Hokies Tout Stability at Running Back, Offensive Line at ACC Kickoff, As Secondary Questions Linger

After spending a combined two hours answering questions before the assembled media hordes at the ACC Kickoff, Michael Brewer, Kendall Fuller and Frank Beamer have been asked just about every question imaginable about the Hokies' upcoming season.

They've gotten the chance to opine on subjects like the players' offseason work, the team's impending matchups with Ohio State and Georgia Tech, the state of the receiving corps and even the program's future.

Yet even still, those pieces only scratch the surface of the results of their rigorous questioning back on July 20-21.

A New and Improved Offensive Line?

Tech's offensive line was the talk of spring practice this year, and the team was ready to sing hosannas about the unit's experience and talent once again down in Pinehurst, N.C.

"For one, we get Jon McLaughlin back," Brewer said. "Wade Hansen is back, it was his first year playing offensive line last year, he's experienced now. Wyatt Teller, he's not a freshman anymore, he's experienced, he's a big guy. Augie Conte, same deal, he's experienced, he's got some games under his belt. And you've got the young guy Gallo in the middle, I'm really excited to see what becomes of Eric Gallo. "

Beamer was even willing to make the rare, yet painfully obvious, admission that some subpar years recruiting the position led to a marked decline in the unit's performance the last few seasons.

"I think our offensive line over the last few years as a group, we got behind in our recruiting and we've had some good offensive linemen just not as a group, and when you have problems there, you're throwing it before you want to throw, you're getting sacks," Beamer said. "A five yard run turns into a one yard run, so it affects everything, it affects how quickly your defense gets back out on the field."

After seeing the group's this work in the offseason, Brewer feels confident the front five will be an asset for this offense this time around.

"Anytime your offensive line plays well it makes it easier on everybody, running backs, quarterbacks, receivers," Brewer said. "And they have been playing well, and we're excited about the direction they're moving to, it's been a good start for them."

Yet beyond simple questions about the line's performance, any conversation about the group inevitably seems to begin with Wyatt Teller, an excellent bet to become a NFL star someday.

"He's big, strong, athletic, pretty much what you want in an offensive linemen," Brewer said. "He's a guy that when he gets his hands on you, most of the time it's over. So he's right there along with everybody else. He just got better and better as things went along, and he's got to do the same thing in camp, so the sky's the limit for him come fall."

Yet no discussion of Teller is complete without a mention of his unconventional grooming choices.

"I'm sure you've all seen his hair, the mullet, with kind of the Brian Bosworth thing," Brewer said.

Is Teller's "business in the front, party in the back" style merely ironic or a serious fashion statement? Wyatt only knows.

"That's a question for him," Brewer said.

Brewer views his left guard's stylings as "total barbarian white trash," but Beamer has a more forgiving stance on Teller's hairdo.

"I think as long as Wyatt keeps sticking people right in the mouth, I'm not too concerned about his hairstyle," Beamer said. "He's got a good heart, he's a great kid, some things about him are a little bit different, but there's a lot of things about him you really like. As long as his mom likes his hairstyle, I like his hairstyle."

Teller may be the most well-known player on the line because of those "different" fashion choices, but others in the unit may prove more pivotal this season.

Center Eric Gallo is the only projected starter in the group without starting experience, but early reviews of the sophomore's performance in the new role have all been positive.

"He's been nothing but great this offseason, and in the spring I'm sure in what ya'll got to see was really good," Brewer said. "You've got to have a smart guy playing that position and he definitely fits that mold. He gets them in the right protections and he's a guy that can climb to the second level quick, especially in the run game."

Brewer says he's quickly developed a solid relationship with his new center, and that extends even to his time taking snaps from Gallo.

"It's funny, Eric and I have had a really good rapport, the quarterback-center exchange has been very good from the get go, sometimes it just kind of clicks, which is nice because it's one less thing to worry about," Brewer said. "You continue to work on it, but it's not as a big of an emphasis as it was last year when I first got here."

Beyond Gallo, all the rest of the starters have plenty of experience under their belts. Things get thornier on the second team OL.

The group got abused frequently in spring practice, and Beamer says he's acutely aware that the team is just one injury away from turning to some very green players.

"(Colt) Petit is a new guy in there at guard, (former TE Darius) Redman's a guy that is a backup at tackle but is certainly athletic enough, he just needs to be consistent," Beamer said. "We've got some possibilities, but that will be a challenge in preseason, how many backup offensive linemen can we develop?"

Yet Beamer draws confidence from his belief that his OL group is more athletic than it's been in years.

"You've got to stay healthy, and you'd like to be more experienced at a couple positions, but I think the one thing you start out with is, for the most part, we're very athletic," Beamer said. "For an athletic guy that can get over there and block a guy, at least you start with that. You take a non athletic guy, I don't care how many reps you get, he may not be able to get over there and block that guy. So at least from there we're capable of what we need to do, but now from a sense of learning and reps, we need to get that part done."

Coleman Leading the RBs

Ever since seizing the job as Tech's lead running back against Duke, J.C. Coleman has been a favorite subject for the staff.

