Couple noteworthy nuggets to come out of it already
No policy yet on COVID related delays to games. Not ruling out the possibility of forcing forfeitures for teams needing to back out.
New ACC commish Jim Phillips is here addressing the media for the first time at the kickoff. No announcement of what league will do if a team can't participate due to COVID-19 positives. Strongly encouraged vaccinations for players but did not mandate it. Left it up to schools.— Andy Bitter (@AndyBitterVT) July 21, 2021
But also worth noting that vaccine rates among the teams is high, so fingers crossed this won't be an issue this year
Phillips says over half of the ACC's teams have hit the 85% vaccination threshold. Have to imagine the #Hokies are among that group, considering it'll be mandatory to attend Virginia Tech this fall.— Andy Bitter (@AndyBitterVT) July 21, 2021
Now is a good time to make sure you have the ACCNetwork
Commissioner Phillips announces Notre Dame at Virginia Tech on Saturday, Oct. 9 will be televised on the ACC Network. #Hokies— David Cunningham (@therealdcunna) July 21, 2021
Nothing would be more fitting than to award to the John Swofford MVP Award to a Hokie at the end of the year, pissing off all the ACC traditionalists out there
ACC names its football championship game MVP trophy after retired commissioner John Swofford— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) July 21, 2021
Comments
Just missed the full Coach Fuente interview on ACC Radio for ACC media days. They are now interviewing Chamarri Connor. Tom Luganbill and Chris Spatola doing the interviews
Some silly takeaways from the Coach Fu interview:
The Notre Dame game is going to be on the ACC Network. Pretty much guarantees that it will be a night game.
Worth noting that ESPN and Comcast are currently in a stalemate regarding their contract renewal. This is very much Disney trying to leverage the customer base in Virginia to try and pressure Comcast into caving.
Most likely. I hope it works. I am so glad I ditched Comcast for FIOS years ago. It has been 1000x better.
Oh, and the obligatory...
FUCK COMCAST!
Comcast
To add on... another and continued giant middle finger to the ACCN for not being able to access via the Hulu/Disney+/ESPN+ subscription. Called ESPN directly and they said ACCN cannot be accessed via that subscription bundle. Just damn stupid...
Ehhh it actually does make sense... TL;DR - Today, the ACC makes money based on how many people subscribe to the ACC network, NOT how many WATCH the ACC network. The number of people watching < number of subscribers. For the ACC, this is far and away the most lucrative model.
Longer summary:
I know it's frustrating from a consumer perspective, but this current system is a big compromise between sports leagues, ESPN, cable companies, and consumers.
Leg for your explanation and response. Still not taking my middle finger(s) down though. haha
Oh, 1000% agree. Fuck comcast. Can't be said enough.
Where would they fit on a 0-10 scale with Pat Narduzzi, Chin Balls and the old AT&T?
Actually have nothing against the new AT&T when they were bought out, but I have total confidence that I could have been arrested for simply threatening to do what I threatened to do at AT&T's corporate headquarters when they called me 5 times in less then 2 weeks right before my thesis defense to switch to their service and I had probably told them 10 times before then that I was not interested.
Fu with the beard seems more relatable...he should keep it through the season.
I don't fully trust any man who is clean shaven
I've heard people my parents and grandparents age/gen say the opposite. I don't care either way, but I've always found it funny that people hold such strong opinions on the matter (even if the purpose is mostly just for making the joke). I personally tend to have some length of beard. When I "clean shave" it's just no guard on a trimmer. I haven't used a razor to shave my face in 6-7 years I believe.
Yeah, I was only sorta joking, lol I'm with you on the razor thing, when it's getting too long I put my guard down to 2mm, usually do this every other week or so
100% agree. I have long hair and the amount of comments I get about my character are unreal. I mean, I don't walk around commenting on peoples fashion choices. Cause I damn well could.
I have a theory that every man who is capable of growing a full beard looks better with a full beard. I am yet to see anything to prove me wrong.
Beards are fine, clean shaven is fine, but goatees make me think used car salesman
Goatee normally makes me think US civil war era officer.
