I really enjoy D.J. Coles making celebrity touchdown catches. He shows up on the red carpet, baby.
#Hokies WR DJ Coles now has 11 catches this year. 5 have been for TDs. #cherrypicker— Hokies Journal (@HokiesJournal) October 5, 2013
Let's hug, and high five, here.
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I think this thread should be titled "VicTory lap" every week :)
Good game. Hate that garbage time TD though. Oh well. Lets get ready to handle Pitt. One game at a time.
Pittsburgh always gives a heck of a game. I hope they're prepared!
I don't know a single journalist that thought VT would be 5 - 1 right now. I LOVE this team. Great, mature players all over the field no matter how old they are. May just be my favorite by end of the season, if not before.
I've said it before, 2004 might have competition for me.
Yes, exactly, 2004. you know what I am talking about... Will be difficult to beat but this year could finally be it
I don't know of a single journalist that thought UNC would suck that bad either.
I don't know of a single "journalist" that knows shit about football...and most don't know much about journalism these days
Andy Bitter bro.
On to Pitt! One game at a time. Go Hokies!
Anyone got a link for the post-game show online? Or is that even possible? I have a radio in my house, but it doesn't work...
Highlights of what I heard on the way home, was Bud basically saying the D played their nuts off and Loeffler saying that he will not apologize for a win. Win pretty, win ugly, it doesn't matter to this team, just win.
Have to admit, I agree with Loeffler, just win. The offense and defense could have been better in the second half.
The defense only gave up 3 points in non-garbage time in the second half despite the offense having the ball for just 9 plays in the 3rd quarter. You can say they gave up too many yards, but UNC has weapons even with the backup QB (who plays a completely different style from Renner, who they prepared for all week). They did a good job of forcing UNC to dink and dunk down the field.
The offense that third quarter...ugh. Bad snaps, sloppy play all over. Thankfully they snapped back in to form in the 4th- they were able to flip the field and eat up some time before punting, then got the ball back and finished the game.
There seems to be a lot of negativity (not from you, but mostly on Twitter and other blogs) over a win where VT had a 2-score lead for most of the game.
Oh, I am happy about the win. I have really liked the long drives for TD's that the Team has been able to establish in multiple games this year.
The late Al Davis of Oakland Raider fame said it best - "Just win, baby!"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fy8t3HYZp4
Hmm will we finally be ranked now?
Given that the Terps got straight-up pummeled by FSU, I'd say it's a distinct possibility.
They need to be. They contained out offense pretty well in week one and even though haven't all been pretty y'all have been winning. Hell Mich is ranked and their wins have been even closer to lesser others teams. If you ask me VT has been finding a way to get it done and it's time to put them in the top 25.
You just want your SOS to be higher! J/K
Thanks for the kinds words, you guys just keep doing what you do and make our game against you look better and better.
5-1! Lookin better every week!! Good job Hokies!!!
Sorry, but not sorry, for the cross-post:
Absolutely brilliant.
Atonement for last season's loss to Carolina! PLACE AT THE TABLE!!!!! Let's go!
I looked at the stats and saw that we gave up 376 yards of offense to a team using a backup QB. What happened, Bud Foster? I thought your defense was supposed to be good.
I say this in jest. Seriously, a solid win against one of the better offenses we'll face this year. Wish we can have a little more consistency, but at this point, this is what we are. A tough, gritty team that won't win pretty, but gets the job doone.
One thing I hate that Foster does? When we go up by 3 scores and it's late, he lets up. Spread teams then rack up yards against us, and they occasionally score late to make the game appear closer.
I'm sure his thought process there was "Don't get gashed for a big play and quick score."
If UNC was going to be content to just get the 5-10 yard gains and eat clock, then that was fine with him.
Exactly. UNC scored to pull within 10 with a minute left. That's fine. The only thing that hurts there is an 80 yard TD pass that gives UNC hope.
This. Once we're up 3 scores, the offense and defense have similar goals. Run as much time off the clock, and if we get a big positive play, that's gravy. Just don't give up a big play (on defense) and take care of the ball (on offense). If they're gonna score, make them nickel and dime you down the field and score with a minute left to make it look like less of a smackdown. That's exactly what we got today.
