I really liked our resiliency not the first qtr. I forgot Brewer threw a pick on the first drive with less than 2 minutes into the game. Teller will be a huge upgrade to Wang. To me, Gallo is the key. If he can play with limiting snap errors, we will be competitive. That was a sloppy first half by both teams. The part that gives me hope is that even as young as we were that night, we were not outmatched physically. Heck even fuller was beat a few times for momentum changers and we were still able to keep grinding out a win. Thank you Bud.
Forums:
DISCLAIMER: Forum topics may not have been written or edited by The Key Play staff.
Comments
Where did you rewatch? I couldn't find it on WatchESPN's replays yesterday. Do you have a link?
Go to vtphreak's WordPress page, he's got all the games up
I checked there yesterday too. Apparently people have been ripping off Phreak's videos without giving him due credit so he's made the page private.
Has anyone been able to get a response from him on Twitter/email to discuss how to get the password to view the blog? I miss wasting time at work watching some old videos.
I heard someone mention that ESPN 360 had a birds-eye view of the game and you could see a lot more player/coach interactions. Last time I checked on ESPN, the game wasn't there. Does anyone know if this was recorded somewhere?
Youtube has the whole game and the condensed version on it
I know that the game is available on youtube. I'm asking about the birds-eye view of the game.
This might be the greatest username I've seen so far.
HA! Totally agree, I once thought of making that my Xbox Live gamer tag but I didn't because I thought know one would get it and I'd constantly be explaining it.
Did we win?
I ask because I didn't believe my eyes the first time I saw it. Was afraid to re-watch.
ask this guy....
I thought Joakim Noah hated the state of Ohio.
I've re-watched that game many times to help me cope with my upcoming qualifying exam for grad school.
Side note: said qualifier is tomorrow morning. Here goes.
Good Luck!
I second that emotion.
Ha! Thanks guys! Part 1 of 3 is in the books. Had a roughly 5 hour written exam today, with a take-home portion due Thursday and then an oral defense in a week and a half or so. #SurviveAndAdvance
Judging solely from your body of work here on TKP, my money's on you. Now, young man, shut down that computer and fire up the coffee pot. We'll forgive you for taking a little time off! And please, do keep us posted, ok?
Well, if I had to go through anything related to football, I'd crush it no problem. Unfortunately, there's a lot more neuroscience, cancer, and cardiology on there than football. Still, 2 written tests down, one oral exam to go. So far, still alive.
*EDIT* Thanks again for the support, guys. It hasn't been a fun two weeks, but I'm still going. My grandma passed away three days before I took the written portion of the test, and then the take-home was just a 2-day grind. Now I've been preparing for my oral on Monday, and then I'll spend the remainder of the week in the OBX and in all likelihood largely unaware of my surroundings, if you catch my drift.
condolences for your grandma. good luck the rest of the way. hopefully you beat it like a red headed lolUVA fan... that's how that expression goes right?
Sorry to hear about your grandma. Not having had the pleasure of meeting either of mine, I hope your memories are treasures to take with you as your life unfolds.
Sounds like you are weathering the tests well, though, and I will be with you in spirit in the OBX and all that that implies. And yes, I have drifted those surroundings more than once in my life, quite likely in more ways than you will find to drift. Be careful, stay with friends, let it alllllll loose...life will once again intrude when you moor up again. We'll leave the lights on for you. Best of luck on Monday, I don't know you from Adam, or Eve, or even Steve, but I know you'll nail it.
Again, thanks guys. Although Fernley, I'm not quite sure how to take yours, given I'm a redhead myself. Pretty sure some other descriptions are necessary (bastard step-child for instance).
I'm quite looking forward to plopping my rear on a beach with plenty of delicious fruity adult beverages (cause eff it, they're tasty and I'm on vacation) and spending the week watching my friends run around and frolic on the beach.
Ifish, definitely never heard that one before, but I appreciate it.
I .. uh... didn't know. Honestly, I have nothing against the gingers... "gingers" is ok right?... I mean, I had an ex-girlfriend that was a firecro... uh I mean redhead. As pasty white as a vampire. uh, no that's not right.... um...I ... uh... I love freckles! #frecklesarefabulous .. hehe.... hehe....
seriously, good luck and honest condolences on your grandma. Not sure if you had a chance to make it for the service with your busy exam schedule. My grandma passed away while I was in Australia doing a Grad degree. There was no chance I could make it back. Sounds like you have a great plan for the summer already though.