I usually go for the Commander Riker look with my goatee. I mean, who doesn't want to look like an officer on the coolest starship in the galaxy? Apologies to Millenium Falcon fans.
Depends on face shape and maturity. I had facial hair at 17 and it did not match my face. I regrew facial hair last year at the age of 35 and it looks much better on me.
I was going to come in here and throw hands to defend Bud Foster's honor but then I compared Bud with a goatee and Bud with a beard and realized that, yeah he looks a lot better with a beard.
Given our lack of QB depth, I really hope BB's "explosive running potential" is not something the play calling will be centered on.
Context:
didn't catch that. I still hope he isn't asked to run too much
Andy - for all the good pieces he's written in the past year - has done a poor job of providing context around Fuente's comments.
I hope he only uses to escape a broken play and immediately gets down when anyone is within 3 feet of him. Otherwise, I don't like his chances of getting through the season in one piece.
I agree he needs to play smart. I also agree we need Burmeister to stay healthy due to depth. What I find funny though is that nobody was worried about Tyrod running the ball at the same height and weight.
Are you kidding? I was terrified about Tyrod getting killed while running for his life every play!
Okay, first of all, you don't know that people weren't worried about Taylor carrying the ball. Secondly, when Taylor was playing he had really good RBs to hand off to and who could handle the lion's share of the running game. This offense is different. It relies on the QB run threat which requires the QB to run the ball by design. Although Taylor did get some designed runs the running offense was not predicated on his ability to run and those plays were called relatively sparingly.
Tyrod Senior year, 10 rush attempts per game
Braxton 2020, 8 rush attempts per game
There is a difference if they are designed runs or safer qb scrambles but I couldn't find that separated.
We do more designed run stuff now than in Tyrod's time. There's a few really noteworthy ones from Tyrod's senior year like the read (triple) option play against CMU and the draw against NC State, but most of his runs were scrambles. We didn't use him like the battering ram we have used our QB's as under Fuente.
I didn't think we used Burmeister as a battering ram as much as others we had a couple new runs this past season that basically got him to the sideline where hopefully he steps out before getting hit.
I could be complete wrong onghe amount of up the gut runs he had, it just didn't seem like we used him that way.
We definitely did more outside the tackle, more traditional read option stuff with Burmeister, as he is more slight and his best asset was his speed as a runner compared to some other QB's under Fuente, or even Logan Thomas when we ran a lot of inverted veer. However, the point still stands that for Tyrod specifically we didn't do a lot of designed run stuff in comparison to what we've seen under Fuente. Tyrod was more in the magician, scrambler style, and we simply were not willing to risk injuries with him given his first two years were marred by recurring ankle issues.
I agree..I also think that had to be by design because he was much shiftier in space than Hooker
I doubt we see BB as a battering ram either. More outside stuff and draws. At the end of the day though he has to be smart with his body. I watched RG3 with Washington get absolutely pummeled in the pocket but play the runs pretty smart. So pocket awareness is also key.
Chris basically already addressed this for me and you already acknowledged it - Taylor's scrambles will count as rushing attempts. Granted, Burmeister also broke contain on some passing plays and those will go down as rushing attempts too. But this offense is designed to feature the QB run much more heavily than the offense Taylor played in. Also, Taylor played a complete season in 2010. Burmeister only played in a few games.
This^ his "running plays" were mainly of his own volition or purey out of necessity...he wasn't Logan or Jerod out there hammering dudes
While I'm sure this was meant to be good news for Offensive production, when I hear "explosive running potential" tied to a QB, I cant help but wonder how long until QB2 comes in due to injury. Tyrod was an explosive runner, but he was at his absolute best when that explosiveness was used to extend passing plays and he didn't take unnecessary shots.
show us on the field
Sounds great. Hope we get to see it, in a balanced offense scheme.
Need to whet my appetite, probably going to rewatch the NC State or BC game from 2020
Or GiT 2019
Do State, all I could think about during the BC game was how close it would be without us getting the turnovers
Watched the State game. I was surprised at how aggressive our receivers were, especially when we threw, by my count, 6 fades.
I'm going to do GiT 2019 tomorrow.
Belmar may not be ready to go by the start of camp. Our DE depth is paper thin.
