Takin' Care of Business......

We just did what Dusty told us too....

It wasn't always pretty. But it was effective. 28 points in 6:11 during the second half. 600 yds of total offense (407 on the ground). A victory in a night game, on the road, against an SEC opponent. Oregon beating Southern Cal's ass. It can only mean one thing for the Jackets this Halloween night...

We're movin' on up like George & Weezy.....top 10 for the 1st time since 2001!!!

Kickin' it today.....

It's raining in the ATL for the 853rd consecutive day. No wonder people in Seattle off themselves all the time. Not only do you have to watch Washington State & UW football (post James/pre Sarkisian) but you don't see the sun for half the year. Take heart, those in despair, for the rain offers us a precious chance. No Fall Fair with the parents, brother & sister, niece & nephew. Working in the joke we refer to as a "yard" would entail scuba gear. What is a man to do? Well with the Jackets playing tonight there is but one option: watch football. Not that this deviates from any other day, we just have a somewhat valid excuse today. Some things we might or might not watch:

• The Big Ten (aka steaming pile of turd left by the roadside). Today's slate of games: Indiana @ #4 Iowa, Michigan-Illinois, New Mexico State @ #17 Ohio State, Purdue @ Wisconsin, #12 Penn State @ Northwestern, Michigan State @ Minnesota. Are you fucking serious? That's the best you can give us? Not a single compelling game of the bunch. Can I schedule a colonoscopy instead of having to watch this? No wonder the Big Ten isn't relevant....

Big Ten football circa 2009...smell the excitement!!!!!

• #25 Ole Miss @ Auburn. Your friends set you up. The first couple meetings (with said friends) go well. There's some interest. You follow that up with a date. Then another. Things are moving along well now. The third date is a concert with friends. Everyone gets a little hammered & you end up back at her place. Hot damn! The morning arrives. Coherence begins to return. She has 5 cats & a parrot. She believes in reincarnation & is a fervent practioner of Feng Shui. Vegan. A 5' by 5' picture of her father hangs above her bed. She demands you attend a couples workshop the next weekend.....WTF!!!!! Welcome to Ole Miss & Auburn. Ranked in the preseason as high as #4? Off to a 5-0 start under Gene Chizik? The wheels have fallen off. We'll watch this morbid train wreck to see who plays more like Chris Todd; the real Chris Todd or Jevan Snead. It's sorta fun to sit on the sidelines & watch a fan base implode...
• Duke-UVA. Cutcliffe has the boys from Durham in the driver's seat for a bowl bid. Seriously. They just won back-to-back ACC games for the first time since 1994. Three in a row might cause Durham to explode. Or maybe no one at Duke gives a rat's ass as basketball practice started this week.
• The Cocktail Party. We're rooting for General ZOD. Really. Glad they have "safe haven's" around the stadium this year to help those who get too hammered. Wonder if they have one for the Ginger Ninja? Paging Brandon Spikes, Paging Brandon Spikes. People are sleeping too much on the Dawgs here. Beating Florida & Tech is all that's left in this moribund season for them. They'll play well. But it's a day game & we know about the Ginger Ninja's aversion to the sun...

Is that a roll of dimes or are you just happy to see me?????

• South Carolina @ Tennessee. Alshon Jeffery is a really, really good football player. So is Eric Norwood. Monte Kiffin is a great coach. The potential to witness Jonathon Crompton playing well or shitting all over himself on national TV is reason enough for me to watch....
• #3 Texas @ #14 Oklahoma State. How powerful is T. Boone Pickens? We'll know if he can buy off Colt McCoy & Jordan "the Great White Hope" Shipley. Kendall Hunter is back. Dez Bryant is eating wings & spending money he has yet to earn at Deion's place...
• #5 USC @ #10 Oregon. The good news is that somebody loses & Tech moves up. Matt Barkley is good. Taylor Mays is overrated. The Song Girls aren't. No Anthony McCoy hurts USC. The 18 capable tailbacks they have don't hurt USC. It would be a HELL of a coaching job if Chip Kelly can bring his team to a victory after where they were the first thursday night of the season. I'll take LeGarrette Blount. Against anyone....

