How Virginia Tech's Opponents Fared in Week 2

I was right. This post is the bane of my existence. Anyway, on with the show. Sure, we looked terrible this week but so did pretty much everyone else. Except East Carolina, who we conveniently play this weekend. Embrace the darkness.

Sept. 6 vs. Boise State (1-0, 0-0 WAC)
Week 2: Bye Week
Week 3: at Wyoming

The Broncos did what the Hokies should have done and took the week off instead of play on five days rest. They'll next travel to Wyoming to face a Cowboys team that played well in the first half at Texas this week.

Sept. 18 vs. East Carolina (2-0, 2-0 CUSA)
Week 2: East Carolina 49, Memphis 27
Week 3: at Virginia Tech

The Pirates jumped ahead to a 28-3 lead after the first quarter and cruised to a 22-point win over Memphis to start the season with two conference home wins. Dominique Davis was sharp for ECU, completing 27 of 38 passes for 244 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions.

Davis completed 13 of his first 14 passes en route to a 35-10 lead early in the second quarter. At the end of the day, Davis completed passes to eight different receivers (back-up Brad Wornick found another) and ran 12 times for 15 yards (not including sacks) and two touchdowns.

The Pirate defense improved from Week 1 against Tulsa to Week 2 against Memphis and helped its offense build its big first-half lead. ECU forced three turnovers, all on Memphis' first four drives, including a 41-yard interception return for touchdown by Derek Blacknall.

The defense held Memphis to 2.7 yards per carry as the Tigers struggled to establish the run game at the beginning of the game. As the Tigers tried to cut into the ECU lead, they were able to have some second-half success through the air. Memphis quarterbacks Cannon Smith and Ryan Williams combined to average over 10 yards per pass attempt and Williams threw three touchdown passes, including two for over 30 yards.

ECU's offense was once again explosive as Dominique Davis was able to find open receivers and lead effective drives. The defense proved that it is strong up front, but still susceptible to downfield passes.

ACC Now: ECU takes easy way to 2-0
Bonesville: Defense expands comfort zone
Memphis Commercial Appeal: Tigers can't play catch-up

Sept. 25 at Boston College (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: Boston College 26, Kent State 13
Week 3: Bye Week

BC's defense forced five turnovers and held Kent State to four total yards rushing in its win Saturday. The defense more than compensated for the offense's sluggish start, forcing two interceptions and four punts on Kent State's first six drives.

The Eagles' first six drives were only slightly better. BC had four punts, a pick and a field goal on its first six drives. The field goal came after BC went three-and-out without gaining a yard after an Alex Albright interception. The Eagles' anemic offense was caused mainly because Kent State was able to shut down their run game.

Montel Harris was held to 80 yards on 29 carries (2.9 ypc) and no touchdowns. His longest gain of the game was a pair of nine-yard carries, including one on his first rush of the game. Quarterback Dave Shinskie went 18-for-27 for 214 yards, two touchdowns and no interceptions to lead the offense. With his back-up Mike Marscovetra going 1-for-3 with an interception, it's safe to assume Shinskie will be BC's starter when the Eagles host the Hokies in two weeks.

It will be Shinskie's chance after redemption after he went 1-for-12 for four yards with two interceptions in the Eagles' loss last season in Blacksburg.

Eagle in Atlanta: Problems are fixable
Soaring to Glory: Eagles win in spite of QBs
Boston Globe: BC overcomes sluggish start

Oct. 2 at NC State (2-0, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: NC State 28, Central Florida 21
Week 3: vs. Cincinnati (Sept. 16)

NC State also struggled offensively against Central Florida, but had built a 28-7 fourth quarter lead by the time the Knights got anything going with their offense.

The Pack won the turnover battle, 5-0, and scored 21 points off those turnovers. They held the Knights to 136 yards until late in the third quarter when QB Rob Calabrese was lifted in favor of the more mobile Jeff Godfrey. Godfrey came in after Calabrese threw his second interception of the game, which was returned for a touchdown with 5:22 left in the third to make it 28-7.

With the freshman Godfrey under center, the Knights gained 172 yards in four drives and scored two touchdowns to cut the Pack lead to seven. However, UCF's comeback attempt fell short when Quincy McDuffie fumbled on the 10-yard line with 51 second left (sound familiar?).

Offensively, Russell Wilson looked rusty, completing 10 of 30 attempts. Dean Haynes and Mustafa Greene split carries, with Haynes the most effective, running 10 times for 49 yards and a score. Wilson will have two more tune-up games before the Hokies come calling, Thursday against Cincinnati and Sept. 25 at Georgia Tech.

Backing the Pack: State always makes it entertaining
StateFans Nation: Audi Cole goes ham

Oct. 9 vs. Central Michigan (1-1, 0-1 MAC)
Week 2: Temple 13, Central Michigan 10 (OT)
Week 3: at Eastern Michigan

It was far from pretty for either team, the Chippewas were the ones who were on the losing end of their conference opener. CMU turned the ball over three times, including an interception in their lone overtime possession before Temple kicked the game-winning field goal.

The Chips threw the kitchen sink at the Owls, running pro sets, I-formation sets and sets out of the spread formation. None of them led to any success on the ground as CMU managed just 43 yards on 33 rush attempts. Ryan Radcliffe did have success through the air, completing 25 of 35 passes for 299 yards, no touchdowns and two interceptions.

