On Saturday at 12:30 PM PT on ACC Network, Stanford football will face Virginia Tech on The Farm. Stanford comes in at 2-2 overall and 1-1 in the ACC while Virginia Tech comes in at 2-3 overall and 0-1 in the ACC.
VIDEO: Stanford Football Weekly Press Conference: Virginia Tech
Last time out: Stanford is coming off a 40-14 loss to No. 15 Clemson on the road. Emmett Mosley V and Elic Ayomanor both found the end zone for Stanford. Clemson improved their ranking from No. 17 to No. 15 in the AP Top 25.
RECAP: Stanford falls to No. 17 Clemson in Death Valley
On Virginia Tech: The Hokies are coming off a tough 38-34 loss at No. 7 Miami last week. Miami will also be in the Bay Area this weekend as they face off against Cal in Berkeley on Saturday night. Miami remains undefeated at 5-0 after that nailbiter. In addition to the loss at Miami, Virginia Tech has lost to Vanderbilt on the road and at home to Rutgers. As for their two wins, they defeated Marshall 31-14 and Old Dominion 37-17. As a team, the Hokies average 30.4 points and 382.8 yards per game. Their opponents average 25.8 points and 374.4 yards per game.
I usually don’t lead with defense in my previews, but the Hokies have an amazing defensive end in Antwaun Powell-Ryland whose 7.0 sacks leads the nation. He has 21 total tackles on the season and is really a force on the defensive line. The leader in tackles for the Hokies is sophomore safety Mose Phillips III with 34 total tackles (15 solo). He’s been fantastic in the secondary. The leading ball hawk for the Hokies is junior cornerback Mansoor Delane, who has two interceptions on the season to go along with 18 total tackles (12 solo). In short, the Hokies got some talent on defense.
On offense, the leading rusher is senior running back Bhayshul Tuten, who has rushed for 552 yards and eight touchdowns on a 6.2 yards per carry average. Per game, he is rushing for 106.4 yards, so he’s really moving the chains. The leading receivers are redshirt senior Jaylin Lane and graduate student Stephen Gosnell. Lane has 21 receptions for 296 yards and one touchdown while Gosnell has 12 receptions for 223 yards. Gosnell’s 18.6 yards per reception leads the team while Lane’s 14.1 yards per reception is second on the team.
As for quarterback, redshirt junior Kyron Drones has gone 83-140 for 954 yards, six touchdowns, and four interceptions. He averages 190.8 passing yards per game while completing 59.3% of his passes. Drones has also rushed for 261 yards and two touchdowns on 61 attempts, averaging a solid 4.3 yards per carry.
Touching quickly on the kicking game, redshirt sophomore kicker John Love is 8-9 on his kicks with a long of 57 yards. His lone miss was blocked.
Keys to the game: For Stanford, the first thing they need to do is protect the quarterback. Justin Lamson is expected to start under center for Stanford and they’re going to need to do all they can to give him the time he needs to make his throws. Especially with Powell-Ryland coming at him. If Stanford’s offensive line protects the quarterback well, they should be in a good spot to win.
Secondly, Stanford needs to take care of the ball. They moved the ball well against Clemson, but turnovers killed too many drives. If Stanford is able to move the chains like they did last week without the turnovers, they should be sitting pretty. If not, it’ll be another rough day.
Third, Stanford’s defense needs to not give up any big plays. They’ve done a good job of playing well for most of the game, but every now and then they give up a big play that really hurts them. If they don't give up any big plays and play well for the entire game, I like their odds of winning.
Finally, Stanford needs to get the ball to wide receiver Elic Ayomanor. He is the top player on the team and a fantastic weapon. If they can get a big outing from him, they’ll have a good chance to win.
Prediction: I’ll give the Cardinal the benefit the doubt and pick them to win 30-27. Should a fun one.
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