Last week, Virginia Tech faced arguably the toughest defense it will face all year. It managed only 155 yards of total offense. This week, it faced arguably the worst defense it will see all year and rolled up 52 points and 605 yards.
It feels good to blow out an opponent for the first time in forever. But how good is this offense? Definitely somewhere between the two extremes. We'll get and definitive answer in the next two weeks against Nebraska and Miami.
- Marshall's receivers found holes in Virginia Tech's zone early in the game. However, they were either overthrown or dropped passes. The Herd could have rolled up more points than the 10 they put on the board.
- Also early on, Marshall was able to get pressure on Tyrod Taylor. In fact, Albert McClellan was credited with three QB hurries on VT's first three pass attempts.
- In the second quarter, everything settled down. Tyrod started to get decent pass protection and threw a couple of good balls. However, he still has a tendency to throw the ball behind his receiver. It's why he got picked in the end zone.
- Ryan Williams has incredible vision. He sees exactly what he needs to do on the second level before he gets through the hole. He didn't do a lot of juking against Marshall. Just ran straight forward and got through his holes when they were there.
- The offensive line can still run block well. However, they still need a lot of work on pass blocking.
- David Wilson is shifty, but doesn't rely solely on jukes to get by defenders. He changes directions quickly and can start and stop quickly.
- Marshall got 61 of its 126 rushing yards on one play. The defense is still really good at playing the run.
- However, it still needs work on defense, especially the linebackers. Jake Johnson got lost trying to cover their tight end a couple of times in the first half.
- Marshall's punter kept out-kicking his coverage. It was only a matter of time before Jayron Hosley took one to the house.
- Speaking of Hosley, he looked good when he was in during the second half. Eddie Whitley didn't and got burned for a 60 yard catch by Marshall. However, Whitley will likely be a solid free safety.
- Virginia Tech was only 3-for-5 in the red zone. Is it time for someone other than Billy Hite to be calling plays in the red zone? How many teams have a separate play caller for the red zone?
- There's no secret how to beat Virginia Tech. You have to stop us on the ground and get big hits in the passing game. Nebraska is more than capable of stopping our ground game and Miami is equally capable of having a big day through the air. We'll learn a lot more about this team the next two weeks.