Division Leaders Square Off In Big-Time ACC Battle

 For Virginia Tech, it’s a chance for redemption. For Clemson, it’s just another game as a target.

 The ACC foes square off Saturday night at Lane Stadium in Blacksburg in the marquee game of the weekend. The Hokies are ranked 13^th in the nation while Clemson comes in as the nation’s No. 2 squad.

 

Virginia Tech QB Josh Jackson has shown steady leadership (The Virginian-Pilot)

  The teams played a memorable ACC Championship game last year, Clemson hanging on for a 42-35 win after Virginia Tech came back from 35-14 down in the second half. Fans may be pointing to that game as a rallying cry, but Hokies coach Justin Fuente isn’t.

 “We haven’t talked about and won’t talk about it,” Fuente said. “I think everybody handles those things differently. That was last year. My message was that that was last year’s team – last year’s Virginia Tech team versus last year’s Clemson team. This is a completely different situation. We’ve got guys that played in that game and are no longer here, and so do they. So we won’t use it as a reference point.

“We battled, our guys believed, they fought, and I tell you what, I knew we were gonna win, and I was wrong. We didn’t. It hurts, you know?”

 Both teams boast strong defenses, Clemson allowing just 9.3 points per game, third best in the nation and Virginia Tech giving up just 10.3 per game, sixth best. Virginia Tech gets it done mostly with its back seven, while Clemson swarms the backfield with the best front four in America.

 It should be a fascinating battle, and the team that best weathers the storm and makes the adjustments wins.

 Clemson already has some impressive pelts on its wall, beating ranked foes Auburn and Louisville, which gives Tigers coach Dabo Swinney optimism.

 “We’re battle tested,” Swinney said. “We’ve played two top-15 teams, one of them at their place. And then we played a tough Boston College team – physical. So we’ve had our noses bloodied. We’ve had to respond to some adversity. It hasn’t all been just rosy.

“Had some emotional moments. Had big plays go against them. We’ve had some physical matchups. We played against an unbelievable quarterback in Lamar (Jackson). We played against great defenses.”

 Tech is led by linebacker Tremaine Edmunds, who has 4.5 tackles for loss and is the spiritual leader on Bud Foster’s unit. End Andrew Motuapuaka has been a pest, posting 2.5 sacks and emerging as one of the better pass rushers in the ACC.

 Offensively, redshirt freshman quarterback Josh Jackson has been up to the challenge, completing 65.2 percent of his passes and posting a nifty 11-1 TD-INT ratio. He’s also not afraid to push the ball downfield, averaging a healthy 9.8 yards per attempt. His favorite target is senior receiver Cam Phillips, who already has 34 catches, fourth best nationally, and averages 15.4 yards per catch. Phillips has found the end zone five times, and will need to a priority for the Clemson defense. Tech has done a good job protecting Jackson, allowing just four sacks this season.

 Clemson was flash last season behind the masterful play of quarterback Deshaun Watson, but this year the Tigers have become more of a grind it out offense. Kelly Bryant has been up and down as a passer, boasting an impressive 67.9 completion percentage, but much of that has been safe passes to the running back or underneath throws to crossing receives. Bryant has just two touchdown passes, but he’s proven dangerous as a runner, scoring seven touchdowns on 66 carries.

  

Clemson DE Austin Bryant has been a sack machine (The Post and Courier)

 The Tigers use a committee approach in the backfield, but freshman Travis Etienne has been explosive, averaging nearly 13 yards per carry and scoring four touchdowns, and Tavien Feaster has been more of the power option. Deon Cain and Hunter Renfrow are experienced receivers and will be part of the game plan.

  

 Defense is where Clemson makes its bones, however. End Austin Bryant has five sacks and 6.5 tackles for loss, and inside man Christian Wilkins can wreak havoc in the backfield (2.5 TFL) and drop into coverage. There aren’t many as versatile as he is, and Fuente knows that he will have to get creative on offense, especially since Clemson has already posted 17 sacks.

  

 “It’s not a read and react situation,” Fuente said. “It’s a pin your ears back and try to create havoc.”

 Phillips is looking forward to the spotlight and knows this will be a big chance for Tech to prove itself against one of the big boys.

  

 “A lot of people don’t get these chances, and I will say we worked to get here, it wasn’t just handed to us,” Phillips said. “Some people didn’t think we would be 4-0, whatever that may be, but we’re here now, and we get a big game into our house this weekend.”

