Head coach Frank Beamer says he senses a lot of excitement around Virginia Tech this season but there is still a lot of work to do. Quarterback Tyrod Taylor seems to be improved and the people around him are better. This is a very talented running back corps, despite the loss of Evans. The offensive line is tougher and more athletic than last season. The offense seems as if it should be vastly improved. The only catch is it's not hard to improve on an offense that has been ranked right around 100th nationally over the past three seasons. A top 50 offense is a realistic expectation, but we will see what offensive coordinator Bryan Stinespring and company will do.
The defense should be better than last year. The Hokies have fielded a top ten defense nationally over the past five seasons and this season looks to be the same. The starting defensive line is very talented; the only question is the depth at defensive end. The linebacking corps replaces two starters, but should be still be improved. The secondary will miss Macho Harris, but seems deeper at corner. The guys behind Harris and Virgil last season have progressed very well and even the three freshmen given looks in the fall are impressing. The secondary should be very talented and very deep.
A lot of hype surrounds the Hokies this year. Virginia Tech is ranked #7 in the USA Today Poll and opens the season with #5 Alabama. While the players and coaches say one game doesn't make or break a season, it is clear they want this one. The Hokies are the favorite to win the ACC Coastal Division again and there are whispers of a national title chance.
Quarterback Tyrod Taylor
OFFENSE
Quarterback: Tyrod Taylor enters his junior year as the clear starter. In each of his first two seasons, the coaching staff opted to burn redshirts to utilize his mobility behind a weak offensive line. In the previous two years, Taylor has proven he can win, compiling a 13-2 record as a starter. In that span, he has had some brilliant games and some poor ones. He worked diligently in the offseason on his throwing mechanics and looks to be more accurate this fall. Ju-Ju Clayton is the back-up after beating out Marcus Davis in the spring. Clayton can be a solid quarterback but still struggles with consistency and sometimes with decision making. True freshman Logan Thomas, a top-100 recruit, will push for time in the back-up role. He is 6-foot-6, 235 pounds and runs the 40 in 4.6 and may take some snaps at wide receiver, tight end, or h-back.
Running Back: The Hokies took a huge hit earlier this week when running back Darren Evans tore his ACL. The redshirt sophomore will be out for the entire season. Hope were high for Evans after he broke the school's single-game rushing record (253 yards vs. Maryland) and freshman single-season rushing record (1,265 yards) a year ago. The loss of Evans is tough, but there is depth at running back. Redshirt sophomore Josh Oglesby, redshirt freshman Ryan Williams and true freshman David Wilson will likely all see significant playing time. It was already expected that freshman David Wilson would play and not redshirt, and now it seems very unlikely that the coaches will keep him on the bench all season.
Josh Oglesby was listed as the number-two running back before Evans' injury. He improved greatly this spring and ran more consistently than he had previously. Oglesby is a hard runner and has the best hands of anyone in the offensive backfield. Ryan Williams is a former U.S. Army All-American and showed flashes of brilliance all spring. He gained 122 yards on eight carries in the spring's first scrimmage and impressed in the Maroon-White game. Williams is fast, but Wilson is freakishly fast (he ran the 40 in 4.33 in workouts). Wilson rushed for 2,291 yards and 35 touchdowns last season for Danville, Va.'s George Washington High. Wilson amazed people in the offseason by earning MVP honors in the Polynesia Mainland Bowl in Hawaii and dominating the 2009 Junior Football World Championship.
Wide Receiver/Tight End: This was hands down the least experienced unit on the VT roster least season, as Danny Coale, Jarrett Boykin, and Dyrell Roberts were all freshmen and thrown into the fire. Coale proved to be a reliable target with sure hands and underrated athleticism. Boykin is a large receiver who became a popular target for Taylor in the second half of the season. Roberts was a running back in high school and played wide receiver for the first time as a true freshman. He had some drops, but also made some big plays and seemed to progress very well. Xavier Boyce and Marcus Davis are big targets that look to get some catches this season. True freshman D.J. Coles may be able to make an impact this season.