Nice save. Anyways, update: I passed!! It's been a long couple of weeks but I am now officially a PhD candidate. Feels good. Now to watch that OSU game one more time...
Congrats! Now
the hard work really beginser...it's all downhill from here!Congratulations, and good luck!
Man, one of my favorite times to be a Hokie fan. We "all" said this leading up to the game that week, "this one just feels different." I even said it to the OSU fans at work. Super turnt up that night.
I recently re-watched it too (I have it saved on my DVR) and what impressed me was that we controlled that game and the players who became our playmakers only had a limited impact. Mallack was our TE threat, not Hodges (although if he had caught a few of those that he laid out for and dropped, that would have been different), I don't think that they called Phillips name all night, and Ford didn't seem to be the primary target. This gives me hope for this year. Yes, they're better too and have a chip on their shoulder because of last year, but we beat them with our big playmakers barely finding themselves last year. I believe that we are a stronger, and more dangerous, team this year. Is it September yet?
I've rewatched the game so many times - one of my favorite ways to pass the time on a long flight. The thing that really stands out is that even if give OSU credit for the clearly missed opportunities (shanked FGs, dropped passes, etc) it still would come out as a 3-pt VT win. The entire team just played out of their minds that night.
If you don't mind me asking, Brentwood where (what state)? I live outside Nashville in Brentwood, TN
Brentwood, CA - great little neighborhood in West LA unfortunately known better for OJ than for the swarms of fine chicas strolling around in yoga pants. Although, I'm officially now a few miles away from Brentwood on the other side of the 405.
Nashville's a fine place - always enjoy getting the opportunity to go there.
Both team made mistakes, and we definitely looked like the better team. We were a good team last year just injuries and inexperience caught up to us. I feel pretty good going into the OSU game this year, we should have a offense that can move the ball. Better than we have seen in a while here, maybe a long while. There is some talent on that side of the ball. If Foster outcoaches Meyer again, we have a very good chance. The team is confident and I dont see them making the early game mistakes of other VT teams in big games. I think Ohio state will come into the game over confident and it could be an advantage for us. Even after losing to us, they think this game will be a blow out. They will be going for a blow out, not a win. If we punch em in the mouth, give them that taste of last year, everything goes to our favor real quick.
I'm still trying to wrap my head around how he's going to do this. Foster has to come up with something new this time around because he won't have the element of surprise with his "Bear Down Eagle ManPig" defense.
I thought it was especially strange that he interviewed with X and O labs and gave them everything about the defense (coverages, blitzes, reads, etc.) and it's accessible to anyone with a subscription:
http://xandolabs.com/research/virginia_tech_bear_package/
I hoping this just mean Bud has a different Ace up his sleeve for the second time around.
Bud usually comes up with a new wrinkle for Georgia Tech every year, too.
It's free for anyone with a copy of the game and a football mind as well. There's very little that is truly new under the sun when it comes to football. It's mostly little wrinkles and getting your team to recognize what the opponent is doing and executing. Knowing what the defense can run and correctly reading what they are running on the fly are separate issues. Bud usually comes up with something that the opponent struggles to adjust to or execute against.
I've seen a few places that beating us is simply a matter of recognizing that defense. I don't think it'll be nearly as simple as that. There are counters to every counter.
In short, I have blind faith in Bud.
I don't think we will be overconfident for the game but will expect to win; then again we pretty much always expect to win. The real difference of us will be UM's confidence in his playmakers. He'll have a QB (whoever that may be) he knows can make plays, run the offense, and be a passing and running threat on each play. He'll have receivers who he knows can make plays and a running back that is pretty good at gaining yards. So I think the difference for us will be UM can run a much more aggressive offense and present your D with a lot of different looks and things to cover, unlike last year.
Our D should be better this year as well since they have another year of experience playing together; even last year they did a good job of keeping us in the game and suspect they will do that, or more, this year as well.
In addition, I doubt you will be playing a team that will fold if they get down early. We didn't against Bama even when we were down several touchdowns. If anything, adversity seems to rally the team. Also, don't forget that absent the interception our last drive we were in that game and could very well have gone into OT, even with a very green offense. That's not taking anything away from your win; rather it is why I just don't think last year's game is a good marker for how good our team is just as your season wasn't really representative of how good your team is either.
Of course, anything can happen and Beamer no doubt will be ready for us as will your team.
I don't expect OSU to come in over confident either. I believe Urban will have the team fired up and ready to go. I'm hoping for a good game. I'll be there yellin' and screamin' for my Hokies!