Incoming....

Have fun today & GO JACKETS.......

On the Road

Frank Lloyd Wrong is going to be on the road today and tomorrow for family reasons. Nana's 100th. We're not sure how this is going to effect our football watching. Sure Nana will get up at 5:30 in the morning to make us fresh squeezed OJ while we grind out another 40 seconds of sleep on the hide-a-bed, but the ole' girl will be out like a light by 6:30.

We still plan on breaking out the Magnum P.I. costume (we got a mustache, a Hawaiian shirt and a Detroit Tigers Hat) we'd planed for our neighbors Pride/Halloween Party. It should ruffle Nana a good bit as mustaches are for communists, but we're the ole girls favorite, so we'll probably get away with it.

So quick predictions for the weekend.

1) Pain

2) Central Michigan+5.4 vs. BC

3) Duke+6.5 "hottest girl in the room" vs. UVA

4) South Cacalac +6.5 vs. Tennessee

Whose Johnson is bigger....?

So off we head to Nashville this Halloween to face the mighty Commodores of Vanderbilt led by head coach Bobby Johnson. CPJ & Bobby have a long history dating back to their Southern Conference days at Georgia Southern & Furman, respectively. So what will we see this Saturday? Hopefully a good old-fashioned GT ass-whoopin....

Is Saturday a "trap game" for the Jackets?

Vanderbilt is a very well coached team with a decent defense & a struggling, below average offense. They have the (mis)fortune of having played against the triple option earlier this year, losing to Army 16-13. So while not good, if we fall asleep at the wheel Vanderbilt has the ability to beat us. After all, they have "SEC speed", something we don't (now vomiting into trash can). The interesting thing about this game is how poorly Vandy matches up against us. Let's take a look:

• The Jackets lead the nation in time of possession at 34:50 per game. Vandy is fourth worst at 26:41 per game. What's this really mean? It means their defense is gonna be really, really tired by the middle of the 3rd quarter while our defense will be fresh & ready to go. Expect more of our long, grinding drives on Saturday night.

"Watch out here we come, we're a clock eater..." (apologies to Hall & Oates)

• Vandy's defense, while ranked 23rd in scoring (17.8 ppg) is ranked 85th against the run (164 ypg) & a solid 6th against the pass (155 ypg). So the strength of their defense is their secondary. Good for them if we had any intention of passing. I expect to see maybe only 5 pass attempts in this game by the Jackets as we pound away with the run. Why throw when you don't have to? Just for comparisons sake, Tech is second in the country running the ball at 292 ypg.
• Vandy is 38th in the nation in rushing (174 ypg) & only 111th in passing at 148 ypg. We all know by now that we defend against the run infinitely better than the pass (53rd at 127 ypg vs. 75th at 228ypg). Suffice it to say that Vandy QB Larry Smith is not Christian Ponder, Jacory Harris, or Tyrod Taylor. With our improved defensive line play (which in turn has led to much better linebacker play) watch for us to stack the box & dare Vandy to throw the ball.

So when you strip it all down, the match-ups on the field really favor Tech. A few other things to look out for:

• Vandy cornerback Myron Lewis. You've probably never heard of this kid but he is the best defensive back we will play all year. A certainty to play on Sunday's. Big at 6'3" & 205 pounds, watch for Lewis to matchup with BayBay all night. I don't expect us to throw much & Lewis is a big reason why. Strong & fluid with great hips, watch Lewis on Sunday night.

Watch for this guy on Sundays next year...

• The one that got away: Warren Norman. As a true freshman running back/kick returner, Norman leads the SEC in all-purpose yards & has taken back 2 kicks for touchdowns. Not bad for the kid from Stone Mountain. We offered him a scholarship but the SEC beckoned. Good little player...

