– Defense dominated Tech’s “T-Time” drill Wednesday, winning 4-1. But the highlight was probably the finale, with punter Michael Branthover going against kicker Brooks Abbott. They spilled out of the circle and had some extracurricular shoving after the first matchup. After a second one, it looked like they had a split decision.
I need to see a video of that.
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while i understand it's a fluid, day to day situation in the spring, it's encouraging to see mclaughlin practicing with the ones. dude could be a monster for us in the coming years.
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Sorry to hear that Acree is hurt again, maybe for the duration. D. Wang is in rough shape, too.
In injury news, OG David Wang (ankle) & OL Nick Acree (knee) have been shut down for the spring. Could be the end of Acree's college career.— Mark Giannotto (@HokiesJournal) April 11, 2013
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There's a ton of good stuff in this post and these are my thoughts.
Bad news first, Acree and Wang are done for the rest of spring, and Acree's chronic knee issues might force him to hang it up for good. Acree's been a weight room warrior who struggled at DT, then finally turning a corner last August at tackle before shredding his knee. I was really hoping he'd be able to recover and compete for playing time at guard.
I was hyped for Acree when he committed and signed with Tech. Remember this picture of him?
I thought his career would be defined by wrecking house and mashing, not position changes and injuries. Wang's ankle is becoming worrisome. Every subsequent ankle injury puts a person at risk for a future one. The downtime will do him well.
Jonathan McLaughlin is repping with the first team. No doubt it has something to do with Grimes' fluid depth chart, but the new o-line coach had some high praise for him too.
"He's a very, very confident, competitive kid," Grimes said. "Steps in with the first group and doesn't flinch at all, doesn't back away, no matter who he's going against. And has a lot of want-to, a very strong desire to be a good player and just one of the hardest workers on the o-line right now."
Grimes wouldn't go as far as saying McLaughlin would start if there was a game tomorrow, but he did acknowledge that he'll be in the mix and has "a great opportunity to win the starting job."
Would such a thing even be possible under Newsome? That is, a true freshmen coming in and even having the opportunity to earn a starting job. Newsome seemed to have his favorites and was hesitant to really shuffle the deck. I love that Grimes is doing the opposite.
What a signing by Beamer Co. A late offer and in-home visit might have secured a 3+ year starter.
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If McLaughlin turns out to be a "3+ year starter" and a nasty beast at tackle who gets all-ACC nods, his recruitment would definitely be one of the best recruiting steals in VT football history. Maybe not as big as Bruce Smith, Michael Vick, Kevin Jones or Tyrod, but really up there nonetheless. And we so desperately need to develop a good rep for producing top shelf O-line talent instead of coaching debacles like the Duane Brown story. Go Grimey, coach'em up good!
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The good: exercising options between center and guard. I like having Farris at center and Miller to his right. We need to get more physical play from our guard spot and this move affords that. I expect this change to stay.
The bad: Nic Acree. I too was high on this cat from the beginning. I remember a quote from Ryan Williams talking about how big and nasty he was going to be for Tech. Too bad for him and his injury bug. It goes to show that being the biggest, baddest dude in the weightroom doesnt always translate onto the field. Look at Grimm--doing more with less. I really hope his days arent over; I am still a big fan. But if so, best wishes sir, hopefully you can learn from the program and get into coaching if you desire.
The ugly: Lil' Wang. This bird is constantly on the mend. I think his joints and bones can handle the wear and tear of the bigger boys leaning on him all the time. I too hope he heals quickly, but when you're barely 6'1" and your throwing blows with 6'5" monsters, it is bound to break you down. Too bad we couldnt make him a full-back.
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I love the competition, and I appreciate that Grimes wants to send messages and motivate guys with the delegation of first team repetitions. However, based on my observations of limited film, and more importantly the feedback from people who attended the open scrimmage and whose opinions I value, I think that some of these decisions by Grimes are not correct.
Why, you may ask? The depth chart should be about one thing: who is demonstrating the best ability and effort on a day to day basis. Moving people around and sending messages can sometimes hurt morale, especially when it is clear that someone was elevated despite not being the best option at the position.
When I watch the small amount of film available, a different narrative develops for me. The biggest suprise of camp is Mark Shuman. Yes, he was penciled into a starting role at left tackle, but based on my observation he has excelled in pass protection at left tackle. This is a huge consideration given that pass protection has been shoddy by the second team guys (which is the group that McLaughlin has taken the most reps with.) Shuman has looked better than I thought he would look in the zone blocking scheme, and despite occasionally struggling wth the back side scoop, I would regard him as the lineman that appears to be performing at the highest level against top competition in camp.
This may not be a popular comment, but when the highlight plays are observed closely, Andrew Miller has had some major struggles at center and guard. Miller is a warrior, and is has a nasty streak and good mobility, but he has struggled when blocking a down lineman in the past and this spring looks no different. Unfortunately for the Hokies, the other guards have also struggled (so much that Adam Taraschke, who was listed as a tackle prior to spring practice, got significant work with the ones at both guard spots after Wang went down. My eyes are telling me a story that the depth chart and the interviews just don't align with.
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I put two things together with the McLaughlin/Shuman issue. McLaughlin was lauded by Grimes for his "want-to." Shuman has himself said he could have worked hard in his previous 3 years (three years he's been here!) in the program.