It's pretty difficult for a National Championship team to sustain it's level of play for two straight seasons. It's more likely than not that the OSU team of '15 will not be as sharp as the late '14 team.
Going into last season, everyone thought FSU would run the table last year...but it was clear pretty early on that they were not the same team that won the championship 9 months earlier.
I agree, historically it's been tough for a team to repeat as NC. There are simply too many variables between one year and the next. Luck plays a big factor as well, especially in the BCS era where the NC matchup may not actually pit the best 2 teams in the country. Losses due to graduation or early draft entry also play a big factor. However, with our team, I don't necessarily expect to see a big drop off, especially since last year was generally considered a rebuilding year and the NC was a pleasant surprise. That's not to say I am confident we will repeat, but I do think our team will be as good was it was last year overall, although a few things will need to come together to repeat, such as a true deep threat receiver to replace our loss a that position, for example.
It helps that OSU wasn't notably lucky last year, only a little bit, and didn't graduate nearly as much as FSU did in 2013.
http://www.footballstudyhall.com/2015/1/30/7947287/college-football-turn...
http://www.footballstudyhall.com/2014/12/16/7398531/college-football-rat... (interesting to see FSU, Duke, UNC, Clemson, and Arizona in the top 15 here).
Personnel losses from really good teams are generally underestimated...by fans and the media alike.
The one very big thing OSU has going for it probably more than anything else IMO is they are returning most of their OL. As much as personnel losses are underestimated, the importance of returning OL is equally underestimated.
Agreed. Playing a little devil's advocate with OSU, though, I think they'll come out firing on all cylinders. OSU started last season pretty slowly, what with a new OL and QB and all. As the season progressed, they improved, more than anyone else in the country in the end. So they probably peaked at or near the end of the season. Even if they were trending downward to start the year next year, they're starting at the top so they probably have quite a bit of leeway before bottoming out, which I'd predict near the end of the coming season (which, let's be honest, with their talent and that coach, 'bottoming out' next year would probably mean losing a single game against their toughest competition).
TL;DR: Agreed, but think OSU will be top-caliber at the beginning of the season.
I agree with this. They weren't a team that was lucky late in the season that escaped a few games. They were close against Navy, lost to us, may have been close another game or two but then got better as the year went on, where as a lot of teams seem to get lucky breaks towards the end of the year while dominating early. I will expect them to come out looking to not only avenge last years loss but establish that they should be considered the top contender to repeat. Plus i don't know if they lost any of their key play-makers on the offense.
Devin Smith was a big part of their deep-ball game and got drafted, but I agree in general.
Evan Spencer is another key loss. He may not have had the spectacular catches that Smith did but he had some good ones but more importantly he was a great blocking WR. He made some key hits that let other guys make big plays. Heuermann, at TE, is another loss but Vannett should easily slid into the TE position with no real dropoff. The big ? is who replaces Smith as the deep threat. he seemed to be the Stretch Armstrong of WR with his ability to reach out and haul in a ball no matter where it was thrown. If 12 Gauge starts a solid deep threat would be a great matchup with his arm.
You talk like your entire roster is returning this season.
By my count you're losing a typical amount of starters (7) from your team this offseason, nothing unusually low or unusually high.
Offense (3):
OL x1
TE x1
WR x1
Defense (4):
DL x2
LB x1
DB x1
By comparison VT is replacing 5 starters, which is a bit on the low side. Also of note is that everyone who scored a TD for us is back.
Offense (2):
OL x2*
Defense (3):
LB x1*
DB x2
I'm sure you have some experienced veterans and/or phenom FR/SO stepping in, as do we.
*Two of our 'new starters' (OT, MLB) ended up starting multiple games last year due to injury.
Yes, we had some key loses but we have some good replacements. To me the key questions are who becomes our deep threat WR and how well our CB's make up for the loss of Grant and who replaces Baldwin at OT. The other roles should not be as tough, especially since Vannett is a very good TE and we have a bunch of WR's in the depth chart.
The biggest advantage is our defense didn't lose that many players so they should be pretty good this year which will give our offense time to come together.
Overall, I think we are in pretty good shape despite our loses. I don't think we were a one trick pony last year and much of that team returns. We could easily lose a game, with Michigan State, TSUN and you guys being our toughest three conference games, in that order. I put TSUN ahead of you because Harbaugh is a hell of a coach, they have a ton of talent but most importantly it is our rivalry game and they are gunning, no doubt, for a repeat of 1969. that would be epic for them.
i gotta ask...what does TSUN stand for?
