Between now and fall practice, we're going to take a walk through the 2015 Hokies schedule and preview each opponent with the people that follow them every day. We will be taking a look back at last season and spring practice, as well as attempting to forecast the year ahead.
On September 19th, the Hokies and Purdue Boilermakers will clash in West Lafayette, Indiana for the first time ever. Third year head coach Darrell Hazell is looking to improve on back-to-back last place Big Ten West finishes, including a 3-9 record a year ago. In an effort to better understand how the Boilermakers offseason has gone and learn some more about a relatively unknown opponent, I had the pleasure of speaking with Mike Carmin of the Lafayette Journal & Courier.
As the Boilermakers prepare for Year Three of the Darrell Hazell Experiment, how hot is Hazell's seat heading into the fall, and how has it affected the team's recruiting efforts?
Every seat is hot in college football, isn't it? Some are warmer than others. I don't get the sense that this is a make-or-break year for Hazell. Yes, the program needs to win more but they need to play meaningful games in November and have a chance at a bowl game. In order to do that, Purdue has to have a good September. From a recruiting standpoint, Purdue faces its share of challenges because of its location and where they stack up in the Big Ten, regardless of its record.
Hokies fans are somewhat familiar with Purdue OC John Shoop's system from his time in Chapel Hill. With that being said, what can the Virginia Tech offense and defense expect to encounter from a system-standpoint when they meet in West Lafayette this fall?
Shoop is trying to change things up a little bit and use more uptempo. During the spring, the offense used five different speeds — slow to hyper fast. They're not trying to be like Oregon, but they're trying to create their own identity and create favorable matchups on the perimeter. Purdue needs to stretch the field more in the passing game, but it has lacked playmakers at the receiver position and the play of the quarterback has been underwhelming at times. Last year, Purdue used a lot of two tight end formations because it had experience there. But that is no longer a strength. Look for more four- or five-receiver and one-back sets in 2015.
What is your assessment of Elite 11 Alum and redshirt junior quarterback Austin Appleby? Does he look to have the make-up to help propel this team forward as part of the rebuilding effort?
Appleby exited spring as the No. 1 quarterback, even if Hazell didn't say it. Coming out of spring, it was pretty clear the starting job will come down to either Appleby or David Blough. Junior Danny Etling has announced he's going to transfer, but I don't think that changes the landscape at the position. Appleby started the last seven games in 2014 and had success early, but opponents figured him out toward the end of the season. He's big and can be a force in the running game but he needs to step it up in the passing game. His teammates do respond to his leadership and that's a positive.
Purdue lost both their leading rusher (Akeem Hunt) and leading tackler (Landon Feichter) to graduation. Who will the Boilermakers be looking at to step up in their places?
Not only did Purdue lose Hunt, but [running back] Raheem Mostert as well. He was considered the fastest man in the Big Ten last year, based on what he did during track season. Hunt was a versatile option, playing in the backfield and he had the ability to lineup at receiver. Purdue doesn't have anybody similar to Hunt's skills right now, but receiver Danny Anthrop is the team's top playmaker and he's in position to have a big season. He missed the last month after suffering an ACL injury.
Defensively, Feichter was involved in nearly every play at the safety position, but you have to look at the middle linebacker spot to find one of the team's best players. Sophomore Ja'Whaun Bentley started all 12 games as a true freshman and has the physical makeup to become an All-Big Ten player in a year or two.
What names should Hokies fans familiarize themselves with on both sides of the ball in preparation for the September 19th match-up?
The starting quarterback — Appleby or Blough. Running back DJ Knox, who has the inside track at the No. 1 spot. Offensive line is difficult for fans to watch, but center Robert Kugler is one of the best in the league. His dad is the head coach at UTEP.
Jake Replogle at defensive tackle is expected to blossom as a junior, and keep an eye on tackle Ra'Zahn Howard. In the secondary, cornerbacks Frankie Williams and Anthony Brown are solid.
Who were the break-out performers of spring practices that could make an impact this coming season?
Knox had a nice spring and will give the running game a different dimension than Hunt and Mostert did last season. Offensive lineman Martesse Patterson has the inside track at the right guard spot. Receiver DeAngelo Yancey had a subpar sophomore season, but picked it up in the spring and should be a factor in the fall. Replogle was a strong force on the defensive line.
