There is nothing like a come from behind win to get you excited.  That game was fun.  Really fun.  Suddenly and unexpectedly, we are fired up about football again.  A big thank you to the college football god who created the second half.  The bad news is we are a terrible first half team.  We’ve trailed 17-0, 10-0, and 17-0 this season, yet we manage to come back and make games out of them.  At half time of all five, you have to have been feeling poorly about our chances.  The good news is we are a hell of a second half team.  If you are a diehard, emotional college football fan, you’ve got to admit it’s been entertaining.  It’s going to be that kind of year, and that’s not all bad.  We have to admit, much to our surprise, we are becoming rather attached to this team.

Our defense is young, but plays hard.  On many downs they make great plays.  On others they are badly out of position, and when they are, it is costing us.  Nothing can fix that besides experience.  As the season progresses, the D will get better and better.  The weaknesses remain up front.  The D-line is getting better but isn’t settled yet.  We are impressed, though, with the emergence of r-Fr. James Gayle.  He is going to be good.  The LBs play is mixed.  Bruce Taylor is playing better against the run but still struggling against the pass.  The Hyphen has yet to prove his worth.  Our DBs are the highlight to this point with Roc playing well and Jayron Hosley looking like the next superstar VT DB.

Offensively, we are sporadic.  At times Tyrod looks like a more talented Al Clark.  At others he looks like an All-ACC QB.  After a mediocre performance much of Saturday, down the stretch he was incredible making big runs and even bigger throws.  When he gets into rhythm, he has complete control over the offense and the game.  We love his attitude and his fight.  The running game is almost there having used a pass-first approach last week to open up opportunities.  With Andre Smith now an addition threat, there is no shortage of targets.

This is going to be a volatile season, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.  Bring on the Mighty Fighting Michiganians!  Who doesn’t love a MAC team?

Other Random Thoughts And Mundane Observations Following Our 41-30 Beatdown/Are You Kidding Me Comeback

Atlantic Division, you are welcome.  Problem solved.

Darren Evans is not amused.  Fans have consistently forgotten that he was one of the top running backs in the country two years ago.  But he hasn’t.  He exploded for 160 yards last weekend, showing his 2008 form and leaving fans wondering why they ever gave up on him.  Expect more of the same this week.

N.C. State is a fast football team.  Weren’t we supposed to be fast?  Where is all that team speed we heard about?  Even Tyrod seems to no longer have his breakaway speed.  He had great runs, and we applaud him for knowing we can’t afford for him to go down with an injury, but there was a time when if he saw the end zone nothing could stop him.  Remember those roll out run-pass options inside the 10?  We were surprised he wasn’t able to score on his two big runs.  But he turned them into points anyway, and that’s what counts.

It was good to see N.C. State LB Nate Irving fully recovered from a terrible car accident, but did we really need to see this much of him?  Nice belly shirt, sunshine.

I Love My Ducks is back…..Return of the Quack! (Surgeon General’s Warning: If you watch this more than once, you will be singing it for the next 48 hours.  Caveat emptor.)

Stat of the Week: DWilson only fumbled twice in his four year high school career, and his goal at Tech is to never fumble.  If Evans keeps it up, the decreased carries will make it more attainable.

Game-Changing Play of the Week: DWilson’s second half opening kickoff return.  A big thank you to the football god who created DVR.

VT players will wear pink wristbands Saturday for breast cancer awareness.  We love you, RS.

The three pass interference penalties on Antone Exum were crap.  In a game that close, on jump balls like those, you don’t call pass interference unless it is blatant.  We don’t care who has the ball.  It’s crap.

A special treat for UVA fans this weekend.  The Wahoos play Ga. Tech and finally get to experience the wonder and joy of playing against Al Groh.

And for just $5, you, too, can try out for the Central Michigan dance team.

Speaking of Central Michigan, we are unusually excited about this game considering it’s a nooner and against a MAC team.  We have no idea why.  Maybe we just love play the MAC.  Maybe it is feeling confident again.  Maybe it’s just the booze talking.  But this looks like another fine tailgating season in Blacksburg again.

Now, don’t get us wrong, things are a little different when you are 3-2.  Traffic is lighter, tailgates are calmer, the bathroom lines are shorter, and you just “kind of try hard” to make Enter Sandman as opposed to “being willing to hip check grandma if necessary to get to my seat.”  Also, don’t expect the United States Air Force to send a squadron of B-2 bombers to fly over a stadium in which an unranked team is playing a MAC opponent.  We have, however, arranged for T.C. and Thomas buzz the sky box in an orange helicopter.

But this is still a Saturday in Fall, and it is still time for some football.  Central Michigan are the Chippewas.  They were originally the Dragons. Then the Wildcats.  Then the Bearcats.  And, now, the Chippewas, named after the Native American Indian Tribe of the same name.  This raises a very serious issue and is no laughing matter.  Who in their right mind stops calling themselves the Dragons?  That’s a badass mascot.

It is our first ever meeting with the Chippewas.  They have beaten Hampton and Eastern Michigan and lost to Temple, Northwestern, and Ball State.  While a less than impressive schedule, you have to at least give them credit for managing to beat their I-AA opponent.  Last year they won the MAC and finished #23.  Since then, head coach Butch Jones left for Cincinnati and star QB Dan LeFevour left for the NFL.  The still have a very strong passing game behind QB Ryan Ratcliff, but he has 7 INTs already.  Can you imagine how excited Hosley must be right now?  Their ground game behind starting RB Paris Cotton is only 86^th in the country.  Perhaps that is because his name is Paris Cotton.  What the hell kind of name is Paris Cotton?  He is 5’ 9” and 179 lbs.  Perhaps when he finishes growing they will give him an adult name.  Their defense has been average.  Their field goal kicker is a redshirt freshman.  Dear Coach Beamer, could we please start blocking some more kicks?  We are growing bored and impatient on fourth downs.

This game won’t really be about them, it will be about us.  No, not the players.  The fans.  Are you fired up?  Well, you should be.  We’ve finally managed to get ourselves above .500.  Let’s not ruin it.  We expect the fans and the team to come out firing on all cylinders.  We will try to both pound the football on the ground and make big plays through the air.  We expect a very aggressive and balanced offensive game plan. Defensively, we will attack with pressure at times, but also play a lot of base contain.  This team should have a lot of confidence after N.C. State.  Look for big plays and the hunger and attitude we’ve been looking for all season.

The only thing really wrong with this game is the noon kickoff to accommodate ESPNU.  For anyone who hasn’t ever watched ESPNU, it’s basically as if your local high school A/V club got the opportunity to broadcast the Homecoming game on cable access.  But it still beats watching your game on the Internet.

The time is near.  And the MAC attack awaits.

Va. Tech 41, Central Michigan 7

I believe.

Copyright 2010 by Brett Favre.  All rights reserved. Brett, seriously, what the hell?  You are ninety eight years old.  Retire already.  Jen Sterger does not want to date you.  You are older than her dad.