That School Up North. Apparently, calling them by their name is kinda like saying Voldemort or Beetlejuice.
ahh...gotcha. Thanks.
Eh you only said "Beetlejuice" once. We're good. Wait. Crap. Now thats twice...
Just one more time......
This still blows my mind
He had/has a great range as an actor.
Either way, don't mess with him....
Just from the little bit of OSU football I have watched, I think Raekwon McMillan is going to make you guys say "Curtis Grant, who?" That dude is going to be a monster. Plus, it's hard not to root for a guy named Raekwon.
I agree. We've been lucky. It's been Eddie who? Beanie who? Carlos who? and lately Pryor who?
Wow that list. I might not say luck had a whole lot to do with it. You guys recruit well, train well, coach well, and support your team really, really well. Any school would be 'lucky' to do as well as y'all.
hadn't seen this version yet....pretty funny though.
And my office mates thank you for my hysterical laughter.
Made even funnier by the fact that they still went on to win the NC.
That is genius! Hilarious!
What sets the Ohio State game apart is that we finished drives. Four scoring drives by the offense, all touchdowns. Not a flawless outing offensively; we missed some big chances. Coming up a yard short on third down and missing a 46 yard field goal to make it a two possession game late could have cost us the game. But settling for three on any of our touchdown drives would have cost us the game, too.
I rewatched that game after the season and couldn't believe we didn't continue to use that Brewer to Byrn connection more in games. I know the young WR's played really well last year but Willie was CLUTCH on so many 3rd downs during that game. anOSU's nickel corner just had no answer for him.
THANK YOU!!! It's like WTF!
OSU is one heck of a program so as a Hokie fan I'm like many here who can't get enough of rewatching that game. Hats off to OSU for reciprocating and coming back to our home to play us this year. Destiny will do it's talking on Labor Day. I think it will be a memorable experience for the players and fans alike who make the trip. Blacksburg and Lane will be happening that weekend. We know OSU will be very good. Are we improved enough to give the champs another game? I like not really knowing and think that will be our advantage.
When they dropped that wide open TD pass and then hit the upright with the ensuing FG attempt, I turned to my buddy (in the Horseshoe) and said "This is it, this is going to be our night". And it was. So fucking awesome.
Not about OSU's game last year, but this year: What are they doing about all those QB's?
You can only play one at a time. Not only does it seem like having three legitimate starters on the team would be a distraction, it's really poor planning by at least one of those QB's. Either Miller should transfer or Jones should have went pro. If all three of them are on the same team next year, one of them has made a grave mistake.
Unless two starters are lost to injury and you need a blue chipper to close out the conference title game, playoff game #1 and NC game.
seemed as good a place as any
Leg for all Firefly gifs. The greatest series that never was.
I for one am tired of hearing people saying that OSU will come into Lane Stadium and run us over. VT knows they want revenge, VT knows they won the National Championship, VT knows who they are facing. Last year we played with such poise and intelligence I think is what won us the game. Besides Bucky's dance for the TD, you didn't really see too many bad penalties. It was like all the guys did their homework and knew how to focus on the strategy. I am very confident in beating this team again and in all honesty as I told the guy who works with me (annoying OSU fan) if you win it is expected, but if we win ALL will remember how we had the 'Bucks number and we weren't even at our peak in winning. It will be a great game and I am sure the Hokies will give them a great fight. Can't Wait!!!
I said it last year and I will say it again this year. There is no reason we should not beat OSU. As great of a team OSU is we match up with them well. They are a option style team that mixes in a very good passing attack. We are a team good at stopping the option game (hold their run game in check) and we have the DB's at DBU to contain their passing game. If our offense can play smart without turnovers we have a very good chance of beating OSU. I expect a close hard fought game and I hope we will come out victorious!!
Thank you. Last year, I had a gut feeling we would beat OSU because of how we matched up. Now everyone seems to think we are a JV squad going against the Super Bowl champs. It's mostly the same team as last year on both sides. I say bring Braxton, JT, and Cardale '12 gauge - "we ain't came here to play no school" - Jones, on. You know if the starter can't run up the score on us in the first half, Urban may think of yanking his starter for another guy.
Lane is going to be raucous. For all the Buckeyes who think walking into Lane is like walking into Indiana, you are sadly mistaken. I look forward to Labor Day. Bring it.
Watching that gives me the tingles all over... I'm pumped! Give me some pads, I wanna hit something!!