Greg Boone returns at tight end and is a preseason All-ACC pick. Boone ranked third on the team in receptions and receiving yards last season. He even took snaps at quarterback in the Wild Turkey formation. Andre Smith and Sam Wheeler, both of whom have contributed in the past, will each get some snaps at tight end. Freshman Logan Thomas may take some snaps here (or at quarterback or wide receiver if he doesn't redshirt). His size and athleticism can be an asset, especially in the red zone.
Offensive Line: The offensive line returns four starters from the FedEx Orange Bowl. Beamer said that he thought, "We fell behind on the offensive line, but we're catching up." This line is deeper and more athletic than any put together by the Hokies in the past several years. Center Beau Warren is slated to replace Ryan Shuman after taking all of the first-team snaps in the spring. Left guard Sergio Render is a preseason All-ACC selection. Left tackle Ed Wang has rapidly improved since his move from tight end two seasons ago. Wang could potentially be a first-day NFL Draft pick after this season. Right guard Jaymes Brooks played extremely well in his first start in January. Right tackle Blake DeChristopher started in 11 games last season and had a huge spring. Virginia Tech will find depth on the line from Nick Becton, Greg Nosal, Michael Via, and Vinston Painter. True freshman Andrew Miller may play some this season as well.
DEFENSE
Defensive Line: Defensive end Jason Worilds was a second-team All-ACC selection last fall despite playing most of the season with an injured shoulder. Worilds had surgery in the offseason and should be at 100% for the season opener. Replacing Orion Martin at the opposite end will be Nekos Brown, who had a solid spring. Depth at defensive end will be a question, but hopefully the move of Chris Drager from tight end to defensive end will add another solid player to the rotation. Defensive tackle could be one of the deepest positions for the Hokies this season, as 2008 starters John Graves and Cordarrow Thompson return. Senior Demetrius Taylor, sophomore Kwamaine Battle, and redshirt freshmen Antoine Hopkins, Dwight Tucker, and Courtney Price should all see playing time.
Linebacker: Some questions surrounded the linebacker position entering the spring, but many were answered. Barquell Rivers and Jake Johnson are the front runners to replace last season's starters Brett Warren and Purnell Sturdivant. Rivers and Johnson both had solid springs and are quickly improving. The WHIP position returns both Cody Grimm and Cam Martin, each of whom tallied at least 50 tackles last season. Defensive coach Bud Foster still would like to develop more depth at linebacker, but the starters seem ready.
Free Safety Kam Chancellor
Defensive Backs: Assistant coach Torrian Gray feels very good about this season's group of defensive backs. The departure of Macho Harris is a big loss, but he is the only player that needs to be replaced. Stephan Virgil will move from field corner to the boundary corner spot vacating by Harris after had a great 2008 season. Rashad Carmichael is the leading candidate to be the starting field corner. He played in all 14 games last season and has played well in the spring and thus far in preseason. Chris Hill and Eddie Whitley currently sit tied for the back-up spot at field corner. Whitley is a player with a remarkable football IQ and is taking snaps at both corner spots and free safety. But when it comes to a starting free safety, that position is locked up: Kam Chancellor returns after starting all 14 games last season. This is the first time he has played the same position in consecutive seasons since arriving in Blacksburg. He started 2008 off slowly at free safety but improved through the season, and Gray loves what he is seeing from Chancellor in camp. The rover position is another one that looks very solid. Davon Morgan started last season until he tore his ACL against Nebraska. From that point on, Dorian Porch filled in and did a great job. The two seem even so far this fall and Gray has said both will have significant playing time.
Special Teams: Punter Brent Bowden is returning after a solid 2008. The place-kicker spot remains unsettled. Redshirt senior Matt Waldron leads Justin Meyer in the battle to kick, but freshman Cody Journell may get a chance as well. Long- and short-snapper Collin Carroll also returns this season. The return spots are still up in the air as so many talented players have shown that they can perform. Running backs Ryan Williams and David Wilson, wide receiver Dyrell Roberts, and cornerback Cris Hill seem to be the favorites to return kicks, but a handful of players could slide into these roles.
