Q&A with Virginia Tech football reporter Jacob Emert

Assistant Sports Editors Brendan Marks and Carlos Collazo caught up with TechSideline.com reporter Jacob Emert to discuss North Carolina's game this Saturday against Virginia Tech. Emert is a senior at Virginia Tech and covers the Hokies' football and baseball teams.

Daily Tar Heel: Virginia Tech has been getting big production from freshmen Isaiah Ford, Bucky Hodges and Cam Phillips. What do you expect from them Saturday against a UNC secondary that has struggled to contain opposing wide receivers?

Jacob Emert: Those three guys have played well beyond their years. They’ve shown they can be good route runners and make tough catches, but, for one reason or another, (quarterback) Michael Brewer and his receivers have failed to connect on the big play. I think that’s been a point of emphasis over this week and it would not surprise if they connect on one or two deep shots downfield.

DTH: UNC's defense has thrived off of turnovers so far (already 11 turnovers in 4 games), with 7 interceptions. To date, Brewer has struggled with giving the ball away. How important will turnovers be in the game?

JE: The strange part about Brewer, outside of all his interceptions, he’s been a very good quarterback. But, obviously, those interceptions have been costly thus far. He’s spoken about trying to continue to be aggressive while improving his decision-making. It’s easy to forget because of his age that he hasn’t had much experience at the college level. He’s a smart kid though, and he’s spoken in depth about learning from his mistakes. Turnovers in games are always costly, but I think his interception numbers will decrease as the season winds on.

DTH: Virginia Tech is tied for the most sacks in the country while UNC's offensive line has been in shambles in recent weeks. How can Tech exploit that matchup, and what can UNC do to prevent that from happening?

JE: (Defensive coordinator) Bud Foster will always find out ways to bring pressure. In recent weeks, that pressure has somewhat hurt Tech, leaving the defensive backs in zero man-coverage. But, if the Hokies can get pressure with their front four and play more of a base defense, I think that will be huge. As far as UNC protecting Marquise Williams, I think they may have to keep a couple extra men in to block, which only further helps Tech’s gameplan.

DTH: Neither team has been very good at establishing the run so far this season. How important will it be for Tech to get the ground game going?

JE: The halftime period for Tech against Western Michigan was an intense one, by all accounts. The coaches made it clear that they were going to run the ball, no matter what it took. There was an increased emphasis in that idea this year, but until that message went through it didn’t really seem to hit the stat sheet. The Hokies ran the ball for over 200 yards in the second half, using only two different run plays to do it. If they grow on that performance and have that same focused effort on running the football, I think they will have success doing it.

DTH: When UNC played Virginia Tech in 2013, Marquise Williams was new to starting, but now that he has a year of experience under his belt, what do you expect to see from him?

JE: Williams is a dual-threat quarterback in the truest sense of the term. He can run effectively, but he’s not a runner that happens to be able to throw the ball. He’s proven that he can hurt a defense with the passing game just as easily. Foster came up with a pretty good gameplan against (Ohio State quarterback) J.T. Barrett earlier this year though, so I’m sure Foster will be ready.

DTH: UNC has struggled greatly with giving up big plays on defense this season. What can they do differently this week to avoid some of those mistakes? How will Tech look to exploit UNC's secondary?

JE: These two defenses are at the bottom of the ACC and near the bottom of the country when it comes to giving up big plays. The difference is Tech’s defense has been pretty good outside of the big plays, when UNC’s is getting gashed pretty regularly. A couple Tech receivers found themselves wide open on double-moves and other things of that nature last week, so I’m sure Scot Loeffler will look to exploit the UNC defense that way. I think this game comes down to whoever doesn’t give up the big play. Maybe, it will be whoever doesn’t give up the last big play.