Inside HOKIE SPORTS | Vol. 12 No. 4 | March 2020

OFFENSE 22 Inside Hokie Sports Virginia Tech’s coaching staff made a midseason change in 2019, starting Hendon Hooker at quarterback after the Hokies suffered a 45-10 home loss to Duke. That decision turned around the Hokies’ fortunes, as Hooker played very well, leading Tech to six wins in a seven-game stretch and helping the program secure bowl eligibility for the 27th consecutive season. Tech averaged 36 points per game in Hooker’s starts—a number that would have been 15th nationally had the Hokies averaged that for all 13 games. The Hokies still averaged better than 30 points per game, and they finished in the top 50 nationally in both scoring offense (49th) and rushing offense (49th, 176.1 ypg). Tech also ranked seventh nationally in red-zone offense, scoring on 94.5% of their trips inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. Hooker’s return, along with those of talented skill players Tré Turner, Tayvion Robinson, and James Mitchell and five starters on the offensive line, had the staff excited heading into spring practice, though the practice was suspended indefinitely because of complications from the coronavirus. As of press time, there was no indication of when, or if, the Hokies would hit the field this spring. That said, Cornelsen had answered numerous questions about his expectations of the group before the previously scheduled start of spring practice. As with the Q&A with Justin Hamilton, hopefully Cornelsen’s answers provide Hokie Nation with an outlook as to what to expect from him, his staff, and his offense going forward. Q: When you looked back at the 2019 season, what was your assessment of the offense? BC: It’s exciting because you saw some really good things and some guys starting to develop—some young talent and some guys that are older players. You’re starting to see just better football. So that part of it was exciting. The disappointing part was you sit there and look at a few different games, and you feel like a little better performance offensively, and we could have put a team away or found a way to win a game. Like most of the time, it’s a lack of consistency at certain times that usually gets you. But we’re certainly excited about what we saw and what we have coming back. There’s not one particular thing that glares at you. It’s just a matter of getting a little bit better at all different phases of what we’re doing, and we’ll have a chance to be pretty good. Q: The Hokies averaged 36 points per game with Hendon Hooker as the starter. What enabled him to have so much success? BC: It’s always a combination of things. It’s never just one person. Certainly, Hendon was ready for his opportunity, and he made the most of it. He did what we asked him to do in that span of whatever it was, six starts in a row of taking care of the football, and he made plays. Not only made plays with his feet that we know he added, but he made plays throwing the ball, and he made plays by the decisions that he made and standing in the pocket at times and throwing the