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After leading the Hokies to their third ACC title
in five years, Frank Beamer enters his 23rd season
at Virginia Tech and his 29th year as a collegiate
head coach ranked third among active Division
I-A coaches in victories with 219.
His Tech teams
have posted a 153-49 (.757) record over the past 16
seasons, have appeared in a bowl game every year
and have won 10 or more games in each of the past
five years. Over those five seasons, Tech has led the
nation in total defense, allowing only an average of
263.06 total yards in 67 games.
Last year, he led an
extremely inexperienced Tech team to a 10-4 record,
a No. 15 national ranking, a 30-12 win over Boston
College in the ACC title game and a 20-7 win over
12th-ranked Cincinnati in the FedEx Orange Bowl.
In 2007, the Hokies were 11-3,
ranked 9th nationally and posted a 30-16 win over Boston College in the ACC title
game. Five years previously, in 2004, the Hokies’ first year in the ACC, Beamer
guided Virginia Tech to a conference title en route to being named ACC Coach
of the Year.
He repeated as Coach of the Year in 2005, when he led the Hokies
to a 7-1 league record, the Coastal Division title and a spot in the inaugural ACC
Championship Game. Beamer’s Hokies have earned the highest national rankings
in the program’s history, spending 73 weeks in the Top 10 of the Associated Press
poll over the last eight seasons.
During one stretch that ended in 2004, Tech was
ranked in 84 straight AP polls. For his part in the Hokies’ run to the national title
game in 1999, Beamer earned eight National Coach of the Year awards and was
named the Big East Conference Coach of the Year for the third time. When Big
East Conference football celebrated its first 10 years of existence in 2000, Beamer
was voted the Coach of the Decade by the league’s media.
Beamer’s record at
Tech now stands at 177-89-2. Counting six years as head coach at Murray State
prior to joining the Hokies, Beamer’s overall 28-year record is 219-112-4. Of
current active coaches only Penn State’s Joe Paterno (383) and Florida State’s
Bobby Bowden (382) have won more games.
Beamer, the first alumnus to guide
the Hokies since the 1940s, took over the Tech reins from Bill Dooley in January
1987. During his undergraduate days at Virginia Tech, Beamer started three
years as a cornerback and played on the Hokies’ 1966 and 1968 Liberty Bowl
teams.
Beamer began his coaching career as an assistant at Radford High School
from 1969 through 1971. Then, after one season as a graduate assistant at the
University of Maryland, he went to The Citadel where he worked five seasons
under Bobby Ross and one year under Art Baker. His last two years at The Citadel,
Beamer was the defensive coordinator.
In 1979, Beamer went to Murray State
as the defensive coordinator under Mike Gottfried. He was named head coach
at Murray State in 1981.
2009 Preseason Information
2008 In Review
In perhaps one of his most impressive efforts as
a head coach, Virginia Tech’s Frank Beamer
guided an inexperienced Virginia Tech team to
its third ACC Football Championship in five
years, a 10-4 overall and 5-3 ACC mark; a win
over 12th-ranked Cincinnati in the FedEx Orange
Bowl and a No. 15 (AP) final national ranking...
CB Victor Harris was named a first-team All-
America (Sporting News, SI.com)...Harris also
earned first-team All-ACC honors...Freshman
TB Darren Evans set an ACC record for most
rushing yards by a freshman with 1,265 yards
and finished 3rd in the ACC in rushing with a
90.4 yards per-game average...Evans, G Sergio
Render, DE’s Jason Worilds and Orion Martin
were named 2nd-team All-ACC...Evans was
named first-team Freshman All-America (FWAA,
Rivals, CFN)...G Nick Marshman and C Ryan
Shuman were Honorable Mention All-ACC.
