Virginia Tech football is looking to avoid a hangover against William & Mary in Week 2 and here’s everything you need to know about the matchup.
If you didn’t come away impressed with Virginia Tech’s opening win over No. 19 Florida State on Monday night, you were in the minority. The Hokies looked like one of the teams to beat in the ACC, going on the road to take down a talented team, on paper, in the Seminoles.
Josh Jackson had a decent showing, going 16-for-26 for 207 yards and two touchdowns, but it was the Hokies’ defense that stole the show.
In fact, Virginia Tech’s defense held Florida State to just 327 total yards of offense and only three points. That’s right, the Hokies held the Seminoles out of the end zone on their home field to start the Willie Taggart era — that’s not a simple feat.
William & Mary is next up on the schedule and head coach Justin Fuente will have his guys ready to go. The run game will need to step up more after averaging 2.8 yards per carry but beating the Tribe should be a walk in the park.
Here’s how you can watch Saturday’s Virginia Tech vs. William & Mary game:
Date: Saturday, Sept. 8
Time: 2:00 p.m. ET
Location: Blacksburg, Va.
Venue: Lane Stadium
TV: ACC Network
Live Stream: TheACC or FuboTV
Keys to Victory
Josh Jackson needs to gain some confidence and go turnover-less for the second straight game. However, he’s not the biggest key, that actually falls on the run game. In order to establish itself as one of the premier teams in the ACC, the Hokies will need to average more than 2.8 yards per touch. Establish the run and the aerial attack will take care of itself.
Defensively, just repeating the performance the Hokies had against Florida State will work wonders against this iffy William & Mary offense.
No one is giving William & Mary a chance, and for good reason. The Tribe went 2-9 in 2017 but they did win their first game, but in order to have a chance in this one, they’ll need to find their offense. They scored just 14 points against Bucknell and that won’t work against Virginia Tech. The key here is simple: find the end zone early and often. Easier said than done.
Betting Odds
Line: N/A
Over/under: N/A
Prediction
This one could get ugly early on, but the Hokies will race out to a big lead and then get the subs in halfway through the third quarter. Jackson will pass for 250 yards and three touchdowns while Deshawn McClease rushes for over 100 yards and a couple of scores. We won’t learn much more about this Virginia Tech from the blowout win, but 2-0 will look nice.
Final Score: William & Mary 3, Virginia Tech 42