Tyrod Taylor has just his senior season left to prove his dual-threat potential.
Even though head coach Frank Beamer has never taken his Virginia Tech Hokies to a NCAA College Football National Championship, there is no doubt that he has assembled one of the best programs in the country.
Last season's 10-3 SU effort marked the sixth straight season for the Hokies with at least 10 wins. Virginia Tech has won at least eight games and been to a college bowl game every season since 1997 as well.
Play defense well, take care of the football, excel on special teams and never take a play off. That's the game that we have grown to love that is affectionately referred to as "Beamer Ball" in Blacksburg.
Last season, that was exactly what happened for the Hokies. Their NCAAF college defense was particularly strong, allowing just 295.5 YPG and 15.6 PPG. Of the final five foes on the season, none scored more than Tennessee, which put 14 on the board in the Peach Bowl on New Year's Eve. Only Alabama (34), Georgia Tech (28), and Duke (26) exceeded 20 points on this defense as well.
The NCAA college football offense looked to be in shambles last season, especially after being limited to just one legitimate tailback thanks to offseason injuries. Little did we know that freshman RB Ryan Williams was going to be an absolute stud.
A small man in stature at just 5-foot-9, Williams played like a man amongst boys at times during the season, rushing for a whopping 1,655 yards and 21 TDs in his first season with V-Tech. He was run into the ground, carrying the ball 293 lines and catching it another 16. Pro prospects are going to hate the fact that he is probably going to have a solid 1,200 carries under his belt before going to the NFL should he stay through his senior season, but Beamer knows that he has a horse that he can ride all the way to the ACC title for the next three seasons.
This the final season for QB Tyrod Taylor to prove himself. Considered the second coming of Michael Vick, Taylor has been a brutal disappointment for the Hokies in his three years with them. Last season, he posted career highs in passing yards and TD, but neither 2,311 yards nor 13 scores is anywhere near impressive.
As a duel-threat signal caller, Taylor really should have more than 38 TDs in his career combined between passing and rushing. One would like to think that he may need to double those numbers for Tech to be a title contender this year.
Taylor will be helped by the return of the majority of his offense, especially junior WR Jarrett Boykin, who averaged 20.9 YPC last year.
Still, Virginia Tech will want to improve upon its 183.9 passing YPG, which ranked just No. 95 in the nation last year. The offense came on strong at the end of the season, scoring at least 36 points in its final four games of the season.
As always for Beamer's boys, playing a rough out of conference schedule sets the table for a nice run in the ACC in 2009. Tilts against Alabama and Nebraska definitely toughened this team up, and the end result was a stellar 6-2 SU and 5-3 ATS record in conference play.
Beamer once again isn't afraid to go after the big boys, as the opening game of the season comes at home against a Boise State squad which is a legitimate title contender. Facing Central Michigan and East Carolina at home shouldn't prove to be too much of a challenge, while the game against James Madison is clearly nothing more than a tune-up.
In conference, games at Boston College, NC State, North Carolina and Miami should prove to be very challenging. Atlantic Division favorite Florida State is dodged on the schedule, though an ACC title game against the Noles is a legitimate possibility.
Because of the trip to Miami, the Hokies are the second choice on the board to win the Coastal Division at plus 220 on the NCAA college football futures. Beyond the Seminoles and Hurricanes, Virginia Tech is the third favorite to win the conference at plus 400.
As always though, the Hokies are going to be a threat to win the National Championship, especially if they can find a way to beat the Broncos at FedEx Field in Week 1 of the season. Grabbing plus 1800 NCAA college football odds to win it all on Virginia Tech might not be a terrible idea.