Your winning U.N.C. Eye in the Sky part I:

#8 B.C.S. Virginia Tech=24, North Carolina=21

On a steel-gray November day, you hear the signature statico “click-clack” of O&M cleats and our beloved Hokies walk down the narrow emotionally claustrophobic tunnel that leads to Worsham Field to a 66,233 strong chorus of:

“LETS GO!”

“HO-KIES!”

The initial five chords of Enter Sandman ring out and suddenly the mighty Hokie Nation is feeling no pain, never mind the 21f degree cold.

U.N.C. is about to get turked!

Well, at least they were, right up until our first play from scrimmage and then right up until the final 7 odd minutes of the game when all powder-blue hell truly did threaten to break loose as it looked like U.N.C. might have successfully fielded an on-sides kick-off attempt with 2:29 remaining.

VT might wanna consider issuing Dramamine tablets to help offset the effects of the emotional rollercoaster ride otherwise known as the 2011 Virginia Tech football season. Instantly down, then up for a good long while on the scoreboard and nearly back down, nearly all the way down to end the show.

Shew!

This 2011 football season has not been for the faint of heart as this injury riddled Hokie football team with the thready training room pulse has fought until their very last breath all year long.

Hopefully, they have two more A.c.c. fights that lay ahead.

Thankfully, they now have nine days off.

1^st quarter, 14:03 remaining:
Does #20 Hosely just look outta synch to anyone else right now? Note that he looks like someone who needs someone to file a missing persons report on this play, as #85 of U.N.C. stole him upstairs with pure epic shoulder-violence on this one down along the VT sideline. That said, when little things like this start to happen to an epic (all-American) baller like “twenty”, you start to wonder what’s ‘rong with this picture. When enough little things start to add up, that total begins to mean a lot and Hosely is just too good for this. It is now high-time to move him back to Field-Cb where his slight of build frame and his epic ball-hawking instincts belong.

Game duration:
As I’ve been hard on them before, I wanna take this time to throw a shout-out to Davis and Boykin, who finally decided to block somebody out on the perimeter on our screen-action throughout a chilly Thursday New River Valley nite. Amazing how much good can come from a blocking engagement that only amounts to 0.5 seconds; as that is all it takes for the VT Slot or Se to make a move and head right on bye right on up-field. Sure would like to see this trend continue, as I’d conservatively estimate that VT racked up between 20-30 yards of bonus offense all for the love of just one half-second Wr block.

Season duration:
If you asked me to critique one thing that L.T. really does need to work on; it is his ongoing penchant for fall-away jump-shot string-pulling throws from middle pressure right up the gut and right in his face. Notice that L.T. does not do this side-to-side; as his pocket vision is not yet that advanced. He does still short-arm passes with frontal pressure right in his face, just as he did at the 1^st quarter, 8:06 remaining mark. Someone is gonna figure this out and start jumping some of these short-arm throws. In fact, according to the ESPN talking heads L.T. was only 3-16 with 2 INT’s on his last 19 high pressure throws up until this point in time.

1^st quarter, 6:22 remaining:
Coach Newsome: if you are not reading this right now, you should be. Just watch the incredible ½ jab-step salesmanship on the play-action fake by Renner, by none other than the U.N.C. oLine. The Heel oLine instantaneously pretends to fire of the line-of-scrimmage (LOS) before forming a frontline wall, instead of the classical U-shaped cup or contemporarily termed passing pocket. This is a freakin’ subtle Picasso, though it is a Picasso of understatement nonetheless. A+++ to U.N.C. for this one folks. As I’d love to see Coach Newsome and Coach O’Cain take a long-hard-look at borrowing this jab-step run blocking feint for L.T. from U.N.C.

2^nd quarter, 12:32 remaining:
Here is the right-ankle blow-out from poor #74 or ‘drew Miller at the end of the Wilson outside-zone call off-Tackle into the right-hand (or even) 6-hole or into right-side C-gap. I am told that Miller was not in a boot or an air-cast post-game on the VT sideline. Still, he did not return to play and VT has had nothing publishable to say regarding this injury post-game. In slow-mo, it almost looks like the dreaded no-contact injury with Miller running downhill, or down the negative slope of the Worsham Field crown itself, when his right ankle suddenly buckles on a misstep and simply just gives way. God Bless.

2^nd quarter, 10:24 remaining:
Name me another VT Rb all-time with better core-strength and therefore better core funded balance than my boy David Wilson? I dare you. Cy.Lawrence and his 1,000 sit-up, 1,000 pull-up and 1,000 push-up regiment per day does come to mind; and that’s it. This particular carry is basically a pseudo gymnastic round-off which earns a 9.9 from this CCCP judge. (Mary Lou Wilson)

2^nd quarter, 4:52 remaining:
Ugly looking right-knee injury to Loudoun County’s favorite son, one #36 Chase Williams. Watch as “three-six” is basically taking the so-called practice field knee, on his right side at the end of his KO coverage duties when suddenly #27 (Nic Dew) buries #31 for U.N.C. right over top of the pile at the end of the play on a mini-me sized steal. Larceny however comes with a price, and this time it is poor Chase William’s right-knee that gets accidentally pinned to the turf and pays the price.

If you fine folks have learned anything in my near decade of privilege to still be writing for TSL.com; I really do hope it would be that football is a cruel, cruel, wicked game when it comes to paying the butcher’s bill. And every few years the butcher presents a terminal bill that can only be paid in full.

Don’t believe me?
Ask the very next play.

