Heinicke's the real deal, but Hokies ...?

Musings about college football after a big weekend of action and reaction:

The thought of three more years of Taylor Heinicke is not a bad consolation prize for Old Dominion fans.

Against Georgia Southern, Heinicke didn't do anything we haven't seen before in his remarkable first year of college ball, but his performance on the road against a favored opponent should heighten awareness of just how good this kid is and what his future may hold.

Considering the competition, his movement in the pocket and downfield running were better Saturday than they had been all season, while his accuracy continued to be as sharp as we've come to expect.

The extraordinary consistency with which Heinicke puts the ball on the numbers or into the hands of his receivers - on short quick throws or long passes down the sideline - already has spoiled his admirers. He fits his passes into the tightest of windows. He processes information with such poise and confidence that he makes it look easy.

After less than one full season behind center, his excellence is taken for granted. It shouldn't be, but that's what happens when a quarterback completes 69 percent of his throws for 25 touchdowns, with only one interception.

The second he stepped in for the injured Thomas DeMarco, Heinicke appeared oblivious to the so-called pressure young quarterbacks are supposed to feel. The Georgia high school star considered too small by BCS schools came up very big for ODU. The mind reels at what he might do in big moments yet to come.

Favored to win the ACC championship game, Virginia Tech crumbled in its big moment, but Frank Beamer's team never was as good as its national rankings.

Climbing as high as No. 3 in the USA Today/coaches ranking and No. 5 in the BCS standings before being routed by Clemson epitomized the disconnect between the Hokies' poll numbers and the team people saw on the field.

Tech never deserved to be a Top 5 team, even by the fuzzy math used to determine the national pecking order, but when the Hokies lost by four touchdowns Saturday night, eyes rolled and people said, "Tech folds in another big game. What a surprise."

That's sort of true, and yet not exactly fair. So in the spirit of the holiday season, let's accentuate the positive in the Hokies' season.

Even with a team flawed enough that it was outscored 61-13 by Clemson in two games - one in Blacksburg, the other in Charlotte - Beamer and his staff cobbled together 11 victories.

Tech's weak schedule eliminated it from serious BCS title consideration, but stamping out another season of double-digit victories, even in the squishy ACC, is no cause for despair among the faithful. And look how it's paid off for a team that's beaten nobody, just lost by 28 points and fell to 11th in the BCS standings - with a trip to the Sugar Bowl to meet 13th-ranked Michigan, a far grander venue than either team deserves.

The bowl bid has everything to do with how well Tech fans travel, for the team has been overrated all year. But at least give Tech credit for this: unlike Clemson, losers of three of four going into Saturday's game, it didn't let go of the rope. Until Saturday, the Hokies found ways to win. That's become a habit in Blacksburg.

With the BCS, there's always room for skepticism. Those who thought Oklahoma State's rout of Oklahoma on Saturday might have propelled the Cowboys past Alabama and into the BCS title game may want to consider how the selection process is impacted by tradition.

How much of the human element that is factored into the BCS rankings was influenced, if only in the slightest, by the football profiles of the two schools?

Alabama's is far greater, of course. But had the No. 3 team closing fast on 'Bama been Florida, Ohio State, Southern Cal or Oklahoma - schools with more national cachet than Oklahoma State - would voters have leaned more in their favor? Would we be getting an Alabama-LSU rematch then?

It's not unreasonable to assume we wouldn't. In this BCS horse race, Oklahoma State's less pure-bred pedigree probably hurt its chances.

If ever in doubt, suspect the worst of the BCS process. You'll rarely be wrong.