Hokies Stock Watch: Isaiah Ford

A coaching change dominates both headlines and talking points.

And over the course of Justin Fuente's budding tenure, it's the thing any conversation about Virginia Tech football circles back to. What will Fuente do for the offense? A new player just signed, look at how differently Tech recruits under Fuente! Can Fuente's arrival bring back a once dominant football force in Blacksburg?

All valid topics, and each reasonably brought up over the last six months. This is new for Hokie fans, administrators, and players alike. No one knows exactly how to move forward under someone not named Frank Beamer, and the uncertainty carries over into offseason discourse.

I can't tell you how many words this website has devoted to big picture thoughts, because they seem to matter more than anything else. But we're also getting to the point in the summer where we can start asking questions about players and their contributions to the team in 2016.

One of the more underrated things about a regime change is how it impacts the individuals coaches inherit. It's one thing to watch a new head man bring in his own guys and grow his program over the course of three to five years. But those high schoolers can't help him win games today, and he's stuck with what he has in the meantime.

At times, a player's role can grow. Maybe he wasn't a great fit with the old staff, and the new one gave him the space to improve. Braxton Miller committed to Jim Tressel in June of 2010, but by his enrollment Tressel was gone, and Miller had to stitch together a lost season in Columbus under interim coach Luke Fickell.

Miller was both supremely talented, and noticeably raw. Though he took over in week four, the staff hardly let him throw. He attempted just 157 passes in his debut year, and wasn't allowed to chuck it more than 20 times in a game until the finale against Michigan.

(My favorite random tidbit from the Fickell era: they defeated a ranked Illinois team 17-7, as Miller went 1-4 for 17 yards. Now, I'm sure you're assuming this was a Tyrod Taylor/Sean Glennon situation where someone else carried the passing load for the mobile youngster. Nope. In what can only be described as Billy Hite/Bryan Stinespring co-authored erotic fan fiction, the Buckeyes won a game in which they completed a single pass.)

It wasn't a good fit. And while it may seem trivial now, how many times have we seen highly touted quarterbacks fall to the wayside due to stubborn or lackluster coaching staffs? Just ask any QB who signed at Florida during the Will Muschamp era, sometimes things don't work out. Miller needed guidance to fulfill his potential.

And right on cue, the dark lord himself donned his first scarlet and gray windbreaker. Though maybe not the best for one's morality, Urban Meyer was the perfect fit for Miller's talents. The quarterback's stats improved in every single category over the next two years, and was an injured shoulder from being considered the Heisman front runner as a senior. (A campaign which would have been derailed by Michael Brewer's masterpiece and Scot Loeffler's play calling fever dream, of course.)

Meyer complimented his signal caller beautifully, and it lead to years of success. But just like a player can be propelled by a new coach, he can also be dismantled by one. Poor Christian Hackenberg saw two straight seasons of despair under James Franklin after the tutelage of Bill O'Brien.

But even with good coaches, it seems like a bit of a crapshoot as to who makes the transition seamlessly. And looking at Blacksburg, there are a number of guys who hope they're part of Miller's group as opposed to the Hackenberg's.

In this series, I'll break down some of the Hokies with the most on the line under new command. Some guys, like Bucky Hodges and Wyatt Teller have potentially millions of dollars at stake. Others like Deon Newsome, Chris Durkin, Greg Stroman, or any of the running backs not named Travon McMillian simply hope to find a consistent role.

But if I'm going to look at fits, it seems obvious to start with the best player on the team. Junior wide receiver Isaiah Ford.

It's hard to fathom Ford's ceiling being any higher than it is right now. When we last saw him, the pass catcher pulled a Michael Corleone, individually eviscerating his enemies while taking the rest of us to church. Poor Tulsa. They were just trying to get through a nice Camping World Independence Bowl, and Ford blew them up like Cersei Lannister. The 12 catch, 227 yard performance was so masterful it required me to use two pop culture references to paint it in full.

