He said the Hokies are desperate to win. I said Miami has O-line issues. Our predictions:

He asked me four questions, so I asked him four of my own regarding Saturday’s 3:30 p.m. nationally televised game (ESPN) between the Miami Hurricanes (2-2, 0-1 Atlantic Coast Conference) and the Virginia Tech Hokies (2-2, 0-2) at Hard Rock Stadium.

Mike Barber is in his eighth year covering the ACC for the Richmond Times-Dispatch. A New Jersey native and 2001 Rutgers University graduate, Barber spent 10 years covering James Madison football in Harrisonburg, Va. before joining the Richmond staff. A self-proclaimed foodie, he briefly owned a bar/restaurant in Harrisonburg. He’s also officiated six of his close friends’ weddings.

First, my questions to Mike:

▪ 1. How has Virginia Tech fallen this far so fast after only losing by seven points to Clemson in the 2016 ACC Championship?

The reality is, those first-year transition growing pains teams go through with a coaching change seemed to strike Tech in a delayed fashion. After two impressive seasons, Virginia Tech coach Justin Fuente endured chemistry issues, transfers and depth problems in years 3 and 4. The entire program also seemed to be thrown off kilter when quarterback Jerod Evans surprisingly declared for the NFL draft after his junior season.

Josh Jackson had a promising first season, then got injured last year and transferred to Maryland. Mainly, this season, the Hokies are thin and inexperienced on both the offensive and defensive lines and shaky in the secondary. They haven’t been able to run the ball in a few years. His first season, Fuente inherited a loaded roster, found the missing piece in Evans — a JUCO transfer — and had a great year. But it’s been all downhill since then. And recruiting is trending in the same direction.

▪ 2. How has Virginia Tech responded this week in practice after an ugly showing (45-10 loss at home) against Duke. Is this group resilient? What have you seen in the recent past regarding their ability to rebound?

One of the impressive trademarks of this program in the last decade, under Fuente and Frank Beamer before that, has been its resilience. It’s not been uncommon for Tech to need to win its final game or two to extend the bowl streak during that time.

Last year, they found a way to beat UVA and Marshall to reach six wins the final two weekends. This year’s team hasn’t really shown what it’s made of it in that department. After a disappointing opening loss at Boston College, it ‘responded’ with two lackluster wins over inferior competition. So how will the Hokies bounce back from the absolute waxing that Duke gave them Friday night? It’s a great question and one I’m eager to learn the answer to.

Overall, Fuente’s tired, cliche mantra of going 1-0 each week should help them focus on Miami. And certainly, Tech should have desperation on its side. If it loses to Miami, it would be 0-3 and would need to go 5-2 to become bowl eligible. (With two FCS teams on the schedule, Tech will need seven wins this year to extend its bowl streak.)

▪ 3. Can you update us on the quarterback situation and what UM can expect Saturday?

Fuente was noncommittal about the quarterback pecking order this week, but I would expect more of the same. Ryan Willis is the starter and gets the bulk of the work, with Hendon Hooker getting a drive each half to try to give the defense a different look. Hooker isn’t a good enough passer at this point to take over as a full-time QB but his athleticism is intriguing. Quincy Patterson is still essentially a fullback playing Wildcat QB.

Willis won the job, however, in large part because of his ball security. But he’s thrown five interceptions in the first four games, so Willis is probably on a bit of a tight leash.

▪ 4. Former Virginia Tech defensive end Trevon Hill is starting to show his talent as he works his way more and more into the defensive rotation. Based on what you’ve seen, how good can he be by the end of the season?

Tech was expecting Hill to become a breakout star last season and he appeared well on his way. That is, before a fiery confrontation with a staff member at halftime of the ODU game led to his dismissal. He had 11 tackles and 3 1/2 sacks through the first three games that year. I’m actually surprised he hasn’t had a bigger impact yet at Miami, but talking to Hill and D-line coach Todd Stroud this week it sounds like he had conditioning issues early on that he’s just now put behind him. Hill is a passionate player on the field and a dedicated film-study guy off it. I know he’s been used mostly as a third-down pass rusher but with his athleticism in space, I’d be very surprised if he didn’t have a major impact before the season ends.

