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Written by Shamus Williams
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Thursday, 09 August 2007 |
Four turnovers. That is what turned a possible great season into
a disappointing one for the Virginia Tech Hokies. Four Sean
Glennon turnovers in the second half of the Chick-Fil-A Bowl turned a
certain win against a good SEC opponent into a devastating loss.
With those four turnovers in mind, Glennon has set out this year to
prove that he can be a big-time college quarterback and lead his team
to where only one man before him has, and that is in the National
Championship game in New Orleans.
Expectations are high for a team that returns a lot of starters on both
sides of the ball and the pressure is even higher for Glennon.
Everywhere you turn, the biggest question mark facing this team is
Glennon. Over the course of the next few weeks, leading up to the
opener versus East Carolina, I will preview this year’s Virginia Tech
team. I am going to start with the offense, which needs to
rebound after a tough year last season.
QUARTERBACK
Last year, Frank beamer went against the grain and
switched from athletics quarterbacks to a purely drop back
passer. While on paper Glennon performed pretty well for a
first-year quarterback, those that saw him play on a regular basis know
that he has a lot to improve. Glennon continually made the same
mistake game after game, and never seem to learn from those
mistakes. For example, during the season-opening Northeastern
game, Glennon scrambled to his right and tried to throw a ball across
his body and across the field. As you could guess it was
intercepted. Glennon decided to try that again during the bowl
game, and it was again intercepted. Glennon must avoid those
kinds of mental mistakes this year. He has to transform himself
and his thinking into a game manager. Glennon needs to not turn
the ball over and make a few third-down conversions and let his defense
shut the other team down. If he can do that, then the Hokies will
be looking at a very successful campaign. If not, look for Beamer
to have a quick hook and go with either Ike Whitaker or Tyrod
Taylor. Ultimately, the Hokies need Glennon to have a good year
if they expect to end up where they want.
OFFENSIVE LINE
If Sean Glennon is the Hokie that everyone will be
watching, then the offensive line will be number two. Last year,
the line was terrible in giving time to Glennon and giving the running
game room. It seemed as if the opposing team’s defensive line was
constantly in the backfield, and in most of the games, they were.
Glennon is not the type of quarterback who can make plays with
defenders in his face, so the line must be a lot better if the Hokies
want to score points this year. Duane Brown will once again
anchor the line, but this time from the left tackle position.
Sergio Render is also back at the right guard position and those two
must be very good again this year for the line to be better. The
loss of right tackle Ed Wang to injury will tough, but the Hokies have
a lot of young guys to step in and gain experience. I expect this
line to be much better than last year. The running game should
find room to run and give Glennon time to make some passes downfield.
BACKS AND RECEIVERS
Branden Ore was the best offensive player for the
Hokies last year, and much is expected from him again this year.
Ore is a terrific talent who has that rare ability to be a power
running back between the tackles, but can also bust it to the outside
and use his speed to get past the secondary. Ore has a good shot
to be the ACC player of the year if he leads Tech to a conference
championship, and I think he will have a real chance to do that.
The receivers are a very talented and experienced
group, but they are also a group that has vastly underachieved in their
time in Blacksburg. Eddie Royal is the best of the lot, but he
has had problems dropping the ball in his three years. Royal
needs to step up and become a big-time go-to receiver for Sean Glennon
to be successful. Also, Josh Morgan, Justin Harper, and Josh
Hyman must be reliable secondary options and not drop balls.
The tight ends will another mystery again this year.
Sam Wheeler emerged at the end of the year as a solid receiving threat
and he must continue to keep getting better and become a dump-off
option for Glennon. Greg Boone had his share of struggles
catching the ball, but he is a terrific athlete and Beamer would love
to keep putting him on the field.
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Virginia Tech 