BLACKSBURG (WSLS 10 SPORTS) - Virginia Tech has said since day one their goal is to go to the ACC championship game. Right now the Hokies are very much in the Coastal Division race but need to take care of Pittsburgh on Thursday to continue their campaign.
"We are in the mix for this division and this is a championship caliber football game, if they want to stay in the hunt they need to win, if we want to stay in the hunt we need to win. So as these games move forward, it's been a couple years since we've been in this position, but these games getting more and more important," said Hokies defensive coordinator Bud Foster.
"We know that from now on we have to bring our own juice and play with our own energy and I know that the guys will step up to the challenge and yesterday was a great practice of bringing our own energy. On Thursday night I think the guys will bring exactly what we need, that we didn't bring to the Syracuse game," explained quarterback Jerod Evans.
Since Pittsburgh moved to Heinz Field in 2001 the Hokies have not won a game against the Panthers on the road in four contests.
"It takes a little bit of extra focus, it takes more mental toughness and determination to get prepared to go into a truly hostile environment and win a ball game and that's a challenge that's in front of us," said head coach Justin Fuente.
The Hokies hope to hand the Panthers their first home loss of the season when they take the field on Thursday.