It has been a long time since I've felt like this as a Jacket. Saturday night should prove an easy win for Tech. The Jackets will make a loud statement with their play. If we come out, take care of business & win in a no-nonsense fashion, it will really signal that this team has arrived as a national force. If we come out flat & eek out a win, we'll be seen by many in the national media as "not-ready-for-prime-time". My money is that we handle our business in convincing fashion: Bees 42- Commodores 13. Off to the top ten next week....

The invincible Dusty Rhodes says this Halloween is all about "TAKIN' CARE OF BUSINESS...."

That's a bad man.....

As the Architect so keenly pointed out in our rooting interests this week, we wouldn't be adverse to General Zod & his Clone Army descending upon the Redneck Riviera that is Jacksonville & reigning fire & destruction upon almost everyone there (Orson Swindle & the EDSBS gang are exempt from all harm). But I'm not sure I'm taking Zod & his Army in that brawl. Why you ask:

Brandon Spikes-an angry, angry, man with a penchant for destruction. Think a malicious Wyclef Jean with the ability to alter the course of nature through sheer aggression...

Brandon Spikes is a force of nature. He doesn't practice all week as they keep him locked up for fear he will destroy all in his path. I'm not talking about locked up like "Mike the Tiger" at LSU in his $5 million dollar habitat. I'm talking about caging that fearsome beast in an underground bunker & feeding him vegetables all week so when he emerges on Saturday he simply ravages anything he can get his considerably carnivorous hands on. I guarantee you The Ginger Ninja has been wetting the bed all week thinking about Mr. Spikes. How bad a man is Brandon Spikes?

Bad enough that he can wear that pink suit & nobody in the world will say shit to him....

Game preview later tonight....

Gettin' Ready For Vandy

Frank Lloyd Wrong knows precious little about Vandy. It was founded by Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt. So there's that.

Here's some statistical food for thought. Where would Tech and Vandy rank in each others respective conference. National Rankings on the right, points per game on the left.

ACC Scoring Offense

20 - Georgia Tech 32.63
21 - Virginia Poly 32.57
23 - NC State - 31.86
36 - U Miami - 29.86 (not to be confused with Miami U which is 120)
38 - Florida State - 29.86
41 - Duke - 29.43 (Duke's offense is approaching "hottest girl in the room" proportions)
48 - Boston College - 28.50
50 - Clemson - 28.29
86 - Wake Forest - 23.63
90 - North Carolina - 22.86
97 - Virginia - 22.00
98 - Maryland - 21.63
112 - Vanderbilt - 16.38 (over 6.5 points per game worse than UVA)

SEC Scoring Offense

9 - Florida - 35.29
20 - Georgia Tech - 32.63 (Suck it SEC!)
22 - Arkansas - 32.00
23 - Alabama - 31.75
26 - Auburn - 31.50
32 - Mississippi - 30.14
47 - Tennessee - 28.57 (but tracking much better on the moral victory scale)
60 - Georgia - 26.71
67 - Mississippi State - 26.13 (Dan Mullen needs to shut up about the officials and be glad no one is harping on the awful decision to run a fake punt against Florida. They blew it up Dan because their players are better than yours. Kick it away and build that margin of error for your team.)
71 - Kentucky - 25.86
83 - LSU - 24.14
94 - South Carolina - 22.75 (Spurrier's lost it man, he's just lost it)
112 - Vanderbilt - 16.38

