NEU » We wish him all the best in his recovery

SOUTH BEND, Ind. -- Even though Virginia Tech in the midst of a conference championship race, Notre Dame with its losing record has more at stake when they face the Hokies for the first time.The Fighting Irish (4-6) need to win their final two games to become bowl eligible and avoid becoming just the 14th team in 128 years of Notre Dame football to post a losing record. For Virginia Tech (7-3), the game has no bearing on its bid to win the Atlantic Coast Conference Coastal Division.Notre Dame quarterback DeShone Kizer said avoiding the stigma of a losing season is a motivating factor in the final two games against the Hokies and USC.Six and six is a big feat to get to rather than being 5-7. We want to be a team who continues on a winning tradition at Notre Dame, he said.Coach Brian Kelly believes Notre Dames 44-6 victory over Army last week was its most complete game this season. He wants to see the Irish build on that.I want to make sure that how we play is going to be reflective of where we finish and how we build that for next year, he said.The Hokies are coming off a disappointing 30-20 loss to Georgia Tech, so now must beat rival Virginia to clinch the division title. Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente said the focus this week is on continuing to improve.This is an ongoing process and its not always a straight ascension. This is a great opportunity and comes at a good time for us to go on the road and play a very talented team in what Im sure will be a hostile environment, he said.Other things to know about the Virginia Tech-Notre Dame game:NOT AN OPTIONThe defenses for both teams are happy to be returning to playing against more traditional offenses after facing triple option opponents. The Hokies played Georgia Tech, while the Irish faced Navy and Army in consecutive weeks. Its like a monkey off your back, Notre Dame linebacker Nyles Morgan said. Its back to basics.BALL SECURITYIt has been an issue in all of the Hokies losses. Jerod Evans threw two interceptions in last weeks loss to Georgia Tech, doubling his total for the season, and also fumbled. He still ranks fifth among all Power Five conference quarterbacks in efficiency, and the Hokies are tough to beat when they take care of the ball. Notre Dames loss to Navy two weeks ago marked just the second time under Kelly that the Irish lost when not committing a turnover.NO STREAKSIf Notre Dame fails to win Saturday it would mark the first season without consecutive victories since 1960. The Hokies are trying to avoid back-to-back losses for the first time since losing to Miami and to Duke in four overtimes in October 2015.DEFENSIVE SETBACKVirginia Tech allowed the Yellow Jackets to rush for 309 yards last week, but they have been stronger against the run in other games, allowing 144 yards on average. Thats 40th nationally. They rank 14th against the pass, allowing 185 passing yards per game.POOR RATINGSThe Army-Notre Dame game last week was the lowest-rated game in 26 seasons of NBC broadcasting Fighting Irish football games. The game averaged 1.52 million viewers. The previous low was against Air Force on Oct. 8, 2011, in a broadcast that averaged 1.59 million viewers. Notre Dame is averaging 2.89 million viewers this season, down 9 percent from last year.---AP Sports Writer Hank Kurz in Richmond, Virginia, contributed to this report.---More AP college football: www.collegefootball.ap.org and https://twitter.com/AP-Top25. Cheap Air Force 270 . Kuznetsov, who was selected by the Capitals in the first round of the 2010 NHL Entry Draft, has been playing for his hometown team Chelyabinsk Traktor of the KHL. Air Force 1 Off White Fake . Once again Jordan Cieciwa (@FitCityJordan) and I (@LynchOnSports) go head to head in our picks. Last weekend at UFC Fight Night 32 my #TeamLynch got the best of #TeamJC by a score of 9-6. Let us know which side youre on for UFC 167 use the hashtag #TeamLynch or #TeamJC on Twitter. http://www.airforce1storesale.com/fake-air-force-270-outlet.html . Burke is expected to miss two to three months after breaking a finger in the teams third preseason game. Tinsley, a 10-year veteran, spent the last two seasons in Utah, where the point guard averaged 3. Air Force 1 Grey Discount . Aaron Harrison scored a 22 points for Kentucky (6-1), which has won four in a row following a Nov. 12 loss to current No. 1 Michigan State. Julius Randle overcame a scoreless first half and added his sixth double-double in as many games with 14 points and 10 rebounds. Air Force 1 Grey Cheap Outlet . PETERSBURG, Fla. TORONTO -- The Florida Panthers arent taking any risks with franchise defenseman Aaron Ekblad.Ekblad, 20, is headed back to Florida and will miss the remainder of the World Cup of Hockey for Team North America.While Aaron would have liked to stay with his teammates at the World Cup of Hockey, we respect the decision for him to continue his evaluation and rehabilitation in Florida with the Panthers team doctors, Team North America said in a statement. Aaron was a very important part of our defense core here and a key leader on this team. We wish him all the best in his recovery.Ekblad took a big hit from Finlands?Leo Komarov?during North Americas win on Sunday and sat out Mondays 4-3 loss to Russia. North America is calling it an upper-body injury, but an NHL source said he was following league protocol by sitting out Mondays game with symptoms consistent with a mild concussion.Ekblad will be re-evaluated by doctors in Florida.Hes a huge piece of our team, said Team North America captain Connor McDavid. We miss him a lot, but it will be up to us to kind of march on without him.Added goaltender Matt Murrray: Hes a great player.dddddddddddd. He seems like a 10-year veteran and hes only 20 years old. Yeah, well miss him.Without Ekblad, the 2014 No. 1 draft pick whos already an NHL franchise defenseman, North America will need to lean more heavily on Morgan Rielly, Colton Parayko, Shayne Gostisbehere in a crucial game Wednesday against Sweden.The whole team has to be prepared to play more minutes, and rise to the challenge and take care of each other defensively, Rielly said. You have to learn on the fly a little bit.Coach Todd McLellan praised the play of replacement Jacob Trouba but also lamented Ekblads absence. On a team of 23-and-under Americans and Canadians, youth was a weakness during a rough 10-minute stretch against Russia.When youre a group of young players, youre looking for somebody just to take charge and settle it down, maybe get a shift or two under your belt, and we didnt get that quick enough, McLellan said.The Associated Press contributed to this report.? ' ' '