Hokies Back in the Rankings

After their 24-7 drubbing of the Clemson Tigers last Thursday night, the
Hokies find themselves back in the top 25 after a brief hiatus. There are
currently five ACC teams ranked in the top 25, but none are ranked in the top
15.

ACC in the Polls
Team	A.P.	USA Today	Harris
Boston College	16	16	16
Clemson	19	19	19
Georgia Tech	20	20	20
Wake Forest	22	23	23
Virginia Tech	23	24	24

Boston College is the ACC’s highest ranked team after beating Buffalo 41-0
over the weekend. With victories over Clemson, Virginia Tech and Florida State,
the Eagles can make a good argument for being ranked higher. Their upcoming game
with Wake Forest will give the winner the inside track to the Atlantic Division
championship, although Atlantic member Maryland only has one ACC loss as well.

There isn’t a lot of variation in the polls amongst the ACC teams. The A.P.
Poll has Wake Forest and Virginia Tech one spot higher than the USA Today and
Harris Polls, but the top three teams in the conference are ranked the same
across the board.

Ore Among Nation’s Best Rushers

Virginia Tech sophomore running back Branden Ore has had two incredible games
in a row, rushing for 207 yards against Southern Miss and tacking on 203 yards
against Clemson for good measure. Those numbers have moved him into the top 10
in the nation in rushing yards per game.

Nation’s Top 10 Runners
Name	Team	Yards Per Game
Garrett Wolfe	Northern Illinois	164.33
Ray Rice	Rutgers	160.57
Adrian Peterson	Oklahoma	155.83
Steve Slaton	West Virginia	151.29
Ian Johnson	Boise State	147.63
P.J. Hill	Wisconsin	135.78
Michael Hart	Michigan	125.22
Ahmad Bradshaw	Marshall	123.50
Branden Ore	Virginia Tech	117.38
Jon Cornish	Kansas	115.67

If Ore continues to average 117.38 yards per game, including the bowl
game, he will finish with 1,526 yards on the ground. That would be the second
best season in Virginia Tech history. Kevin Jones rushed for 1,647 yards back in
2003.

Ore needs just 61 yards on the ground to reach 1,000 yards for the season. It
would be the 13th time that a Virginia Tech player rushes for 1,000 yards,
and he would be the 11th different player to reach the mark.

Shuman Out With Knee Injury

Ryan Shuman injured his left knee early in the game against Clemson, and it
is highly likely that his season is over. Shuman is scheduled to have his knee
scoped on Tuesday. If the procedure reveals that he suffered a torn ACL, then
his season is over.

There is a chance that Shuman only has a torn meniscus, rather than a torn
ACL. If that is the case, then he could possibly return to action for the bowl
game. Either way, it appears that the r-sophomore left guard will be out for the
remainder of the regular season.

ACC Coastal Division is Georgia Tech’s to Lose

After Georgia Tech beat Miami 30-23 on Saturday, the Yellow Jackets are in
the driver’s seat to claim the ACC Coastal Division crown. They are sitting at
4-1 in conference play, with ACC games against NC State, UNC and Duke remaining.
To clinch the Coastal Division, Georgia Tech has to win just two of those three
games.

ACC Coastal Division Standings
School	ACC Record	Overall Record	Remaining ACC Games
Georgia Tech	4-1	6-2	@NC State, @UNC, Duke
Virginia Tech	3-2	6-2	@Miami, @Wake, Virginia
Virginia	3-2	4-5	@FSU, Miami, @VT
Miami	2-2	5-3	VT, @MD, @Virginia, BC
North Carolina	0-5	1-7	GT, NC State, @Duke
Duke	0-5	0-8	@BC, @GT, UNC

Neither UNC or Duke has won an ACC game this season, so it appears that the
Yellow Jackets have all but clinched the Coastal Division. For the Hokies to win
the division, they would have to finish with a better ACC record than Georgia
Tech, because the Yellow Jackets hold the head-to-head tiebreaker.

Virginia Tech, Miami and Virginia all sit behind Georgia Tech with two
conference losses. In the event that more than two teams tie for the Coastal
Division lead, the winner will be decided by the combined head-to-head record of
the tied teams, in effect putting the three (or more) teams in a mini-division
by themselves.

After that, things get even more complicated. You can check out all of the
ACC tiebreaker rules here.
But at this point, unless Georgia Tech chokes down the stretch, they will
represent the Coastal Division in Jacksonville.

Free TSL Pass Content This Week

For those of you without a subscription to TSL Pass, you don’t know what
you’re missing. That’s why we’ve decided to make all of our TSL Pass
content free for the entire week leading up to the Miami game.

Starting with Will Stewart’s “Monday Thoughts” today, and including
Raleigh Hokie’s game analysis and Phil Martin’s Keys to the Game/Matchups
article, you’ll have all the benefits of a TSL subscriber this week, with the
exception of the subscriber message boards.

Chris Horne’s recruiting updates will also be free throughout the week. We
hope you enjoy this sneak peak of TSL Pass! (Please note that only this week’s
articles are free. The free access does not include access to past subscription
articles.)

TSL’s Will Stewart Participating in MDA Lockup Fund Raiser

Message to TSL readers from Will Stewart: I’m participating in a Muscular
Dystrophy Association (MDA) Lock-up event on Tuesday, November 14th. I’ll be
thrown into a maximum security jail (cleverly disguised as a Comfort Inn), and
the only way I can get out is to raise $5,000 “bail” for MDA. I’m
counting on you, TSL’s readers and subscribers, to donate enough money to get me
out.

This is a fundraiser, of course, and it’s unlike anything TSL has ever done
before. TSL has gotten so huge over the years, that with the number of people we
reach, raising money for charitable causes should be easy. We really think that
TSL’s vast, generous readership can make a lot of difference in the community,
and this is your chance to prove us right. If this is successful, and we think
it will be, we may participate in other fundraisers in the future.

It’s very simple: just click on the link below to make a donation and help me
get out of jail that day. Every dollar donated by TSL’s readership through the
link below will be collected together and credited to my “bail”
(TechSideline.com’s donation to the MDA) and will be used to help LOCAL MDA
families. This particular lockup event is to benefit the Radford/Dublin/Pulaski
area.

Here are some other notes and details:

• The link below enables you to donate via credit card only (VISA, MC, AMEX,
  and Discover). Please see instructions below to donate by check.
• All donations are tax deductible (by you, not me or TechSideline.com) as a
  charitable contribution.
• My bail goal of $5,000 is very modest, and the TSL faithful should be able to
  donate much, much more than that. If every TSL reader donates just $10 … holy
  smokes, that would be a lot of money.
• For details on what your donation will be used for, see the “What Your
  Money Will Buy” button located at the link below. There are also links for
  “MDA Local Services” and the “MDA Website”.
• Please contribute, even if it’s a small amount – individuals, consider
  donating $25 or more, and businesses, please consider donating $100 or more.

To donate by check: Make checks payable to “MDA” and mail to:

MDA Lockup
c/o TechSideline.com
P.O. Box 3472
Radford, VA 24143-3472

Checks must arrive by November 13th in order for me to have them in my
possession when I go to the Comfort Inn — er, jail — the next day.

To donate on-line using a credit card: Click here

When I walk into jail on November 14th, I want it to be as the top donor in
this lockup event, and the money won’t be donated in my name; it will be donated
in the name of the TechSideline.com community.