Defensively, the Chips looked very good against the run, despite the loss of linebacker Nick Bellore to a sprained ankle in the first half. Linebacker Matt Berning picked up the slack for Bellore and registered a team-high 11 tackles, including three for loss with a sack and a forced fumble.

However, CMU had trouble in pass coverage and were burned deep once on a 56-yard pass from Chester Stewart to Rod Streater. For the most part, Temple worked the sidelines to take advantage of soft coverage. The Hokies should be able to move the ball through the air against CMU, but may have trouble against its pass rush.

Examiner: Chippewas lose heartbreaker
Hustle Belt: Both teams sloppy
FireUpChips.org: Young team is mistake-prone

Oct. 16 vs. Wake Forest (2-0, 1-0 ACC)
Week 2: Wake Forest 54, Duke 48
Week 3: at Stanford

The Deacs gave up the most points they've ever allowed in a win, but got off to a good start in conference play thanks to 500 total yards of offense.

Wake did most of its damage on the ground as five ballcarriers, including two quarterbacks, combined for 229 yards rushing and three touchdowns while averaging 4.3 yards per carry. Back-up QB Tanner Price also threw for 190 yards and three touchdowns.

Price came in for an injured Ted Stachitas after Stachitas injured his non-throwing thumb in the second quarter. Prior to that, Stachitas had misfired on all four of his attempts, including one interception. Price ran the offense efficiently and led the Deacs to touchdowns on each of his first three drives.

Wake's zone-read offense gave Duke fits the whole game. And while Duke's run defense is suspect, right now so is ours and we certainly didn't do a good job of stopping James Madison's zone-read attack.

ACC Sports: Price is the heir apparent at Wake

Oct. 23 vs. Duke (1-1, 0-1 ACC)
Week 2: Wake Forest 54, Duke 48
Week 3: vs. Alabama

Sean Renfree is an impressive young quarterback who's going to have a great career at Duke. The kid won me over Saturday when in the first quarter he stayed in the pocket and got absolutely rocked while completing an 18-yard pass to Donovan Varner.

Renfree was shaken up and missed Duke's next two plays, but returned for their third-and-goal attempt and completed a nine-yard touchdown pass to put Duke ahead, 14-7. Renfree is a good quarterback with a solid stable of receivers. The problem is that he's still young and inconsistent. He threw three interceptions against Wake and I think if we can get pressure on him, our secondary can create turnovers when we face Duke.

Desmond Scott had another solid game running the ball, gaining 122 yards on 11 carries (11.1 ypc) and a touchdown. If Scott has a good year and gives opponents something other than the passing attack to worry about, the Blue Devils are going to beat some good teams this year.

The good news for opposing teams is that the Duke defense can't stop much of anything right now.

Nov. 4 vs. Georgia Tech (1-1, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: Kansas 28, Georgia Tech 25
Week 3: at North Carolina

The Yellow Jackets had three drives in the second half end on downs and another on a lost fumble in their loss to Kansas. The Jackets out-gained the Jayhawks by 87 yards, but committed 91 yards worth of penalties and were 1-for-4 on fourth down conversions.

Kansas did a good job of slowing down Joshua Nesbitt on the ground as he averaged only 2.2 yards per carry. Anthony Allen did have a big game, running for 89 yards on 11 carries.

Kansas top two running backs also averaged nearly six yards per carry as the Jackets struggled against the run.

Tech Talk: Kansas grounds Jackets
Barrel of Rum: Jackets beat themselves
Rock Chalk Talk: How KU contained the option

Nov. 13 at North Carolina (0-1, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: Bye Week
Week 3: vs. Georgia Tech

We'll learn a lot about both the Heels and the Jackets this week in Chapel Hill.

Nov. 20 at Miami (1-1, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: Ohio State 36, Miami 24
Week 3: Bye Week (at Pittsburgh Sept. 23)

Jacory Harris continue his run of poor play on the road, throwing four interceptions in the Canes' loss. The bad news is when we play Miami it will be at Sun Life Stadium, where Harris is usually exceptional.

The Canes D also showed it has trouble containing a mobile quarterback as Terrelle Pryor ran for 113 yards and a touchdown. If our offensive line continues to struggle this year, it's good to know that Tyrod's scrambling abilities might have success against Miami.

The 7th Floor: Program still on the rise
Eye of the Hurricane: Mental errors derail upset
Along the Olentangy: OSU defense disciplined and prepared
Eleven Warriors: Pryor shakes off slow start

Nov. 27 vs. Virginia (1-1, 0-0 ACC)
Week 2: USC 17, Virginia 14
Week 3: Bye Week (vs. VMI Sept. 25)

UVa scored a late touchdown, but was unable to complete its comeback in LA as the Trojans sneaked away with a three-point win. The Hoos did an excellent job of stifling the USC run game and not letting Matt Barkley burn them deep.

On offense, Verica wasn't terrible, but the Hoos couldn't put a drive together until late in the game when they missed a field goal and scored the late touchdown.

From Old Virginia: Hoos not intimidated
Conquest Chronicles: Trojans not disciplined