  

 Swinney knows that Lane Stadium will be charged up from the outset, and he will have to make sure his team doesn’t get overwhelmed by the spectacle of Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” and the raucous Hokies crowd.

 Playing at Louisville early took some of the nerves away, so Swinney sees this as more of a chance to build.

 “Any time you can draw from experience, it can kind of give you an understanding of what to expect,” Swinney said. “When you take a team on the road to Louisville early in the season, with a bunch of new guys that haven’t played on the road, that’s really good experience.

“So now those young guys have been in that and they can hopefully draw a little bit from it.”

 Clemson has won the last four meetings, including 23-3 in their last trip to Blacksburg, in 2011.

  

 Fuente knows that this is a golden opportunity for his team, but he also knows that there is zero margin for error if the Hokies want to show the nation they have truly arrived.

  

 “You’re not going to get away with much of anything,” Fuente said. “You make a mistake, they’re going to make you pay. You can’t take one step in the wrong direction or hesitate for half a step when you’re playing the type of talent that we’re going to go up to. It’s like defusing a bomb. Like one small snip of the wire that’s incorrect, and boom. You blow your hands off. That’s how talented and how good they are.”

Hokies And Mountaineers Renew Intense Rivalry

 With only 60 miles separating Virginia Tech from the West Virginia border, it's easy to understand the animosity between the Hokies and Mountaineers. There isn't a single player on the Tech roster from West Virginia, and that's by design -- Mountaineers will tell you that they don't much care for the Hokies, and they are stoked to be playing Tech this Sunday, the first time the teams meet since 2005.

 The series was one of the most intense in all of college football, played every year from 1973 to that last game in 2005. It was filled with enmity from the fan bases, especially in Morgantown -- to the point where Tech coach Frank Beamer instructed his players to not take off their helmets on the sidelines, as they might be hit by something flying out of the stands.

 The Hokies had tipped the scales of the series mightily in recent years, winning nine of the last 12 contests, including five of the last six in Blacksburg. This will be a neutral site game, featuring players who were in grade school the last time the teams played.

WVU coach Dana Holgorsen knows his team will be tested (The Smoking Musket)

So the intensity might be dulled a bit, at least on the field. There will be nerves and emotions, but not unbridled hatred.

"As far as the emotions, that's is going to flow naturally," Mountaineers linebacker Xavier Preston said. "You just have to be able to know where you are at and at the same time stay focused on the game. There are going to be a lot of emotions. I think we are capable of handling it."

 Virginia Tech comes into the game ranked 21st, while WVU is one spot behind. The teams haven't played a neutral field since 1962, when they faced off in Richmond, and the coaches are more concerned about getting off to a winning start rather than any sort of deep-seated rivalry stuff. Neither Tech coach Justin Fuente nor WVU boss Dana Holgorsen were around the last time the teams played.

 "You've got a little bit of everything going on in your head," Fuente said. "When you kick it off to start the season on a fantastic stage, against a great opponent, you can't help but feel all of those emotions as the ball kicks off."

 Holgorsen, who has ceded play calling duties this to first year coordinator Jake Spavital, last of Cal Berkeley. Spavital likes the spread and fast tempo that so many teams play, and with Florida transfer Will Grier at quarterback, it will be interesting to see just how smoothly the offense runs.

 "There are some question marks when you have a new quarterback, which we both fall into the same boat when it comes to that, and when you switch coordinators," Holgorsen said. "There's always a level of uncertainty going into year one. Probably this year more than the last couple of years with us, there's probably a higher level of uncertainty."

 Virginia Tech will lean on redshirt freshman Josh Jackson to handle the quarterback chores, and Fuente has praised his work ethic and abilities throughout fall camp. Jackson is, like much of the team, untested -- Tech has 11 redshirt or true freshmen on the two deep, which could provide Fuente some anxious moments.

 "I certainly think you feel better when you have guys that have been out there," he said. "But they all said they wanted to play when we were recruiting them, so here's the opportunity. That's what I tell them, too -- 'I sat in your living room and you told me you wanted to play.' So, it's not good enough at Virginia Tech just to play, but play well. There will be some young guys out there for the first time, but hopefully we've done a great job training them and they will be ready to contribute."

 Two experienced players are also two of Tech's beset -- running back Travon McMillan (671 yards last year) and receiver Cam Phillips (76 catches, five TDs). Rest assured Jackson will look to both often, if only to settle his nerves.

