We all have questions, and unfortunately won't have answers until late Spring or even #AUG31 #BEATBAMA. I thought that I would start asking some of the tough ones in a series of forum posts. Hope you all enjoy, and I would love to hear your opinions.
New hires have been made, a crop of promising new recruits signed, and we're all optimistic about the upcoming season. For the most part, my reaction to the hires and successful Signing Day (ranked in the top 20 in the nation by just about all pundits) was a wave of relief. After Pep Hamilton fell through, I wasn't sure if Beamer was going to accomplish the changes that Hokie Nation had been clamoring for for nearly two decades. However, they were achieved.
Then I was worried that after an uncharacteristic down-season of Hokie football - also known as winning less than 10 games and not going to the ACC Title - that our recruiting class would suffer. But, it didn't. We picked up several of the top players in the state of Virginia as well as across the country with the help of our best recruiters on staff, the relatively new addition, Shane Beamer, and the old staple, Brian Stinespring. Relief. Pure Holland Fisher, Kendall Fuller, Wyatt Teller induced relief.
Now, getting to the question. We all know Logan Thomas' potential. Well, for those of us that can look past last season (even though he still put up good numbers) and remember 2011. Miami? 23 for 25, 310 yards, 3 TDs? No? That's an impressive performance, especially after some members of Hokie Nation were quite upset with his showing against Clemson the week before. However, last season, he missed some key throws that he was hitting with relative consistency in 2011. Some (mostly jokingly) blamed the QB Coach that Thomas went to see in California. Others blamed the lack of talent at the WR position. Still others blamed the lack of running game... I think only Logan could tell us what the issue was. Or maybe French (as I believe he did in one or two of his film reviews).
Additionally, we all know the history of new coordinator Scot Loeffler. Tutor to some of the greatest quarterbacks to play the game, including Tom Brady, Chad Henne... the list goes on and on. However, last season, Loeffler came into a lot of criticism from Auburn Tigers fans for their struggles. But it has been revealed that Chizik may have taken the reins from Loeffler because of his hot seat, so there is plenty of blame to pass around.
So essentially, we have two individuals who have had proven success but are in a position where they are looking to rebound from the failures of a year ago.
Will Logan Thomas become a better quarterback than even his 2011 form under the coaching of Loeffler? Will Loeffler prove that he can once again be an effective coordinator at a prestigious football program?
Post your thoughts here.
Comments
Motivation
Both Logan and Scott will be highly motivated to put last year behind them. I think we will see a much better effort in 2013 albeit for different reasons from both. They both seem very hungry for success and this desire can be highly motivating. I think both thought success was a given last year and they will both be giving 100+% to ensure success.
Doubt it
I understand how the addition of new coaches, and players lead us to believe that next year is going to be awesome...we're going to beat Alabama, win the ACC, win the national title, land Hokies on the moon, etc., but we need to be real.
Neither Logan Thomas, nor Scott Loeffler is the key to success. The real key is Jeff Grimes, and his ability to overhaul (and I mean COMPLETELY overhaul) the offensive line. That is going to take time, maybe over several seasons. Grimes is going to have to undo all of the damage that the idiot formerly know as Curt Newsome, OL coach, perpetrated on this program. Offensive Linemen aren't plug and play. They have to be carefully cultivated over years, and Grimes is working with somebody else's dudes.
Logan Thomas will not be successful, and the running game will not either, unless Grimes brings a magic wand to work with him every day.
As someone who played on the o-line (high school), and was told at the start of each practice, "it starts up front," I agree, it starts up front. I find myself wondering how long it'll take Grimes to turn the line around. There's not really a sure thing coming back which is worrisome. Miller was solid two seasons ago, but how does he fare after his injury? We're banking on a lot of things to go right. Gibson, Shuman, and possibly Conte, guys without a heap of experience, to start. Benedict, Wang, Farris, to improve and become more complete. It won't be a complete turnaround in year one, but I think Grimes will be able to make improvements.
Optimism for the OL
It was reported that Gibson was in Newsome's Doghouse. So, my optimism is a fresh set of eyes showing up, wiping everyones slates clean and saying "Performers will play."
I think it got stale on the OL. Looking forward to Grimes' motivation.
