Unrealistic Expectations

I think that due to the success of our program we as fans of Virginia Tech too often have unrealistic expectations for our team. I hear people moaning about our two down seasons (both of which we went to a bowl game, which is pretty good for down years - see Florida). Every year can't be a ten win season. There was a reason that at the end of that run we were the only team with 8 or 9 straight ten win seasons, it just doesn't happen for very many teams. Since the beginning of the BCS Era Virginia Tech ranks 4th in overall wins and 7th in winning percentage. The teams ahead of us are Ohio State, Oklahoma, Texas, Florida, and USC. What do every one of those teams ahead of us have that we don't? A lot more $$$$.

I will agree that the talent level of this team has been down for the past two seasons. But I think the new coaches did great with what they were given. We were 10 points from an 11-3 season (Duke, Maryland, and BC - and assuming we won those games we lost to FSU in the ACCCG). Now let's compare this team to the talent level of the previous down season (excluding last year). In 2003-2004 my sophomore year at VT we went 8-5, losing to WVU, Pitt, BC, UVA, and Cal. Our roster that year included these players that spent time or are still in the NFL: Xavier Adibi, James Anderson, David Clowney, Chris Ellis, Brandon Frye, Duane Brown, Vincent Fuller, Jake Grove, Deangelo Hall, Kevin Jones, Jeff King, Will Montgomery, Aaron Rouse, Daryl Tapp, and Ernest Wilford. There were a lot of other great players on that team Bryan Randall, Jimmy Williams, Cedrick Humes, Josh Hyman, Eric Green and several others. That team should have had more than 8 wins (and would have under the new coaching staff) and should never have needed overtime to beat Temple. The talent level of that team was lightyears ahead of the current one, but our coaches this year coached the team up and got them to play together. I think 8 wins this season was about the best anyone could have asked for at the beginning of the year.

Now some will say that we should never have had that much of a dropoff in talent and that's true. So what did Beamer do? He got new coaches so that we can recruit that talent back to VT. This is one of the better recruiting classes we've ever had. Give them time and to anyone that says the game has passed Frank Beamer by, I will tell you the same thing that I did to the Virginia Tech fan that kept trashing him in the Georgia Dome sitting right behind me. SHUTUP! I think the majority of our realistic fanbase knows that the new staff needs some time, so sit back and enjoy the ride. We have one of the best and classiest coaches in college football. If you want to be a fan of a team that has an asshole as a headcoach I suggest you pull for Ohio State or Western Kentucky.