ACC Scoring Defense

17 - North Carolina - 16.14 (If TJ Yates can keep it together for 60 minutes the defense is going to beat someone good this year. VPI we're looking your way.
23 - Vanderbilt - 17.75 (Good, but not as good as UNC, and their offense is worse. Tech's domination of the clock should grind this defense down)
25 - Clemson - 18.43
28 - Virginia Tech - 19.14 (Seriously, UNC, Clemson, and VPI didn't slow down Tech's offense, why should Vandy)
37 - Boston College - 20.63 (looking feisty)
42 - Virginia - 20.86 (down from 29 last week. That's what Tech can do to a good defenses)
54 - Wake Forest - 22.75
59 - U Miami - 23.57
62 - Georgia Tech - 23.63 (C+, not showing off, not falling behind)
70 - Duke - 25.14
80 - NC State - 27.14 (for those of you wondering what happened to NC State's sleeper chances, click here. That kid is probably more important to this team than Russell Wilson)
88 - Florida State - 28.00
101 - Maryland - 31.63

SEC scoring Defense
2 - Florida - 10.14 (krypee these guys are good!)
4 - Alabama - 11.38
9 - LSU - 13.29
11 - Mississippi - 13.57
21 - South Carolina - 17.50
23 - Vanderbilt - 17.75
25 - Tennessee - 18.14 (Do you know who my Daddy is! Do you!)
55 - Kentucky - 23.00
62 - Georgia Tech - 23.63 (D is for "Diploma")
67 - Mississippi State - 24.63
78 - Auburn - 26.88
82 - Arkansas - 27.43
84 - Georgia - 27.43 (Willie Martinez just peed himself, pero un poco)

Vandy's defense has faced LSU, Mississippi State, Mississippi, Georgia, and South Carolina this year, not exactly a murder's row.

Rooting For...

1) Cup of Awesome - When Paul Johnson goes to the break room, he pours himself a cup of awesome...

It goes great with fresh Whoop-Ass

2) Stanford to replace running back Toby Gerhart with an International Harvester. Trust us Stanford, you won't notice one bit of difference in performance, and the Harvester has a lower carbon footprint.

switching from diesel to ethanol...

3) General Zod and his Clone Army to descend on Jacksonville...

Come to me Superman and kneel. Kneel before Zod! Zod!!

(The Ginger Ninja will not be a factor as Zod feeds off the power of our yellow sun)

Breaking News!!!!

This NEVER gets old. Another arrest in Athens! Starting U(sic)GA offensive lineman Vince Vance was arrested this morning for driving without a valid license & failure to obey a traffic signal or sign. No big deal but THIS IS THE SECOND TIME BEING ARRESTED ON THE SAME CHARGES WITHIN A YEAR for Mr. Vance. And no, Vince won't be suspended for Saturday's tilt with #1 Florida. I'm thinking when Brandon Spikes gets through sodomizing Vince that he'll wish Saint Richt had suspended him.

Hey Big Fella, too busy with your coloring book, I mean class work, to get to the DMV????

"White Russians & Walter's....."

You know the drill. The highs & lows this week belong to:

• The Diesel. It's not easy being great. Ridiculous expectations loomed this season for the reigning ACC Offensive Player of the Year. Will he score every time he touches the ball? The Heisman Trophy? Off to a fine start as on Tech's first play from scrimmage this year he ripped off a 74 yard TD jaunt. But as we entered the ACC schedule teams focused all their energy on stopping Dwyer. "Sell out to stop the dive" was the rallying cry of defenses around the ACC. A shoulder injury in the Miami game didn't help the cause. Did he complain? Any jealousy over the success of his teammates? Not a bit. The Diesel just kept rolling forward, getting hit on every play as he charged into the heart of the defense, with or without the ball. So it was gratifying on Saturday to watch Dwyer as he bulled his way to 125 yards on 25 carries, the highlight a 14 yard dash on which he simply ran over & through 6'0" 210 lb. UVA cornerback Chris Cook.

Who knew the Diesel ran on vodka, kahlua, & non-dairy creamer?

