Recent Comments
I have said for years, Hokies have to look to Georgia, Ohio, and Pennsylvania for OL prospects. I am thrilled that it is happening.
Also, when a good one comes along in Virginia, they have to get him.
'Could Alabama beat the Jaguars this year?'...
And the answer is always, though it isn't fun, no.
Even without Erick Green, the Basketball team would beat any combination of guys (no matter how athletic) on the football squad.
For running the read-option so well in practice...he helped that D look awesome against it (especially in the first half...pre-blackout!).
1. I like Reeves to stay at WR. And he'd be no less an unknown at TE than the other bodies we already have there. And by far the lightest. I'm worried about the inexperience at TE much more so than the personnel.
2. I hear you about getting speed on the field, although I'm not sure lack of speed was a problem last year. Will be interesting to see how much Mangus can contribute as a r-Fr.
3. It sounds like Moorehead is exactly the kind of coach you'd want for someone like Knowles, preaching fundamentals and lots of film study. Knowles did well for a very inexperienced guy last year, and I think he could take another big step this season.
4. I expect Conte to be a contributor this year, maybe even a starter as you said. I would not be surprised to see some position shuffling along the line, but I won't try to predict exactly who/where at this point. :)
5. Smith is supposed to enroll this summer. I'm not sure about HBack without more weight, though.
I feel like the staff just needs to get Alec Baldwin from glengarry glen ross to come talk to them. A- always B- be C- closing. If the greatest active coach in college football can't convince any given kid anywhere in the country to come play for him, there is something wrong. We learned the painful lesson of low expectations on our offense, now we need to focus on changing how we view recruiting. I think this is an excellent development, I just hope it's a total attitude change and not just focused on a couple new staff members.
If you took 5 skill players on the football team against the basketball team who would win... Outside of Erick Green I'm not sure I like their chances haha.
awful joke, i guess i deserve the negative votes
I have a feeling Moorehead will end up being an outstanding recruiter. I have no knowledge of his prior recruiting experience but based on what I have seen of him skys the limit. Young, NFL experience, Super Bowl ring, and a fire and attitude that will draw kids to him. Just look at his interaction with Exum during the press conference. On top of that, based on his twitter interactions he seems pretty adept at using technology as an advantage as well.
That's awesome.
I wouldnt be the least bit suprised that Weaver and finances play some sort of role.
I can understand the notion of not spending to much time and money outside of the comfort zone where you know you can win recruits. But if you never step outside of that area on a somewhat consistant basis you never know what you might be able to accomplish. Our scheduling hasn't helped the last few years on getting our name out either though. Better scheduling with the new coaching changes should help recruiting overall moving forward.
You have to temper your expectations. At the end of the day Virginia Tech does not have SEC pull. Jetting around the country trying to pull in recruits is kind of like the offense last year. Bigger and more diverse, but not as specialized. I would rather them be great at bringing in the talent that is here than waste valuable recruiting time and resources trying to pull in kids from the opposite coast. That isnt to say that if there is a connection somewhere or a real shot at a kid you shouldn't take it though.
(Grimes is probably the exception though, I would give him free reign to go wherever the hell he wants to pull in monster linemen)
I think it has to do with your odds of getting a recruit. I mean, if you feel like your chance of landing someone is far greater in the 6hr limit, and you're confident you can win with those guys, then you spend your resources there. I've always assumed that CFB isn't opposed to getting guys from outside that circle, he just realizes that you get more bang for your recruiting buck (both money and time the coaches spend doing it) inside of it, so he focuses there.
I think the run game will be leaps and bounds better than last year. There was zero cohesion last year because of play calling and player selection. With the addition of Trey Edmunds and Drew Harris and a new offensive staff that gives them an actual identity I expect much better results this year. I'm not saying they are going to lead the nation or anything, but a marked improvement for sure.
...a satisfactory coach, it's worth noting that we really don't have any weak recruiters anymore. Even Foster has dramatically improved over the years and does very well in NOVA and spot recruiting defensive studs. He's the weakest we have.
