Recent Comments
French are you hinting that Gayle was being punished or that he mit be hurt?
Other than what has already been said I noticed that the 2nd team O lined up in an I formation and shifted to the Pistol. I like that because I think it will keep opposing D's off-balanced and guessing(when have we been able to say that?).
Also I noticed Zack McCray playing DT the whole scrimmage.
Michael Holmes is a patient runner and has good vision. He's not the fastest runner but I believe he will get positive yardage whenever he touches the ball.
I like the way Trey Edmunds runs the ball but I still would rather have him at LB. I don't believe it's necessary to play him at RB when you have three RBs ahead of him on the depth chart and also Drew Harris coming in next year with another RB (and possibly more) coming in 2014. Go ahead and let him start learning LB now.
I concur that the D play was not really impressive but I did notice a little later on in the scrimmage the 1st team DL was getting a lot of penetration against the 2nd team OL.
I'm concerned that if teams stretch the field against us with speedy WR's(i.e., Sammy Watkins) our DB's won't be able to keep up with them. French I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
When the Hokie offense was in the pistol or the shotgun, the defensive ends stood up about 90% of the time. A coaching friend of mine who joined us said that the standup technique allows the ends to see the play develop better. We saw it used against Michigan's spread, so I would be willing to bet that they use that look against Clemson. I must admit, seeing Marshall standing up at end looked strange.
The offense did just what Clemson did, they took what the D gave them and MOSTLY made the right reads. The defense really looked like it was reading.
One more thing folks. I tried to stay off Twitter to avoid the post-scrimmage interviews and the beat writer/blogger comments so it wouldn't cloud my post. With the offensive pace, coupled with being a fan and being excited for things and frustrated at others, it was very challenging to keep up. My notes looked like they were written by a 6 year old who was learning sanskrit.
Looking to the future, guys who looked promising.
1) Ronnie Van Dyke
2) Trey Edmunds (if this was 2006, I think he would start at RB)
3) Kevin Asante (he had at least 10 touches today)
4) Josh Stanford (didn't get a shot against the 1's, but he looks polished)
5) JC Coleman (much more assertive inside on quick hitters)
6) Ken Ekanem
Special Teams:
Kickoff returns were Roberts and Gregory, and Exum with Coleman.
Jarrett was the punt returner. I was frustrated that he let several hit the ground. That kills you with field position.
Journall missed a field goal, and on kickoffs he kicked much shorter (but higher) than Branthover. Branthover is now a kicker, not a punter. He put both kicks deep in the endzone, with the second being unreturnable.
Punters, AJ Hughes is the guy folks based on this scrimmage. Good hang time and distance. He needs to be quicker from snap to kick. Hunter Windmueller got a couple of kicks, but he shanked one and Fuller blocked a second.
It looks like the 1's are going to be a pistol/shotgun team. They may mix in some basic formations, but it looks like the starters are going with that system.
I didn't notice Coles, but (and Joe will kill me for saying it), Gayle looked heavy. Don't kill the messenger.
The defense did not have a good day.
It started with James Gayle coming out in shorts and t-shirt and in the middle of stretching he was sent back in to the locker room by a coach. It looked stranger when he came back out and did work by himself on the sideline without much engagement with the coaches or team. It just had a strange vibe (especially when we have heard nothing about him dominating camp like he did in the spring.) Again, it may be nothing, but my spidersense is tingling and the last time I did that, we invaded Nicaragua.
I was much more focused on offense, but I looked for D guys to grab my attention, and very little did. Wilson started at stud and Marshall at end, with Maddy and Derrick Hopkins inside. Marshall got one sack on Mark Leal, but otherwise there was almost no pass rush from the defensive line. JR Collins worked with the 2nd team early on, then took Wilson's place with the ones. The twos moved the ball, and the 1st teamers moved the ball well in the 1st team vs 1st team. Matt Roth was the 4th DE in the rotation. Ekanem played with the 3's, but if injuries forced them to pick between Roth and Ekanem because of injuries to the starters, I think Ekanem plays.
At linebacker, you noticed Jeron Gouveia Winslow because he played on the line and blitzed frequently. He had 3 "sacks" by my count, but he got trapped upfield a couple of times on interior counters. Ronnie Van Dyke is bigger and looks more like a traditional 4-3 outside linebacker. With the twos, he defintely was the leading tackler, and he was very proficient in pass coverage on the slots. In a 4-4 G coverage, he covered the slot, who ran a short out to the flat. RVD read Leal's eyes, dropped into the throwing lane, and made a nice deflection. Tweedy got a sack on the 3's and was great on special teams, but he clearly isn't in the mix.