• Anthony Allen needs a nickname. I've heard "Predator" but that's Atlanta Falcon John Abraham's nickname. I hereby proffer "The Punisher". Does anyone run as hard as #18 in White & Gold? Not only does he lead the NCAA at a stunning 10.93 yards per carry, but of late he's been a blocking fool. Allen's "chicken salad from chicken shit", tackle breaking, reverse-field run on Saturday where he turned a five yard loss into a seven yard gain completely demoralized UVA and essentially ended the game. I'm not saying he's as good, but Allen certainly evokes memories of Walter Payton with his no-nonsense, head down, "I'm gonna punish the tackler" style of running.

"The Punisher" sheds Vic Hall like a cheap suit...

• Malcolm Munroe. Talk about momentum changer? Munroe's hit on Chase Minniefield, and the ensuing fumble we recovered, shifted the early momentum in Charlottesville to Tech......

Just a hint: discretion is the better part of valor....fair catch...

• And finally, our orange clad friends from Clemson. We appreciate your support.....

A classy & helpful bunch those Clemson Roughriders.....couldn't be too nice, could we?

Walter's for the week:

• The UVA "fans". Guess there must have been a fencing match or a regatta at the same time as the football game. Do you melt in the rain or just not give a shit about your team? Has Al Groh's incompetence beaten you into submission?A poor effort at best, old chaps....

The lawn bowling tournament at UVA was a greater draw than football this Saturday...

• ESPN's Heather Dinich. The "ACC beat writer" for the Worldwide Leader, Dinich has consistently ignored the Yellow Jackets all year. Preseason all we got from Heather was the Russell Wilson/Tom O'Brien lovefest, culminating in her picking them for the Atlantic division crown. Umm, no. Then it was the predictable: "Virginia Polly is the class of this league & they have a shot at the Mythical National Championship" line from Dinich. Missed again, darlin'. And to top it off, she picked both VPISU & UVA to beat us these last two weeks. Strike three, Heather. When asked at his postgame press conference if he thought people still doubted the Yellow Jackets, CPJ, looking directly at Dinich, replied: "Oh I think so, right Heather?" Hope you've learned your lesson....brazen strumpet!
• The Georgia Tech Faithful. We love the fact we have a great football team this year. Hell, that's why we write this blog that nobody reads. But slow down. To quote our fearless leader: "we haven't won anything yet". The ridiculous smack talk & sense of entitlement on Tech message boards across the interweb needs to be tempered by reality. I love the enthusiasm, but ground yourself, please. We are a very good football team & a program on the rise. But we're new to this. Before we walk around strutting like a barnyard pimp, we gotta win a few more....

And finally, a new award this week:

Guess who wins this award????

Frank Beamer!!!!! Hokie: the Native American word for whiny bitch...

News, Notes, & Random Thoughts from the Weekend....

A busy weekend beating up the "born-with-a-silver-spoon-jammed-up-my-ass" brigade in Charlottesville got us thinking about a few things (in no particular order)...

• Does rain hurt or help our offense? UVA this weekend, F$U, UNC, & U(sic)GA last year. All wins. I think we're okay in the rain...
• From Aaron McFarling of the Roanoke Times: "This offense is not a gimmick. It's not a freak show. It's a legitimate, effective beast that gobbles up first downs, swallows the game clock and then belches all over a tired defense." You, sir, are not only an astute observer of football, but a fine wordsmith. Huzzah, Huzzah.....

Our march to victory continues virtually unabated...

• In each of our last three wins we've gone on long drives in the 3rd quarter to seal the victory: 16 plays, 80 yards, 9:07 time of possession (FSU), 12 plays, 86 yards, 6:28 time of possession (VPISU), & this week's installment of the "Welcome to the Bataan Death March" an 18 play, 82 yard, 10:47 masterpiece that left the Minions of Groh demoralized & defeated. CPJ complained about our "killer instinct" earlier this season. That's putting your foot on their throat.
• I will never get tired of watching The Diesel blast Virginia cornerback Chris Cook. You got rolled, byatch....
• Bad news on the injury front as sophomore free safety Cooper Taylor (heart condition) & senior defensive end Robert Hall (knee) have been ruled out for the remainder of the year. Taylor will ask for (& undoubtedly receive) a medical redshirt while Hall will graduate in the spring. We'll see Coop next year so get well soon & thanks for five years of hard work, Mr. Hall.
• We've gone 14 consecutive 2nd half possessions (since F$U) without a punt. Turned it over a couple times but damn.....
• Finally, something for our friends from Virginia Polly....

