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Home Virginia Tech A New Kind of Season for the Hokies

A New Kind of Season for the Hokies

Written by Shamus Williams

Wednesday, 06 September 2006

The Virginia Tech Hokies enter this year in an unfamiliar situation.  Two years ago, they were completely unranked and picked to finish in the middle of the Atlantic Coast Conference, yet won the conference title.  Last year, the Hokies were one of the top-rated teams in the country throughout the year, and were considered a 10-2 disappointment.  This year, the Hokies are ranked in the top 20 of both the AP and coaches poll, but don’t really figure into the National Championship picture by most pundits.  What will happen to this year’s team depends largely on how well the offense gels, if the defense plays to its extreme potential, and if BeamerBall comes back in full force to Blacksburg. OFFENSE     The Virginia Tech offense took a huge hit in January when head coach Frank Beamer dismissed former quarterback Marcus Vick due to numerous transgressions with the law.  It was a three-headed quarterback battle throughout spring practice and into the fall, until redshirt sophomore Sean Glennon was named the starting QB.  Glennon has tremendous talent, but the big question will be if he can lead a very young offense.  Glennon backed up Bryan Randall during his freshman year, and redshirted last year when Vick beat him for the job.  Naming Glennon as starter marks the first time that Beamer has started a true dropback passer at QB since Grant Noel replace Michael Vick.  Glennon has a plethora of experienced receivers to throw to this season, so he has a great opportunity to succeed.  Eddie Royal and David Clowney headline a terrific receiving corps, which must become more consistent.  Royal is a smallish receiver who has good hands and can turn a 5-yard route into touchdown every time he touches the football.  Clowney is the lone senior, and was tech’s most productive receiver last year.  Inconsistency has plagued both of these receivers throughout their career, as they will have a huge game, but then disappear the very next week.  These two, along with Josh Morgan, Josh Hyman, and Justin Harper, must be consistent pass catchers to ensure that Glennon makes a smooth transition from backup to starter.  Another key in Glennon’s advancement will be the play of the offensive line and the tight ends.  All-ACC tight end, Jeff King, has graduated and gone onto the NFL, so Tech must find a way to replace their most effective redzone receiver in 2006.  Sam Wheeler and Ed Wang both present great upside and terrific potential, but must get a better understanding of the offense if they want to be difference makers.  Look out for Greg Boone, who played QB in high school, but has made the switch to TE, and understands route running from his passing days.  Boone is a tremendous athlete, who Beamer is dying to play, and although was a QB, is already plenty big and strong enough to play the position.  The offensive line is the biggest question mark heading into the season besides QB.  The Hokies need to replace three starters from one of the best units in the ACC last year, including All-ACC selections Will Montgomery and Jason Murphy.  The main difference in this year’s line will be the added athleticism, which should help in protection against faster teams like Miami and Florida State, which dominated the bigger and slower Hokies last season.  Starting right tackle Duane Brown is a mammoth, who is amazingly quick and athletic for his size.  His move from tight end to tackle was a key component in last year’s rushing attack, and this year he will be leaned on even more heavily.  Brandon Frye stepped up and shut down sack-machine Elvis Dumervil in the Gator Bowl last season, and Frye must show that the game was no fluke.  Danny McGrath is a terrific center and needs to anchor the interior of the line, with two new starting guards.  Finally, Tech must replace two very good running backs in Mike Imoh and Cedric Humes.  Branden Ore is the favorite to replace him, but he missed the entire spring semester, staying at home to rehab his shoulder injury.  George Bell was heavily recruited prior to coming to Tech and is finally injury-free, so look for him to backup Ore.  Elan Lewis, a prep superstar from Phoebus High School, is probably the most talented of all the running backs.  He suffered a partially torn ligament in his knee, but is expected to be back by early October.  Kenny Lewis Jr. is a walk-on freshman, who has come back to school following a brief stint in baseball.  Look for the Hokies to utilize Lewis’ athletic ability on special teams. DEFENSE     Once again, Bud Foster’s defense will be the staple of the Hokie squad.  