By Jimmy Robertson
BLACKSBURG – Friday nights are normally reserved for high school football, but Virginia Tech and Duke hog the attention on this Friday evening, as the two Coastal Division foes square off at Lane Stadium in an important matchup.
The game serves as Duke's ACC opener, while the Hokies desperately want to avoid being 0-2 in league play with a road trip to Miami looming.
"They are really playing at a high level," Tech head coach Justin Fuente said of Duke. "They are cutting it loose and doing some great things. Offensively, they have a great mix of everything — there's some option looks that they've obviously been working on and some spread looks as well. It'll be a great challenge there. They've always been good on special teams and the return game, and defensively, they're really getting after people and doing a great job."
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The Hokies are 2-1 on the season, but they have played inconsistently in pretty much all phases. Both teams enjoyed a bye last weekend, and Tech used a lot of practice time with the first-team units going against each other.
"We worked on quite a bit of good-on-good looks," Fuente said. "We did quite a bit of drill work on special teams. Obviously, we worked on some third-down stuff on both sides of the ball and some early down run game on both sides of the ball. Those are some pretty big points of emphasis for us, and we'll see how it worked out."
Tech will be rested and hopes to be aided by the return of some injured players. That said, here are some other things to watch:
Tech's running game – Knew this was coming, right? The Hokies' much-discussed running game actually looked better against Furman, as the Hokies ran for 227 yards. Freshman tailback Keshawn King supplied most of the juice, finishing with 119 yards rushing on just 12 carries, including one carry of 54 yards.
That rushing attack, though, faces a very good defense. In fact, Duke's defensive line may well just be the strongest part of its team.
The key number here is 150. When Tech rushes for at least 150 yards in a game under Fuente, it usually wins – 21-8 in his tenure. However, Duke hasn't allowed more than 145 yards rushing in a game this season.
Big plays from the Hokies – In following the note above, the Hokies sure could use some chunk plays against Duke's defense, and Tech's offense possesses the potential to create these types of plays, particularly in the passing game. Tech has 12 pass plays of 20 yards or more this season, including four of 30 yards or more.
On the other side, while Duke's defense has played reasonably well, it has given up some big plays. Duke has allowed 19 plays of 20 yards or more, with a lot of those coming in the Blue Devils' season opener against Alabama.
So Duke seems susceptible to allowing the big play. Can the Hokies string together a few? The answer goes a long way toward determining who wins.
Pressure on Harris – Quentin Harris took over at quarterback following the departure of NFL first-round draft pick Daniel Jones, and the Blue Devils still look capable of putting up big numbers. Harris put together an impressive two-game stretch before Duke's bye weekend in which he completed 54 of 69 for 582 yards and eight touchdowns – and no interceptions.
"He can do it all," Fuente said. "They're doing a bunch of different stuff, which is really good. They line up in some triple option, and he can throw the football. He's decisive and obviously well-coached, and he knows where he's supposed to go with the ball. He can obviously make plays running the ball, and he's played quite a bit, but he seems to be pretty efficient as a passer as well."
That means the Hokies really need to put pressure on Harris. In three games this season, Tech has registered 10 sacks, but only one of those came against a Power 5 opponent (BC). Plus, Tech has needed to blitz to get the quarterback, as Chamarri Conner, Rayshard Ashby, and Jermaine Waller account for nearly half of the Hokies' sacks.
Complicating matters is a good Duke offensive line. The Blue Devils have allowed just one sack on the season.
Most games tend to get won in the trenches. This one figures to be no different.
In closing: Tech and Duke kick things off at 7 p.m. Those unable to attend the festivities in Blacksburg may watch the game on ESPN.