Stick this in your pie hole...

It's been ten days since we beat their ass but Frank Beamer & Kam "the Answer Man" Chancellor still want to complain about our "illegal" blocks. Bullshit. They were all legal. An arc block from the non-motion A-Back is perfectly legal. And when you're in the open field & not engaged with another player, we can & will, dive at you knees. Suck it up, buttercup, it's legal. Hell, on Nesbitt's final TD run Chancellor gets screened off the play by Tyler Melton who simply stands in his way! CPJ had this to say: "It was two weeks ago, why are they worried about it now. I heard that he said he was blocked illegally on the touchdown by Josh, that is a joke," Johnson said Monday. "Put the tape on and watch. Tyler Melton cracked the free safety. He does not even block him. He shields him. They got out-schemed. So it is illegal to out-scheme them, I guess." Hey Kam, you don't wanna get called out on Sportscenter??? Shut your gaping pie hole, moron...

Did you see this coming????

The enemy-of-my-enemy-is-my-friend...

We at "The Barrel" would like to sincerely thank the Clemson Tigers for their timely defeat of ThugU. Couldn't happen at a better time. Here's hoping we don't see you again in Tampa...unless we're at the Club in Ybor City...the night before the game.....Thanks C.J......

C.J. Spiller not only had to beat Miami on Saturday but also had to overcome Dabo's clock management....which is akin to Bernie Madoff's money management

Killing the Undead......

Some people use these kits to deal with the Undead & Unfired......

Today, Paul Johnson summoned the Tech version of Cerberus, the three headed monster that guards Hades, to fight the Minions of Groh.

Suffice it to say, 369 yards of ground pounding later, little was left of the Wahoos in it's wake.....

The Diesel in full rumble

Anthony Allen had malice on his mind & in his heart

Josh efficiently dispatched the minions of Groh

Put a stake in it's heart, that streak is done....

Chef asks...Can we end "the streak".......???

We haven't won in Charlottesville since 1990. Pretty good year for the Jackets as we managed to win the mythical National Championship at 11-0-1. We've already accomplished a couple of firsts this year- our first win EVER at Doak Campbell & beating our first top 5 ranked opponent at home since 1962. Why stop now? Bumble Bees 30 - Thurston Howell III wanna-be's 17

'Hoos gonna get bucked & "Turnt Up" on Saturday....

Frank Lloyd Wrong's Picks

Rutgers -10.5 at Army
South Florida +6.5 at Pittsburgh
Georgia Tech -3.5 at Virginia
Miami -3.5 vs. Clemson
Oklahoma -10.5 at Baylor
Michigan +4.5 vs. Penn State
Missouri+13.5 vs. Texas
Alabama-16.5 vs. Tennesse (would take Alabama at -21)
Kansas +6.5 vs. Oklahoma
Boston College +9.5 at Notre Dame
Iowa -2.5 at Michigan State
TCU -1.5 at BYU
LSU -7.5 vs. Auburn
Oregon State +20.5 vs. USC

Running with the Devil!

How do we deal with the UnDead?

Make a Deal with the Devil.

How does Paul Johnson deal with the UnDead?

Shot gun blast their heads clean off, Zombie Style!