I've seen that even when the score is close - anyone remember the BC game in Lane where Matt Ryan beat us with a VERY late TD pass? Foster swore up and down he wasn't in any kind of prevent defense, but Ryan had all day to make that pass with very little pass rush and our DBs were playing deep. Looks like a duck, etc., etc.
On the late TD yesterday, Kyle bit on a slight out move by the UNC receiver who then turned upfield, and our safety was slow getting over. The UNC receiver had clear sailing into the end zone. Cheap last second TDs irritate the Hell out of me, and yesterday was no exception.
In NCAA, I never let that kind of thing happen. I always have my DBs hang back, but rush the passer with 4-5 Hokies. Online opponents that didn't respect the Hokies before, learn their lesson quickly. The most entertaining games are against the opponents that air the ball out on 90% or more of their plays. 6-picks later, the opponent usually quits
I think our D-lineman are still getting held on that last BC TD pass...
Offense started slowly, then looked great in the 2nd quarter, then dropped dead for most of the 2nd half. Incredibly annoying because they couldn't land the knockout blow and kept that game interesting, but at the end of the day they scored 4 offensive TDs against a 1-A team for the first time in forever.
Since last Homecoming, I think.
Getting an interior running game going would've helped immensely. I doubt our coaches wanted to keep throwing and exposing Logan to injury while stopping the clock with such a large lead. Unfortunately, we saw Smith getting his first action at guard and he had a rough day, along with the rest of our interior.
GT could help us out today if they beat the U
True, but I would rather have a highly ranked, overly exalted U lose to VT.
That's what I want as well. I'll be at the Miami game and I want them to be undefeated until November 9
Any win against any Miami team is great to me... But to knock them off a high horse would be my cup of tea
I'll be at the Miami game as well with a couple of my old West Springfield High and VT buddies. Actually, I'll see the Hokies two weeks in a row, up here @ BC on 11/2, then flying down to Ft. Lauderdale on the 6th. A lot could be riding on that Miami game.
Maybe their fans will actually show up to that game then? Maybe?
If you want to be the best, you gotta beat the best. It's likely that the game against Miami will ultimately determine if we win the Coastal or not, regardless of if they won today.
I know that have FSU and they won't be favorites there but even if they lose to GT today and FSU down the road, we would still have to probably run the table against everyone else (even if we lost to Miami) and this team doesn't make any win easy or any game a gimme.
I just wish we could run the damn ball!!!!!
I don't think the running game is as bad as it looks. Our rushing numbers the last two weeks have been abysmal, but we really haven't made an effort to establish a running game. Edmunds has only had 20 carries in the last two games. Teams are game-planning to stop the run and make Thomas beat them through the air, and so Thomas is beating them through the air. And even though we didn't get any big plays in the run game, we did use it enough to set up some play-action, which was effective today.
I agree 100%
I'm not mad either. I feel like it's an attempt to make the passing game more effective on our side too. It's like you said, teams prepare for our rushing game. Why not beat them where you can.
We also have a NFL QB who is finally developing chemistry with his WRs. I'd let him sling it around more often then not as well.
Gotta let Lefty do his game plan. When we started to try and run on 1st, I found myself wanting him to pass like the GT game. In the end, he had a good game plan. He said himself that he messed up in the 3rd quarter, but won't apologize since VT got the win.
I feel like we now have both coordinators preparing per team, rather than our O always doing the exact same thing game in and out.
Good football in Miami today. Our defense will clean Miami's clock, and Steven Morris will do his best Jacory Harris impression November 9
GT misses the XP because of course they do
"You're at Georgia Tech...you can do that!"
I haven't looked yet, but I'm guessing StingTalk is in full panic mode now.
Logan is starting to play like that top 5 pick everybody thought he was before last season.
Yep. i agree!! Im happy to see his completion percentage going the right way....AND a couple games with no picks. That makes me smile.
It looks likes LT3 is getting more comfortable/gaining more confidence in the receivers....
LT did some nice step-ups into the pocket to elude the rush today.
He was very poised, never seemed to get rattled. The NFL scouts are probably seeing that, too.
No INTs his last two games. I'm also not sure which team left on the regular season schedule has a good defense, so he should continue to post some solid numbers.
Miami... UVA's 3rd down defense (but we might not need 3rd down)
True dat. Third down is LIGHTZ OUT in Scott Stadium, ALL DAY.