MOC was a bad recruiter. Sherman was mediocre. Newsome, of course, was brought in as an ace recruiter and (FriendofTyrod'sDad) and did bring in some good players in the 757, but he was also at the helm of some big misses (Turner, Hughes, Thoroughgood, Nicholson, Watford, Moore, Nixon, Hailes, Hunter, Sims, Travis Williams, Jerod Askew, Kerry Boykins, Kevin Newsome...)
That said, we should appreciate the downside of a recruiting-heavy staff. Al Groh surrounded himself with recruit first coaches and struggled mightily in player-development in his reign of joy. We have seen a few blips in the player development cycle at VT recently, at WR/RB/OL/DB in '12 alone. Need to continue to strive for balance in our staff.
I have lived in the Upstate of SC now for 7 years and can tell you that there is a large talent pool here. Clemson and South Carolina both struggle though to keep these guys in state it seems.
I don't see us having a better running game this year which is unfortunate. Yea we have new coaches, but that'll take a couple years to become important. For this coming year, I don't see who breaks out. Coleman is the most likely, but I doubt he will. Hopefully we can turn the clock back and go back to the days of just plugging in some no-name Freshman who ends up with 1500 yards.
Why would you EVER limit where you recruit? That is a horrible idea in the first place. I love CFB but man after hearing he said that I had a face/palm moment. Look at the rosters for the top football schools in the nation and they are filled with talent from all over. Even SEC schools go after the best.
A couple of thoughts:
1. Tight End -- It's Ryan Malleck and bunch of question marks. That doesn't feel good. What about Christian Reeves? He's an awkward sized athlete, maybe he becomes a TE/WR hybrid?
2. Mangus -- One thing I have noticed the last few years is that our "team speed" has dropped some. Sure, we've had a burner or two (like Wilson) who made big plays by design. But it used to be that position-by-position, we out-speed'd our opponents. I'm not sure what that has to do with Mangus, but I'm ready for us to get fast again. We need a circle-that-guy-on-the-telestrator guy in the slot that scares the crap out of people. And, no, I'm not talking about.....
3. Dimitri Knowles -- Yes, I know he's fast....and I know he showed some flashes last year of looking like a legitimate receiver. There is just something about him that isn't quite intuitive. He's a track guy with limited football background, what we really need to watch with Knowles are the unmeasureables.
4. Augie Conte -- At some point, I read where someone said that Conte was the next big thing on the OL....like could start at RT next year good. I'm talking myself into Conte/Benedict/Miller/Gibson/Shuman OL. I also wouldn't be shocked to see Arkema or Farris on the inside. I've always liked Arkema a lot.
5. Thomas Smith -- This was a guy I liked a lot in last years class, 6'3" 215+ and was oddly recruited because his dad was in the military and he had moved a lot. I thought he was a sleeper. He could also fill that HBack roll with his size. But....he's not on the roster, he wasn't mentioned as a January enrollee. From this Chris Horne Sportswar piece (free) he was supposed to enroll in January. He may have not had the grades to get in.....http://www.sportswar.com/2012/06/26/catching-up-with-thomas-smith/
Whoever is running camera on the interview...please tell Bill Roth to sit on his jacket back. You guys are making him look bad...come on guys.
Yes we could use this. I'm really happy for Chaney, really seemed like a good guy.
Thorns also did well for TCU too. If Robert Brown ends up transferring for some reason, he will inevitably do well wherever he goes based upon our history with losing players.
This is great Joe, thanks for taking the time to break this down. Spring Scrimmages are going to be very telling in terms of what tailback will be the top dog on the deth chart come fall. Offensive line as well. Wouldn't it be nice to see one tail back have a Ryan Williams style breakout year? I can dream.
Reports were that Smith looked pretty solid at WR. He also returned some kicks / punts for TDs in his high school playoffs, so H-back would probably be a waste of his speed / athleticism.
Here's to hoping he can run routes, catch, and block and have a successful career at WR.