championship.
If the Hokies lose to Clemson, it will effectively end their chances of making the College ootball Playoff, especially since a rematch against Clemson in the ACC Championship would be all but guaranteed at the end of the season.