Who’s Gone
The Hokies only lose a total of eight starters, but
four of them were on defense including Harris,
both starting inside linebackers in Brett Warren
and Purnell Sturdivant and DE Orion Martin.
Offensively, Tech loses two starting linemen in C
Ryan Shuman and G Nick Marshman, as well
as FB Devin Perez...Also missing is PK Dustin
Keys, who finished 8th nationally in FGs per
game (23) and was a Lou Groza semifinalist.
2009 Preview
Beamer welcomes the return of 16 starters including
8 on offense, where QB Tyrod Taylor returns
to run the show. Taylor, who was in and out
of the lineup with injuries in 2008, still managed
to run for 738 yards and 7 scores, and complete
57 percent of his passes for another 1,036 yards...
An exceptional runner and accurate passer, Taylor
will benefit from having an experienced set
of playmakers around him in TE Greg Boone, WR’s Danny Coale, Dyrell
Roberts and Jarrett Boykin...as well as spring
sensation redshirt freshman RB Ryan Willams...
Three starters on the offensive line return in T’s
Ed Wang and Blake DeChristopher, an Honorable
Mention Freshman All-America, and 2nd
Team All-ACC G Sergio Render...Defensively,
the Hokies return 7 starters from a unit which
ranked 7th nationally in total defense led by 2nd
team All-ACC DE Jason Worilds, who had 8
QB sacks and 18.5 tackles for loss, DT John
Graves, who blocked three kicks, CB Stephan
Virgil, who had 6 interceptions and 4 pass breakups,
OLB Cam Martin, and FS Kam Chancellor...
Also returning are 2008 starters DT Cordarrow
Thompson and ROV Dorian Porch...
Tech’s leading returning tackler wasn’t a starter
last year, but few had their hands in more plays
than did OLB Cody Grimm, an all-star candidate,
who made 71 tackles including 7.5 sacks,
14 tackles for loss and 2 interceptions while also
forcing 2 fumbles... A replacement will have to
be found at placekicker for Keys, but P Brent
Bowden does return after pinning Tech’s opponents
inside the 20-yard line 24 times in 2008.
Numbers and Notes
5.5 - Virginia Tech’s four losses last year
were by a total of just 22 points, or an average
of just 5.5 points per game.
9 - Virginia Tech is scheduled to meet 9
teams in 2009 which went to bowl games.
Tech faced the 18th-toughest schedule in the
nation in 2008.
10 - Virginia Tech is one of only three teams
(Texas, USC are the others) in the nation
who have won at least 10 games in each of
the past five seasons.
15.5 - The number of quarterback sacks that
DE Jason Worilds (8.0) and OLB Cody
Grimm (7.5) combined for in 2008. The duo
also managed to record 32.5 (Worilds 18.5,
Grimm, 14), tackles for loss for 168 yards in
losses.
219 - The number of career coaching victories
for Virginia Tech Head Coach Frank Beamer.
Beamer, who has an overall 219-112-4
record for 28 seasons as a head coach, ranks
3rd among all active head coaches behind
only Penn State’s Joe Paterno (383) and Florida
State’s Bobby Bowden (382).
253 - Freshman TB Darren Evans ran for
253 yards on Nov. 6 against then 23rd-ranked
Maryland in Tech’s 23-13 win over the Terrapins.
The total was the most by any ACC
running back in 2008. It was also the 2nd-best
total ever by an ACC freshman (286, Amos
Lawrence, UNC vs. UVa, 1977) and it was
the 15th-best single-game effort by an ACC
runner.
1,265 - TB Darren Evans set an ACC record
for most yards rushing in a season by a freshman,
running for 1,265 yards last fall. Evans
bettered the previous high of 1,211 yards set
by
former North Carolina standout Amos
Lawrence in 1977.
263.06 - Over the last five years, Virginia
Tech leads the nation in total defense. During
that 67-game span, the Hokies have allowed
their opponents an average of just
263.056 yards per game. The next closest
team in the nation to Virginia Tech is LSU.
