Virginia Tech opens as a surprising favorite against Rutgers

After going 2-1 through their first four non-conference games, the Virginia Tech football team will face their toughest test in their non-conference schedule this upcoming Saturday at Lane Stadium against Rutgers out of the Big Ten.

After stunningly dropping the season opener in overtime at Vanderbilt on Aug. 31, the Hokies bounced back with a pair of wins over Sun Belt Conference teams Marshall and Old Dominion. Favored in all three of their games to date, the Hokies are once again a favorite, this time against the Scarlet Knights.

Virginia Tech opens as favorite against Rutgers

According to DraftKings, Virginia Tech opens as a 5.5 favorite against Rutgers, who is coming into the game at 2-0 off a bye week after wins over Howard and Akron to begin the season. The Hokies will be looking for a measure of revenge against the Scarlet Knights who beat them, 35-16, last year in New Jersey.

Through the first two weeks of the season and for two drives in the second quarter Saturday night at Old Dominion, Virginia Tech's defense had trouble with the read option and running backs. This week against Rutgers, they will have their hands full with Kyle Monangai, who gashed them for 143 yards on 16 carries and three touchdowns.

In the first three weeks, the Hokies have opened as overwhelming favorites against Vanderbilt, Marshall, and Old Dominion, and in the end, they have covered just once, Saturday night at ODU. It is a little surprising that Tech opens as a favorite of nearly a touchdown and as the week goes along, it's going to be interesting to see where the line ends up at 3:30 on Saturday afternoon before kickoff. As the week goes along, we'll see what the injury report looks like for Brent Pry's team before we make a pick.