Are we all that sure Miami is good defensively? They gave up a lot of yards to GT (not a big deal since GT's weird), but they've played some bad offenses.
Yeah, the offense got sloppy in the 3rd quarter. I don't wanna make excuses but there were a lot of line manipulations going on. The offense looked a lot better and the defense continues play solid football. They gave up more yards than usual but I'm okay with that.
If you're not satisfied with today's win you need to realize that this team will not win games with style points and flare. This years Hokies are the kind of team that needs to focus on one game at a time and do what it takes to get a win, and that's what they've been doing. This team gets better every week. We're sitting at 2-0 with two more games (at home) in October. And October isn't even our best month.
November is coming.
Remember, remember!
The Hokies own November!
Up-vote on the legs, if only for the completely coincidental and irrelevant-reference to my avatar (self-marketing for today is complete, checked that off)...
After last season, I'm enjoying every single win against every single opponent.
Football season is too short to get upset by lack of "style points".
YES.
This is a claw and fight kinda season and any win is a good win in a new system like this, especially when you pay someone back. Pittsburgh is next. Same story as this week vs. UNC. Embarrassed last year. Payback this year.
Where is my NOVEMBER IS COMING GIF with Ned Stark?!?!
I'm so glad people picked up my Winter is Coming reference.
Three main thoughts I had about the game yesterday:
1) It's been said above, but we don't have much of a running game. I want to believe that it is because we're practicing the passing offense more than we are the running offense. At least, this is how it looks, and as long as we continue to have success through the air, I'm fine with it. But if we end up playing against someone with a good secondary and a decent pass rush, we're in trouble.
2) The D seemed to let up a little at the end. The game wasn't over and I got that knot in my chest late thinking, uh oh, I thought this game was over, but now I have to pay attention again.
3) Related to both 1 and 2, we don't seem to have that killer instinct yet. We seem to be able to take the lead but have a hard time closing anyone out. This is going to lead to a lot of indigestion.
I hear you, but I can say that yesterday was the least stressful (non-Western Carolina) game all season. It seems like Loeffler takes what the defense gives him, and people are yet to respect Logan or our receivers, so they continue to stack the box. Not saying there aren't O-line issues, and I'm definitely concerned about our ability to run consistently if we are forced to, but we are no longer dealing with play calling that doesn't take the defense into account (BUBBLE SCREENS ON BUBBLE SCREENS ON BUBBLE SCREENS!)
I am also disappointed in the 4th quarter touchdown, but the game was over and I would say our defense is currently EXCELLING at closing people out.
Lastly, with regards to that Killer Instinct, I actually see a ton of passion and fire (without crossing the line into punching people) and this has been one of my favorite Hokie teams to watch, warts and all. Our defense is just a joy and watching our offense mature and come together feels like watching your child grow up (probably a sign I take VT football too seriously). If we can get to the point where we run it down our opponent's throats whether they know it's coming or not, that will complete the puzzle.
Loeffler called in a deep pass play with Logan in the endzone. That, to me, was the biggest indicator of the trust between them that has steadily been growing
Lemme "glass half full" this bad boy on the suckage that is our run-blocking: This stacking the box is going to do wonders (I believe sooner than later) when opponents start respecting the pass more and then "5 on 8" becomes "5 on 5" -or even better "5 on 4" and then the line starts punishing with all the free time they'll have and experience of dealing with clogged line play.
Disclaimer: I don't know sh!t about play calling, line play or football strategy and personnel in general. I just love watching the ill-tempered woodland fowl and the concept of 'roadhousing' the other team and am still jacked up from that payback win yesterday.
Discuss...
I don't think it's lack of killer instinct so much as it is the offense just isn't that good.
I'd love to see the brilliant TKP analysis team tackle the subject: "WTF is wrong with our running game?"
Backs look timid. Scheme looks unorganized. OL seem to have failure across the board. Are we getting the box stacked?
Add that Logan looks slow. Handoffs seem to take forever, and I keep thinking it's no wonder their D has time to read it.