His narrative fits the age old story of a player biding his time, playing through injuries, seeing his role minimized, then seizing an opportunity when it presents itself and lifting the team up.

"That's what we consider a Virginia Tech guy," offensive coordinator Scot Loeffler said in the aftermath of the team's season-saving win against Duke last year.

Yet this was all a role that Beamer says he couldn't have envisioned Coleman filling before he stepped up against the Blue Devils.

"I apologized to him because I didn't know he could be that guy," Beamer said. "I should've known, the guy has always been tough, he's always had great hands, I've thought about getting him out in space a little bit more, but when he had to, he showed up in every area, blocking, catching running, getting tough yardage. He's 5'7" and he's got a lot of toughness for 5'7"."

Brewer can't deny the role Coleman's diminutive size played in those perceptions of his talents.

"I guess just because he's not as a big as some as the other backs, it's tough for a guy of that size to take a beating, handing it off 15 times a game to him every week can be tough," Brewer said. "It's tough on anybody, he doesn't have the size that guys like Marshawn (Williams) and Shai (McKenzie) have."

But since his superb finish last season, it seems Coleman has had the kind of offseason he needed to banish all thoughts that he can't become Tech's every-down back this year.

"I think in my mind he showed all of us something and I don't think it's any question that he could be an every-down back and be a good one," Beamer said.

With Coleman seemingly entrenched in the lead role, the question becomes how Shane Beamer and the rest of the staff will work to rotate in the team's other talented options.

"The thing we've got to make sure of again is we've got 100 guys, guys that have had 100 yard games, on our team, so we've got to make sure we've got a system that plays the guys and they're not in and out," Beamer said. "I think with tailback you've got to get in a flow, you can't be in one play and out the next play, so that's what we've got to make sure of going into the season."

As Williams and McKenzie continue to rehab their ACL injuries, and McKenzie works through his off-the-field woes, the rotation at running back will be a bit shorter, but the Hokies don't lack for options.

Foremost among those other backs to consider is former starter Trey Edmunds, now that he's finally back to full speed.

"He's had a good summer, he's leaned up a little bit, he looks quick, he's finally starting to get some of that speed back," Brewer said. "He's been out there in 7-on-7, everything like that, doing really well. Obviously there's a difference between that and him getting knocked around and carrying it a bunch of times, so come training camp we'll see where he's at."

Edmunds' veteran presence will undoubtedly be valuable, but Brewer also seems excited about the youthful potential of redshirt freshman Travon McMillian.

"(He) gives us a chance to do some fun stuff on offense," Brewer said. "You can have him in the backfield, you can have him in the pass game, he's kind of an athlete playing running back back there, so expect to see a lot of him."

One guy fans shouldn't expect to see running the ball quite so much this season is fullback Sam Rogers, Brewer says.

"Our plan last year was (for him) to be a guy, you saw him catch that touchdown against Ohio State last year, a guy that we could move around from the backfield to kind of a wing tight end to slot receiver," Brewer said. "Because he can do so much for us, he's a great blocker, he can run the ball and he can catch the ball. So everybody got hurt last year and we couldn't use him for everything we'd practiced, so he just turned into a late-season running back and fullback last year. So if we stay healthy, we expect for him to be more involved in the things that we do."

That caveat aside, Brewer says the rest of the rotation will surely shake out when camp opens August 7.

"Last year it felt like we had a lot of guys coming into it and then we had a lot of injuries, so you never know what's going to happen on that front," Brewer said. "I can't speak for Coach Loeffler and Coach Beamer, I don't know what their plans are with it, but I'm assuming that once we get into training camp, whoever is helping us move the ball more, we'll get a rotation going with those guys."

Kendall's Big Decision

These days, there's an NFL-sized elephant in the room for any conversation with Kendall Fuller.

After earning just about every preseason honor possible, the eyes of pro scouts will be firmly fixed on the youngest, and perhaps most talented, Fuller brother this season. It's attention that Fuller says he does his best to ignore.

"I try not to think about it, you're not gonna have time to worry about that," Fuller said. "Even if you're thinking about being drafted, you still have to go out and play and produce this whole season so just focus on your team and what you have to do now and worry about the future later."

Fuller insists his focus is merely on improving this season, but he admits that may be an easier task than it was a season ago thanks to a wrist injury he successfully kept under wraps for months.

"I broke my wrist freshman year against Boston College," Fuller said. "The injury, it doesn't show up on the x-ray when it first happened, and I got it x-rayed before camp. And I didn't want to get surgery, so I just put a cast on it every practice and every game."

Fuller says the cast rarely limited him on the field, with the exception of one very notable missed opportunity.

"My teammates mess with me about the interception I missed against Wake Forest," Fuller said. "But I told them I think when I caught it and went to tuck the ball, with the cast you can't really tuck it."

Yet he notes the mental toll of wearing the cast likely played a bigger role in any missteps he made last year than any physical disadvantage.

"It hindered me, but I don't really think, looking back at the film, I think I was just playing more cautious, more protective a little bit. Much more than I would have," Fuller said. "So this year, I'm just going to let loose."