2^nd quarter 4:42 remaining:
This one may not have been an all out bar room pier-6 brawl; though this was a harder hitting game than on average and a much harder hitting game than is being reported elsewhere. Note poor #26 Giovani Bernard and the cervical inflexion his neck suffers on this helmet-to-helmet  contact by Hosely. Technically this is a 15 yard personal foul on Virginia Tech. Literally this was a bad concussion for Mr. Bernard and it sure looked like it could have been a whole lot worse than that in slow-mo’. God Bless “two-six”.

2^nd quarter, 0:31 remaining:
Note the near chop-block by Via downfield on #43 of U.N.C. Yes, this cut #43 down to size smartly enough if your favorite pigskin color just so happens to be Chicago maroon. Although you will recognize the yellow first-down marker which was 7 yards downfield and the fact that Via is a good yard beyond such; maybe more than that. Now notice that the Umpire swallowed his whistle and just let ‘em play on a nite that only saw 8 yellow-flags thrown in totality.

I’ve noticed this trend same as you, the A.c.c. is really “letting ‘em play” this year. And that’s just fine with me, as all I ask for is consistency from the Zebra’s, both Home and Away. Call it strict or call it loose, just call it the same way for both sides all day.

Additionally, fold-blocking or getting to the second level is something that the almost lean looking Via should be able to do quite well downfield in relief of the injured Miller going forward As Via is almost nimble looking at times despite his bad knee and he sure looks a good deal stronger in the norther hemisphere this season on top of that.

Finally, notice that #75 Nosal was really chugging (or laboring) on his twice wounded right-knee trying to get down-field on this one.

What would you say improved the most during Spring Practice??? (add: why, down below) The O. The D. Special Teams. View Results  Loading ...

“…their mashing us a little bit”
-250 win Coach Frank Beamer, on the first half of play-

Longfield Management (Lo.FM):©
Virginia Tech:
positive= |||| |||| (1 VT TD, 1 burned VT timeout, 1 UNC penalty)
negative= |||| |||| (1 VT penalty, 1 VT fumble)
neutral= ||||

North Carolina:
positive= |||| | (1 TD)
negative= |||| |||| |||| (2 UNC penalties)
neutral= |

Lo.FM analysis:
Not too surprisingly, the Lo.FM painted a nearly perfect picture of what happened on Saturday nite down in a chilly New River Valley. VT was going along to get along early on, and then VT shifted into high gear and simply pwned UNC from the 14:46 remaining mark in the first quarter all the way up until the 9:49 remaining mark in the fourth quarter. When the mightily O&M little engine that could suddenly stalled and could not to close the show.

As VT ran 13 fourth quarter plays that went for a maximum of four yards, three of which went for a negative 25 yards in reverse. Even the single solitary good play by the VT offense -a 22 yard scamper by my boy David Wilson- was not enough to wipe out the damage done by those three plays all by their ownself. To take that a step further, VT experienced 35% of it’s Lo.FM’s in the final 12:57 of play. That’s not good folks and that has to leave you wondering where this one was trending had this been a ~65 minute game. (i.e. had U.N.C. found 3 more points out on Worsham Field in order to force OT)

Now here’s the kicker, VT was trendy enough as the VT offense played rather efficacious football for basically 3 quarters and small change of play. VT overcame an atrociously fluky looking start; Boykin had a career nite, Josh, David and L.T. all ran hard (if not great), and Exum, Whitley and D.Hop all played well in defense of North Carolina. Cody Journell was perfect on the night and things seemed comfortable enough with VT up 24-7 and just under 10 minutes remaining on the Lane Stadium scoreboard that is growing older looking by the minute. Then a funny thing happened along the way to the O&M candy store, or to the nearest hot chocolate vender, take your pick. One shanked punt and one blown man-coverage and VT abruptly found itself in a punchy looking finale indeed.

In closing the Lo.FM portion of our programming –one thing that stood out to me was the lack of big plays from Bud Lite in this one. As Foster’s stop-troops posted combined season lows in TFL (tackles for a loss, with 3) and in sacks (with only one); in point of fact, U.N.C. gained the second most yardage -358 if you are keeping score at home- that Bud Lite has allowed all campaign long. U.N.C. outgained VT by 18 total yards on Thursday night despite being owned in terms of Time of Possession, which VT won by virtually 5 full minutes of play. That’s disconcerting folks, and that leaves the C.A.T.T. (Critical thinker All The Time) in me wondering out-loud how much VT has left in the tank?

The Lo.FM final tally you ask?
Virginia Tech with 23 Lo.FM’s vs. North Carolina with 21.
I know; krazy ain’t it?

That Lo.FM count is one point better than someone’s 24-23 weather induced and borderline nervy looking pre-game New River Valley weather.com forecast thread on the pay-MB that accidentally ruffled several sensitive Hokiebird feathers indeed. Other than the fact that it was spot-on for Virginia Tech and off by a safety from U.N.C., that pick and the 24060 weather driven analysis behind it pretty much sucked.

Now for the even trippier part, VT has a fair to middling shot at finishing the year 13-1 and very much ranked in the B.C.S. top-5. This, according to my 36 hours of calc and stats in McBryde Hall, would amount to being the second best football season in the 119 year history of V.P.I. gridiron achievement! Presuming of course that VT does not draw a high-voltage power based rushing team in the Orange Bowl, as you just have to pragmatically favor VT to beat france, and then to  have a decent enough shot in the A.c.c. championship rematch with Clemson.

That said, where you stand is where you sit, and right now VT is sitting atop the A.c.c Coastal division standings with the team that practices abstinence from any and all XX chromosomes pairings on tap next.

Next Saturday can not possibly get here soon enough and you should go ahead and expect me to be very hard-on france this time ‘round.

“LET’S GO!”

“HOKIES!”

b’street

“Knock, knock…“

“Hoo’s there?“