Fourteen and a half is almost gone, and that is the first thing to know. FanDuel is the last book holding it, at -122. BetMGM, BetRivers and DraftKings have all come down to 14, which is the number I did not want, because 14 is where two touchdowns land. Take the half point at FanDuel if it is there when you read this. If it is not, BetRivers has 14 at -109 and the case still holds, with less room.
Virginia Tech's scoring average is doing a lot of lying. They sit at 50.7 points a game, but 73 of those came against VMI. Take that one out and it is 39.5. More to the point, they have played exactly one opponent with a pulse away from Lane Stadium, and they won it 35-26 at Maryland -- a nine-point road win. This number asks for fifteen.
The schedule is the mechanism. Virginia Tech hosts Pittsburgh six days after this game, on a Friday, which means a short week waiting on the other side of it and a staff that has to start splitting preparation before Saturday is over. Boston College is the last thing standing between them and a showcase home date. Noon kick on the road in a conference opener with a weather forecast that includes rain and north wind of 18-20 miles per hour, to be followed a big date with Pitt next week, and you can see the difficulty of the spot.
Boston College is also not a walkover at home. They beat Rutgers 28-21 at Alumni Stadium, and their only loss came at Cincinnati. Bill O'Brien's team allows 23.7 points a game, which is not a number that gets run off the field by a 39.5-point offense, and James Franklin is three games into his first season here. That is a thin sample on which to price a two-touchdown road favorite.
Virginia Tech vs Boston College best bet: Boston College +14.5 (-122) available at time of publishing. Playable to that number.
