I was just watching a bit of College Football Live today on the old worldwide leader.  One of their focuses today was Virginia Tech's prospects for 2009.  Now let me preface this by saying I don't know a great deal about the ACC or Virginia Tech for that matter but I consider myself a fairly educated unbiased observer.  When I hear that Virginia Tech is a serious contender to win it all I find myself really skeptical.

I just wonder, what exactly has Virginia Tech done in the last 3-5 years to justify the hype?  They've won the ACC three times in a row.  That's nice, certainly we Horns fans can't exactly scoff at that.  However comparing the Big 12 competition to the ACC isn't fair.  In addition when was the last time Virginia Tech beaten another legit elite contender.  When they played LSU they were completely outclassed.  I think they have 1 BCS victory in 4 tries, and that is against Cincinnati.

They have a respectable defensive unit year in and year out, and I do admire that.  At the same time, factor in the teams they play in conference and how the defense fares out of conference and I have my doubts about the numbers it puts up.

Aside from that I look at the overall talent pool VT brings in yearly and I'm not impressed.  Don't get me wrong there's a lot to be said about "coaching up" players and finding "hidden gems" but at the end of the day you need big time talent to beat big time talent on a consistent basis.

I look at QB Tyrod Taylor, a nice athlete who has contributed a lot to VT's success.  He still isn't a polished passer (who is right?) and I have doubts about whether he brings enough to the table to make a step up from good to great.  The offense around him is young and scrappy (AKA 2-star or 3-star talent) and I just dont see a dangereous team.

Overall when I think Virginia Tech I think:  consistency, defense and special teams, good coach, scrappy.  I don't think Virginia Tech:  National Title Contender.  They're good for 9-10 wins a season, maybe a conference crown but they have a ceiling. 

Anyone disagree?  I understand this is BON but I think its okay to talk about college ball at large, especially in the off-season.  Please inform me if I'm way off base...