Next, his questions to me:

▪ 1. Four games into the season, it seems hard to get a handle on this Miami team. They looked talented but sloppy in the opener against Florida, disappointing against North Carolina and then played two lesser teams. From your vantage point, do you know yet what to make of this year’s Hurricanes?

Basically, “talented but sloppy” has been a big part of the equation since Game One. The Hurricanes rank 126 of 130 Football Bowl Subdivision teams in fewest penalties per game, averaging 9.75 penalties and 78.2 yards a game. You’d think they’d at least work toward resolving that problem. But in their last game at home against Central Michigan, the Canes had 13 penalties for 93 yards.

But there’s something more worrisome right now for UM and its talented redshirt freshman quarterback: Its young, mostly inexperienced and thus far mostly ineffective offensive line. Jarren Williams was sacked 10 times in the opener against Florida, and four times apiece against North Carolina and Central Michigan. In the past game against the Chippewas, this O-line had a true freshman at left tackle, true freshman at right guard, sophomore at right tackle, redshirt sophomore at center and junior at left guard. The line is expected to get better as the youngsters learn how to play with each other and against more experienced competition, but it doesn’t appear that it will happen soon enough. UM is 128th nationally in sacks allowed.

As usual, there is plenty of talent on this team, but the deficiencies (another is a kicker who has missed two of four field-goal attempts from 20-29 yards and has made 5 of 9 total) are glaring.

▪ 2. It was big news in the offseason when Jarren Williams was named the starting quarterback over both Tate Martell and N’Kosi Perry. How has Williams performed and how firmly is he entrenched as the starter?

Williams, who only played garbage time briefly in one game last season, has been very impressive. He ranks 18th nationally in passing efficiency, and has yet to throw an interception (though a couple would-bes were dropped). Williams has completed 85 of his 117 passes (72.6 percent) for 1,027 yards and seven touchdowns. He is averaging 256.8 passing yards a game (35th nationally). Some of his deep balls have been underthrown, but his poise and smarts and talent have made him a force thus far, despite that offensive line. He is very firmly entrenched.

▪ 3. Giving up big plays has been the Hokies’ biggest issue defensively, for about two seasons now. Miami has six players with a catch for 20 yards or more and four with runs that long. How explosive is this Hurricanes’ offense?

Not explosive enough, given some of the gifted receivers and running backs. I’ve covered this team for many years, and one of its hallmarks used to be the big, explosive play -- deep pass or breakout run or return for a touchdown. Running back DeeJay Dallas is one who can find a hole and motor for a lot of yards, as is his backup Cam’Ron Harris (He’s had two 50-yard runs called back for a teammate’s holding penalty).Tight end Brevin Jordan is another big threat. But the player we thought would be the most explosive Hurricane -- lightning-fast receiver Jeff Thomas -- has not caught a pass longer than 19 yards, and has not scored.

▪ 4. Miami has the ACC’s best run defense and is giving up the second fewest points in the league. Virginia Tech has scored just 12 touchdowns this season, tied for the second fewest in the league. The Hurricanes don’t seem to be piling up a ton of sacks or interceptions, so how is the defense achieving that success?

Miami’s defensive line is deep and its two top linebackers (Shaq Quarterman and Michael Pinckney) are smart, dependable veterans. Actually, UM is putting plenty of pressure on opposing quarterbacks, ranking 29th in sacks, 12th in tackles for loss and 13th in total defense, led by a sixth-ranked rushing defense that is allowing 59.8 rushing yards a game. The Hurricanes also are fourth in the country and No. 1 in the Atlantic Coast Conference in third-down defense, stopping opponents at least three of every four attempts.

Their weakness on defense has been the secondary, which lost three starters to the NFL, and is young. UM is 49th in passing yards allowed (209.8 yards a game average).

Our predictions:

Mike: UM 41-20.

Susan: UM 35-14.