I heard this too. Someone said he was one of the better linemen but Newsome didn't want to play him because he thought he didn't care.
The way Newsome has performed over the years, you have to wonder if he cared at all...
Leonard = Debbie Downer
Stop being such a killjoy. Turn that frown upside down.
I don't know how Logan is going to respond next year. Part of me thinks he will improve dramatically with better coaching, but on the other hand, we still could have a lack of quality skill positions around him, and we really have no idea how the o-line is going to be next year. I mean, we all hope the line gets dramatically better, but can we be sure it will just turn-around all of a sudden? Likewise, the running game was a mess last year, but do we know new coaches are going to improve it immediately? There could very easily be growing pains there.
I'm certain that Logan has all the physical tools to succeed, and he clearly has the want-to to be successful. I just worry if the whole offense can gel into an effective unit in one off-season, which could limit his productivity, regardless of any gains he makes this off-season.
I'll agree with josh here. Lets just hope DJ Coles comes back to his old self again. Thomas really needs that kind of consistent receiving target to do well again. If not, then we basically have a whole new receiving corps for a second year in a row with very limited playing experience. That never bodes well for quarterbacks. Think Tyrod 2008 and Thomas last year.
- all to say nothing of consistent line play, a ground game and coaching of course
Coles
Always forget about him. Not when he played two seasons ago, but since he only played one game, I forget that he's not gone. He should be a valuable asset for us if he comes back to his 2011 form.
Think about it: him on one side as a really good possession guy who can get some tough yards after the catch and Knowles on the other side as a burner who Logan can throw the deep ball to.
Perhaps more importantly
He's a willing and able blocker.
Greer
A certain young buck at UVA knows this quite well.
im not sure he remembers man
It appears you have me at a disadvantage, vtaero.
I believe LT3 can account for at least 4,000-yards of offense this year, and these new coaches will give him the help he (and the entire offense) needs to do it.
I feel to repair the offense, we need to do things in this order:
1) Coach up the line into one that bullies the opposing defense
2) Coach up the receivers so they run their routes and block effectively; back to the fundamentals
3) Get the running backs to hit the openings and pass protect effectively
4) Rebuild Logan's confidence and nail down the fundamentals. Make the play book simple and emphasize situational awareness for him and all QBs.
I listed correcting LT3 last, because he's the most proven weapon on our offense, and most important is to get him the support he needs. We all know that in '11, a large factor in his success was a decent line and superb playmakers around him. Loeffler can easily correct his mistakes with a good supporting cast.
Tell my Grandma the reason why that's #4...
She was hoping to the 8 pound 6 ounce, newborn infant baby Jesus that Logan was going to declare for the draft just because of this past season. She's definitely one of the fans I had in mind that couldn't look past 2012 to 2011...
I think she's labeled him in her head as the new Sean Glennon and I am nowhere near agreeing with her on that. We had a near two hour conversation on the subject on Saturday.
I dunno, your grandma sounds really insistent!
But I'd like to see Glennon run a 73-yd TD...
I'll concede that Glennon didn't have a whole lot of help up front (VT has needed duel-threat QBs for the last 15-odd years), but he also never had a great attitude, either. In my few encounters with him at big parties, he always seemed to be playing football more for the social perks.
Thomas has so much potential, just needs to pieces to come together once again.
Yeah... He never really seemed into any of the games. The only memorable Glennon games were the Jersey game against GT and the ACCCG against Boston College.
And yep. No matter what I say to her, she is still determined to hate him. The sad part about it is that she's always telling me to be optimistic about "our Hokies" and now it seems that the tables have turned. She doesn't think we have a sliver of a chance to #BEATBAMA.
He had a good game against UVa in 07 too.
I don't mean to be rude..... but yeah, put Grandma in a home where she belongs. Seriously though, it's pretty annoying/sad when people try to lump all the blame on LT3. Dude's got a tough job.
Cheetah on his back
I think we should strap a cheetah to your grandma's back and see if she can beat him in a race.
Cheetah on her back?
Sounds like you've put some thought into this.
I'd like to add
5) become efficient in the redzone
IMO biggest problem with the offense last 2 years. Off course, better online and play calling could fix this.