We at the Barrel have no idea how Tech is going to defend Virginia, because Virginia is awful. The Cavaliers are 85th in scoring offense, 100th in rushing offense, and 82nd in passing offense. Sure they beat UNC, Indiana, and Maryland over the last three weeks, but those teams are also awful. What we do know is that UVA heave-hoed the spread attack they tried to install this spring despite the fact they new going in it was going to take two years to fully implement. So we'll be seeing the same thing we've seen from UVA the past few years. A morbid attack that makes zombies look quick and efficient. The UnFired will role out a hack-kneed, dog eared high school drama club interpretation of an NFL "game plan" It will suck to watch, and it will suck even more if it starts to work. Have you seen Night of the Living Dead? It'll be something like that. The heroine will keep falling down as the zombies stumble toward her and you'll find yourself screaming "Jesus! Get up and Run! You deserve to die!! "

The UnFired and his minions have been hold-up in their evil laboratory all week pouring over game film, dissecting frogs and Tech's defense, reanimating bodies with lightning, and sewing Cedric Peerman's right arm onto a pack of wolves, you know, UnDead kind of stuff. For a chess playing NFL coach the "game plan" is a package of plays developed for this weeks opponent. It is designed to take advantage of any weaknesses spotted during film sessions. College coaches usually tweak their offenses for each week's opponent. The results are kind of the same, but the approaches are different. In UVA's case the game plan isn't so much an attack as a slow wondering towards the end zone until you remove their heads with a shot gun, gulf club or shovel.

Last year's "game plan" consisted of a never ending string of pitches, screens and draws to Cedric Peerman who then stiff-armed his way to 700 yards of offense. Peerman's gone this year, and Tech has more than one health linebacker, so this years "game plan" should be different.

If we could mind meld with the UnFired and hear what he's thinking it would probably be, "their rush defense is "not bad" but the pass defense is rancid. The linebackers tend to get too close to the line, compensating for poor tackle play, and the corner backs give to much cushion. I bet we could run a crap ton of crossing routs like Miami and FSU. These guys loose players running across the field all the time." Pauses to add eye of newt to bubbling cauldron. "But our pass protection blows. We give up four sacks a game. heck we gave up five sacks to Maryland last week" throws giant electrical switch which ignites at 72 foot tall Jacob's ladder, "better run lots of screens and draws to slow down Derrick Morgan. The runs won't do anything, but we have to keep them honest" smacks hunch backed offensive coordinator Greg Brandon. "Man we suck"

"Our offensive line is the all "looks like Tarzan plays like Jane" team. Even Tech should be able to get pressure with only three our four guys regularly. If the tackles continue their good play from last Saturday it should free up the linebackers to watch the delayed plays out of the back field, and drop into coverage filling the middle of the field and disrupting the crossing routes. I'm smart, not like people say I am..."

Lets not get it twisted. Tech's defense ain't great, but its better than UVA's offense. Even if the Mississippi State defense shows up, there is no reason to believe UVA can keep pace with Tech's offense. The key to defense this week will be not turning the ball over on offense. Keep the defense in a good position and smack those womp rats when they stick their heads out!

How we slay the Undead....

It's late October & that can mean only one thing-it's time for UVA to transform from "shitty, I lose to an FCS school" team to "Imposing ACC Beast, intent on wrecking other's seasons"

We have in previous posts established that Al Groh will not die. He's like some strange college football version of the Undead. Every year his team shits itself out of the gate, only to rise from the depths of depravity to go 7-5 yet again. Mark this down, you can essentially forego the use of a calendar in favor of tracking UVA's football season. Whoaaaa, bad idea. Please disregard as this certainly will cause some sort of nefarious harm. Al Groh is the Chan Gailey of Virginia. Former pro head coach, .....I can't believe I just typed that. My computer hates me for forcing that sentence on it. Let's take a look at Groh's Army of Undead & see how we will attack it this Saturday. We'll handle the offensive side of things & the Architect will handle defense.

