Virginia Tech Football: BC coach Jeff Hafley has interesting take on Hokies

At his weekly press conference this week ahead of their battle against Virginia Tech, Boston College football coach Jeff Hafley gave his thoughts on the upcoming matchup with the Hokies.

Hafley, who is still considered on the hot seat in Boston despite his Eagles already bowl-eligible at 6-3, touched on several different topics. He was asked about Hokies defensive end Antwaun Powell-Ryland and like most other coaches, he’s impressed with the University of Florida transfer. At the end of his quote about him, however, Hafley gave an odd take on Virginia Tech.

"“This is a talented football team and they’ve showed it. You turn some games on and they look like one of the best teams in the ACC.”"

Jeff Hafley goes a little overboard with his compliment of Virginia Tech

Those games that Hafley has turned on have been the games at Lane Stadium and likely their three home ACC contests against Pittsburgh, Wake Forest, and Syracuse. If he turned on a game the Hokies played away from Blacksburg, then he should have a different take.

In Virginia Tech’s two ACC road games against Florida State and Louisville, the top teams in the conference and both ranked in the Top 11 of the most recent College Football Playoff Rankings, the Hokies have not looked like a good football team. The case could be made that they didn’t look like an average football team.

Throw in two underperforming non-conference road games against Rutgers and Marshall, then they looked like an average team. In their other two home games, Old Dominion and Purdue, they looked a little better than average against the Monarchs but didn’t look very good against the Boilermakers.

I get it, it’s coach talk from Hafley ahead of this week’s opponent. It’s what they do. I’m sure he said similar things about a dreadful 1-8 Connecticut team before they made their way to Chestnut Hill a couple of weeks ago, but to say the Hokies are one of the best teams in the ACC is going overboard this year.