Previously in this series: Ohio State here.
Comments
Sounds like Purdue is really having a rough time of it right now. On paper this looks like a game VT should win if our offense is actually improved.
Brother, we Hokies know this pain all to well.
VT will beat the trainwrecks handily. The Hokies are better coached and more talented. Anyone traveling to the soulless vacuum of West Lafayette? It's like the twilight zone, you've never seen so much gray in your life. It'll somehow be 85 degrees with 90% humidity and a wind chill of 40. I bet Ross-Ade "Stadium" will be 1/3 maroon and orange. By the way, you know you have Notre Dame to blame for this steaming turd of a matchup since they wanted to fake-join the ACC and play Purdue in Indianapolis instead of a home/away.
As someone completely unfamiliar with Purdue, where's the hate from? Is there an ACC team that they are similar to? Seems like a lot of OSU fans really dislike them which I don't quite understand since they really suck and don't seem to be a rival to you all.
http://scores.espn.go.com/ncf/boxscore?gameId=292902509
That's one reason... they also won after we missed an extra point in 2011. Granted, I dislike Purdue more than most, but I just see zero contribution they make to the conference. The Big Ten Network and bowl revenue is huge, and they get the same cut as Ohio State for going 2-2 against the MAC in the last few seasons, which frankly I resent. We went through those years of conference realignment and it was a perfect opportunity to gently show Purdue the door and pick up someone better. As for an ACC counterpart, you might say Wake Forest, but even Wake won the ACC in 2006.
Gotcha. I find your hate to be pretty rational. You should greatly enjoy Maryland then. They are like Purdue but in a much crappier location (note: I've never been to West Lafayette, but I'm still positive that College Park is much crappier).
I don't share your disdain for Purdue. They add a lot to the conference from an academic and research basis, have some good BB teams, and seem to give us a fight far too often for my liking. As for getting the same cut as everyone else, that's a good thing, imHO. It helps ensure all B1G schools can afford their athletic departments and support non-revenue sports to give students a chance to continue to participate in a sport while in college. If you determine a programs' worth by its on-field performance you could argue we should dump the math department because it doesn't bring in as much grant money as engineering.
I do value the academic side of things, which is why I'm very pro-Northwestern despite their football struggles (at least historical, not as much in the past decade or so) and perennial basketball ineptitude. But let's compare Purdue and Pitt - two teams I dislike very much, but that are highly respected in academics. Pitt can at least field a competitive team in several sports that isn't an embarrassment, and pull their weight financially.
Basketball, plus who would the BIG add that meets the academic side requirements also?
#VT4B1G
j/k
Humm...
I'mm not so sure there is a hate for Purdue amongst OSU fans; rather a feeling they are forever assigned to door mat duty in football. Shoot, most Purdue fans I know feel the same way about their team. My experience is most OSU fans respect Purdue as an academic institution and a good fit for the B1G even while having no respect for their football program.
Gotcha. Basically they are Duke before Duke made a great coaching hire and became relevant in football.
I don't think you can even say that because Duke pulls its weight in basketball, and draws lots of fans and viewers because of its rivalries and history. These are Duke's contributions in addition to being a good school. If all it takes is a good engineering program does that mean we invite MIT to join the Big Ten? That's why I don't like Purdue.
While Purdue is no Duke in BB, few teams are, and Purdue has been good in it by B1G standards, including winning 22 B1G championships which is more than our Buckeyes have won unless you include vacated titles. Would I like to see the B1G expand and add some good completion? Sure, I'd love to see Texas, the Hokies, ND or even Kansas join but not at the expense of kicking out Purdue.
After our loss at Marshall (and ECU et al) I will be wary of dismissing teams "we should beat handily" before we play them.
Those burns *still* leave a scar. #ShrugEmoji
Loss at Marshall?
Loss at Marshall? I think you mean a certain ACC team who shall not be named.
Marshall?
Now I can see why the glass is half empty.
I concur that the Hokies should kill Purdue. I don't hate anyone or any team, even in the sports sense, but if you do, Purdue doesn't seem worthy of expending that kind of emotion. But Hazell is a Buckeye, and so I pull for him, but to win in W Laf you almost need a gimmick. Joe Tiller came in with the spread (he called it "basketball on grass"), he had Drew Brees and they had some success. Since then, not so much. Hazell is trying to install a Jim Tressel type of team over there, but he's doing it with 2 and 3 star players. Purdue basically competes with the upper part of the MAC for players, So, Va Tech will be way, way more talented than Purdue on both sides of the ball.