Virginia runs a classic 3-4 defense, the first we've seen this year. Groh stays true to his NFL roots & plays a very conservative version of the 3-4, preaching "read & react" over aggression. This is a big advantage for the 'Hoos as the triple option routinely takes advantage of over-aggressive defenses. They will miss starting DE Matt Conrath, out with an injury, but his replacement, Will Hill, looks to be a capable fill-in. Virginia is a very well coached defensive football team who will play us tough this Saturday. Some things to note:

• Nesbitt's eyes will be key. Running the triple option against the 3-4 is very similar to the 4-3 but the pitch key will be different. Josh has to recognize who the option read is on every play. UVA will vary their formations in an attempt to confuse Josh, walking up the outside linebackers into a 5-2 look or even bringing a safety into the box for a 4-4 formation. It will be key on Saturday for Josh to recognize what he is facing & adjust. It was tough to do this against UVA last year as Josh was so new in the offense. With his additional experience in the offense, look for Josh to steadily expose the Cavs defense.

In the 3-4, either the DE or OLB can be the pitch key

• Ball security. We've had six fumbles & an interception in our last 2 games. Combine that with a weather forecast calling for rain on Saturday & you have a potentially disastrous situation. We've really been the only ones to stop ourselves offensively these last three games. We must value the ball. Of note: not all our fumbles on pitches are Nesbitt's fault. The A-backs must maintain a proper pitch relationship in order for us to secure the ball. Embry Peeples' fumble against VT is a perfect example of this. Peeples is out of position & that is what caused the bad pitch (CPJ & Embry both addressed this at different points this week). As former Tech coach John Heisman once said, "Gentlemen, it is better to have died a young boy than to fumble this football".

Listen to the man, he's got a trophy named after him...

• Perimeter blocking. UVA has 2 very good corners in Ras-I Dowling & Chris Cook. They also have great size at around 6'2" & 210 pounds. We've got to block these guys or our perimeter game will suffer. Our A-backs will also have to block well on their linebackers. This will be key. My guess is they will leave the corners one-on-0ne versus BayBay & Hill so watch out for the big play.
• Watch for CPJ to use many different formations. Look for "twins" (both wide receivers on one side) with us running away from the formation. This will take UVA's corners out of the equation. Watch for the receivers to line up tight to the formation, giving them a better angle & less distance to crack-back on the outside linebackers. CPJ will try to dictate defensive alignment through the use of different formations.
• The ability of our offensive line, particularly our tackles, to get to the "second level". We've got to pin the interior guys but then get onto the next wave of defenders, the linebackers. This is generally harder for offensive linemen as they are operating in space & it places a premium on athleticism.

Bedford & Co. have to get to the 2nd level

• Look for lots of speed option early. We did this last year & it worked. We need to widen the outside linebackers to open up the dive play & the best way to do this is to run wide. I expect plenty of speed option & even a few straight pitches to Dwyer. Speaking of Dwyer, I expect #21 to have a big day.

You can only hope to contain him....

More on how we'll defend the Wahoo's & our game predictions later...

Worth more than 1000 words....

I only wish I had thought of this first....

More Rooting Interests

1) Wood Stakes - This weekend Tech faces the coaching equivalent of the UnDead. The UnBad, UnFired, Al Groh. Things that would kill other coaches, like having top 5 draft picks on your squad and not making a bowl game, or loosing to "Bill & Trixie", or being shot at point blank range, don't phase Groh. The only way his inevitable march to 7 and 6 can be stopped is with black magic and dealings with the devil.

Cedar is preferable
behold, the walking UnFired!!!!

2-The Golden Pitbull - Being so close to Halloween, and as Tech is facing the UnFired, and as Tech is fighting WaHo voodoo in Charlottesville, Tech's personal house of horrors over the last 18 years, we summon a mystical beast of our own, the Golden Pitbull!

#21

3- Baboons and Hyenas to turn on People

What could go wrong?

4) Carl Weathers - His mad jungle fighting skills will come in handy, plus he can make a stew out of anything.

you're married to Carl Weathers? Shit!

4) Moving the ACC Championship game (ACCCG) to Charlotte. This makes so much sense.

7 is less than 4