But he's back for a third year, and now sits in an offense predicated on making average plays on a consistent basis. Does the receiver's game fit with the new staff?

The question is absurdly dumb, and the answer is unequivocally yes. Though Fuente and Brad Cornelsen's scheme may result in a larger distribution of receivers targeted than Loeffler's did a year ago, it'll be hard for any QB to pass up their best receiver running unencumbered over the middle. We may not know a lot about the incoming strategy, but it's safe to assume they'll get the ball in the hands of their best playmakers as often as possible.

And though Brewer's methodology of "when in doubt, close your eyes and throw at Bucky or Isaiah" lead to stat padding, Ford's overall ability made him the most reliable weapon on the field. That skill won't change under new coaches.

Instead of scheme troubles, the real questions surrounding Ford now are about money, legacy, and how Fuente can help him secure both.

As a highly skilled guy entering his first draft eligible season, the obvious question is what can he do in Blacksburg to make more money in the NFL? The best way college players impact their earning potential is to play well. The better the year, the higher their draft stock. And the higher they're picked, the more guaranteed money in their pocket.

As the game spreads out, pro teams need more young, inexpensive receivers. It's why Washington took TCU playmaker Josh Doctson No. 22 overall despite already having one of the deeper units in the league. In the same vein, it's why the Browns drafted enough wideouts to fill a basketball team this April. If they hit on half of their haul, it'll set them up until 2020 at the very least.

Speaking of Cleveland, their most recent first rounder draws an interesting comparison. Could Ford become Tech's version of former Baylor wide out Corey Coleman? A talent in his own right, Coleman also benefitted from the Bears' spaced out system and put up insane numbers. (Even in his final game against Texas, when his team literally played without a QB, he hauled in 7 catches for 49 yards.) Twenty-two games worth of show-stopping production lead to mid-first round selection (15th overall) by the Browns, and a $6.7 million signing bonus.

Over his first two years, Ford grew every week. He went from a dangerous freshman who showed flashes in his debut against William and Mary, to an unstoppable force against Georgia Tech just a few weeks later. In 2015, just when it seemed like he had hit a sophomore slump, Ford averaged nine catches and 168 yards over his last three games.

He gets better, seemingly every day. The jump to Coleman-esq stats sounds extreme, but is it out of the question? The Hokie offense will create space for him to work, and if he doesn't have to try as hard to get the ball, doesn't it make sense that his numbers could skyrocket? And if so, why couldn't he rise into the first round conversation? Fuente will set his receiver up in positions to succeed, and we have no reason to expect him not to.

Furthermore, think of the implications in Blacksburg should Ford piece together such excellence. If he has a second thousand yard season, which would be the only two in program history, does he become Tech's top receiver of all time? People will have biases, arguing anyone from Carroll Dale to Andre Davis to Eddie Royal, but Ford makes an intriguing case.

Yes, the Hokies threw more over the last two years. In just a season and a half, Michael Brewer became the school's seventh all time leader in pass attempts. But Ford's career thus far has more to do with who's thrown to him rather than the amount of times they've done so.

Davis benefitted from Michael Vick breaking contain and wreaking havoc on defenses. Royal may be better than any of the others on pure talent, but failed to have the numbers to back it up. Dale is from an incomparable era, Ernest Wilford was never the playmaker the others on this list were, and Danny Coale wasn't even the best receiver on his own team.

(I included Coale just so you all don't blow up the comments. I know you love him, probably more than his own parents. But Jarrett Boykin was better, sorry to crush your dreams.)

Ford had to deal with a convoluted offense whose QB could hardly throw downfield half the time, and had opposing defenses' full attention throughout each game. Despite everything working against him, he kept getting open and kept making catches that seemed impossible.

Ford has the highlights, the record-setting numbers, and now has a coach who can simplify it on the field. In fact, considering both the history and money on the line, Fuente's hire may not have bigger implications on anyone else. And by the end of the year, headlines just might shift away from the new head coach and onto his star wide receiver.