Kind of a random question
But does anyone have any idea when student tickets will become available for the Bama game? I know it's been asked before but I can't remember what the answer was
My Guess
Football schedules usually come out mid-March. Figure they'll offer Hokie Club members first dibs on tickets. Student tickets will be on sale around mid-April. Probably close to Spring Game.
The offense can't be any worse
Even if it can be worse, let's just assume it can't because that's depressing if it could be worse.
Well to be fair
Wasn't the Auburn offense was worse then Tech's last year?
To be fair
Auburn's HC was worse than Tech's last year too.
I very much hope so
They certainly have all the external motivators after the underwhelming showings of the last 2 years. Whether it actually happens is of course another story entirely. I think the O line is going to play a part in how well Logan does but if French is right, he does need to improve his throwing mechanics and all the pocket time in the world ain't gonna help that. I am cautiously optimistic about the new hires and I'm maintaining a small hope for some good ol' fashioned beatin', eatin' and excretin' on Aug 31.
It'd be remiss not to say, nice post T-Mobile_Service, you got a good conversation going here.
Thanks, Joe. I'm going to try to do one every week or so.
run game
offensively there is so much im excited/anxious to see. as everyone else has mentioned the o line is going to to be huge but to piggy back off that ill be interested to see the run game. i hope they dont keep the rotation and will just let edmunds/coleman get into a groove (if these are our primary backs). if we can get a solid run game going i think logan could have a great senior season
LT
I always got sick last season when students would tell me Logan Thomas sucked. He had a bad year, no question, but the kid is a hell of a player. 2011 showed that. I think that with the right attitude of his teammates and coaches, he can be even better than he was in 2011. Just because he was inconsistent as hell last year doesn't mean 2011 didn't mean anything at all. He has the potential to be an All-American if the coaches don't screw it up for him. Hopefully Loeffler will help his cause, and with DJ Coles and Demitri Knowles starting at wideout, Logan should put up big numbers again. Think about it, he's about to break almost all of Tyrod's records from 2010. Wtf.
Yeah, like how people just "forget" his game against Miami and those ridiculous numbers. Or the quite solid game he had against UVA. Sure, his receivers bailed him out a few times, but he also made some excellent throws (as a matter of fact, he made some excellent throws this year as well). I fully expect to see a more polished, confident, effective LT3 this year with some more experience/effort/consistency at receiver and some more attitude on the O-line.
agreed
I think that Grimes isn't going to fix all the problems but he will get them in the right direction for sure. I know these aren't his recruits but he will get them ready. If we can make that adjustment the rest will fall in line with potential game changing powerful running backs like Edmunds and Harris coming in. That will open up Thomas to hit Coles, Knowles and hopefully guys like Caleb and Stanford can step up. If we can get any swagger and knock guys of the line of scrimmage we could be a good team.
We'll take any improvement we can get, after last year
just how bad were our senior receivers?
Other fans are not gonig to respect VT next year. They will look at our two departing senior receivers as a liability and our two departing senior tackles as another liability on the offensive side. I would make the case that our two senior receivers put fourth the least amount of effort than any before them and our younger receivers should improve the throwing game. Blocking will be a large part of that and I trust Moorehead to correct that. The offensive line is the part that scares me the most. Becton was a strength on the line and based on history we shouldn't expect Shuman?? to just step in and hold it down. I feel like we can't expect the right side to improve either, even with great coaching.
I expect Logan to get a lot of pressure next year again and I think he will have a season somewhere between 2011 and 2012 because he won't make as many boneheaded decisions as he did in 2012.
If we hit 10 wins next year I'd consider the season better than expected. 9 wins is expected. Anything below is worse than expected.
The Line
I agree wholeheartedly that the O-Line is the biggest concern. I'll likely be doing a forum post about the O-Line in the coming weeks.
Also, I'm generally overly optimistic in the offseason and pre-season, so I'm expecting 11 wins and an ACC Title. The only reason I don't say undefeated (although I really want to say that) is because we have the habit of dropping a game we shouldn't... I really am confident that we'll #BEATBAMA though.
Even if we don't #BEATBAMA, it will be a good barometer of how our season will go. If we stick with them for 3 quarters or more like we did in '09, I think that will show that we're prepared for the meat of our ACC schedule.