Ty Spalding

As much as I don't want to put it this way, here's the deal: win this game, and fans are interested in the rest of the season. Lose this game, and fans will begin to check out. The blowout win over Florida State kept fans engaged for at least another week. Win this one, and I think the team and the fan base will start to feel the momentum really come back. As far as this one goes, I really don't know what to think. Virginia Tech has always played a solid, defensive brand of football. They seemingly always win 7-8 games a year. This year, Virginia Tech boasts an extremely talented running back in Khalil Herbert, a graduate transfer from Kansas. The Hokies come in at 3-2 after a COVID-filled offseason, with losses to North Carolina and Wake Forest. However, Virginia Tech has looked really good at times this season, pounding North Carolina State. Louisville's defense tightens up again and stops the run just enough. The quarterback play for the Hokies has been shaky at best, and I predict the Louisville secondary to have a big day. Javian Hawkins stays hot on the ground, and Louisville wins 35-27.

Chris Person

Louisville is coming off a very impressive performance against Florida St. that I think will have this team amped up for the Saturday afternoon matchup against Virginia Tech. Technically (pun slightly intended) Virginia Tech looks pretty good on paper, ranked 21st in S&P+ rankings, even though they are a measly 3-2 on the year with the most recent loss last week to a not so great Wake Forest team. I think Louisville is going to come out strong and be hyped to get the ball rolling. I’m expecting the defense to continue to be solid for the Cardinals and the offense to once again strike for several big plays. Hawkins has yet another 100 yard day and Monty Montgomery continues his trek towards playing on Sundays. Louisville wins 41-28.

Travis Graf

Louisville must find a way to make plays on the defensive side of the ball. The Cards must win first down when Virginia Tech has the ball because the Hokies are much more consistent whenever they can let Herbert or Hooker run the ball. Their passing game is very suspect. Louisville’s defense can’t afford to let the Hokies have consistent first down success because it then turns into a case of the defense wearing down much earlier than they should. Virginia Tech will happily just run it down Louisville’s throat if that happens. However, I think the Louisville defense has stepped up their play over the last couple of weeks. They’re making more plays and causing more havoc. Today, I think the defense makes enough plays to let the offense go out and win the game. Explosive chunk plays from Hawkins and Atwell deal devastating blows to the Hokies defense. Louisville 31, Virginia Tech 28

Nick Sorrell

This matchup is tough for me, and part of that probably comes down to just how hard this Louisville team has been to predict on a weekly basis. In my opinion, Louisville’s biggest weakness remains their ability to stop the run. Unfortunately that is the exact thing Virginia Tech excels at. On the other hand, Louisville has been improving rapidly over the past two weeks and is undoubtedly the hotter team. This game will come down to Louisville’s ability to get a few big plays on offense, and remain sound defensively. All that said, I’m going to ride the recent momentum — give me the Cards with the 31-24 win.