A few points to consider -
1. We have a walking MASH unit that is currently playing offensive line for Tech. Wang has a bad wing and a bad leg, Miller is just now recovering from his injury last year, and Benedict will never be 100% from the knee injury he suffered in high school. McLaughlin and Farris are basically our healthiest starting OLs and I bet they're getting a bit dinged up at this point of the season. It's hard to get the kind of road-grading push under those circumstances, but they are playing their guts out and improving little-by-little. The back-ups are either dinged-up or are brand spanking new to the OL position. Based on what Grimes inherited, it will take another year or two before we see the type of good offensive line we want to see.
2. Opposing teams continue to load the box to stop our running plays. What appears to be madness on the part of Lefty to continue to call running plays actually accomplishes two things - a. opposing teams believe their strategy to stop our rushing attack is working so they continue to move defenders closer to the LOS, and b., it sets up play-action passes for LT.
3. When opponents realize teams are getting burned by Tech's passing attack, they will begin backing away from loading the box and that will open up the running game. We might see that against Pitt next week.
Benedict, love him, is not a tackle.
He can't seal the edge with a fast, mobile pass rusher.
But, like you said, Grimes is getting the best, healthy five out there that he can.
And props to the players to gut it out in whatever position they find themselves in.
I'm excited about our future, but waiting for the O-line to develop is like watching paint dry.
Everyone's OL is banged up yet 97 (!) of them run the ball better than we do.
#nomoreexcusesrunthefreakingball
I'd like to see the running game but if teams are going to put 7-8 guys in the box every play, I have no problem throwing it. We are doing great things in the air lately and LT's confidence has to be skyrocketing. We need him to be able to make plays if we are going to win. If he is confident now, when teams stop loading the box and the running game comes in, we will be very effective on offense. If we need to throw to win, let LT throw.
im so glad we just beat unc. each year this game is going to be close, unc always plays us well. the 0 offense in the third quarter and no run game had me worried but ill take the w.
For some reason we seem to come out flat in the 2nd half (at least for the last 2 games). I attribute some of this to the bad snaps/dropped passes on O which led to many 3 and outs thus tiring out our D to a surprisingly good backup and mobile UNC QB. I didn't like the late TD on Fuller (I think it was Kyle) on 4th and long. Special teams (punt team) and running game need to improve. Mobile QBs that can pass seem to give us trouble (Marshall, UNC). Lets hope Morris is still gimpy when we play them and looks like Brown (MD) is hurt. Bottom line, we need to keep the petal to the metal.
There was a reason we were so interested in recruiting Marquise Williams - the kid can play and is hard to bring down. He would have been a very good fit in our previous system. But the old coaching regime under Butch Davis filled his head with visions of offensive grandeur and he took the hook.
have we lost a fumble yet this season? have we even put one on the turf? i dont remember either happening but then again i drink a lot during games.
We lost a fumble against WCU on a punt, though it looked to be interference that wasn't called. That's the only one I recall.
From HokieSports stats -
Fumbles-Lost: Tech 4-1; Opponents 11-3
INTs Lost: Tech 6; Opponents 13
Total Turnovers Lost: Tech 7; Opponents 16
Turnover Margin: +9
Last INT Lost by Tech: against Marshall
Last Fumble Lost by Tech: against WCU
If VT continues to force on average 2 fumbles a game, they'll recover more than 2. That's bad luck.
Did anyone else think that Lefty just said "We're up on points. We're gonna run until we know we can."
I think he took advantage of being up on points. It just seemed to me that he used most of the second half, and definitely the entire 4th Quarter to build confidence in the run game. Push the OL to establish run blocking which they have not been good at all season. And basically...
pound the rock, POUND THE ROCK, POUND THE ROCK
Of course, there is no way to know if that's true, but the play calling was so far from what was happening in the first half it had to be something.
Or maybe Beamer said 'Run the clock out.'
That was old school Beamer-ball: Get a lead and the only thing that stands in your way of victory is the clock.
Only problem was that UNC got the ball most of 3rd qtr.
Props to the D again to hold them.
Yah, true. I'll of course buy it towards the end of the 4th but an entire Quarter was dedicated to the run, and part of the 3rd as I recall. (I was drinking so could be wrong there.) I don't think you stop what you are being successful at before so early unless there is a reason too. And I from previous games you can see Lefty was working on different aspects of the the playbook to let the offense develop. So I think it was a clear decision to run, run, run
But yes, classic Beamer there.