Keep in mind that "we like" the true frosh that aren't on campus yet better than Wooten, Beadles, and Bryant. We will be fine... /S
Can someone hammer DV this shit... I can't even get through the damn comments anymore without closing out the website. I'll guess try again tomorrow. Seriously... its been way past ridiculous for the past 2 weeks. Everyone keeps giving (DC specifically) second chances, third chances, downvotes. It's beyond obnoxious at this point... and I haven't even started drinking yet.
I have a dream, and that dream is to see a post go UVa plaid with its first reply going Hokie plaid, and this has potential
I did my part.
He's still going to be out from concussions last fall? Yikes!
Athletes struggling with concussion symptoms lasting over 6 months can be career ending. I've seen some great soccer/hockey/football players end their careers over concussions. With 8 months since contact, I'm hoping he's okay.
I believe it! My father in law hit me in the head with a 6ft tall dig bar. I missed work for a week and didn't feel right for about 5 months.
Damn! I don't know what you did, but it sounds like he overreacted!
Hahaha. He was helping me spread more gravel in my driveway and he's got a dump trailer. We left the trailer full of gravel in February and it froze overnight. He was in the dump trailer with the dig bar trying to break it up. He was done so he threw it off the side and apparently he didn't see me?! He felt terrible, but thankfully we're at the point where I can give him shit for "trying to kill me".
That was my first reaction, that was a hell of a concussion
Mac brown has a plan in place for UNC. He's got the staff, the recruiting, he has the administration backing him, and he is filling the seats.
Did you get this out of media day event or just a rant?
To be fair Mack Brown normally just rants so it could be both
I watched his interview
I heard him on the radio yesterday, don't know if it was live. I'm near the border and usually get UNC sports talk otw home from work on one of the Carolina stations. He was talking up the VT game. Said it was one of the more exciting places to play and said the team is well aware that last time they were in Blacksburg they lost in 6 overtimes. I think they're going to be ready to play.
If you dont like what I wrote, dont read it. You dont have to continue to follow with the Dr. Phil post below of "you know what you problem is" . just scroll past what I wrote. Ok, bye.
Do you have a link or examples he used? Or tweets by beat writers showing what he said?
Youtube
Thanks for all of the down votes because I said that mac brown has his shit together. It makes me happy
Don't take it personally, we're all somewhat jealous at what Brown and his staff have been able to accomplish in such a short amount of time compared to where our VT program is currently trending. You just happened to touch a nerve with what is likely the unvarnished truth.
I wouldn't speak for all of us. I don't quite see yet why we should be so jealous of what Mack has done so far. In two years, he's gone 7-6 and 8-4, which rank about average relative to the seasons we've had under Fuente. He's lost 5 games already as a favorite, and twice as more than a touchdown favorite.
I get that some poeple are jealous of recruiting, but I'm not convinced of anything until he actually starts winning at a high level.
UNCheat lost a ton of talent to NFL. We'll have a solid D and shut Howell down. We've got to score 30 to win though IMO.
So your downvotes are probably related to someone (me) asking you for links or examples of what he said and your one word response was
Same thing we see when people ask for proof of many things these days and the response is
I was just asking you why you said all those things about Mac and UNC, examples from His talking, beat writers quotes anything, really to illustrate your point.
In all fairness....^filling the seats? Don't you mean, removing seats so they can claim year over year sell outs?
Article Here
HA. Makes sense though... they like to sit the whole game. Might as well make it more comfortable for em. Havent been to a game there in a really long time, but last one was when NCSt came in. Rivalry game and the place was half full and sat the whole game. If I recall, it was a good game and came down to a last second fg too.
Didn't we just do this in Cassell too? Seems to be the trend in college athletics. With less people going to games for various reasons, the schools need to make the gameday experience more enjoyable to draw the fans.
Hand up, moved from sec 5 to 205 and the seatbacks were a pretty big part of that. If for nothing else than, when I do sit down I'd love to not have someone's knees directly in my back. However, it sounds kinda nice having a seatback during pregame/halftime.
Wait, we lost Cassell seats in order to put in wider seats. And my ass has never been more thankful!!!
