Virginia Tech Hokies (4-1, 2-0) vs. Boston College Eagles (4-1, 2-1)

Time: Noon EDT
Date: Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009
Place: Lane Stadium at Worsham Field, Blacksburg, Va.
TV: Raycom Sports

Boston College: The Eagles got a big win last week at home against Florida State to improve to 4-1 and 2-1 ... BC lost its lone road game of the season, 25-7 at Clemson in a game that was delayed twice by lightning and heavy rain ... BC's quarterback is David Shinskie, a 25-year old freshman who is a former baseball player ... while it looked like Justin Tuggle would win the job in early games, Shinski has come on in the last two games, throwing for 431 yards and five touchdowns against Wake and FSU.

Trends: The Hokies have won four consecutive games since beginning the season with a loss to Alabama ... Boston College has won its last two games after losing at Clemson ... the Eagles have lost four of their last six games away from home, including last year's Music City Bowl and ACCCG ... Virginia Tech has won 11 consecutive home games ... its last home loss was 14-10 against BC on Oct. 25, 2007.

History Lesson: The Hokies are 3-3 against Boston College since the two teams joined the ACC, including 2-0 in the last two ACCCGs ... Tech was 8-3 against the Eagles while the two teams were in the Big East, including a seven-game winning streak 1996-2002 ... Tech is 11-6 all-time against BC ... the Eagles have won the last three regular season matchups.

What to Expect

• Expect another 100-yard game from the opposition. Montel Harris is a solid running back and BC's offensive line has come along nicely. After two games without an opposing 100-yard rusher, I think it'll happen again this week.
• Expect Shinskie to test Tech deep. The Hokies are getting burned by the deep ball again and it's something that cost them last year in Chestnut Hill.
• Expect Tyrod Taylor to be able to get some rushing yards. I don't think the BC linebackers and defensive ends are going to be able to keep him in containment. The Eagle secondary will play well enough that Tyrod will have plenty of chances to tuck and run.
• Expect this to be a "Williams Game". Josh Oglesby had success running North-South against Duke while Ryan Williams couldn't find space. But I think this is the kind of game where Williams will be able to get yards outside the tackles.
• Expect the Hokies to have the advantage in the kicking game. In four years, BC still hasn't been able to find a kicker better than Steve Aponovicius. He's still there and BC still can't attempt long field goals because of it.

Hokies win if: They get pressure on Shinskie, don't get beat on special teams and can exploit BC's inexperienced linebackers both on the ground and in the passing game.

Eagles win if: They're able to stop the run and hit big plays through the air. Basically, it would need to be a replay of last year's regular season game.

Dot-dot-dots: Saturday is Virginia Tech's homecoming game ... the Hokies are raising money in honor of BC linebacker Mark Herzlich for Uplifting Athletes, a non-profit that raises awareness and research funds for rare diseases ... Herzlich, the reigning ACC DPOY, will miss the 2009 season after being diagnosed with Ewing's Sarcoma, a rare form of cancer ... Tech hopes to raise $9,400 by selling $1 wrist bands and present the check at Saturday's game ... the amount is significant because Herzlich wears No. 94 ... the last time a VT QB threw for more than Tyrod Taylor's 327 yards against Duke in a win had to have come before 1995 ... that's as far back as HokieSports.com's game-by-game stats go.

Boston College Links

BC Interruption
Eagle in Atlanta
Eagle All Access
Towers on the Heights