Last year’s unit was the best in the nation, but this year they could be even better.  Chris Ellis is ready for a breakout season in replacing Darryl Tapp at the defensive end position.  Ellis has the power to stop the run and the speed to be a great pass rusher.  Ellis is on his way to becoming one of Tech’s greatest defensive ends ever, and that is not an overstatement.  The Hokies will depend on Ellis for a huge year, and you can expect around 15-17 sacks from Ellis this year.  The Hokies also possess one of the best linebacking groups in the entire nation.  Vince Hall and Xavier Adibi are one of the best linebacking duos in the country, but finding a replacement for James Anderson will not be an easy task.  Brenden Hill is the landing candidate to start at the rover position for the season opener, but faces a challenge from Corey Gordon.  Whether it is Gordon or Hill, both must play within themselves and not try to do too much.  They can leave all the playmaking up to Adibi and Hall.  The secondary probably took the biggest hit this season, with the loss of All-American Jimmy Williams to the NFL.  Replacing him will be one of the Hokies most promising players, Victor “Macho” Harris.  Macho is a very gifted athlete who spent half of the spring with the offense as a running back.  He has all the tools and skills to be just like DeAngelo Hall and Jimmy Williams and follow them to the NFL as a cornerback.  The other key will be safety Aaron Rouse, who is rated as the 3rd best senior safety according to ESPN’s Mel Kiper.  He was rated as the hardest hitter in the ACC by the players at ACC Media Day, and will be depended on helping out in both the running and passing game. SPECIAL TEAMS     Frank Beamer’s ability to get the most out of his special teams units have been one of the biggest reasons for the Hokies success since his arrival, but over the past few seasons, those units have not had the same success.  The Hokies only blocked two kicks last year, and they must find a way to block more kicks this season.  Frank Beamer understands that in order to help his offense out, his special teams must create points and win the field position game.  Eddie Royal will be counted out heavily in the return game, and he must perform better than he has in the past.  Nic Schmitt and Brandon Pace are among the best kicker-punter combos in the nation, and both will be a key factor for the Hokies.  Pace has a great leg and has been great for the Hokies the past two seasons.  Not a favorite among fans, Pace has earned the right to be called one of the nation’s best.  Schmitt has a monster leg, but must become more consistent in his short game.  Schmitt outkicked his coverage a few too many times last season, including in the ACC Championship game against Florida State, in a kick that ended up changing the momentum of the game.   OVERALL     Virginia Tech has transformed itself from weakling to good team to national powerhouse since Frank Beamer took over, but he may face his biggest challenge this year.  Beamer needs to rid the Hokie program of the trouble that they had last year.  The Hokies suffered through too many penalties and off-field transgressions thanks to players like Marcus Vick and Jimmy Williams.  Frank Beamer must find a way to create the leadership and character of the team that Bryan Randall led to an ACC Championship and forget the distractions of last year.  If he can do that, then look for a very successful season out of the Hokies this season. PREDICTION     The schedule is very favorable for the Hokies this season, especially the early part of the season.  Sean Glennon and the rest of the offense will have time to mesh as games against Northeastern, Duke, UNC, and Cincinnati start the 2006 campaign.  They must be ready to play for their first test against Georgia Tech.  The defense and special teams will have to help the offense by scoring points and giving them short fields to score on, especially in the games against Boston College, Miami, and Clemson.  The Hokies play only four road games, two that would be considered difficult (Boston College and Miami), but rest assured that the Orange Bowl will be full of Hokies come November 4th.  The Hokies will go 8-0 at Lane Stadium this year on their way to an 11-1 overall record, with the only loss coming at Boston College.  They will make a return trip to the ACC Championship and find a way to beat Florida State in a low-scoring defense filled game, qualifying them for a return trip to the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans.

 

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