Here's a good read on QB1
https://roanoke.com/sports/college/va_tech/he-s-ready-for-this-moment-th...
Thanks for sharing. Love it! Now prove it! He looked like a QB1 in that UVA game.
Feel the same! We know that Fuente can develop QB's into winner, and Oregon saw something in the kid at some point. It's not implausible!
Is this sarcasm?
I wasn't trying to be funny or snarky here...I was genuinely curious. But whatever, I guess we're throwing out DVs for honest questions now?...peak off-season
Sorry to miss this (it's tough to keep track of replies to your own comments since those features went behind the paywall). It wasn't sarcasm, I'm genuinely optimistic.
no worries. I know you have a dry sense of humor so I wasn't sure
If he can look like he did in the UVA game for a whole season I think we can surprise a lot of people.
I don't think it's unrealistic. He has had plenty of time to learn the system and develop rapport with the receivers.
BB definitely executed the game plan for the UVA game- I hope he can play at this level all year. The real issue is can Tech not give up 32 points per game on D, I feel like the improvement in the team will have to happen with our Defense being much improved.
I love that we start with UNC. I think we should know where this team is early. Shut down the run game, then shut down Howell, and we can win the game. I don't think we win in another shoot out like last year.
One of the most significant and least discussed side effects of all the UT/OU to SEC gossip is that it's completely tea-bagged and taint muffled any news coming out of the ACC media days... Not that many people paid attention to begin with... but still. I doubt the timing was coincidence.
VT picked to finish third in the coastal
sounds about right
I have hope creeping back in on me for the UNC game. How sweet would it be to pound them In lane game 1
Defense needs to improve a ton from last year for us to beat UNC, IMO. I don't trust our thin and unproven WR and RB corps to keep up with them scoring if our defense isn't drastically improved. Their QB is the best in the ACC.
Everything you said is true, but I can still hope until the clock reads 00:00.
We are getting them at the best time though. I don't anticipate a shootout or blowout. Defense needs stops and offense needs to capitalize, basics of winning.
I think if we can score more points than them we have a good shot at winning
via GIPHY
I thought it was time of possession?
via GIPHY
Yeah lets do that and quit farting around
Good Point, hopefully their offense won't be on all cylinders yet
Hard to imagine it would be. They lost their top two running backs and their top two receivers. That's a lot of production/experience to replace.
its kind of funny to me that people can share this view and then at the same time expect our offense to be good next year when we're losing our top QB and our top RB from last year
That's a loss of four NFL players to one NFL player. In terms of offensive talent lost between seasons it's not close.
We have to force Sam to drop back and make plays. If they run it down our gullet all game it's going to be a long night.
Everyone is an all American until someone puts you on your ass. I'm hoping we are able to do so. The trend says no but here's to hoping!
Can't say I've heard that saying regarding All Americans before. It's.. something
"Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the mouth." Nothing along those lines?
Just applied to football.
One of my favorites is:
"Every man has a scheme that will not work."
I got WVU 2017 and FSU 2018 vibes.
We just can't turn the ball over like 2019 BC vibes. If we can hold onto the ball and not fall behind the chains, I think that we will be at least competitive. Don't get me wrong, I want us to destroy them. But I also don't want to get destroyed.
here's what I want to happen: VT blows UNC out
here's what I think could happen: UNC blows VT out
here's what I think will happen: ugly game by both teams that UNC wins by one score - probably as a result of an untimely error by VT (like throwing an interception on the last drive)
this would be acceptable
This is what really scares me. I'm worried we'll come out fired up for the UNC game, create a ton of momentum with a win, and then fall back into the cluster fuck of losing dumb games.
I got some heat when I tried to warn people after the FSU game. I really hated being right on that one. I wanted us to live up to the hype. But, there were way too many flaws in that game. And they came through as the season progressed against teams there weren't steaming piles of Taggart crap.
I think listening to the broadcasters/ESPN headlines leading up to and during that game put FSU (and thus our performance against them) on an undeserved pedestal.
If there was a game watching option that only had the sounds from the field and (maybe) a play-by-play with no color commentary/extraneous conversation, I'd be so happy.