 Grier won't have to win it by himself for the Mountaineers, as running back Justin Crawford -- the Big 12's leading returning rusher (you can win a bar bet with that tidbit) with 1,184 yards -- returns, and wideout Ka'Raun White, who amassed nearly 600 yards before injuring his leg late in the year.

 West Virginia's defense last year was the best its been in some time, allowing just 24 points per game, but only three starters return from that group. The best among them is Mike linebacker Al-Rasheed Benton, who netted 80 stops. The return of safety Dravon Askew-Henry, a preseason all-league pick last year before missing the season with a knee injury suffered in fall camp.

Virginia Tech boss Justin Fuente believes his young team is ready (TechSideline.com)

 The Hokies still have Bud Foster as the architect of the defense, and as long as he's around it almost doesn't matter who the players are. Foster has been one of the best in his field for years, placing Tech first in America in sacks, interceptions, third down conversions and completion percentage since 1996. Foster has the pieces in place to be as ferocious as the 2014 unit, which allowed just 20.2 ppg and tallied 48 sacks. Linebacker Tremaine Edmunds leads the way (106 tackles), and sophomore Trevon Hill is a burgeoning star, compiling 2.5 sacks in mostly reserve duty. The secondary is top-notch, featuring corner Greg Stroman and safety Terrell Edmunds, and will force Grier to be mighty near perfect.

 Having the stage to themselves, on a Sunday evening, will be a thrill for both teams, and facing a ranked opponent right out of the box makes for a special kind of atmosphere.

 "Getting the rivalry started back up, we're all excited about that," Holgorsen said. "We've opened with good teams pretty regularly here. We opened with Alabama in Atlanta; last year we opened with Missouri and a neutral site game versus BYU, which was a big game; we open up with Tennessee next year and Florida State a few years from now. I'm a big fan of it. Having this one right out of the gate is good; I think everybody gets excited about their first game.

 "I have no problems with the first game that's a neutral site that's a "big game." That's fine with me."

 The winner of the contest will receive the Black Diamond Trophy, symbolic of the coal industry's rich history in both states.

WHAT
No. 21 Virginia Tech vs. No. 22 West Virginia
WHEN AND WHERE
Sept. 3rd, 8 pm, FedEx Field in Landover, Md.
WHO TO WATCH
VIRGINIA TECH -- How amped up will Jackson be at quarterback? He will need to find himself quickly if the Tech offense is going to operate with precision. This is not uncharted territory, as Jerod Evans was making his first collegiate start in Tech's 2016 opener. A veteran offensive line should ease Jackson's transition, and having McMillan and speedy Steven Peoples in the backfield should calm him down. The defense was down by Virginia Tech standards last year, with a lack of turnovers and a surprising inconsistency against the run (five opponents were better than 5.0 ypc). Seven starters back means another year of understanding the defense, which should be a boost.
WEST VIRGINIA -- Grier hasn't played in nearly two years, missing the last part of the 2015 campaign at Florida, then getting popped for PEDs and leaving school. He has, by all accounts, blended in nicely, and White and converted quarterback David Sills are two of a deep and experienced receiving corps. The real star is Crawford, who doesn't get the headlines he deserves despite averaging 7.3 ypc. He keeps defenses honest and is a home run threat. How the defense will fare is anyone's guess, as only the linebackers return. Askew-Henry being healthy is a plus, and Syracuse transfer Corey Winfield (85 tackles, 8 pass break ups) will bring energy to a rebuilding secondary. OC Spavital also bears watching as Holgorsen is used to being the primary playcaller.
WHAT DECIDES THE OUTCOME
Whichever strength -- West Virginia's offense vs. Virginia Tech's defense -- holds the upper hand, that's the team that comes out ahead. West Virginia's defense faltered late in the season, and having one of the least experienced teams in FBS is a concern. Don't be surprised if DC Tony Gibson comes up with some wrinkles designed to throw Jackson off balance. For Tech, the ability to get to Grier is paramount as he has shown the ability to throw the football (nearly 66 percent completions at Florida). Crawford should get his, and the Mountaineers won't be afraid to test the Tech secondary deep with Gary Jennings and Marcus Simms. Special teams is always a Tech strength -- 30 scoring returns and 25 blocked kicks since 1987 -- and this year is no different. Kicker Joey Slye is clutch, and Stroman was among the best return men in the country before getting injured.  

CFF 2017 Rankings -- 20-16