Bourbon Shots: Virginia Tech at NC State Edition

A collection of previews and posts about the Hokies, their game this weekend and the ACC:

Virginia Tech Beat Writers

Tech's Taylor, State's Wilson similar styles of QB (Nathan Warters)
Russell Wilson tells Tommie Frazier he sees similarities between he and Tyrod Taylor's passing and running abilities as well as competitive fire. Wilson was a Virginia Tech recruiting target until it received a commitment from Taylor.

Will Saturday be Tyrod Taylor's breakout performance? (Mark Giannotto)
Tyrod's been efficient and was the star of the Boise State game until Kellen Moore stole the show with his game-winning drive. but will this Saturday be the game he takes over and stands alone in the spotlight with Ryan Williams out?

How the Hokies' defense has evolved (Kyle Tucker)
KT breaks down the new looks we've seen from the Hokies so far this season. Tech has used a lot of three-man fronts this year, something we're definitely not used to seeing from Bud Foster. It's become a necessity with Tech's lack of depth at defensive tackle and deep secondary.

DE Steven Friday impressing his predecessors (Darryl Slater)
A feature on one of Virginia Tech's defensive ends...

Tough love: Va. Tech defensive end Drager a 'tough nut' (Randy King)
...and another feature on the other.

Wilson is excelling after an emotional summer (Norm Wood)
More on NC State's Russell Wilson, who spent his summer playing in the Colorado Rockies minor league system before returning to Raleigh to again be leader of the Pack.

Is NC State VT's toughest opponent thus far? (David Teel)
That's kind of a stretch considering the Hokies opened up with a Top 5 opponent, but Teel makes the case for the Pack, who come into the game on a hot streak and with their home crowd behind them.

Tech searching for complete performance (Collegiate Times)
A familiar byline from the CT, where Josh previews this weekend's game and wonders when the Hokies are going to put together two competent halves and crush an opponent.

Virginia Tech Bloggers

You Got No Fear of the Underdog (The Key Play)
We may be 3.5-point favorites in Vegas, but Joe thinks we're underdogs because no one thinks we'll win. Just like NC State thinks its the underdogs because no one thinks it'll win. Which underdog will prove its doubters wrong this weekend?

BC, NC, and as always, why I hate the AP (We Bleed Bourbon)
The We Bleed Bourbon guys are confident as always because NC State has one 10-win season since football was invented and because of what they perceive to be a weak schedule. However, they do wonder if the Hokie offense will be able to put up enough points to secure victory.

Virginia Tech at #23 NC State (Tech Sideline)
TSL extols the virtues of Russell Wilson's partners in crime at RB, WR and TE and looks at NC State's depleted secondary, which Tyrod will try to exploit Saturday. TSL takes the Pack, because they can't see the Hokies holding them under 20 and Tech hasn't had a lot of success when the opponent scores more than 20.

Hokie Football Game Preview: @ #23 NC State (UFR)
Kevin Burke wants us to keep an eye on the Taylors (Tyrod and Bruce) for the Hokies and the stars for NC State (Russell Wilson and Nate Irving). He says the game will come down to Tech's ability to convert in the red zone and get pressure on Wilson.

The ACC and Opponents

• The Conference: ACC Sports says we need to stop Irving and get our ground game going, but picks the home-standing Pack, 30-17 ... ACC Blogger thinks we have three more losses coming our way.
• Ball State at Central Michigan: FireUpChips.org looks for CMU to play with a chip on its shoulder ... Over the Pylon is impressed by CMU's red zone defense.
• Georgia Tech at Wake Forest: From the Rumble Seat wants to see if opponents will continue to stack the box and if any leaders will emerge on defense ... Blogger So Dear looks at Wake's poor offensive continuity.
• Duke at Maryland: Blue Devil Nation says Duke needs to limit big plays and play better on third down ... Testudo Times still sees a seven-win ceiling for the Terps ... D1scourse looks at one key to Maryland's early-season success: Turnover margin.
• East Carolina at North Carolina: Carolina March looks at Butch Davis' involvement in Scandalgatepalooza ... Tar Heel Times doesn't see Davis getting canned mid-season unless more evidence comes up ... Paint It Purple says this game means a lot for both teams.
• Miami at Clemson: Eye of the Hurricane expects Clemson to blitz Jacory Harris until he burns them deep ... Shakin the Southland says Miami has the best D-line the Tigers will face all year ... Block-C is looking forward to seeing the DaQuan Bowers-Seantrel Henderson matchup.
• Florida State at Virginia: From Old Virginia looks for FSU to use a short passing game to mitigate the effects of the UVa pass rush ... Tomahawk Nation doesn't see UVa doing much on offense ... Scalp Em thinks this game will be closer than Nole fans would like.
• Notre Dame at Boston College: Brian and Jeff take time from pulling weeds out of the flower bed to discuss why there hasn't been much hype surrounding the BC-Notre Dame game.