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inside.hokiesports.com
9
by
Jimmy
Robertson
Overcoming depth issues key to challenging
for Coastal and ACC crowns
In many respects, the Virginia Tech
football program’s spring practice served as
a “Groundhog Day” — or the same as 2016.
Fans may remember the 1993 movie of the
same name, which centered on a weatherman
traveling to Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania to
cover the groundhog’s annual emergence.
Somehow, he found himself living the same
day over and over.
Tech football coach Justin Fuente played
the Bill Murray role this spring, as for the
second straight spring practice, Fuente and
his staff searched for a quarterback, gave a lot
of young players reps for evaluation purposes,
saw a bunch of that group make plays, kept the
veterans sharp and bemoaned a lack of depth.
All of that was on display in various degrees
at the annual Maroon-Orange Spring Game,
a soggy affair that concluded spring practice.
“I think we put good work in throughout
the entire spring,” Fuente said in a broad
analysis of the Hokies’ work. “Thinking back
and reflecting on our 15 practices, I am really
proud of the way our guys continued to battle
through the dog days of practicing. We didn’t
really have a huge drop-off with any of those
practices.”
This year’s spring game turned out to be
a mildly entertaining event. Hendon Hooker
made some nice throws. Caleb Farley made
two beautiful catches. Dalton Keene caught a
touchdown pass. Tavante Beckett was all over
the field. Joey Slye connected from long range.
Tech’s first-team defense appeared stout. All
of this came about despite an annoying rain
that kept many at home.
But the untold, or under-told, story of this
spring centers on the Hokies’ lack of depth/
experience pretty much at every position. In
the post-spring analysis of each position to be
found a little later in this issue, nearly every
coach cited depth as a concern. That could put
a damper on Tech’s upcoming season.
The staff found itself fortunate this past fall.
Consider this: Tech started pretty much the
same lineup in every game. The only two major
injuries occurred when defensive tackle Nigel
Williams and cornerback/punt returner Greg
Stroman missed time with sprained ankles.
That certainly validates the chops of Tech’s
sports medicine, strength and conditioning and
nutrition staffs. Yet such good fortune rarely
lasts—and the Hokies need to be prepared.
Let’s first be clear—Tech possesses a lot
of talent, but a lot of those players haven’t
played in a college football game. Some of
them only played on special teams last season.
Unfortunately, the coaches need those players
to contribute right now. The staff simply lacks
the time to ease certain players into roles.
“I think we approach it more from it’s a fact
of life, and that’s the way it is,” Fuente said.
“It’s our job to develop the guys that are out
there.”
The positions to watch include receivers,
tight ends and the defensive line. Injuries
decimated the receivers this spring, as C.J.
Carroll, Henri Murphy, Eric Kumah and Phil
Patterson all missed valuable reps. Out of the
entire group, only Cam Phillips and Carroll
played with any regularity a season ago.
At tight end, Chris Cunningham played
some this past fall, but the backups include
Keene, a talented freshman who enrolled in
January and possesses a bright future, and
Colt Pettit, a former offensive line who plays
in short-yardage and goal-line situations. Two
more tight ends arrive in July, but the position
certainly lacks experience.
The defensive line features four front-line
starters—Vinny Mihota, Tim Settle, Ricky
Walker and Trevon Hill. Yet line coach Charley
Wiles remains uncertain on his backup
situation, which hinges on the development of
Darius Fullwood, Jarrod Hewitt, Emmanuel
Belmar and Raymon Minor.
“We are very thin,” Fuente admitted. “We
are going to need to get some guys back
healthy, some young guys to contribute, and
we’re going to need some guys who have not
played significant time to step forward. That is
a process much like the young wide receivers.
We are working through it. In no way, shape
or form are we there yet.”
The coaches have three months to sort
through all the pieces before putting together
the puzzle in August. In the end, Tech fans
want to see the starting quarterback, whoever
wins the job, set a bunch of records, watch
the offense break a bunch of records as well,
and revel in a defense that plays fast, hits hard
and stops its opponents. By the end of the
season, they hope to be Coastal champs and
competing for the league’s title.
In other words, they want 2017 to be
“Groundhog Day” — only better. It certainly
would be a sequel well worth watching.