But they do have a history of rising up, especially at home, and shocking someone (unfortunately, it's been OSU a few times). It's a game you take seriously, and as long as you don't turn the ball over, the superior talent will win the day.
wow, OSU fans are representing. This is the most fans we have ever had from another team.
What you say is true. And VT has a history of losing to teams they have no business losing to. Not a good recipe.
OSU probably has the largest fan base of any team we've played in the last few years so it makes sense we would get good representation except for maybe bama. But probably the majority of them don't know how to use a computer.
They're certainly more pleasant than I recall the Bama fans being...
I'm not talking about the 10% "real" fans that go to games, donate, and attended or actually know someone who attended.
Maybe I'm largely alone in this, but whether I am home or away, I always try to interact with fans of the opposing team, wish them luck, ask them what they think about the game, etc. - and I have rarely had a negative experience, and if I did, it was someone blowing me off rather than being verbally disrespectful. If I was in Lane Stadium on Sep 7, I'd introduce myself and who I was with to those around, ask people their names and where they are from, and I would expect to have a great time. It seems to work everywhere.
Bad experiences with fan bases in my experience arise from: 1) people I haven't interacted with 2) people with higher BAC 3) immature people. Forums add another problem because anonymity seems to make people say things they never would face to face. I try to talk to other fans as if we were standing on a street corner talking football, and that seems to generally go over pretty well.
I've had bad experiences with Buckeye fans in Ohio Stadium due to the above 3 things. I had a couple of drunk college aged boys say suggestive things to my 15 year old daughter one time. When she told me, I had a conversation with them, and interestingly enough, they left their seats in the 1st qtr and I never saw them the rest of the day.
Point is - people are people no matter where you go. A lot of good ones, and always some bad ones. It's made me conclude that no fan base has cornered the market on good ones, or doesn't have it's fair share of bad ones. FWIW
Allow me to introduce you to the University of Virginia. They are worth expending the emotion.
Remember, hate (for UVA) keeps you warm.
Hey I get it. We "hate" scUM. I was raised with it, and have maintained it (it's my solemn obligation as a Buckeye) - as long as we are talking about hate in the sports sense where you poke a little fun at the other guys, but not wishing any real harm to them. And I'm sure that's what you are talking about too, but not everyone in a fan base is well-hinged, and cannot distinguish between sports hate and literal hate. I get a little worried when I hear something that blurs the line between the two.
But hate is what makes rivalries great. It makes the victories so much sweeter, but it also makes the defeats more miserable. ScUM has been so pitiful for so long that I have had to fight the urge to feel a slight bit of sympathy for them, but the hate must be maintained.
ScUM has this air of superiority about it, and I'm not quite sure what it is based on. It is a fine academic institution, but when they are getting their ass kicked on the football field, you get "Yeah, but our journalism school is better than yours." Uh, ok. All B1G schools are AAU members, have high academic standards, and are premier research institutions. OSU has an enrollment of 55,000 and I know kids who had 3.8 GPA's and ACT's of 28-29 that couldn't get in! They have to go to a branch, maintain a high GPA, and then they have a shot at going to Cbus. So, I have never understood their academic arrogance. It's not like the class flunkies are getting into OSU.
I am not that familiar with UVa, but I know they have a pretty good academic reputation. Do they do the same thing? Is that part of the basis for the hate in the rivalry?
Take what you said about scUM but change it to LOLUVA and you have explained it perfectly.
I've never heard a Miami fan play that card before...mostly because none of them actually went to school there.
UVa fans, on the other hand, play the academic card before the ass kicking even commences and reflexively repeat it wherever and whenever possible regardless of relevance or accuracy.
Never mind what I said about Miami...I thought you meant the other scUM.
In my experience, UVa and UMich are similar in their opinion of themselves and their excuses.
In response to whom the Hokies should familiarize themselves with on Purdue's team.....
ummm....whoever the QB is and a lineman. That made me laugh.
I think Dadi will introduce himself to whomever the QB is, and he'll be bringing his friends.