Even with those roadblocks, Fuller managed to earn second team All-American status from a number of outlets last season. It begs the question: what can he can accomplish now that he's back to full strength?

Yet Fuller says he doesn't think the change that way, necessarily.

"A lot of people in the media have been saying that, but if I go on the field, I think I can play to the best of my ability, whether I have a cast on or not," Fuller said.

But there are still surely plenty of scouts who will be anxiously anticipating seeing a fully healthy Fuller on the field once again.

Assuming he can avoid injury and live up to the high expectations ascribed to the brother of a first-round pick, Beamer notes that he'll likely be having a serious conversation with Fuller about his jump to the league very soon.

"We'll sit down and talk, but he's smart about those things," Beamer said. "The best thing he can do right now to help his value is to play great. If you're going to be a first round draft choice and make quite a bit of money, that's the thing you need to take advantage of. If you need to come back and improve your stock a little bit, then that's the way to go."

Luckily, the Fuller family is no stranger to precisely this type of conundrum.

"The thing with him too is he's got such a great mom and dad, there's a lot of good common sense in that family, and making decisions, so they're going to make the right decision for him and the right decision for him will be the right decision for Virginia Tech," Beamer said.

Sorting out the Secondary

Fuller may be the linchpin of the secondary, but the rest of the unit has plenty of question marks.

With C.J. Reavis, the team's likely starter at rover, now seemingly permanently separated from the team, uncertainty reigns in the secondary.

Even before Reavis' dismissal from school, the situation at safety was murky.

"I don't even think Coach Gray knows (who will start)," Fuller said. "Camp is gonna sort it out."

Fuller notes that Donovan Riley, Desmond Frye, Terrell Edmunds and Adonis Alexander are all candidates for playing time at rover should Reavis not return to school, but things at the other safety spot are just as uncertain.

Chuck Clark has earned plenty of praise as a player versatile enough to shift to free safety after spend most of last season at cornerback, and Beamer still anticipates him making that particular move.

"I think Chuck Clark is kind of the guy that can do a lot of things back there," Beamer said. "He's a smart guy, he's capable playing corner, which we thought at one time, but now I'm not sure he won't be back at free safety.

"We're going to do some talking about that, we talked a little before I came down here, but he's the one that to me gives you some flexibility. He's got size, he can do a lot of things, and he's a smart guy. Being smart and being football smart aren't always the same, but with him it is. And so I think he gives you some options."

But Clark will only be available to move to free safety should CB Brandon Facyson be able to return to form after an injury-ridden year. Luckily for the Hokies, confidence abounds that he'll be able to do just that.

"He's gonna turn some heads," Fuller said. "He's healthy, he's a playmaker, he's gonna change the game, he's gonna put himself in the discussion as one of the top DBs in the country."

Fuller seems particularly confident that Facyson's subpar performance in the first few contests of the season, followed by his prolonged absence, have only served to stoke his competitive fire.

"He's just hungry. Those first three games he played last year, that's not something he was used to, he's not satisfied," Fuller said. "Sitting out the rest of the year while we were out there playing, he's hungry and he's ready to get back out there. Just what he can bring to this defense is special, he's a game changer, he can make plays, he's someone we're gonna love having back."

That's an assessment that Beamer does not hesitate to agree with.

"To me, he's quite a player. You put him and Fuller in a game together, and you've got some good corners working," Beamer said. "Him and Kendall, it doesn't get much better right there."

As Facyson works his way back into the mix, and the safeties adjust to their new roles, the secondary can rest easy knowing the team's front seven has no such questions about talent or experience.

"I don't think you can speak enough about it, having guys like Dadi (Nicolas) and Ken (Ekanem), they're gonna rush the quarterback and let their presence be known on the field, they're gonna make quarterbacks get the ball out of their hands quick, we've just got to take advantage of it," Fuller said.

The team's talented defensive ends are one part of that equation, but Beamer also seems excited about the Hokies' starters at linebacker.

"I think Ronnie Vandyke, he's been hurt a bunch, but he's an aggressive guy," Beamer said. "(Andrew) Motuapuaka, I want to see him, he's a guy with a lot of ability. I go right back to the other linebacker, Deon Clarke. He's made strides in every way and I think he's going to be a really, really good football player, consistent."

Redshirt sophomore Anthony Shegog recently joined the linebacking corps as a whip, according to Fuller, after originally earning a handful of reps at safety, and Beamer is encouraged by his development so far after the switch.

"He's a guy with a body that runs very well and there needs to be a place for him," Beamer said. "He's a great special teams player, so getting that guy, I think he's ready to take another step too. I think he's ready to put that ability to work. Getting him on the field a little bit more, we'd like to do that."

Yet depth at middle linebacker is much more of a concern, and the team remains painfully thin beyond Motuapuaka and early-enrolled freshman Carson Lydon.

"I think that's a real question," Beamer said. "Right now there's a drop off between our top two and whoever's next, and getting one or two to be next is the key deal. But Lydon, I think he's got the capabilities to just get in there and do it, and with more reps I think he can do it."