I don't really know what to say about Jack Tyler, Bruce Taylor, and Chase Williams. Taylor had great read to pick Leal, and Tyler combined with JGW on a sack, but otherwise, I didn't notice either at all (or Chase Williams.) Zach Snell was the most effective of the underclassmen, but Clarke isn't ready to help, and the others are not guys who they can play and expect to win. If Edmunds isn't going to get carries this year, they must get him to linebacker immediately.
Also, Tariq Edwards was on crutches.
The secondary, ah the seconday. Marcus Davis got a step on Kyle Fuller early, and Fuller lost his feet but Davis didn't make the catch. Fuller also had a clean shot on JC Coleman on the 60 yard touchdown run, and ended up on his can (we argued over if Coleman broke his ankles or knocked him over.) However, as the scrimmage went on, he started making plays. He blocked a field goal. He beat his brother to the spot on a curl route and almost picked off an LT3 pass. He was very vocal in the secondary.
I really wish I could get a read on the safeties, but I my attention got drawn away. I saw Bonner come up and force the QB aggressively on a bootleg, and Jarrett made several nice tackles on run support. I don't know how either guy did in coverage.
Exum. I really don't want to beat up on Exum, but he was really shakey at the start. Asante caught a 10 yard out against Exum in man coverage, and then Exum fell down as Asante broke up field. That really didn't instill confidence. Later, Exum attempted to tackle Coleman twice, but Coleman broke away once and then dragged him into the end zone.
Later, Exum was challenged on an out and go, and he ran perfectly with the receiver (I believe Josh Stanford) all the way. He was outleaped for the ball, but at full extension he got a hand on the ball and deflected upwards, and then outfought the WR on the drop. That was the one play where I stood up and when nuts. "PRAISE JESUS, HE FOUND THE BALL." Still, he is my #1 worry amongst the returning starters.
The backsups in the secondary are bad. I don't know how else to put it. They were torched all day.
French I know you're going to touch on this in a little bit but what did you think about the identity of the offense? Just the bottom line. Could you tell with the limited snaps?
I would've liked to see Branthover punt some during the scrimmage. I was watching the punters in warm ups and he looked pretty good.
I don't know if you guys saw DJ Coles on the sideline but he looked a little overweight(fat) to me.... I get he's a big boy but I didn't remember him being that large.
I was surprised at all of the misdirection they ran. I remember them saying they added it but I was expecting to see it on what seemed to be the majority of the plays for the first team.
The defense just looked flat today. A bright spot though was the first team didn't allow a single touchdown. I'll be back at the scrimmage on Wednesday and I hope to see Gayle back and the defense playing with a little more passion.
Wow, what an interesting experience it was to watch practice today. The above thoughts were based on my notes and we worked to get some high level bullets together quickly. Now that I am sitting and not trying to type on the blackberry, here are some additional thoughts.
1) Turn your expectations on your head. Offense dominated this scrimmage. The starters used no huddled after most successful plays, featured significant motion, options, and counter-action to completely neuter the defensive pass rush. Asante was really featured, both down the field and in the screen game. He got snaps with the ones after looking excellent with the twos. Corey Fuller also made several nice plays beyond the touchdown catch.
2) Dudes, this offensive line is pretty good. And, there are four good backups. They will run the ball inside better this year. Pass pro was also effective. I can say right now, if Shuman, Gibson, Farris, or Via have to start this year, I am comfortable with them.
3) I thought Logan Thomas was muted today. He made one brutal throw that Kyle Fuller should have picked off. He threaded a beautiful throw into triple coverage on a seam route but it was dropped. His throw for the Fuller touchdown was beautiful. At the same time, Marcus Davis and Dyrell Roberts were really quiet and not targeted. Roberts was used on motion on ton, but Davis was targeted deep a couple of times and didn't get open. I wanted to see him make a play down the field and it didn't happen. Both blocked well for eachother on screens.
4) The Hokies ran pistol, but they used a fullback much more out of that formation. Both Malleck and Phillips would line up on one side, and pull like a guard to kick outside linebackers and ends. They both blocked well and the cross action confused the defense.
"The offensive pace is MUCH faster, featuring no huddle, and sprinting to the line out of a huddle and going on quick snap counts."
painter looks like a freak .. did you guys get the feeling that the defense was laying off or lax for most of the practice or that the offense is looking crisper and better than some may have expected?? if they're looking this good against a stout defense like ours ... hmmm
also sounds like this pistol/spread/up-tempo thing may have some teeth, unlike some of the previous offensive "experiments" that never came to fruition.
1. I'm used to being able to have full conversations between downs. I barely had time to blink between plays at times. The hurry up actually works rather well, and with some polish in real games, could be very effective down the stretch.
