best commit to Virginia Tech Update: Gabriel Williams hurried to the hospital.
A terrifying incident during Saturday’s high school football game between Mount Saint Joseph and St. Vincent Pallotti sent top-ranked Virginia Tech commit Gabriel Williams to the hospital.
Williams, the Virginia Tech pledge, tweeted the following along with a photo of herself resting in a hospital bed:
Please remember me in your prayers, Hokie Nation! I want to express my gratitude to everyone who came to my rescue during today’s Pallotti vs. Msj game. For my family and me, it was an extremely frightening time, but I’m fine and getting better. I adore everyone.
Williams appears to pass out on the sidelines in a clip from the live stream.
An update was given late on Saturday night via another tweet from a member of Gabe’s family:
“An update from Williams’ Twitter account, @8kgabe1: Gabe will be alright. heat exhaustion. I appreciate all of your prayers. It is a comforting thought that he has prayer warriors and support as he travels the world. There is no country like Hokie Nation! I also adore our Pallotti family.
Williams is regarded as a Top247 member and a four-star recruit by 247Sports. In June, he made his Virginia Tech commitment.
247Sports Evaluation: A lanky, surprisingly physical second-level defender with a strong testing profile who can cover a lot of ground. before the senior season, weighed 195 pounds and stood just over 6-foot-4. If he wants to be a real difference-maker in the box, he will obviously need to bulk up considerably, but he’s a willing tackler who doesn’t mind getting lost in traffic on Friday nights and making
a halt in either the A or B gap. His ability to change direction quickly and move laterally makes him useful in passing scenarios. And so does his past prep-level experience playing safety. Will probably need a year or two to get his body in order, but in an era where so many offenses are just trying to air it out, he should be seen as a high-upside, developing off-ball linebacker prospect who can play all three downs. Depending on scheme and program needs, might be able to contribute as a situational rusher early in college career. If he continues to improve, his length, short-area burst, and range should eventually get him attention from NFL talent evaluators. – Ivins, Andrew.
The 2023 season is almost over, and Virginia Tech’s last three games will soon be decided. The Hokies must win two out of three games in order to be eligible for a bowl game, and that much is obvious.
This week at Boston College is when that begins. Under Brent Pry, the Hokies have not performed well away from home. In two seasons, they have a 1-9 record overall, with six multi-score losses. Last season, they only managed a one-point victory at Liberty.
It goes without saying that this week’s main worry is Tech’s road problems. The Hokies do, however, have a good chance of winning this game because the Eagles aren’t a particularly strong team either.
This season, Virginia Tech has participated in a number of close games. This one could be the most controversial of all. FEI predicts that the Eagles will win by a margin of 1.0 points. Bill Connelly’s SP+ at ESPN predicts a game that will be 24-24, with BC having the smallest advantage.
It’s understandable why. While both teams have strengths in certain areas, they lack depth in other areas to overcome teams with comparable skill.
With a record of 1-3 at the beginning of the season, both teams used an incumbent quarterback with more experience—Grant Wells for Vermont and Emmett Morehead for Boston. Following their slow starts, both teams switched to a more dynamic but inexperienced signal caller (Thomas Castellanos for BC, and Kyron Drones for VT).
Before everything came to an abrupt halt last week in Louisville, VT had a huge October surge, winning three of their four games. In response, BC won five straight games. In terms of analytics, both teams resolutely advanced up the standings.
By week four, BC ranked No. 97 in the FEI. They are ranked 64th this week.
After week four, VT ranked No. 85 in the FEI. They are 58 this week.
To control the clock, Tech and BC rely on their ground game. In terms of time of possession, these teams rank 13 (BC) and 22 (VT) nationally.
They clearly enjoy their dynamic quarterbacks as well, but they are cautious about constantly pressing them into the air. This season, BC has attempted 266 passes, ranking No. 89 in the FBS, while VT has attempted 261, ranking T-91.
Additionally, both teams’ defenses are passable but not outstanding. BC ranks No. 91 in yards per play allowed (6.10) but No. 49 in available yards allowed (44.6%) in the FBS. Virginia Tech ranks No. 74 in yards per play allowed (5.84), but No. 30 in available yards allowed (40.7%). Decent but not dominant, as I mentioned.
Of course, Virginia Tech’s ability to succeed away from home is currently their biggest concern. Simply put, under Brent Pry, they haven’t shown it.
Let’s get started.
With the exception of their 56-28 loss to Louisville, Boston College’s defense has been strong enough to keep them in every game this season.
With that match excluded, they haven’t let up more than 24 points in a contest since September 16 (against Florida State on September 31).
Additionally, BC’s strong defensive play allowed their offense enough room to win those close games—27-24 against Army and UVA, 21-14 against UConn, and 17-10 against Syracuse.
Interpretation? To feel truly confident about their chances, the Hokies will likely need to score in the upper 20s.
LB Vinny DePalma, CB Elijah Jones, DE Donovan Ezeiruaku, and DT Cam Horsley lead BC. They must perform well in order to prevail, and those are their defensive mainstays. Nonetheless, Virginia Tech has chances to take advantage of other areas.
Adopt a defensive stance. Among the top DTs in the conference is Horsley. His 15 stops are T-3, and his 84.5 run defense grade from PFF ranks him second among ACC DTs. Additionally, Ezeiruaku ranks third among ACC DEs with a run defense grade of 81.8, among the best.
Apart from those two, there is a decline in production. Horsley is joined at defensive tackle by George Rooks (54.7 DEF grade per PFF), while Neto Okapla (51.5 DEF) starts at the other defensive end position. Former starter Shitta Sallah was sidelined for the majority of the previous season and made his return in 2023; however, he only saw three snaps against Syracuse and none against UConn, raising doubts about his status.
Thanks to Horsley and Ezeiruaku, the front is generally stable but not particularly disruptive.
BC’s 17% defensive stuffing rate. That corresponds to P5 T-37, which is in the lower half of the P5.
They only have an 8.3% front seven havoc (forced fumbles or tackles for loss) rate. In the P5, that is T-59.
With 11 sacks on the season, BC is T-125th in the FBS in terms of tackles for loss (31).
They had six of their eleven sacks against Virginia. This year, they have four games in which they have not recorded a sack. That’s a significant decrease from the intensity of the pressure VT encountered against Louisville last week.
For example, last week VT faced DE Ashton Gillote of Louisville. With 44 quarterback pressures this season, he’s one of the conference’s most disruptive defensive linemen.
However, with just 18 quarterback pressures, Ezeiruaku leads BC.
The Eagles have two experienced linebackers in DePalma and Kam Arnold. Among ACC linebackers, Arnold has 16 stops, ranking T-25, and DePalma has 26, ranking T-9. DePalma, a sixth-year linebacker, is a leader on the defensive unit.
This season, Jones has emerged as one of the nation’s top cover corners in the defensive backfield. He has the length to suck up intended receivers at 6 feet 2 inches.
The Hokies are far more potent offensively if they maintain their favorable down-and-distance positioning, which should be the case against the Eagles.
