Dave Preston is an AP Top 25 voter. Read his rankings here.
Twenty-first century football is often about high-scoring offenses and quarterbacks who pile up ridiculous stats, right?
As the great Zen Master once said, “we’ll see.” Perhaps because it’s a lot easier to score in 2024 a decent defense can make a major difference. Nobody’s going to deny the fact that Navy has a special quarterback in Blake Horvath, while Anthony Colandrea at Virginia and Kyron Drones at Virginia Tech can have incredible outings, but Saturday saw the Midshipmen, Cavaliers, and Hokies D’s each earn an “A” to keep their teams on track for bowl eligibility. As the air gets cooler over the next two months, expect each school’s defense to be called upon again to make the difference.
The big story nationwide saw three upsets of unbeaten teams in the SEC: one semi-expected, one notable, and the third downright inexplicable. No. 9 Missouri’s 41-10 loss to No. 25 Texas A&M was almost to be expected after the way the Tigers had held on for one-possession games against Boston College and Vanderbilt. No. 4 Tennessee’s 19-14 defeat at Arkansas might say more about a scrappy Razorback team that rallied than the Volunteers. But for No. 1 Alabama to lose 40-35 at VANDERBILT? Was it a hangover from their win over No. 1 Georgia the week before? Regardless, one week after blowing a 28-0 lead against Georgia, the Crimson Tide cough up 40 points to the conference’s “academic school.” Strange days indeed.
Virginia (4-1, 2-0 ACC) began its Homecoming date with Boston College in auspicious fashion, gaining just 20 yards on their first 10 plays from scrimmage while allowing the Eagles to reach the end zone on two of their first three drives. But the Cavaliers found a way to post field goals on their final two first half possessions and finished the second half by scoring three times in the fourth quarter of a 24-14 victory. Don’t look now, but Virginia currently leads the ACC and bowling has suddenly become a distinct possibility.
Cavalier Congrats: The defense tallied three takeaways with the first two leading to touchdowns with Jonas Sanker making six tackles while returning a fumble for a score. They also held BC to just 65 yards on the ground. Daniel Sparks averaged 52 yards per punt. Kobe Pace led the ground game with 83 yards rushing and the offensive line allowed a pair of sacks.
Cavalier Concerns: a slow start didn’t do them in this time, but there was a moment where BC led 14-0 while outgaining UVa 161 yards to 20.
Next: Saturday at 3:30 p.m. against 3-2 Louisville on the ACC Network.
Virginia Tech (3-3, 1-1 ACC) went west and appeared to be suffering a hangover from their loss at Miami, avoiding an early deficit at Stanford thanks to a missed field goal and a Cardinal fumble at the VT two-yard line. They turned those miscues into momentum and salvaged a season that was appeared to teetering, dominating Stanford in a 31-7 rout. Coach Brent Pry’s team somehow survived the gauntlet of four road games in six weeks and the schedule now becomes quite a bit favorable the rest of the way with just a pair of games outside Blacksburg.
Hokie Highlights: Kyron Drones throws two touchdown passes while running for a score. The defense tallies five sacks while keeping the Cardinal out of the end zone for the entire first half. Peter Moore averaged 51 yards per punt.
Hokie Humblings: Tough to find blemishes in a road win like this, but the offense converted 5-12 third downs. The defense allowed 87 yards on 21 plays over the first two possessions. And with trips to Nashville, Norfolk, Miami, and San Francisco somebody’s luggage had to get delayed along the way.
Next: Thursday Oct. 17 against Boston College in Blacksburg on ESPN at 7:30 p.m.
Navy (5-0) rid their closet of some recent ghosts in their 34-7 rout of Air Force. Not only was it their first win over the Falcons since 2019, it was also their first victory in Colorado Springs since 2012. And most importantly, taking the first leg of the Commander in Chief’s Trophy means their December date with Army will carry extra meaning (as if the matchup needed any extra juice).
Midshipman Medals: Blake Horvath threw for 134 yards while running for 115 and two touchdowns. Eli Heidenreich tallied 100 yards rushing and 101 yards receiving, becoming the first player in program history to hit the century mark in both categories. Jaxson Campbell notched two sacks as the defense held the Falcons to 3-13 on third down. Riley Riethman averaged 50.6 yards per punt.
Midshipman Miscues: The offense moved the chains on just 4-12 third downs. Five penalties for 45 yards doesn’t seem like a big number, but when it’s one more flag and 10 more yards than your fellow Service Academy there’s going to be chirping from your friends out west.
Next: Oct. 19 against Charlotte at 3:30 p.m. on the CBS Sports Network.
James Madison (4-1, 0-1 Sun Belt) began their conference opener with a bang, reaching the end zone on their first drive at UL Monroe and intercepted the Warhawks the first time they had the ball. Unfortunately settling for a field goal on that possession set the trend for the rest of the night, as the Dukes lost 21-19 with a missed two-point conversion the difference. They had the ball twice in the final four minutes but turned the ball over on downs each time.
Duke Do’s: The defense allowed 3.7 yards per carry and 4.9 yards per pass attempt. Alonza Barnett III did not have the best of evenings but still threw for 251 yards while running for a touchdown.
Duke Dont’s: Barnett was held to under 50% completions and was 2-10 for 19 yards on JMU’s final two possessions. He also lost a fumble that led to the ULM’s go-ahead touchdown late in the first half. Eleven penalties for 63 yards didn’t help either.
Next: Thursday they host Coastal Carolina at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2.
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