I think Grimes is sending a message to Shuman. Want'to. Get some.
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Part of it is promotion/demotion based on effort in practice, he's said as much already. However, he's also said he wants to get a thorough evaluation of the roster before moving forward. I think that's as responsible as anything else from the flip-flopping of positions and re-ordering of the depth chart. He's moving all the pieces around to see where they fit the best.
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I agree with you on this one! I think he is trying to evaluate who is going to be most effective at each position without worrying too much about where they have played previously!
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Comments
I need to see a video of that.
I think Rivals had a free video up on its front page.
Ta-da!
Awesome! Thanks!
Goddammit, Beamer. We wanted Journell vs. Hughes!
while i understand it's a fluid, day to day situation in the spring, it's encouraging to see mclaughlin practicing with the ones. dude could be a monster for us in the coming years.
Sorry to hear that Acree is hurt again, maybe for the duration. D. Wang is in rough shape, too.
There's a ton of good stuff in this post and these are my thoughts.
Bad news first, Acree and Wang are done for the rest of spring, and Acree's chronic knee issues might force him to hang it up for good. Acree's been a weight room warrior who struggled at DT, then finally turning a corner last August at tackle before shredding his knee. I was really hoping he'd be able to recover and compete for playing time at guard.
I was hyped for Acree when he committed and signed with Tech. Remember this picture of him?
I thought his career would be defined by wrecking house and mashing, not position changes and injuries. Wang's ankle is becoming worrisome. Every subsequent ankle injury puts a person at risk for a future one. The downtime will do him well.
Jonathan McLaughlin is repping with the first team. No doubt it has something to do with Grimes' fluid depth chart, but the new o-line coach had some high praise for him too.
If McLaughlin turns out to be a "3+ year starter" and a nasty beast at tackle who gets all-ACC nods, his recruitment would definitely be one of the best recruiting steals in VT football history. Maybe not as big as Bruce Smith, Michael Vick, Kevin Jones or Tyrod, but really up there nonetheless. And we so desperately need to develop a good rep for producing top shelf O-line talent instead of coaching debacles like the Duane Brown story. Go Grimey, coach'em up good!
The good: exercising options between center and guard. I like having Farris at center and Miller to his right. We need to get more physical play from our guard spot and this move affords that. I expect this change to stay.
The bad: Nic Acree. I too was high on this cat from the beginning. I remember a quote from Ryan Williams talking about how big and nasty he was going to be for Tech. Too bad for him and his injury bug. It goes to show that being the biggest, baddest dude in the weightroom doesnt always translate onto the field. Look at Grimm--doing more with less. I really hope his days arent over; I am still a big fan. But if so, best wishes sir, hopefully you can learn from the program and get into coaching if you desire.
The ugly: Lil' Wang. This bird is constantly on the mend. I think his joints and bones can handle the wear and tear of the bigger boys leaning on him all the time. I too hope he heals quickly, but when you're barely 6'1" and your throwing blows with 6'5" monsters, it is bound to break you down. Too bad we couldnt make him a full-back.
I love the competition, and I appreciate that Grimes wants to send messages and motivate guys with the delegation of first team repetitions. However, based on my observations of limited film, and more importantly the feedback from people who attended the open scrimmage and whose opinions I value, I think that some of these decisions by Grimes are not correct.
Why, you may ask? The depth chart should be about one thing: who is demonstrating the best ability and effort on a day to day basis. Moving people around and sending messages can sometimes hurt morale, especially when it is clear that someone was elevated despite not being the best option at the position.
When I watch the small amount of film available, a different narrative develops for me. The biggest suprise of camp is Mark Shuman. Yes, he was penciled into a starting role at left tackle, but based on my observation he has excelled in pass protection at left tackle. This is a huge consideration given that pass protection has been shoddy by the second team guys (which is the group that McLaughlin has taken the most reps with.) Shuman has looked better than I thought he would look in the zone blocking scheme, and despite occasionally struggling wth the back side scoop, I would regard him as the lineman that appears to be performing at the highest level against top competition in camp.
This may not be a popular comment, but when the highlight plays are observed closely, Andrew Miller has had some major struggles at center and guard. Miller is a warrior, and is has a nasty streak and good mobility, but he has struggled when blocking a down lineman in the past and this spring looks no different. Unfortunately for the Hokies, the other guards have also struggled (so much that Adam Taraschke, who was listed as a tackle prior to spring practice, got significant work with the ones at both guard spots after Wang went down. My eyes are telling me a story that the depth chart and the interviews just don't align with.
I put two things together with the McLaughlin/Shuman issue. McLaughlin was lauded by Grimes for his "want-to." Shuman has himself said he could have worked hard in his previous 3 years (three years he's been here!) in the program.
I think Grimes is sending a message to Shuman. Want'to. Get some.
All good points. Let's hope what Grimey is doing is to the team's benefit and not detrimental.
Reminder: Grimes coached a national championship team. Film thus far has been too small of a sample to determine anything.
Part of it is promotion/demotion based on effort in practice, he's said as much already. However, he's also said he wants to get a thorough evaluation of the roster before moving forward. I think that's as responsible as anything else from the flip-flopping of positions and re-ordering of the depth chart. He's moving all the pieces around to see where they fit the best.
I agree with you on this one! I think he is trying to evaluate who is going to be most effective at each position without worrying too much about where they have played previously!