The threads I could find at 11warriors concerning this game seem to average 30+ points margin of victory for Buckeyes, with us running back to the tunnel with tails between legs. Even in our best seasons, that sort of talk is largely reserved for William & Mary around here. More 'Bama-ish fanbase up there (at least the ones that post comments).
(Joe- TKP is much easier to navigate, BTW. Thank you.)
There hasn't been too much VT talk lately, at least not that I've seen. We seem to have 2 camps at 11W, those who think it will be a close game and those who are looking for a blowout. Personally, I think much of the 30+ crowd is suffering from the recency fallacy and are comparing how our season ended vs yours. That's not a good data point given your injuries and a couple of key player losses we need to replace so our early games will involve some adjustments and players getting use dot new roles while you will have a healthy team. I think we win because we have some pretty good backups ready to step up and will have an experienced QB playing behind an experienced line which we didn't have when we met last year.
I think, overall, you'll find the folks at 11W welcoming and willing to have a good discussion around the game, like I found you all here.
Definitely agree. I surfed your forums and threads for a lot of last season, just lurking and seeing what your community is like. Very much like here on TKP. I think any fan base has its hard-liners and homers and they're not indicative of the norm.
That sounds like it's about par for the course. Most fan bases are going to have Homer fans who expect (and truly believe they will see) favorable blowout victories for their team. Then, you have your fans who are actually in touch and know a thing or two about football and are more grounded. It doesn't surprise me that there are fans who expect a 30+ point win in Blacksburg. I'm willing to bet that, outside of Hokienation, probably 90+% of casual CFB fans would expect to see a pretty massive blowout. OSU is a known powerhouse which just won a National Championship and has an embarrassment of riches in regards to talent. Not to mention Urban Meyer has made a reputation for himself as an elite coach. And then there's lil' ol' VT which has won fewer games (22) in the previous 3 years than OSU has won (27) in 2 years. The general consensus of CFB fans (outside VT, of course) is that Beamer is past his prime, Loeffler doesn't know what he's doing, and Bud Foster is the only reason VT isn't in the basement of the lowly ACC. Why any sane person would look at this game on the surface and not expect an OSU blowout victory is beyond me.
Me personally, being somewhat biased of course....I don't think OSU is going to come in here and blow our doors off. I think it will be a much closer game than "the experts think" (whatever that means). I still see a pretty steep uphill battle for the Hokies, unfortunately. I think this will be the return to our pattern of the late 2000's where we lose to a marquee opponent (and likely eventual Champion) early in the season and right the ship by cruising through a watered down ACC to 10 wins and a bowl game.
So let me throw this out here for discussion...
True or False: If VT defeats OSU on Labor Day, it will be the biggest win in school history.
I have my opinion on it, but I'm wondering what others think.
I think it all depends what we do after that, should we win
now, I don't know about the biggest win in school history..but it would certainly be the biggest home win in a loong time
False: mission was accomplished last year, didn't you see the shirts?
I think the win last year was the biggest in school history, but we didn't know it until the end of the season. If I recall correctly, we've never beaten a team in the year when they won the national championship.
Having said that, it'll be one of the biggest ever for sure, beating the #1 team in the country. But if OSU stumbles down the stretch, it won't look quite as nice. Still very very nice, but not as nice.
Yeah. #1 team in the country, defending national champion, 3 Heisman worthy QB's.
Even though they won the NC last year when we beat them, they look better this year and we fell apart last year.
I don't think it's that close, this will be the biggest win in our programs history.
Number one team,, defending champs... By that alone I would have to say yes. When you look at a single game, that would have to be the biggest win (assuming we do win). But how the rest of the season plays out for both teams will have a lot to do with later perception. Let's say osu goes on to lose four games and is a shell of what they were thought to be, and we have another sub-par season. Suddenly, that win doesn't look near as good.
It will be the biggest win in school history for week 1 of the 2015 season. I will skinny dip in a pool of dork magic while being fully dipped my Hokies brethren!
Will we believe what's growing on your body when you get out?
Well done sir...not only will you believe, you will come to love it.
Someone post a clip of Xerxes coming out of the magical pool converted from a man to a god! That would be me except with body hair and a beer belly. But basically that's me, minus all of the body piercings. So yeah, pretty much me.
Couldn't find that. Using this as a stand in metaphor.
Haha! Great effort Illinois! But no, I need something sexier! Stay off the corn silk my friend!
That...that...that just ain't right.
Concussed and stinky is no way to go through life.