2. The pistol. That is all. I'm thinking this was O'Cain's or Shane's doing all the way, but it's going to be an asset to us. Some of the option looks out of the set show a great deal of promise, and LT3 is just the guy to make it work.
3. J.C. Coleman. Where the hell is he!?!? His size is going to be a factor, as even our 1st string defense couldn't find him on the field. Shadows hid him. He's going to make some plays that are extremely entertaining.
4. Scales/Holmes/Edmunds. Run over everything. The guys just don't want to go down. Even Stiney's bullshit third down calls will work with these guys powering through people.
5. Nick Becton is one scary looking guy. I think we ought keep him on the sideline with his helmet off just so he can scare the bejesus out of everyone. In addition, we should send him for a chat with Heather Dinich. What would be the over/under on how fast she resigns?
6. The O-Line. If the starters can stay healthy, the line will be a lot better than everyone expects. They looked pretty good together, and there is a lot of potential moving forward.
7. Kevin Asante looked better than Caleb or Stanford from what I saw. I think we end up redshirting Stanford, since Caleb seems to be the better athlete right now, but Stanford would be a four year starter once Coles, Fuller, and Davis graduate.
8 D.J. Coles' limp was very noticeable, and he may not be quite ready for GT. Luckily Corey Fuller looked good enough to hold his place for a game or two.
Mainly just because of Florida State being ranked so high. We have virtually the same offensive and defensive situations, with the difference being that we actually have a Quarterback that has shown signs of greatness. Yet everyone buys into the FSU "we're back" hype...
No longer just TSL narrative?
this might be an unpopular sentiment, but the low rankings do actually piss me off. I know the arguments and justifications in favor of it, just saying how I really feel.
A little lower than usual, but I think higher rankings would have put unwanted, added pressure on LT3 and our inexperienced offense
He indeed chose wisely yesterday! Welcome to Hokie Nation Wyatt Teller!!
http://hamptonroads.com/2012/08/bealeton-de-prospect-wyatt-teller-picks-...
"Long considered a heavy Virginia lean, Teller made his decision after a strong push from Tech. Teller said he felt at home at Virginia Tech, where several of his cousins go. His older brother also grew up a Hokies fan."
"They've said nothing but good things about it," he said. "The football games are awesome."
I didn't grow up a fan of VT actually. I moved around alot, Navy brat, but lived in Va Beach most of elementary school and then back for my junior and senior year at Princess Anne HS. I wanted to go since i majored in Aerospace Engineering and there is a good program there, but i loves the area when i first saw. I liked being almost 5 hrs away from home, just far enough but can still drive when needed. SW Virginia is awesome with the outdoors and all too. I quickly grew into a huge football fan there though.
Luckily i could go to every home game since i was in the Corps of Cadets because i was on a Navy scholarship. My first years we were lucky enough to have seats on the 40 yrd line behind the visiting team, then we (and the band) got banished to the endzone due to new NCAA rules (still no complaints though!). All joining in and heckling the visiting team was a huge favorite of mine when we were seated behind them...seriously awesome when you get under their skin. WVU players wanting to come up and fight always makes me laugh after you get 1000 people chanting something about being inbred, or their "Uncle Dad". Road trip to New Orleans for the National Championship game was a blast (...so close...).
Graduated '02 and have been in the Navy since flying helicopters. Luckily living in Jacksonville for most of it we had the ACC championship game a couple of times (as well as nearby Tampa) and the Gator Bowl, but nothing compares to a home game.
I'd love to get up for more VT games but it's a heck of a drive and not the best area to fly into. But i'll still give it a shot when going up to Hampton to visit my parents for the holidays!
PUBLISHER
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13 years 10 months
# | So, what questions do you want answered at Saturday's Hokies scrimmage? Coleman fractured his hand during practice yesterday, still scrimmaging today. I'll be looking to see how much, if any, that slows him down.
For anyone else that's at the scrimmage today, post your thoughts here, French and I will have a post up later.
This is NOT how you one-up Nike.
The little fighting leprechaun isn't too bad, but the rest is.
Why are you in Germany?
I agree. The ND uniforms look pretty cool.
If he is ends up at left tackle, he will be the best left tackle in the history of the program. Absolutely terrific feet, getting initial head position followed by the footwork, strength, and balance to get by the man, turn, and put him on his behind. I don't care how bad the opposition is, that is no easy task for a lineman. He is mobile enough that he was used at end, outside linebacker, tight end, tackle, and H-back, and from the tape his excelleed at all of them.
Given his size, I am not sure how he hasn't already outgrown defensive end. I think he will be a very good defensive tackle, but with his attitude, footwork, strength and reach, this kid will make Duane Brown and Eugene Chung look like Nick Marshman.
#WyattTeller4LT
but this time, things seem different...
*bleh*