Virginia Tech right guard Augie Conte made headlines earlier this week when he said he felt the UNC football team—ranked No. 17–would overlook the No. 25 Hokies in their top 25 matchup this weekend at Kenan Stadium.

Make no mistake, though, Tar Heel head coach Larry Fedora recognizes the threat the Hokies present—especially with the game set to be played in terrible weather brought on by Hurricane Matthew.

In recent years, the Virginia Tech football program began to lose some its luster under legendary coach Frank Beamer.

Once a shoo-in to compete for the ACC Championship each year, the Hokies fell back into the mix as they couldn’t quite put together the offense to go with their dominant defense and special teams.

UNC has come together to build a four-game winning streak, despite having to gut out some close games. (Smith Cameron Photography)

UNC has come together to build a four-game winning streak, despite having to gut out some close games. (Smith Cameron Photography)

With Beamer now retired, new head coach Justin Fuente—who arrived from Memphis with a reputation as an offensive guru—has quickly revitalized the team. The Hokies bring a 3-1 record into Saturday with their only loss coming to undefeated Tennessee.

UNC experienced something similar just five years ago when it brought in Fedora to implement his high-flying offense in Chapel Hill. Now the Tar Heels are among the ACC’s top programs.

At practice Wednesday, Fedora even compared Virginia Tech’s star quarterback Jerod Evans to former Tar Heel starter Marquise Williams.

“They’ve got a quarterback like we had with ‘Quise,” Fedora told reporters. “A guy that’s big, can run the football and has got a really strong arm.

Fedora also sees comparisons between Fuente’s offense and his own, saying, “They’re spreading the field, they’re running the ball and I think they’re doing a really good job.”

Not only does Evans–a first-year starter–lead the Hokies in rushing this season, he’s also posted efficient passing numbers that look awfully close to those put up by UNC quarterback Mitch Trubisky. Evans has completed 67 percent of his passes, while throwing 13 touchdowns–the same as Trubisky–and just one interception.

The effect of the quarterbacks could be limited, however, by the weather brought on by the hurricane.

While he fully expects the game to be played despite what Mother Nature has to say about it, Fedora is preparing his team to make changes if needed—whether it be in the passing game or in the kicking game.

“Special teams is big, but if it’s enough wind it affects the throwing game also,” Fedora said. “We try to train no matter what so our guys don’t think about it and don’t worry about it.

“But for me, there’s a lot of decisions that have to be made.”

Windy conditions could force both teams to lean on their rushing attacks more than usual. In this situation, the advantage would certainly go to the Hokies—who could capitalize on the porous Tar Heel run defense.

Virginia Tech quarterback Jerod Evans is a dual-threat player that reminds UNC head coach Larry Fedora of former Tar Heel starter Marquise Williams. (AP Photo/ Steve Helber)

Virginia Tech quarterback Jerod Evans is a dual-threat player that reminds UNC head coach Larry Fedora of former Tar Heel starter Marquise Williams. (AP Photo/ Steve Helber)

Fedora expects junior tailback Elijah Hood to play this week after leaving the Florida State game with concussion-like symptoms, while senior TJ Logan is having a breakout year as the backup.

UNC is perfectly capable of winning a game with its running backs, but longtime Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster is bound to find a way to complicate things if the Tar Heels are forced to become one-dimensional.

Having to make decisions at the line-of-scrimmage will get that much tougher for Trubisky if that happens.

“He’s a great coach because he always has his guys ready,” Trubisky said about Foster. “They play a little bit different coverage defense than some other teams in the country—and what they do, they do it really well.

“Their guys play hard, they recruit very well so they’ve got great athletes and they’re always in the right position.”

And sure, both teams are ranked and there may be a hurricane impacting the game—but with what Trubisky and the Tar Heels have experienced over the last couple weeks, that shouldn’t mean a thing.

If they have any hopes of repeating as Coastal Division champions, they can’t get caught looking ahead to next week’s game at Miami.

All eyes should be on Virginia Tech.

“Rankings don’t mean anything,” Trubisky said. “That’s just college football. Anybody can beat anybody on any given Saturday.

“We’ve had two crazy games the last two weeks, but we’ve got to put that behind us because we’ve got another big one in Kenan this weekend.”